Change Computers

[wirelessnate]

I am pretty sure I know the answer but wanted to double check

If I change computers, ie Did the original install on one and created a profile, then moved to another, I need to grab the profile from the original computer if I want to go back to OEM as on the new computer the profile would have all the changes I made originally.  Basically the original computer I installed orbit on died, and had to move to another computer. I was able to make changes on the first computer, and when I installed Orbit on the second computer, it asked to create a profile again. So my assumption is that second profile it created would show the configs that I changed, and "Return to OEM" would in fact return to changed configs and not full OEM?

I hope I asked that in a way that is decipherable.

[Apansson]

I wonder this as well. If I loose my computer in future and want to restore to oem. What do I need to backup?

[danthe88]

I don't think OEM is saved on the server for each car, I have changed computer and return to OEM option didn't returned it so I had to revert everything manually, to save configuration file as OEM, and now when I need it, I just load OEM cfg file...

[Power6]

Hi people, I can clear this up. I probably owe the user base a separate FAQ on this, as I think the info is buried in other questions but this one is really it's own topic. To address the questions at hand...

First the basic concept, I know it twists the brain some! It's obvious to me, since I know how the system works, but it's not obvious to you, the OrBit user:

• OrBit never needs a back up, ever! It doesn't work that way. Restore OEM returns the car to original, always.
  

• You don't need to make your own backup! You can do whatever you like of course. Saving a "backup" file of config settings, that you can later load and write, may return the car to the same config settings as you started with. But that doesn't restore the car to original...Only "Restore to OEM" restores the car to it's original state, before you used OrBit.
  

• It's better to think of "Restore to OEM" as the way to "wipe all customized config settings" as that is closer to what is happening under the covers. When you write a config to the car, we "take over" the config and change the things you like to change. When you Restore the car, we overwrite that with a bit of original software, and all customizations then disappear.
  

With that in mind, to the specific questions asked here:

If I change computers, ie Did the original install on one and created a profile...So my assumption is that second profile it created would show the configs that I changed, and "Return to OEM" would in fact return to changed configs and not full OEM?

So this is not correct, you don't need anything from the old computer. OrBit can "Restore to OEM" it doesn't need a backup. So in your scenario, you can install OrBit on a new computer, connect the car, create the profile, save the PIN(s) in the profile, then Restore to OEM to put the car back to original. No backup is needed to do it.

You CAN transfer the profile from the old computer, or OrBit also backs them up to "the cloud" so I can retrieve a copy of the car profile for you. This is only useful for convenience, exmple if you have entered the CEM PIN and then forgotten to keep a copy of it somewhere. In that case you would contact support, and I can help you recover the CEM PIN from a backed up car profile. For most cases, it's easiest to just connect the new computer and create a new profile from the new install of OrBit. As long as you have the PIN(s) you need, there is nothing else in the old profile that you would need, it's just stored ECU info that OrBit reads directly from the car.

I wonder this as well. If I loose my computer in future and want to restore to oem. What do I need to backup?

You need no backup. You can literally install OrBit on any computer, connect to the car, create profile, enter your PIN(s) and then Restore to OEM. No backup is needed.

I don't think OEM is saved on the server for each car, I have changed computer and return to OEM option didn't returned it so I had to revert everything manually, to save configuration file as OEM, and now when I need it, I just load OEM cfg file...

So something isn't right about this story...you see, it's actually impossible to Restore to OEM and have any config item be different than what it was originally. It can't actually happen, because it doesn't work that way. (*)



(*)Now there IS one caveat here, that could be helpful to know. I hate to potentially confuse things by going into it, but it illustrates why you should always use "Restore to OEM", and making your own backups and loading saved settings to "restore" is NOT the same. Stop reading here if you are not a freak for the details. You don't need to know any more than that. If you like the details, here is a scenario, which is a rare thing to happen, but shows why "Restore to OEM" exists and why you should always use it to put the car back to original:

Occasionally, Volvo will change the config of your car. They actually change it every time you install software updates, but OrBit handles that so you don't get yourself in to trouble even if you do things the "wrong" way. Accessory installs, adjustments (like tire size change), and very occasionally a software update, done at the dealer through VIDA, will change the config of the car. Not the same way that OrBit does it, but the build (aka variant) config of the car, and the result is changed config settings. Let's use the tow hitch for example, if you have the dealer install the tow hitch, the build config of the car is changed to "with tow hitch" settings. Now what happens with the car, when you later try to restore to the original config with OrBit?

• If you make your own "backups" and restore with saved settings file (wrong way): You will restore some old settings, changing the configs for the tow hitch back to "without tow hitch" settings. And your tow hitch will not work.
  

• If you use "Restore to OEM" in OrBit to restore to original config (right way): All settings are restored as original, even if that original config has been changed by Volvo. Tow hitch config settings will be correct, the tow hitch will work as it should.
  

The above is the reason, along with the fact that there is no need for a backup, that you should always use "Restore to OEM" to revert the car to original config settings.

[IMAY2023]

The only scenario I can think of for backing a configuration right after "restore to OEM" is this. 
Let's say we took a backup of config right after restore the OEM and called it "factory_config" 

Then we changed configuration one after another several times adding / removing or trying out  different things. Finally let's say we reached the desired configuration we want and took a backup "final config" 

After couple of days, we wonder or want to know what exactly we have changed from the original factory config because we've done so many changes and we do not remember. 
We load the " "factory_config"  that we have taken at the beginning of our journey and select "show changed items", which will highlight and show only the items we changed from the factory to the desired final config.   We do not write it to car but we just take the notes. "Copy and paste" configuration items into a notepad.

[Power6]

You bring up a good point IMAY2023, there are reasons to back up configs, which is why saving and loading settings is possible in OrBit. It doesn't need to be done to restore the car to factory settings, but it is useful for comparison. Which is why I included saving and loading settings as a very general tool to support many scenarios where you might want to save/load and compare settings.

One tip, you can also load saved settings file into the configurator table without a car connected. So you can load and reference the settings in a saved file "offline".

[Sieluck]

One tip, you can also load saved settings file into the configurator table without a car connected. So you can load and reference the settings in a saved file "offline".

OK. But can you somehow (by loading oem settings for example) bring the changes we have made and save just those changes to a file, don't know, txt, xlsx etc?

Wysłane z mojego CPH2581 przy użyciu Tapatalka

[danthe88]

I don't think OEM is saved on the server for each car, I have changed computer and return to OEM option didn't returned it so I had to revert everything manually, to save configuration file as OEM, and now when I need it, I just load OEM cfg file...

So something isn't right about this story...you see, it's actually impossible to Restore to OEM and have any config item be different than what it was originally. It can't actually happen, because it doesn't work that way. (*)

When I "restore to OEM", my tire size is wrong (I have 265/35R22" from the factory), the alarm goes to disabled (also an option from the factory), and one more option also goes wrong (can't remember exactly)...
But never mind, maybe somebody messed with the config before me, it is good to know that "restore to OEM" is always the correct choice before visiting the dealer, regardless of the settings in it.

[IMAY2023]

I don't think OEM is saved on the server for each car, I have changed computer and return to OEM option didn't returned it so I had to revert everything manually, to save configuration file as OEM, and now when I need it, I just load OEM cfg file...

So something isn't right about this story...you see, it's actually impossible to Restore to OEM and have any config item be different than what it was originally. It can't actually happen, because it doesn't work that way. (*)

When I "restore to OEM", my tire size is wrong (I have 265/35R22" from the factory), the alarm goes to disabled (also an option from the factory), and one more option also goes wrong (can't remember exactly)...
But never mind, maybe somebody messed with the config before me, it is good to know that "restore to OEM" is always the correct choice before visiting the dealer, regardless of the settings in it.

Two things, 
1) Tyre size. If you have a different wheel and tire size than the factory OEM, my suggestion to you is  this. Get a VIDA subscription and under the functional changes TAB, install the correct tire size. It does not cost much. Wrong tire size setting will cause problems with odometer, ABS, traction control and etc.  
2) If you leave the Alarm connected to car while VIDA reads the car, it will force you to reload it under HW changes before allowing total upgrade.  This does not mean your car will be blocked for software update / reload.  I do not know the price of Alarm software (without IMS - internal motion sensor). If you mean retrofitted IMS (Internal motion sensor) by  " the alarm goes to disabled" , I suggest you disconnect it before doing read out from VIDA. Otherwise, VIDA will force you to do Reload IMS (costs $250 USD) or reload "Remove IMS" (costs $90 USD) before allowing total upgrade.

[danthe88]

I don't have anything retrofitted, alarm and 265/35R22 are from the factory, but when I do OEM Restore it changes to some other dimension of the tires and marks the alarm as disabled...
But it doesn't concern me much, as I know that if I restore to OEM I need to change those two values, so I made my "OEM" cfg file... I don't want to waste time about why that happens, maybe it's wrong factory coding, maybe something else...