Home Security Blog

Honeywell released the MR3 firmware update for the Lyric security platform. This is a critical update that repaired some bugs and added some cool new integrations. In our MR3 firmware announcement Sterling summarized all the features of the update. After the announcement Honeywell re-released the update with a patch to fix a bug with APL technology. Now you can request this firmware update from your alarm company. Since it is a critical update it does not require anyone at the panel to accept it.

Although we mentioned it in our general announcement, Lyric alarm systems running the newest firmware now support 2GIG sensors! We did not go into much detail on why this may be important and which sensors are supported. Well we have done some testing in our lab and confirmed that all the 2GIG 345MHZ sensors are now compatible with the Lyric Controller. Generally we feel that the Honeywell sensors are superior and offer a wider range of products but this is a great thing for converting existing 2GIG systems to the Lyric platform.

The 2GIG wireless sensors use a 345MHz RF transmission to speak to the Go!Control panels: GC2 and GC3. Now the Lyric is able receive these transmissions making the panel even more flexible. Before the MR3 update, the Lyric only supported both lines of Honeywell wireless sensors: SiX and 5800 series. This makes the Lyric the first Honeywell alarm system to support 2GIG peripheral devices. The GC2 and GC3 have always supported Honeywell 5800 series devices but this did not work the other way around. Well now it does with the Lyric specifically. Lynx Touch and VISTA series panels still do not support 2GIG sensors. However there is a third party translator that technically is capable of converting 2GIG to Honeywell and much more. It is the Resolution Products RE524x.

2GIG sensor compatibility may not be a feature that many Lyric owners will utilize and certainly get excited about. The general trend that Honeywell is opening up their systems to other technologies and brands is a wonderful thing though. Integrations like SkyBell's video doorbell and August's smart lock prove that even companies like Honeywell that tend to operate in a proprietary bubble sense the demand for more dynamic, multi-brand technology ecosystems that compose the "Internet of Things" aka IOT. This is the future and its promising to see that Honeywell is jumping aboard the train to IoT land.

Note: The local bypass function does not work on the DW40. It simply functions as a normal door/window contact. Also, we still need to test the 2GIG garage tilt sensor and flood sensor. If they are compatible we will get them up and add them to the 345MHz landing page linked above.

While the recent Honeywell Lyric security system MR3 firmware release brought enhanced functionality and improved performance to the Lyric controller, Honeywell's engineers unearthed a strange occurrence where the Lyric system would send a false APL report after the first system disarm following a system reboot.

Certain conditions had to be met for the false APL alarm to occur. The Lyric Controller had to have a Lyric-3G or Lyric-CDMA cellular communicator installed and activated. Also, the system's arm away, arm stay and disarm reporting had to be disabled (that reporting is on by default and here at Alarm Grid, we always encourage leaving that reporting enabled). As this was a unique anomaly with a very specific and unique configuration that had to be present for it to occur, Honeywell didn't realize the bug until after the MR3 firmware was released. As the firmware causes the panel to reboot once the update was complete, their technical support team quickly heard reports of the phantom APL alarms once the MR3 was released and the engineering team worked quickly to implement a patch fix.

You may have noticed that your Lyric system wasn't allowing you to update to MR3 firmware between when that firmware was released and today. That was because they pulled that firmware back once they uncovered the APL bug.

The new firmware version 01.03.06586.482 which was released today implements the patch fix to the bug and all Lyric controllers should be able to be firmware updated once again.

We encourage all Lyric users (especially those that did get the MR3 firmware update before it was pulled back from Honeywell) to update their system firmware and we've been told Honeywell will start forcing firmware updates to all installed Lyric panels over the coming weeks.

Hi DIYers! Today we are reviewing the brand-new 5800COMBO from Honeywell. The 5800COMBO is a versatile life-safety sensor that is great for any alarm system. It offers smoke, heat and carbon monoxide, all in one convenient device. This reduces the number of life-safety sensors a user will need to install. The device was very reliable in tests, and we have already received great reviews from end users. It definitely lives up to the quality one would expect from a Honeywell sensor. We recommend the sensor for anyone who is starting fresh with new life-safety devices.

The 5800COMBO is a great addition to the Honeywell 5800 Series of wireless sensors. These sensors are easy to program, and they work with a large number of alarm systems. Any LYNX Touch, Lyric Controller, 2GIG GC3 and 2GIG GC2 can use this sensor. The sensor can also interface with Honeywell VISTA Systems using a wireless receiver. But Qolsys System owners must look elsewhere for a wireless life-safety device.

The sensor programs with an alarm system in a somewhat unique way. It requires two wireless zones on the system. One zone is for smoke and heat detection, and the other is for CO detection. Both of these zones use their own 7-digit serial number. The final digit of the CO zone is one digit higher than the fire zone. For example, let's say that the fire zone is 2222222. In that case, the CO zone is 2222223.

Each sensor on the device has shown in testing to operate in a consistent manner. The 5800COMBO smoke sensor will trigger after detecting a small amount of smoke. But this will not set off an alarm on its own. Instead a second trigger must go off for an alarm to occur. This can occur in one of three ways. The first way is for the heat sensor to activate. This will happen if the sensor detects a temperature of 135 degrees Fahrenheit or higher. The second way is for the device's built-in infrared (IR) sensor to detect a fire. The IR sensor will look for the flickering glow of flames. It will trigger an alarm upon sensing this type IR energy. Finally, an alarm will always occur if the sensor detects carbon monoxide.

All this makes the 5800COMBO a very balanced device. You won't have to worry about the sensor triggering any false alarms. That said, it will still activate in the event of a real emergency. Our extensive testing process proved this. One minor concern about the device is that it is a very large sensor. The bulky size will put off some users. But the fact that the 5800COMBO serves dual purposes more than makes up for this. The device also features two prominent test buttons for easy testing. We recommend testing this device on a yearly basis.

The 5800COMBO is UL-listed and CP-01 approved. It can request central station dispatch in the event of an emergency. By installing one, a user can receive a discount on their homeowner's insurance. The amount of this discount will vary between different states and insurance companies. A user should speak with their insurance company to find out more about a possible discount. This is another huge benefit of owning a 5800COMBO.

Alarm Grid completely endorses the 5800COMBO as an outstanding life-safety device. It is one of the most versatile sensors we have ever seen. The device is reliable, and you can count on it in any emergency situation. False alarms are very unlikely to occur, and the insurance benefits you can receive are great. If you already have a standalone smoke or CO detector, then the 5800COMBO isn't for you. In that case, it makes more sense to get a sensor that only includes the function you need. But if you are starting from scratch, the 5800COMBO is second to none. The ability to receive both fire and CO protection in one device in phenomenal. And with the device's reliability and proven performance, you cannot go wrong.

The 5800COMBO is available for sale on our website right now. It is the perfect addition to almost any alarm system. Protect your home and your loved ones with this top-quality Honeywell sensor.

With heavy hearts, we are sorry to announce that the Total Connect 2.0 service, powered by Honeywell, no longer supports the slide show feature.

While most Total Connect 2.0 users probably never even knew this feature existed, it was a pretty cool option for turning a LYNX Touch security system (models L5100, L5200, L5210 and L7000) into a digital picture frame.

From the TC2 Locations module, you could edit the house icon and click on the 'Edit Slide Show' button to upload images to your account from your computer. Honeywell's servers then download to the LYNX Touch system associated with that TC2 account/location (as long as the system had an ILP5 or L5100-WIFI internet communicator installed and online). Once the images were downloaded to the system, you could use the master programming mode (Security > More > Tools > enter Master Code) to go to the Slide Show option and setup your images to display on the panel's touchscreen when the system was sitting idle.

Honeywell indicated that the feature was removed due to "cyber security concerns" and while you can no longer use your LYNX Touch system as a digital picture frame, the new Lyric Controller does still offer the Slide Show feature. You just have to use a USB stick to load the images to the Lyric locally as the feature has been removed from Total Connect 2.0 on all systems. We have an FAQ on how to use the slide show feature on a Lyric system online at https://www.alarmgrid.com/faq/how-does-slide-show-... and if you have a LYNX Touch system now that was using this feature and want to discuss upgrading to a Lyric, we'd be happy to help. You can email us at support@alarmgrid.com or call us M-F 9-9 EST at 888-818-7728.

Honeywell has recently announced a change in the way that their Total Connect 2.0 video surveillance feature will work and the change will be implemented on or about April 19th (next Wednesday).

Currently, if you have Honeywell AlarmNet IPCAMs, you have the ability to view them remotely and have them record 10-second video clips based on a change in pixelation if you have the right Total Connect 2.0 service plan. We offer the TC2 video features without a contract required through our Self Platinum and Platinum plans at https://www.alarmgrid.com/monitoring and we even have a standalone TC2 video plan available at https://www.alarmgrid.com/video-monitoring for those that don't have a security system but want the TC2 video services.

Using a mobile device running the Total Connect 2.0 app, you can log-in and view up to 6 IPCAMs per TC2 location from wherever you are as long as the cameras are powered on and connected properly to the internet and you can watch any recorded videos.

Using the totalconnect2.com website, you can use the Video module to view the cameras remotely and you can also set up more advanced settings such as 10-second video clip recordings and alerts when video clips are captured. These clips are customized by the user and you can use the wrench icon on each camera to set up the areas of detection for each field of view and the sensitivity selections for how much movement is needed to trigger a clip. You can also setup schedules to determine when you want the cameras to record clips and when you only want live viewing capability with no recording happening.

Once you have the camera recording settings configured properly so that the cameras are recording clips of movement that you feel is important while ignoring other movements that aren't important, a new video clip will be stored to your TC2 account and will be available as a event in the Events & Notifications module. Currently, each TC2 location allows storage of up to 500MB of clips and auto-deletes the oldest available clip once the limit is reached. You do also currently have the option to "lock" certain clips that you don't want to be auto-deleted.

Here's where things change (on or about) April 19th, 2017...

While only Honeywell/AlarmNet IPCAMs currently work with Total Connect 2.0, Honeywell is (with great anticipation!) working on a new line of next generation cameras that will integrate with Total Connect 2.0 (we will have more details on the cameras at a later date) and they should be available sometime towards the end of this year.

New Seven Day Storage for Recorded Clips

In anticipation of the next generation cameras, Honeywell is transitioning all existing Total Connect 2.0 video accounts to a new 7 day plan where clips will only be available through the TC2 website/app for 7 days. The 500MB storage will go away and any clip that is older than seven days will be automatically deleted. Once the change is implemented, any currently recorded clip will be set to expire seven days later with the oldest clips being deleted first.

Regular non-TC2 video events will continue to be stored for 90 days,which is how the service works now, and first-in, first-out logic is employed when deleting the older clips.

No More Locking of TC2 Events

In addition to the changes to the video storage feature, Honeywell is removing the ability to "lock" a TC2 event (all events inclsuding security and video) so that you won't be able to save any event beyond the normal expiration (90 days for security and 7 days for video once the change is implemented).

The existing lock feature that allows you to permanently store a TC2 event/video clip:

They are providing a year grace period so that any currently locked events will stay locked up until April 15th, 2018 when all locked events will be deleted. We encourage all Total Connect 2.0 users to start saving all locked video clips outside of TC2 if you want them to still be available after April 15th of next year.

Also, we encourage all TC2 video users to start setting up email alerts with video clip attachments through their TC2 account so that each recorded clip can be saved/archived through email so that the clips are available beyond the new seven day limit.

While we are excited about the new cameras that are coming and the upgrades to Total Connect 2.0 and the video service, some of these changes may have an adverse affect if you don't update your account now to adjust for these changes. As always, let us know if you have any questions by emailing support@alarmgrid.com or calling M-F 9-9 EST.

4/19/17 - Updated: Honeywell has now scheduled the change to the video storage feature for sometime in May and the removal of the lock feature on the TC2 events is now scheduled for the week of the 24th.

Last week at ISC West, Honeywell received a SIA new product award for the newly released 5800COMBO. The Security Industry Association (SIA) rewards products that balance industry innovation with false alarm prevention. The 5800COMBO encapsulates this criteria almost perfectly. This is the first professionally monitored, fully UL listed wireless heat, smoke and CO combination detector in the industry. This feat alone is quite an accomplishment. The technology packed into the device makes this product even more deserving of this award.

Honeywell did not just integrate standard smoke, heat and CO detection into a single detector housing. They did much more. The individual technologies inside the COMBO are fairly standard. Photoelectric smoke detection, fixed temp (135F degrees) heat detection and electrochemical CO sensing. There is a new infrared (IR) technology designed to pick up ambient light levels and flame flickers. Also the CO detector does have a longer than average life expectancy of 10 years. Everything else is fairly common across other non-monitored combination detectors on the market. So what is it that makes the 5800COMBO so special?

(Photo: Honeywell's booth at ISC West just after the award was given by SIA.)

There are 3 programmable zones: smoke (loop 1 with serial), low temp (loop 3 with serial) and CO (loop 1 with serial + 1 on last digit). The low temp and CO zones are standard and only rely on a single sensing element to trip that zone on the alarm system. The smoke zone is much more advanced since this is the most common zone type for false alarms on these types of life safety detectors. This is especially the case in residential environments. It is the "multi-criteria algorithm" that sets this product apart. Yes Honeywell did it again and engineered a state of the art sensor.

The smoke zone requires two of the four sensing elements to be tripped in order to trigger a fire alarm at the alarm system and dial out to a central station. The four elements are photoelectric smoke detection, fixed high temp, CO and the new IR technology mentioned earlier. The first element must be photoelectric smoke detection. Then any of the other three elements in combination with smoke detection will trigger an immediate alarm and report if the system is monitored. If there is only airborne particulate detected the COMBO requires at least 5 minutes of alarm level contact before triggering.

This dual technology of sorts makes the 5800COMBO extremely versatile and less prone to false alarms. That means better protection for your property and more importantly life safety for anyone within the protected premise. False alarms are not only an issue for local authorities. End users are seeing increasingly higher fines per false alarm across the country. That means by using devices like the COMBO will potentially save you money in the event that your local authorities deliver fines for false dispatches.

All in all, we are very excited about the added value of the 5800COMBO to the Honeywell 5800 series line up. The barrier to monitoring smoke, heat and CO just lowered with the introduction of this simple to install, multi-faceted product. We believe that every Alarm Grid customer should have every form of life safety equipped in this device. If you do not already we recommend adding it today!

Note: This is a 5800 series wireless sensor that requires a compatible RF receiver. To confirm panel compatibility you can contact us at support@alarmgrid.com. There is a list of panels mentioned in the product description as well.

Our team had the pleasure of visiting the Honeywell booth at ISC West 2017 out in the city that never sleeps, Las Vegas. Tons of fun stuff being released but today we want to highlight a new line of HD security cameras. Yes high definition 720P and 1080P AlarmNet Total Connect 2.0 ready cameras will be released later this year. They seem to be branded within the Lyric family and we got the following insider information on the specific models they are planning to release shortly.

(Honeywell booth at ISC West displaying the new line of cameras)

The C1, C2 and OC1 are all Total Connect 2.0 ready and range from 720P to 1080P. The C1 is a 720P and the C2 is 1080P. They are both indoor rated. The OC1 is a 720P outdoor camera designed a bit better to take on the elements than the previous IPCAM-WO. This is a huge improvement from the current resolution offerings on the Honeywell IPCAM line-up. The video resolution is clearly the focus on this release but there are some cool other features involved.

EditEdit

(C2 Left and C1 Right)

Digital zoom and two way audio are touted to add serious value for home and business owners. 8 to 10 times digital zoom make it possible to get a closer look after being alerted via text, email or push notification from the Total Connect 2.0 app. Also we did not get details but it sounds like there will be a way to enroll this new line of AlarmNet cameras without WIFI protected setup (WPS) enrollment. Possibly through a local WIFI app. There is even local SD card storage (up to 24 hours) available. This inserts to a compartment on the backside of the camera.

The C1 is slated for May, C2 for June and the outdoor OC1 for July. These are approximate timelines offered by Honeywell and we cannot make any guarantees on release dates. If you want to be put on an email list to be notified upon their release please email us support@alarmgrid.com.

Scope out the OC1 outdoor camera below...

The Alarm Grid team is proud to announce some very exciting news fresh off our journey to Las Vegas at ISC West. For those already familiar with our DIY platform you will be happy to hear that our existing alarm system brands, Honeywell and 2GIG have made some giants leaps in technology. We would like to welcome those that are new to our DIY community! ISC West is a larger than life convention with incredible innovation announcements from our core alarm brands. Where to start? Let's start with our foundation, Honeywell.

Honeywell makes excellent alarm equipment but there is steep competition now when it comes to software on Total Connect 2.0. Ahem, Alarm.com... Thankfully Honeywell came through at ISC West and showcased their new line of HD AlarmNet security cameras. Yes, HD cams that will tie in with your existing TC account. Check out our Lyric HD camera press release.

Another product that Honeywell released at ISC is the 5800COMBO. The first wireless heat, smoke and CO detector that will communicate with any 5800 series receiver. That means the Lynx Touch series, Lyric series and any VISTA series panel with a compatible 5881 RF receiver. Similar to the 5808W3 the heat detector utilizes both fixed temperature (135F degrees) and rate-of-rise heat detection (15F degrees within 1 minute) along with a photoelectric smoke detector. The integrated CO detector makes this combo unit the ideal multi-functional device. Since it does not use the SiX series RF technology it is not encrypted. Honeywell plans on releasing a SiX combo detector at some point in the future. Check out our blog post: 5800COMBO Wins SIA New Product Showcase Award

Those with a Lyric Controller should be psyched to learn that the Samsung Smartthings Z-Wave hub is now compatible as a secondary controller. There are some very unique features to the way the Lyric and Smart Things hub interact as a “primary” and “secondary” controller. The Lyric seems to be learning into SmartThings as a virtual primary of sorts. That is a word I just made up by the way. The point is that the Lyric can be learned into the hub and all devices are shifted to it. The difference is that the Lyric can still include devices after it is paired and shift these automatically to the SmartThings hub. Normally "secondary" controllers can control devices from a primary but only the primary can learn devices. The relationship between the Lyric and SmartThings breaks this general rule. If you have a Lyric and are looking for a more advanced platform to expand your automation this may be the one for you! We have a FAQ on how to pair them on our website.

Enough about Honeywell. Nortek the parent company of 2GIG made some lofty announcements at ISC. We will briefly touch them here and get up some more details FAQs and blog posts shortly. First off, the GC3 has had more firmware updates in the past couple months than it has since the release! Exciting stuff already available and even more to come...

Firmware version 3.0.1 and 3.0.2 are officially available. V3.0.1 added support for the XCVR3-GC3 900MHz transceiver and the IMAGE2 Alarm.com image sensor. While this was exciting the 3.0.2 now supports future LTE communications, Schlage Z-Wave door locks and local WIFI technology. The LTE communicator has not been released yet. We will blog post when we have it available. Should be soon! "Local" WIFI in this case means that it will speak locally to a touchscreen keypad but not offer remote communications to a server. The touchscreen keypad is called the SP1 and it is a slim tablet design that will offer simple security control. It is slated to be released this summer. We will be getting up the V3.0.2 firmware on our website ASAP!

Rumors of a 3.1.0 firmware release are the real buzz. The DW40 push button bypass door sensor will begin logging bypass events with this update. More importantly, broadband WIFI support and a larger fully functional touchscreen keypad that supports full security features and automation control as well. This will be called the SP2 and seems to be the exact same physical design as the GC3 panel. It even has the cellular door which will never be used. They must have done this for production cost efficiency purposes. Although it could have just been a GC3 at ISC West since they did not have the plastics made yet. Who knows. The SP2 will be a sweet addition to the Go!Control family nonetheless.

(Top: SP2 Bottom: SP1)

We got our eyes on two completely new alarm system platforms from 2GIG. The Rely and Vario systems will offer two new vertical business models. The Rely panel will perfectly suit customers looking for an affordable, simple cellular alarm system. It is fully wireless and supports up to 14 of the 2GIG 345MHz wireless sensors (No 5800 series Honeywell like the GC panels). The Vario is a wired, bus based alarm system that supports up to 4 partitions. Prox tag keypads looks super slick! This will be more of a commercial system but will certainly be good for pre-wired residential environments as well.

Honestly Alarm.com has released so many products and third party integrations in the past couple of years I was little disappointed by their announcements at ISC West 2017. The flip side to that coin is the approach of other dealers to announce new products that do not reach the market for another year. I may prefer Alarm.com's strategy to simply push market technologies at full speed all year long. Release products when they are ready regardless of conventions like ISC. With all that said, Alarm.com does have some fun new toys.

Alarm.com currently offers water management tools in the form of flood protection and Z-Wave water valve control. However they announced adding irrigation control now. The Rachio Smart Sprinkler Controller and the Rain Bird Irrigation Controller will be offered into the long list of third party integrators. Yes you will be able to schedule your irrigation from your security app from across the world. Alarm.com is relentlessly tackling every vertical market and inviting them into their ecosystem. The final result is an incredibly versatile offering for customers with a wide range of different protocols, technologies and brands.

Alarm.com also announced a partnership with Legrand's On-Q smart audio system. Yes they are now involving AV! Hoping for a Sonos integration in the future. My hopes were not met with any solid responses so don't get your hopes up for anything too soon. Anyways the Legrand integration offers the first audio device to be immersed into automation scenes. Set schedules or build rules to trigger the audio in your home or business. The Legrand system utilizes a network of twisted pair cable like CAT5 or CAT6 to connect the different amps and peripheral speakers. This makes it easy to install with a prewired home.

Lastly the Alarm.com team showed us the new slimline doorbell camera. Manufactured by SkyBell this product fits a specific need for those with small spaces to replace an existing doorbell. The existing SkyBell HD is already available and due to its larger size offers a1080P resolution. The new slim design bumps it down to 720P but it still looks great.

Last week Honeywell released a new critical firmware update (01.03.06549.482) for the Lyric security system:

The update addressed some known bugs on the system and added enhanced functionality to the system as well.

Improved SiX Performance

The Lyric is Honeywell's newest all-in-one wireless touchscreen security system and while it works with the older Honeywell 5800 wireless sensors, it also works with new SiX Series sensors. The SiX Series sensors are one of the main advantages of the Lyric system as they are bi-directional to the panel and also encrypted on their wireless signaling making them much more reliable and secure compared to the existing 5800 Series sensors.

One of the main improvements the new MR3 firmware provides for the Lyric is improved performance of the SiX devices. Once your Lyric is upgraded to the new firmware, it will proactively check the RF environment throughout the day to ensure all of your SiX devices are on the proper RF channel so that your sensor communications stay consistent even if you are adding new wireless technology to your home.

2Gig Wireless Sensor Support

While most people would use Honeywell 5800 or SiX Series sensors with their Lyric system, the new firmware also unlocks the ability to program 2Gig security sensors to a Lyric. 2Gig is another security system manufacturer and 2Gig systems work with Honeywell 5800 Series sensors and 2Gig sensors. Up until this firmware release, no Honeywell system would work with 2Gig sensors though so now the Lyric allows someone with an existing 2Gig system installed to be able to just change out the main all-in-one wireless panel to a Lyric without having to buy all new sensors as well.

LTE Cellular Communications

Prior to the new firmware, the Lyric supported WIFI communications without any extra modules needed. Also, if someone wanted cellular backup to the WIFI communication path which provides for a more reliable form of alarm communication that still works if and when the internet is offline or unavailable, the Lyric supported the AT&T Lyric-3G communicator and the Verizon Lyric-CDMA communicator. Now, with the new firmware, the Lyric will support LTE cellular communicators as well. We are in beta program for an AT&T LTE module that should be released soon and we expect a Verizon LTE module to be coming as well. LTE is a newer, faster cellular network compared to the networks that the Lyric-3G and Lyric-CDMA communicators use and should provide greater long term longevity if and when AT&T and Verizon ever discontinue their respective HSPA and CDMA-1X networks.

Solved LKP500 Keypad Bugs

While you can control the Lyric system from the Lyric touchscreen and from mobile devices, the system also supports a wireless keypad called the LKP500:

The addition of an LKP500 (or multiple LKP500s as the Lyric supports up to 8 wireless keypads) provides another fixed spot in the home that you can arm and disarm your system from as well as being able to see system status and hear zone chime alerts. Unfortunately, there was a known issue where the zone assigned to an LKP500 keypad would report a low battery even when no low battery problem existed. Honeywell has solved that issue and the fix is part of the MR3 firmware release. While Honeywell didn't have documents issues on another issue with the LKP500, we did have a small number of users also report a high pitched tone emanating from the LKP500 when arming to stay mode, during the exit delay countdown. This issue seems to have been solved with the latest firmware release as well.

General Bug Fixes

In addition to the enhancements detailed above, the new MR3 firmware also addressed some other Lyric system bugs that Honeywell didn't detail so we encourage all Lyric system users to update to the latest firmware even if none of the improvements listed above matter to you.

How to Update Firmware

You can request a firmware upgrade by asking the company that monitors your Lyric to send the firmware down remotely or you can run the firmware update yourself by pressing Security > Tools and entering your system's Installer Code followed by hitting Update firmware. Once you hit the Update firmware button, we suggest backing out to the home screen and then waiting a while for it to process. Once it's done, the system should reboot and then you can confirm by pressing Security > Tools > enter Master Code > Advanced > System Information and verifying that the Rev. number on the top line shows the latest firmware version (01.03.06549.482).

Your Lyric system does need to be on a certain version to have the option to update from the panel so if you can access programming mode but you don't see the Update firmware option, your system will need to be updated remotely by your alarm monitoring company.

We applaud Honeywell for continuing to enhance the functionality of the Lyric system and we are excited about even more enhancements that should be coming with future firmware updates as well.

AlarmNet is experiencing an outage and it’s causing alarm panels to send a communication error.

Some panels may show a Check 103 error or a bf error.

Once the outage is over, your alarm panel should return to it’s normal state