Can chromatographic instruments and LAC/E be connected to a switch configured for VLAN? - WKB254649

ENVIRONMENT

• Empower
• LAC/E
• Chromatographic instruments
• Instrument LAN

ANSWER

No

This is not supported or tested.

• The Instrument LAN MUST be configured as prescribed in the Empower installation guide.
• It is expected that each LAC/E has a dedicated switch (if one is required to connect multiple instruments)
• Instrument should be connected directly to the instrument LAN of the LAC/E (this may use a dedicated switch)

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Waters cannot guarantee there will be no unforeseen issues connecting multiple LAC/Es and instruments to a switch using VLANs to segregate them.

• The impact on the buffering mechanism of the LAC/E is unknown and untested/unsupported
• Packet loss or other impacts on raw data file transfer, including header corruption
• More frequent need to verify incomplete data after acquisition completes
• Possibility that acquisitions will not run or be interrupted

The customer who asked wanted to mitigate cables being unplugged. This risk is not mitigated by using VLANs because the LAC/E or instrument connector can still be unplugged. There is no valid reason to employ VLAN for the instrument LAN.