BCD436HP/BCD536HP: Sentinel bug? Adding a trunked site to a system from the DB

Normally when you add a talkgroup to a FL via the DB, it will add all sites from that radio system into your FL along with the TG you selected.

I went into the favorites list, and removed unnecessary sites to speed up scan time, but I accidentally deleted one I needed.

How can I add that one site back, I can't right click and 'add to favorites list' because it's grayed out, that option seems to only be available to talkgroups.

I do not want to delete the entire system in my favorites list and recreate it, that is a pain.

Is there a way around this?

tylerwatt12 said:

Normally when you add a talkgroup to a FL via the DB, it will add all sites from that radio system into your FL along with the TG you selected.

I went into the favorites list, and removed unnecessary sites to speed up scan time, but I accidentally deleted one I needed.

How can I add that one site back, I can't right click and 'add to favorites list' because it's grayed out, that option seems to only be available to talkgroups.

I do not want to delete the entire system in my favorites list and recreate it, that is a pain.

Is there a way around this?

Click to expand...

In the HP-1 series using Sentinel, it works like:

Select "Edit FL" (Gold Star with the little pencil)
Select the proper FL
Select the "System" you want to edit
Select "Sites"
Click on the "Green Plus"
Name your new Site
When it appears on the left as a new Site, click on it
Select "Frequencies"
Click on the Green Plus"
Manually enter your frequency
If "Frequencies (plural) continue to Click on the Green Plus, adding Frequencies, until you have completed your task
Save your work before exiting the FL Editor
Send to scanner

You can't do much to a Favorite List in Sentinel without clicking on the star/pencil first. But after? The world is your oyster, lol.

I get what you mean, but the site i'm trying to import has 20+ frequencies, and it probably won't update properly when a new DB revision gets pushed out. I did find a way to do it quicker by making a new FL, adding a talkgroup to the new FL, now it has all the sites, delete the sites I don't wait again, and use the append to favorites list feature when right clicking on the old FL. Then delete the old FL

I am uncertain what you mean. Are you trying to replace something like a City Services Department you deleted, because I can do that from the main Database.

Or are you trying to add back an actual frequency listed in the Site, such as 852.1725? If so, can you just replace the site from the system? As was mentioned, you can add specific frequencies to a site. I do not know if just adding something like a control frequency would meet the needs for it to function correctly in a trunking environment,

CalmWind said:

I am uncertain what you mean. Are you trying to replace something like a City Services Department you deleted, because I can do that from the main Database.

Or are you trying to add back an actual frequency listed in the Site, such as 852.1725? If so, can you just replace the site from the system? As was mentioned, you can add specific frequencies to a site. I do not know if just adding something like a control frequency would meet the needs for it to function correctly in a trunking environment,

Click to expand...

I'm trying to re-add an entire site into a favorites list, from the DB. Without having to rebuild that favorites list, or manually enter in the site name with each frequency.

If you would us which system you are working with, it might help. Since the "site" seems to be a list of frequencies, you can't just replace that? The site is usually the last department listed for the System.

You could cut and paste the Freqs., after recreating a "dummy"new one. Don't believe you can C&P a site.

Been there , done that - almost easier to re-create a new favorite. If the TG's are edited, C&P them over to the new one.

Agree it's a PITA, but seems to be the only way to do it.

tylerwatt12 said:

I'm trying to re-add an entire site into a favorites list, from the DB. Without having to rebuild that favorites list, or manually enter in the site name with each frequency.

Click to expand...

tylerwatt12 said:

I'm trying to re-add an entire site into a favorites list, from the DB. Without having to rebuild that favorites list, or manually enter in the site name with each frequency.

Click to expand...

The method I outlined looks cumbersome due my listing of all the individual steps (just in case you were a noob). In real life, a person familiar with the workings of Sentinel, and having the RR.com DB open to the appropriate desired frequency "location", a four control frequency Site could be added manually to an existing system in about the same time that you took to type the quoted response.

CalmWind said:

" ... I do not know if just adding something like a control frequency would meet the needs for it to function correctly in a trunking environment,

Click to expand...

Probably depends on the scanner, but for most, only the "ACTIVE" CC is necessary. The scanner is given all the other info via that CC when the scanner locks on it. The few "alternate" CC frequencies are usually entered JUST IN CASE the radio system changes the "ACTIVE" CC to one of the "alternates".

Tyler, I understand what you are trying to do. Unfortunately sentinel only lets you append "Systems, Departments and Channels" not Sites. If all the sites are loaded you can avoid the ones you don't want or you can mass select them in the FL editor and delete them.
Having them set to avoid will not slow your scanning down.

Also, I forgot to mention ... as Microsoft would say .... "It's a feature, not a bug", lol.

If the OP is looking at the "Greater Cleveland Radio Communications Network" system, that is a very large P25, Phase 1 system.

If we knew exactly what needed to be replaced, it should be easy.

Removing a system from the favorites list prior to adding, may be required. But the entire favorites list, which includes other systems, should not have to be reset.

The easiest way to add the site you accidentally deleted would be to, Create new site, name it, then add one frequency. Then go into RR DB to the sytem you want and copy the frequencies for the site you want, Then paste them into your site.

Keep in mind you'll have to put the location and range data in if you create the site manually.

Creating it manually is what I'd do, but I admit that method might not be for everyone.

Here's step-by-step instructions from the information available:

- Edit your favorites list (star-with-pencil, or Ctrl+2); select the appropriate system, and click to the "Sites" tab.

- Click the green cross (oversized plus sign) to add a site. It'll add to the bottom of the list. You can type in the desired name, set avoid, modulation, atten, quick key, P25 wait, P25 threshold mode and level on this screen.

- On the left pane, find the new site you just created (will be at the bottom of that system), and click on it. The right pane will change to the empty site with headers "Frequencies", "Options", "Band Plan", and "Location".

- Select "Location" from the right pane.

- In the RRDB, on the appropriate system's page, click on the site name for the site you're adding. (Example: If it is indeed this system, click on either "Cleveland Simul", "Walton Hills", "Chagrin Falls", or "Hunting Valley"). You will get the site details page.

- In Sentinel in the favorite list editor in the Location field, put in the lat/long/range as shown on the site details page. For example if adding the Walton Hills site, key in 41.37892 for the latitude, -81.57867 for the longitude, and 5 for the range.

- Click back to the "Frequencies" tab in Sentinel and press the green cross to add a cell. You probably won't be able to copy and paste frequency data from RR because it lists them in 1-3 rows of up to 7 columns apiece, instead of listing each frequency one to a row. But you can type it in. Keep pressing the green cross to add as many cells as you need. LCN order and LCN value has no meaning in P25 systems so you don't need to worry about that. If you're 100% sure that the control channels are listed properly in RR, you don't need to put in any of the channels listed on RR in black text; just the red (and possibly blue) ones. Otherwise, I usually put in all freqs, just in case the control channel rotates onto a freq that is otherwise thought to be a voice channel.

- The "Options" page lists all the stuff you had access to when you first created the site (on the grid view earlier on in this list). You can adjust it here if you want instead of on the grid.

- Don't forget to save when you exit the favorites list editor, and then upload the modified favorites list to your scanner.

Hope this helps!

While it is possible to manually add a site back that has been deleted, I would recommend deleting the system and re-adding from the database. It will take less time to delete what you don't want than adding particulars to an existing system manually in most cases. And it eliminates fat fingering.

Mark
WS1095/536/436/996P2/HP1e/HP2e/996XT/325P2/396XT/PRO668/PSR800/PRO652

Agreed!

The append to Favorites List is not ideal. You will lose your avoids if you have any. You are better off to export and import again.

If it were me, I would re-append to a NEW FL, delete what I didn't want (in this case, all but that Site), then append that to the original FL so it will be added without any changes to other data. This will only work of the names of the two systems are identical.