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Home > Interfaces > Phone, Movie, POS, etc. > Comtrol® Interfaces > Comtrol® Setup

Execu/Tech's Comtrol Interface Manager (comtrol.exe) Setup 

  Maid Status Codes

Configuration of Maid Status Codes is a common question we get. Unfortunately, we can't help you with them. These codes are predefined by the manufacturer of the device you're using, whether it be a PBX, or an application like DuVoice. We don't have any control over the codes being sent or how they're configured in your device. We receive a message telling us to set a room to 'Clean', 'Dirty', or 'Needs Inspection'.

Based on the code keyed into the phone or an application, it's the devices responsibility to provide us with the correct message and we can't change how we respond to a specific message. For example: We can't treat a 'Clean' message as a 'Dirty' message to accommodate your desire to use different codes. If you need to redefine the code you're entering, contact your device vendor for assistance.


Available Codes in Comtrol's interface and how we treat them. Comtrol's code isn't necessarily the code used in your phone system.

These codes are predefined and we can't make changed in our interface to treat them other than what their intended purpose is.

Phone System
Code 		 Comtrol's
Code 		 Comtrol's
Description 		 E/T
Code 		 E/T
Description 
Determined by
Phone System		 1  Room Cleaned  C  Clean 
Determined by
Phone System 		 2  Cleaning Req'd  D  Dirty 
Determined by
Phone System 		 3  Cleaning In-Progress  D  Dirty 
Determined by
Phone System 		 4  Inspection Req'd  N  Needs Inspection 
Determined by
Phone System 		 5  Maintenance Req'd  N  Needs Inspection
Determined by
Phone System 		 6  Out of Order    Ignored. Must be set in the PMS 
Determined by
Phone System 		 7  Pick-up    Ignored. No such status in PMS 
Determined by
Phone System 		 8  Passed Inspection  C  Clean 
Determined by
Phone System 		 9  Failed Inspection  D  Dirty 
Determined by
Phone System 		 10  Cleaning Skipped    Ignored. No Change to Existing Code 
Determined by
Phone System 		 11  Room Cleaned / Occupied  C  Clean 
Determined by
Phone System 		 12  Room Cleaned / Vacant  C  Clean 
Determined by
Phone System 		 13  Cleaning Req’d / Occupied  D  Dirty 
Determined by
Phone System 		 14  Cleaning Req’d / Vacant  D  Dirty 

Comtrol® Lodging Link PTS



Use the help document that installed with LLPTS to help you configure the ports.

For the PMS to begin communicating with the Comtrol interface, a line needs to be added to the settings file "MENUINI.FIL"
  • Open "MENUINI.FIL with Notepad.
  • At the bottom, add the line "HOTEL-COMTROL=YES".
  • To enable the Wakeup Call function in Front Desk, add the line "HOTEL-WAKE-UP-CALLS=YES".
  • To enable the key interface via Comtrol, add the line "KEY-INTERFACE=COMTROL".
  • Safe the file and restart the PMS software at all terminals.
The rest of this page deals with the settings in the Execu/Tech portion of the interface, the Comtrol Interface Manager (Comtrol.exe). 

  Changing Settings in the Comtrol Interface Manager (comtrol.exe)

Before changing settings, you must first make sure that the scheduled task that runs the Comtrol Interface Manager is stopped. Because of a complicated shutdown sequence required to ensure that no posting transactions are lost, sometimes ending the task won't really end the process, even though it reports that it has.  After 30 seconds, check the Task Manager for "comtrol.exe" and end it if it's still running. 

After ensuring that "comtrol.exe" is no longer running as a scheduled task, you can browse to the install folder and run it by double clicking it. 

The default installation folder for the Comtrol Interface Manager (comtrol.exe) is C:\ExecuTech\ETComtrol on either the server or a computer designated by the customer to run this application. Check the scheduled task for the actual install location if you can't find it.

Main Window

This is the main window of the Comtrol Interface Manager (comtrol.exe). The main window is filled with a real time log, showing activity between Execu/Suite PMS and Comtrol's LLPTS.

Click Settings to display and edit the settings tabs.



File  -  There are two items under this menu item:
Save Settings - This saves the settings.
Open Application Folder - This opens the application install folder.
Settings  -  This displays the Settings tabs.
View Log  -  This displays the current log file. 
About  -  This displays an "About" box. 
Check Connection  -  This sends an "Are You There?" message to LLPTS to verify proper communication.

Settings

This is the Settings menu bar.

 
  • To save the settings, click the "Save Settings" button. 

  • To close the settings tabs, click the "Close Settings" button. 
    If you want to save any changes you've made, be sure to click "Save Settings" first.
  • To edit the settings, you must first click the "Allow Edit" button.  
    This will pause the interface until you are finished and either close the settings or click "Allow Edit" again.

Coms

This is where you configure the communication settings.



IP Address 

   This is the IP address of the computer running the Comtrol LLPTS service. 
TCP Port 

   This is the PORT that the LLPTS service is using for the PMS. Default is 32768. 
HOTEL Company 

   This is the PMS Hotel Company Number. This is the default company number that will be used with communicating between the PMS and the interfaced devices. 
HOTEL Folder 

   This is the folder where the PMS software has been installed. 
Delay (Seconds)
 		   This is the minimum delay, in seconds, between message attempts with the LLPTS service. There is no universal optimum speed, but 1 second is a good starting point. Slower computers should raise this until there are no communication errors in the log.
Log File Size (Lines)
 		   This is the number of lines that will be in the log file. The purpose of the log is to troubleshoot recent communication issues so it doesn't need to be very long. 10,000  is the maximum.
ReSync Company 

   Some databases contain rooms from multiple unused companies. This happens when databases for several hotels were once combined. If the databases have been split, you don't want to cause unnecessary delays by resyncing hundreds of rooms that don't exist. Specify the company number of the PMS company that still uses this database.


Enabled

This is where you configure the interfaces that are enabled. Different interfaces require different messages to be sent. 

PBX

This is where you configure the PBX interface settings.


 
Use Restriction 

   Check this box to use call restrictions, also known as level of service or class of service.  
Execu/Tech Systems DOES NOT determine what codes are sent for a specific restriction. We communicate with the Comtrol Lodging Link service and it sends the apropriate code depending on the brand and model of the PBX. These are typically pre-defined in the phone system and if you've selected the correct interface brand and model, they will work in the default settings. If you don't know what these codes are for your PBX, we can perform tests to send each restriction level and you or your phone vendor can decide how to utilize them. 
Guests with no credit limit

   These are guests with no credit limit specified in the PMS.*
Cash Guests with credit limit

   These are CASH guests with a credit limit specified in the PMS.*
Credit Guests with credit limit

   These are CREDIT CARD guests with a credit limit specified in the PMS.*
Ignore DMM    If you have 2 devices that both send maid status messages, enter the DMM of the device to ignore. An example of this would be having a Mitel PBX and DuVoice voice mail. Because DuVoice also handles maid status, sometimes employees might enter these settings in both systems. However, you must pick one and ignore the other. Enter the DMM of the device that will be ignored.

* These are the available restrictions and the code received by the PBX is typically pre-defined and dependent on the brand and model.
0  All Allowed  
1  All Restricted  
2  Toll Restricted (ECC 1)  
3  Local Only (ECC 2)  
4  Internal Only

  The first digit represents the code that we send to Comtrol's LLPTS and may not represent the code that LLPTS sends to the PBX. However, the description of the restriction should line up with a setting in the PBX because these are common descriptions. We can't change the code that LLPTS sends to the PBX for a particular restriction because it's based on the vendor's specifications. If you're not getting the desired results, try different restrictions - a setting for one vendor might mean something else to another vendor. 

Codes - Phone

Phone posting codes are predefined in the PMS, so they can't be configured at this time.

Codes - Movies

Configure the movie charge and tax codes here. 

Codes - Internet

Configure the internet usage charge and tax codes here.

Codes - Games

Configure the games charge and tax codes here.

Remap - Master

This is where you remap the relation between PMS room numbers and phone extensions.

If you have a key interface, you must configure the remapping under the keys tab.

 

If you have a lot of remapping to do, you can create a spreadsheet and save it as a Tab Delimited file and import it.
The FIRST column is the PMS room number. The SECOND column is the phone extension.

Posting

This tab allows you to see pending posts from phone, POS, movie, etc.

You can also pause and manually initiate the posting of pending transactions when testing. However, this should only be done when testing posting to the PMS.
 

911 Alert

  This function is provided for information purposes only. You must not rely on this function in any emergency situation. There is absolutely no guarantee that this will function properly because there are several pieces to the interface, all of which must work perfectly for proper function. A problem with cabling, the phone system, the server, the interface application, email settings, etc. can cause this function to fail. 

If all pieces of this function are configured, an email will be sent containing the extension that called 911 and the time the call was placed. This email will be sent as soon as the Comtrol Interface Manager receives the call data containing the 911 call.
If the phone system doesn't send these 911 calls, this function will not work.



911 column start  If we're receiving raw call data (your phone system is unable to send in any common valid format) then this is the column where the 911 number will appear. You will have to make a call and look at the call record in the log file "COMTROLLOG.FIL". 
SMTP Server  This is the URL to your SMTP server. Get this information from your email provider. *REQUIRED
Username  This is your SMTP Username.  Get this information from your email provider. *REQUIRED
Password  This is your SMTP Password.  Get this information from your email provider. *REQUIRED
Port This is the SMTP Port. The default port is 25. Get this information from your email provider. *REQUIRED
 
Require Authentication  Check this box if your SMTP server requires authentication. Get this information from your email provider.
Use SSL  Check this box if your SMTP server uses SSL. Get this information from your email provider. 
From / To Address  This is the email address that will appear in the "FROM" field when an email is sent. This is also the primary address to which the alert will be emailed. *REQUIRED
CC Addresses  This is an optional CC address that will receive a copy of the email. 
BCC Addresses  This is an optional BCC address that will receive a copy of the email. This is often desired when you want to keep a log of all emails being sent from Execu/Suite PMS. Us this if you want to hide the copied address from the guest.
Test Print / Email  This button allows you to test the email and print functions.


Keys - General

If your key system requires a password for the PMS to be able to make keys, enter that password on this screen.

 

Keys -  Terminal to Station Map

This is where you map the PMS terminals to the key system station number. The PMS terminal number can be found in the bottom left corner of the PMS software window. 

It's a good idea to set a Default terminal setting in case you add a new terminal and forget to modify this setting.

Keys - Room Remap

This room number remapping table only applies to key systems.

This is provided because it's often not feasible to change the room numbers in the key system at the same time it's changed in the PMS, phone or other 3rd party devices. This is because someone must physically reprogram every door lock, one at a time.


  • If your key system uses the same room numbers that are in the PMS, do not fill out this table.

  • If only a few rooms need remapping, just add those and the rest will use the PMS room number.

  • If your key system uses the same room numbers used in the master remapping table, found in the "Remap" tab on the first row of tabs, you can import from this table.
    To do this, select Import then Import from Master Table.



  • If you have a lot of remapping to do, you can create a spreadsheet and save it as a Tab Delimited file and import it.
    The FIRST column is the PMS room number. The SECOND column is the key room number.

Testing
 
This tab provides a few options to test. 
  • Maid Status 
  • 911 call alert function
  • Call Posting
  • Key interface
  • Check In
  • Check Out
  • Call Restriction (Level or Class of Service)
  • Wake Up Call




Article ID
 comtrol__setup
Views
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Last Modified
 10/23/2020 11:08 AM