SYSTem Subsystem - General Purpose Commands

SYSTem:ACALibration:DATE?

Returns the date of the last autocalibration in the format yyyy,mm,dd.

Parameter	Typical Return
(none)	2014,4,26
Return the autocalibration date: SYST:ACAL:DATE?

• You can perform this query regardless of whether the instrument is secured.
• The date is based on the instrument's real-time clock. Set the date for the instrument's real-time clock with SYSTem:DATE.
• The real-time clock does not adjust itself for time zone changes or daylight savings time. Be sure to set the date and time when you first receive your instrument.
• This setting is non-volatile; it will not be changed by power cycling or *RST or SYSTem:PRESet.
• Use *CAL? to perform autocal.

See Also

SYSTem:DATE

SYSTem:ACALibration:TEMPerature?

Returns the temperature of the last autocalibration in °C.

Parameter	Typical Return
(none)	+2.42850208E+001
Return the autocalibration temperature: SYST:ACAL:TEMP?

• You can perform this query regardless of whether the instrument is secured.
• This setting is non-volatile; it will not be changed by power cycling or *RST or SYSTem:PRESet.
• Use *CAL? to perform autocal.

SYSTem:ACALibration:TIME?

Returns the time of the last autocalibration in the format hh,mm,ss.sss.

Parameter	Typical Return
(none)	20,15,30.000
Return the calibration time: SYST:ACAL:TIME?

• The date is based on the instrument's real-time clock. Set the date for the instrument's real-time clock with SYSTem:DATE.
• The real-time clock does not adjust itself for time zone changes or daylight savings time. Be sure to set the date and time when you first receive your instrument.
• This parameter is set to its default value after a Factory Reset (*RST) or Instrument Preset (SYSTem:PRESet).
• Use *CAL? to perform autocal.

See Also

SYSTem:TIME

SYSTem:BEEPer[:IMMediate]

Issues a single beep.

Parameter	Typical Return
(none)	(none)
Issue a single beep: SYST:BEEP

• Programmed beeps may be useful for program development and troubleshooting.
• You can issue a beep with this command regardless of the current beeper state (SYSTem:BEEPer:STATe).

SYSTem:BEEPer:STATe {ON|1|OFF|0}
SYSTem:BEEPer:STATe?

Disables or enables the beep heard during continuity, diode, or probe hold measurements, or when an error is generated from the front panel or remote interface.

Parameter	Typical Return
{ON|1|OFF|0}. Default: ON.	0 (OFF) or 1 (ON)
Disable beeper state: SYST:BEEP:STAT OFF

• Does not affect the front panel key click.
• A beep is always emitted (even with beeper state OFF) when SYSTem:BEEPer is sent.
• This setting is non-volatile; it is not changed by power cycling, a Factory Reset (*RST), or an Instrument Preset (SYSTem:PRESet).

SYSTem:DATE <year>, <month>, <day>
SYSTem:DATE?

Sets the date for the instrument's real-time clock. Use SYSTem:TIME to set the time.

Parameter	Typical Return
<year 2000 to 2099 <month> 1 to 12 <day> 1 to 31	+2011,+07,+26
Set system date to July 26, 2011: SYST:DATE 2011, 7,26

• The real-time clock is used for Mass Memory (MMEMory) system file time stamps.
• The real-time clock is battery-backed and retains the date and time when power is off.
• The date and time are not affected by *RST or SYSTem:PRESet.
• The real-time clock does not adjust itself for time zone changes or daylight savings time. Be sure to set the date and time when you first receive your instrument.

SYSTem:ERRor[:NEXT]?

Reads and clears one error from the error queue. See SCPI Error Messages for the complete SCPI error message list.

Parameter	Typical Return
(none)	-113,"Undefined header"
Read and clear the first error in the error queue: SYST:ERR?

• Up to 20 errors can be stored in the instrument's error queue. Each remote interface I/O session (GPIB, USB, VXI-11, Telnet/Sockets) has its own interface-specific error queue. Errors appear in the error queue of the I/O session that caused the error. For example, if an error was generated by a command sent over GPIB, send SYSTem:ERRor? from GPIB to read the error queue. Errors generated by instrument hardware are broadcast to all I/O sessions.
• Error retrieval is first-in-first-out (FIFO), and errors are cleared as you read them. The instrument beeps each time an error is generated (unless disabled by SYSTem:BEEPer:STATe OFF).
• If more than 20 errors have occurred, the most recent error stored in the queue is replaced with -350,"Queue overflow". No additional errors are stored until you remove errors from the queue. If no errors have occurred when you read the error queue, the instrument responds with +0,"No error".
• Errors have the following format (the error string may contain up to 255 characters).
  
  <error code>,<error string>
  
  Where:
  
  <error code> = a positive or negative integer
  
  <error string> = a quoted ASCII string up to 255 characters

See Also

*SRE

SYSTem:HELP?

Returns a complete list of the instrument's SCPI commands.

Parameter	Typical Return
(none)	(see below)
Return the list of SCPI commands: SYST:HELP?

• The query returns Definite Length Block Data, which allows any type of data to be transmitted as a series of 8-bit data bytes. The first line is a pound sign (#) followed by one digit representing the number of digits in the decimal integer to follow. This digit is followed by a decimal integer indicating the number of data bytes to follow, followed by the first New Line. (For example, "#47947" in the first line means that there are 7947 data bytes to follow.) The rest of the block has one command per line, each terminated by a New Line character (ASCII character 10).
  
  The beginning of a returned list is shown below. Note that the actual contents may vary, depending on the firmware revision:
  
  #48085
  :ABORt/nquery/
  :CALibration:ADC?/qonly/
  :CALibration:ALL?/qonly/
  :CALibration:COUNt?/qonly/
  :CALibration:DATA
  
  In this list,
  • /nquery/ indicates a command with no query.
  • /qonly/ indicates a query with no command form.
  • All other commands consist of a command and query.
• Syntax for each command is found in the Command Quick Reference.
• The list may include commands or queries not described in this document. These are deprecated commands included for compatibility with older instruments.

SYSTem:IDENtify {DEFault|AT34460A|AT34461A|AT34410A|AT34411A|HP34401A}
SYSTem:IDENtify?

Selects the manufacturer and model number returned by *IDN?. The serial number and revision information are unaffected, and this command does not change instrument operation. Use to avoid changing existing test system code where the manufacturer/model number are verified.

Parameter	Typical Return
{DEFault|AT34460A|AT34461A|AT34410A|AT34411A|HP34401A}(see bullet points below)	DEF (see bullet points below), HP34401A, AT34410A, or AT34411A
Select a *IDN? response compatible with the 34401A: SYST:IDEN HP34401A *IDN? Typical Response: HEWLETT-PACKARD,34401A,...

• The allowable parameters for each DMM model are:

  • 34460A - valid parameters: DEFault, AT34460A, HP34401A
  • 34461A - valid parameters: DEFault, AT34461A, HP34401A
  • 34465A - valid parameters: DEFault, AT34410A, AT34411A
  • 34470A - valid parameters: DEFault, AT34410A, AT34411A

• DEFault returns "Keysight Technologies" followed by the actual instrument model number:

  • "Keysight Technologies,34460A, ..."
  • "Keysight Technologies,34461A, ..."
  • "Keysight Technologies,34465A, ..."
  • "Keysight Technologies,34470A, ..."

• If you have an older Agilent 34460A or 34461A and upgrade to the new (Keysight) firmware, your instrument continues to respond with the manufacturer name “Agilent”, not “Keysight” until you set the front panel SCPI ID to 34460A or 34461A, send the SYST:IDEN DEF command, or reset user preferences. After doing this, the instrument responds with “Keysight” as the manufacturer.
• This setting is non-volatile; it is not changed by power cycling, a Factory Reset (*RST), or an Instrument Preset (SYSTem:PRESet).
• Important: In order to update the instrument firmware from remote, the model number in the *IDN? response must match the actual instrument model number. If you have changed the instrument's *IDN? response to another instrument, when attempting to update the firmware from remote, you will see this error: The instrument is not supported by this firmware file. To update the firmware, either update using the front panel procedure or, from remote, use SYSTem:IDENtify to set the *IDN? to match the actual model number, update the firmware, and then use SYSTem:IDENtify again to set the *IDN? response to the other model number.

SYSTem:PRESet

This command is nearly identical to *RST. The difference is that *RST resets the instrument for SCPI operation, and SYSTem:PRESet resets the instrument for front panel operation. As a result, *RST turns the histogram and statistics off, and SYSTem:PRESet turns them on.

SYSTem:SECurity:COUNt?

Returns the instrument's security count.

Parameter	Typical Return
(none)	+22
Return the instrument's security count: SYSTem:SECurity:COUNt?

• The security count is incremented by 1 every time you perform an action, other than calibration, that requires the instrument to be unsecured. This includes enabling or disabling interfaces, sanitizing memory per the NISPOM standard (SYSTem:SECurity:IMMediate), updating firmware, changing the security code, or overriding the calibration security.
• The act of securing or unsecuring the instrument does not increment the counter.
• Be sure to read the security count upon receiving your instrument.

See Also

CALibration:COUNt?

SYSTem:SECurity:IMMediate

(Requires the SEC option.) Sanitizes all user-accessible instrument memory except for the calibration constants and reboots the instrument. This complies with requirements in chapter 8 of the National Industrial Security Program Operating Manual (NISPOM).

Requires the optional security feature. See Models and Options for details.

The NISPOM Sanitize softkey and the SYSTem:SECurity:IMMEdiate command are equivalent. They are for customers, such as military contractors, who must comply with NISPOM. This feature destroys all user-defined state information, measurement data, and user-defined I/O settings such as the IP address. This feature is not recommended for use in routine applications because of the possibility of unintended data loss.

Parameter	Typical Return
(none)	(none)
Sanitize all user-accessible instrument memory: SYST:SEC:IMM

• Typically used before removing an instrument from a secure area.
• Initializes all instrument settings to their Factory Reset (*RST) values. It also destroys all user-defined state and preference information (see MMEMory Subsystem - STATe and PREFerence Files).
• Increments the security count.

SYSTem:TEMPerature?

Returns the instrument's internal temperature in °C.

Parameter	Typical Return
(none)	+2.85000000E+01
Return the instrument's internal temperature: SYST:TEMP?

• The value returned is not affected by UNIT:TEMPerature.

SYSTem:TIME <hour>, <minute>, <second>
SYSTem:TIME?

Sets the time for the instrument's real-time clock. Use SYSTem:DATE to set the date.

Parameter	Typical Return
<hour> 0 to 23 <minute> 0 to 59 <second> 0 to 60	20,15,30.000
Set instrument time to 20:15:30 (8:15:30 PM): SYST:TIME 20,15,30

• The real-time clock is used for Mass Memory (MMEMory) system file time stamps.
• The real-time clock is battery-backed and retains the date and time when power is off.
• The date and time are not affected by *RST or SYSTem:PRESet.
• The real-time clock does not adjust itself for time zone changes or daylight savings time. Be sure to set the date and time when you first receive your instrument.

SYSTem:VERSion?

Returns the version of SCPI (Standard Commands for Programmable Instruments) that the instrument complies with. There is no front panel equivalent. See Introduction to the Introduction to the SCPI Language for details.

Parameter	Typical Return
(none)	1994.0
Return the SCPI version: SYST:VERS?

SYSTem:WMESsage "<string>"
SYSTem:WMESsage?

Displays a power-on message.

Parameter	Typical Return
A quoted string of up to 40 characters. You can use letters (A-Z), numbers (0-9) and special characters such as @, %, *, and so forth. Default ""	"RETURN TO JOE AT POST D6"
Display a power-on message: SYST:WMES "RETURN TO JOE AT POST D6"

• Specifying a null string ("") disables the power-on message.
• This setting is non-volatile; it is not changed by power cycling, a Factory Reset (*RST), or an Instrument Preset (SYSTem:PRESet).
• This parameter is set to its default value when the instrument is shipped from the factory and after SYSTem:SECurity:IMMediate.