Abstract: A digital control system automatically senses when a new controller is attached to a network and determines the number and types of I/O Ports that are attached to the new controller. The digital control system formats and displays the I/O Port information upon request by a user. The digital control system program also includes an automatic configuration program that responds to sensing of a new controller by automatically configuring the input/output (I/O) subsystem. The user adds a new controller without setting any physical switches or nodes. A user optionally supplies configuration information for a device into a database, prior to connection of a device. Upon connection of the device, the device is automatically sensed and configured using the database configuration information, without setting of physical switches or node address information on the devices.