Switch from sim account to live account after disconnect/reconnect

[MikeInMA]

I just received my broker's daily statement for the live trades I didn't know I did. (Fortunately they were scratches, I only lost a few bucks in commissions.) But I know how it went down:

I was using Chart Trader in sim, with Chart Trader hidden. I had a problem with my internet connection so my connection was lost until I cycled power on my modem. Within NinjaTrader I explicitly disconnected, then I reconnected once my internet was back. And I now see that's what took me out of sim and connected me to my live account. But I didn't know it at the time since I had Chart Trader hidden.

Is there a way to prevent that? Like to insure that Chart Trader is always in sim mode after a reconnection? If not, how about setting the background color of the button that expands and collapses Chart Trader so you can tell what account you're connected to when Chart Trader is collapsed?

[NinjaTrader_Jason]

Hello MikeInMA,

If the sim101 account is selected in ChartTrader, it should not change to your live account when you experience a disconnection/re-connection. Are you sure you had the sim101 account selected before the disconnection?

You can enable 'Global Simulation Mode' at Control Center-->File and the sim101 acount will always be selected in each NT order window.

[MikeInMA]

1. I started NinjaTrader, which opened my Default workspace, which is blank.

2. I connected to Zen-Fire.

3. I created a new chart. Chart Trader was enabled – that's my default – and was connected to the sim account. (See first screen shot below.)

4. Leaving chart open, I disconnected from Zen-Fire. At that point the chart had no account connection, as expected. (See second screen shot.)

5. I reconnected to Zen-Fire. Chart Trader connected to my live account. (See third screen shot.)

Using Global Simulation mode works, except it means I have to keep clearing Global Simulation mode to trade live and then setting it again in case there's a disconnect/reconnect. I'd rather see the chart not change to the live account, as you suggested it should not be doing.

[NinjaTrader_Brett]

Hello,

This is due to the fact that the chart that is brought up first is simply loaded in alphabetical order. If you do not have global simulation on and and you connect the account that shows first will simply be the account the is fest alphabetically.

In this case 1 comes before S.

You would need to make sure global simulation mode is on and stays on for this.

To do this: Control Center->Help->License key... Then click OK to resubmit your license key. You will be asked if you want to yes start is simulation all the time or no do not start in simulation.

Pick yes here and global simulation mode will stay on when you connect.

Let me know if I can be of further assistance.

[MikeInMA]

I can understand getting the first account if you open a chart first and then connect to the data feed. But in this case the chart was open, the connection was established and the sim account was selected. There was a disconnect and a reconnect, and now the fact that the chart had been connected to sim went out the window and I was connected to my live trading account WITH NO VISIBLE CLUES THAT THAT HAD HAPPENED.

Being in global simulation mode is not a great solution if I'm both sim trading and live trading. It means to trade live I first have to turn off global simulation mode and then select the live account, and after a live trade I have to remember to turn global simulation mode back on.

The best solution is for the chart to return to the state it was in before a disconnect upon reconnection. The second best solution is to at least give a visual cue about the mode Chart Trader is in. I think the background color of the button that enables/disables Chart Trader should always show whether or not Chart Trader is live, and I continue to be surprised that you've never done that.

[NinjaTrader_Jason]

Hello MikeInMA,

I will forward your suggestions to have the chart return to its initial state after a disconnection/re-connection and support some visual cue in ChartTrader when minimized to development to put it on the list of future considerations of the software.

Thank you for your feedback.