Question: Are there additional resources to help troubleshoot network connectivity issues for the Visium CytAssist instrument?
Answer: Visium CytAssist instruments are designed to be connected to the 10x Cloud. The instrument provides an easy way to connect to Wi-Fi or Ethernet. Ethernet connections are recommended for optimal performance. This article provides additional guidance to help troubleshoot network connectivity issues.
General guidance/resources for network Connectivity
Visium CytAssist Resources:
- The Visium CytAssist: Network Connectivity Guidelines Technical Note provides network connectivity guidelines for Visium CytAssist instrument to enable easy updates and 10x Genomics Cloud connection to reduce unplanned instrument downtime, minimize run failures and sample loss, and help troubleshoot any connectivity issues. Visium CytAssist Spatial Gene Expression, Visium CytAssist Spatial Gene and Protein Expression, Visium CytAssist HD assays are supported on Visium CytAssist instruments.
- The Visium CytAssist Instrument User Guide provides additional details regarding various instrument components, user interface navigation, firmware upgrade options, and all additional features.
For connectivity to work correctly for Visium CytAssist instruments, the network should allow unrestricted outbound access to the following hosts:
Troubleshooting Guidance for Network Connectivity:
Before troubleshooting network connectivity issues, it is important to check your institution's website for guides on how to connect to the Wi-Fi. Many institutions have clear instructions on what can be connected without IT involvement. Please reach out to your institution's IT department/network administrator for additional guidance and assistance.
Troubleshooting recommendations for connecting the instrument via Wi-Fi:
- On the Visium CytAssist, to connect via Wi-Fi, a 5 GHz network is required. 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi networks are not supported. Check with your network administrator to confirm if a 5 GHz network is available, or alternatively use the instrument’s Ethernet port to connect via a LAN, or an access point plugged into a nearby Ethernet port.
- Is the instrument SSID broadcast?
- If not, the instrument cannot currently connect over Wi-Fi.
- Is the network a guest network?
- Verify that the guest network does not have an expiry time and does not require acceptance of a popup window. If the Wi-Fi network requires accepting a popup in a browser (like an airport or coffee shop network), the instrument connection may not be successful.
- Alternatively, use institutional Wi-Fi or Ethernet. In some rare cases, institutions may add a permanent MAC address exception for some devices on guest networks if connecting to institutional Wi-Fi is not possible.
- Does your network administrator use MAC address-based Network Access Control (NAC)?
- If so, provide them with the Wi-Fi MAC address. To find this, turn off the Wi-Fi first, then reboot the instrument. When the instrument is powered back on, navigate to Menu > Connectivity > Wi-Fi, and the hardware MAC address (starting with 08:3A:88) will be shown. Re-enable Wi-Fi and connect to the desired network. Disregard any values displayed while scanning for networks.
- Note that the MAC address will only be displayed for firmware v1.1.0 and later.
- Confirm with the network administrator that there are no additional restrictions for MAC address-based NAC that are limiting connectivity.
- If so, provide them with the Wi-Fi MAC address. To find this, turn off the Wi-Fi first, then reboot the instrument. When the instrument is powered back on, navigate to Menu > Connectivity > Wi-Fi, and the hardware MAC address (starting with 08:3A:88) will be shown. Re-enable Wi-Fi and connect to the desired network. Disregard any values displayed while scanning for networks.
Troubleshooting recommendations for connecting the instrument via Ethernet:
- Confirm with your network administrator that the Ethernet port you are using is activated.
- Confirm the functionality of your Ethernet cable. Check if it can provide a connection to a computer or other device that is known to successfully connect to the network.
- Does your network administrator use MAC-based Network Access Control (NAC)?
- If so, provide them with the Ethernet MAC address. To find this, navigate to Menu > Connectivity > Ethernet and the MAC address will be displayed.
- Note that the MAC address will only be displayed for firmware v1.1.0 and later.
- Confirm with the network administrator that there are no additional restrictions for MAC address-based NAC that are limiting connectivity.
- Does the network support DHCP?
- If not, the instrument can be set up with a static IP address. An IP address needs to be temporarily assigned to the instrument (for example using a router or another network with DHCP).
Troubleshooting recommendations for internet connections after instrument has been connected to network (Wi-Fi or Ethernet):
If after connecting to a network ( or ), this icon is shown, this indicates that the DNS lookup of 10x Genomics servers and the following command is failing:
nslookup envoy.10xdevices.net
- Check with your network administrator that the instrument has access to a DNS server. Set the DNS server on the instrument if necessary. The complete set of hosts, ports and protocols in use by the Visium CytAssist instrument are listed in the Visium CytAssist: Network Connectivity Guidelines.
- Confirm with your network administrator whether a static IP address is required. If so, set that static IP address in the instrument interface according to the instructions in the Visium CytAssist: Network Connectivity Guidelines.
Troubleshooting recommendations to connect to the 10x Cloud:
If the header bar shows or , and , this indicates that the instrument is connected to a local network, has DNS access, but cannot reach the 10x Cloud.
- The most likely problem is that your organization’s firewall is blocking outbound connections to 10x resources. The table below lists the complete set of hosts, ports and protocols in use by the Visium CytAssist instrument. The outbound TCP port 443 for the 10x Cloud must be enabled.
- Confirm with your network administrator whether a configuration to your organization’s firewall may be needed to whitelist the addresses listed above for outbound-only traffic.
- If the firewall is opened, confirm with your network administrator that the instrument does not require a proxy. The Visium CytAssist instrument does not support HTTP/HTTPS proxies, but transparent proxies are not expected to impede connect
Additional Resources for Visium CytAssist:
- Is internet connectivity required for Visium CytAssist instrument?
- How will firmware updates be performed on the Visium CytAssist instrument?
- What type of data is recorded and stored on the Visium CytAssist instrument?
- How can I share the Visium CytAssist instrument Support Logs with 10x Genomics Technical Support?
- How do I set-up a Network Shared Folder on my Visium CytAssist?
- Why is my Visium CytAssist instrument not communicating with the 10x Cloud?
Products: Visium CytAssist