USB To Com Port Converter

[jogas]

I've got a new Dell Inspiron 6400 without a com port. I tried one of those converters while trying to connect to a UPCM today. The UPCMEdit software said it "could not recognize the UPCM type".
Has anyone had success with these converters?
Any other alternatives when connecting to legacy systems requiring a com port?
jogas

[cleancondenser]

My problems related to Johnson controllers

Where we connected a USB TO SERIAL and then connected
a RS-232 to RS-485 converter to that converter

With straight USB to Serial I occasionally found to problems


Carrier Comfort Network software installed its own driver for the serial port

I had to disable it in administrative Tools/ Services

The second problem with a Dell is you have to make sure you are using the right USB port
The software will still think it is sending and receiving on Comm Port 1

Make sure you have the coorect USB port associated with that port

[osiyo]

I've got a new Dell Inspiron 6400 without a com port. I tried one of those converters while trying to connect to a UPCM today. The UPCMEdit software said it "could not recognize the UPCM type".
Has anyone had success with these converters?
Any other alternatives when connecting to legacy systems requiring a com port?
jogas

Haven't tried to connect to any Trane gear with the one I have now. A Dynex DX-UBDB9. But have used it to connect to several other makes of DDC gear.

In the past I've used another couple types of USB to RS232 convertors, don't remember the names.

Never had trouble with any of them.

Other than having to look up what com port number they were assigned by Windows and then directing whatever communicatons program I was using to use that port number.

[joey791]

Os,

I had that problem with our previous Dell's ended up having to downgrade and give the Dell's to the owner, service manager, etc, because of the usb to serial compatiblity problem with certain systems. Anyway the main point is you can still by Dell's with serial ports built in but you have to buy a Latitude to get the serial ports. The ones we bought this summer have worked great.

[techhead]

Look at Sager laptops you can still get the ports.
and the machines are rock solid

http://www.sagernotebook.com/index.html

[asdf;ljk]

Try

B & B Electronics (www.bb-elec.com) or

Digi Edgeport (www.digistoreonline.com)

[ddcfan]

I had the same problem... I tried several different ones but finally I found an off brand and made the port work thu command prompt.. I started the UPCM program thru command prompt..

c:cd/upcmedit ( depending on where your program resides...)
c:upcmedit/upcm

in the computer settings in UPCMedit you need to change the comm port to match your USB port up to comm port 4.. sometimes your USB port may be 5,6,7 depending on how many comms you have on your laptop and restart program...

that's how i got it to work...

[jd 07]

I have only had a problem with JCI and any laptop without a serial port.
Look back thru the posts about it and you will find several recomendations on adaptors that work. The radio shack one works except for jci. The S2 thecnologys works great but is around $300.

Good Luck

[osiyo]

Os,

I had that problem with our previous Dell's ended up having to downgrade and give the Dell's to the owner, service manager, etc, because of the usb to serial compatiblity problem with certain systems. Anyway the main point is you can still by Dell's with serial ports built in but you have to buy a Latitude to get the serial ports. The ones we bought this summer have worked great.

Hmmmm,

Okay. But I'm using a Dell, myself. In fact the one I'm using right now, an Inspirion, HAD a serial port. But it crapped out. It quite working on me one day while I was in the middle of a project. As it turned out, customer's maintenance guy had a USB-RS232 convertor for his laptop, which had no serial port at all. So I borrowed it and it worked fine to get me thru the end of the work that day.

Don't recall the make of his, but appearance was different than any I'd seen before. On another occassion had borrowed one for temporary use from another guy in our office for some work where I needed to have two separate connections running at the same time. It'd worked fine.

So that day my built-in serial port died, on the way home I stopped in at a Best Buy which was on the way and picked up the one I now have. It came with a software CD but I've never used it. Just plugged it in and it ran just fine. Only problem I had besides having to change default ports to use in several apps was with one older app I use to communicate with some gas sensors. App wouldn't recognize serial port past 4. So I had to fiddle-fart around until I could free up lower port number assignments and get the USB-RS232 convertor configured as port 3.

Our office uses only Dells. And while most have built-in serial ports, several don't. Either didn't have em, or port crapped out like mine did. Several guys use the convertors, and seem to have no trouble. And I don't think any two of em have the same make/model convertor.

Only other issue I've seen with em is one guy who just got a new Dell fairly recently, as in past 6 months. No built-in serial port so he was using a convertor. It was giving him fits. Sometimes it'd work, sometimes not. He could view points and attributes in controllers, mostly. But any attempt to do a complete upload or download of memory to or from the controller failed. I was working a project nearby and he called me, yelling "Help!!!" So I ran over to see what was up. Didn't have time to go thru everything loaded on his laptop, or thru all the configuration, etc. Tried a few things. Didn't work. So finally I just re-booted his laptop into safe mode and started up his comm application and it worked fine. We went with that and he got on with his work, and I went back to what I was doing.

Later he told me he isolated it down to something with his wireless drivers/software. Because at a time when he had the time he started shutting down startup items and services one at a time, then testing his convertor operation. Once he shut down all the wireless stuff, no more problems. Since, he's told me that an uninstall of all wireless services/drivers, then a new install with his USB convertor already in place fixed the issue.

Tho might be related to fact that when he reinstalled wireless, it was using a newer update of the software. <Shrug> Wouldn't know, not my laptop, and I wasn't interested in investigating more.

BTW, yes, I use the convertor both with and without an RS232-RS485 convertor. Works either way for everything I use it for.

Most problems I've seen with RS232 communications has been with older and/or poorly written communications/interface packages. ie app won't recognize higher port numbers. Or app wants to seize total control and monitoring of a particular port, thus interfering with anything else that tries to use it. ie One app I use for communicating with and configuring a particular kind of sensor. Use it, and it doesn't release it's hold on the port. I've gotta reboot to free up the port again. (Until next time I use that same app, it's a pain) Another such app was really a PIA. Install it and it makes registry changes that caused it to be called every durned time RS232 was used. Even tho I'd not explicitly started up app. I had to go in and disable it (the registry entries) until I needed it, then re-enable the registry entries. Etc. Not that doing such is all that hard or time consuming ... I made batch files to do it with simple clicks on icons, but one could also do it pretty easy with Startup Control Panel (freeware) ... but it was just plain aggravating. Fortunately we no longer deal with the sensors involved and I don't need the app any more. And got rid of it.

Personally, in my experience, problems such as these I've found to be more often the result of application/driver conflicts/issues than a matter of a true hardware problem.

[jogas]

Hmmmm,

Okay. But I'm using a Dell, myself. In fact the one I'm using right now, an Inspirion, HAD a serial port. But it crapped out. It quite working on me one day while I was in the middle of a project. As it turned out, customer's maintenance guy had a USB-RS232 convertor for his laptop, which had no serial port at all. So I borrowed it and it worked fine to get me thru the end of the work that day.

Don't recall the make of his, but appearance was different than any I'd seen before. On another occassion had borrowed one for temporary use from another guy in our office for some work where I needed to have two separate connections running at the same time. It'd worked fine.

So that day my built-in serial port died, on the way home I stopped in at a Best Buy which was on the way and picked up the one I now have. It came with a software CD but I've never used it. Just plugged it in and it ran just fine. Only problem I had besides having to change default ports to use in several apps was with one older app I use to communicate with some gas sensors. App wouldn't recognize serial port past 4. So I had to fiddle-fart around until I could free up lower port number assignments and get the USB-RS232 convertor configured as port 3.

Our office uses only Dells. And while most have built-in serial ports, several don't. Either didn't have em, or port crapped out like mine did. Several guys use the convertors, and seem to have no trouble. And I don't think any two of em have the same make/model convertor.

Only other issue I've seen with em is one guy who just got a new Dell fairly recently, as in past 6 months. No built-in serial port so he was using a convertor. It was giving him fits. Sometimes it'd work, sometimes not. He could view points and attributes in controllers, mostly. But any attempt to do a complete upload or download of memory to or from the controller failed. I was working a project nearby and he called me, yelling "Help!!!" So I ran over to see what was up. Didn't have time to go thru everything loaded on his laptop, or thru all the configuration, etc. Tried a few things. Didn't work. So finally I just re-booted his laptop into safe mode and started up his comm application and it worked fine. We went with that and he got on with his work, and I went back to what I was doing.

Later he told me he isolated it down to something with his wireless drivers/software. Because at a time when he had the time he started shutting down startup items and services one at a time, then testing his convertor operation. Once he shut down all the wireless stuff, no more problems. Since, he's told me that an uninstall of all wireless services/drivers, then a new install with his USB convertor already in place fixed the issue.

Tho might be related to fact that when he reinstalled wireless, it was using a newer update of the software. <Shrug> Wouldn't know, not my laptop, and I wasn't interested in investigating more.

BTW, yes, I use the convertor both with and without an RS232-RS485 convertor. Works either way for everything I use it for.

Most problems I've seen with RS232 communications has been with older and/or poorly written communications/interface packages. ie app won't recognize higher port numbers. Or app wants to seize total control and monitoring of a particular port, thus interfering with anything else that tries to use it. ie One app I use for communicating with and configuring a particular kind of sensor. Use it, and it doesn't release it's hold on the port. I've gotta reboot to free up the port again. (Until next time I use that same app, it's a pain) Another such app was really a PIA. Install it and it makes registry changes that caused it to be called every durned time RS232 was used. Even tho I'd not explicitly started up app. I had to go in and disable it (the registry entries) until I needed it, then re-enable the registry entries. Etc. Not that doing such is all that hard or time consuming ... I made batch files to do it with simple clicks on icons, but one could also do it pretty easy with Startup Control Panel (freeware) ... but it was just plain aggravating. Fortunately we no longer deal with the sensors involved and I don't need the app any more. And got rid of it.

Personally, in my experience, problems such as these I've found to be more often the result of application/driver conflicts/issues than a matter of a true hardware problem.


FWIW,
There is/was an app out there called Closecom we used after running Staefa Eplan, which didn't like to let go of the com port either. It's quicker than a reboot and worth getting.
I have a Dell with wireless that is 2 months old. I'll try safe mode, thanks.
jogas

[joey791]

Osiyo, if you have some loaner laptops at the shop, why dont you see if Dell would fix your laptop?

[osiyo]

Osiyo, if you have some loaner laptops at the shop, why dont you see if Dell would fix your laptop?

Borrow a laptop?

Geez, isn't that kind of like borrowing another guy's wife?

I mean, okay ... probably she can get the job done. (Heck, I'm easy to please.) And it can be interesting to check out what the other guy's using, how she's set up and the methods she is used to using. And a change of pace and scenery can have it's own excitement.

But ... I'm inclined to prefer my own wife. Who knows what I like and how I like it. Likewise I know her quirks and preferences and just how to handle her to get maximum action and satisfaction with no wasted strokes or effort. I know automatically, without thinking about it where all her action buttons are and just how she likes her keys touched and her mouse stroked. My fingers, and whatever else, can fly with just the right touch to the right places to produce maximum results. Over time, we've each adapted (configured) ourselves to each other until we work well together much to our mutual satisfaction.

Laptops aren't women, of course. But the analogy isn't far different.

I have mine set up and configured just the way I want it. Everything laid out just the way I wish in a way that'll match the way I work and think. Modified, of course, to accomodate any quirks, limitations, or preferences of the particular combination of OS, applications, and hardware that makes up that laptop. By "preferences" I mean that for any given system (combo of OS, apps, and hardware) one can find that Method B might work better, more efficiently, than Method A. So I might somewhat modify my personally preferred methods to accomodate a particular machine.

I can use ANY machine, to get the job done. But using my own, just like being with my own wife, I can get the job done better ... for both of us.

Besides, the USB-RS232 convertor works fine, I haven't had any problems with it. Haven't swapped out the wife either, just because some of her parts don't work as well as they used to. What's left works well enough. Both are a little worn, but I'm happy with em.

On a practical note. The laptop is ... 3 years old, IIRC, going on 4. Repair of a faulty serial port probably isn't a minor matter. I strongly doubt it's worth the cost even if Dell were to bother to try the repair (probably wouldn't).

Given likely cost, and given past wear and tear on the other components ...

Well, that laptop has been used hard and put away wet many a time. Literally. It's been rained on and snowed on. It's been left outside in my work truck at temperatures ranging down to minus 30'F. Used in hot and humid boiler rooms. Been coated with paint splatter and concrete dust. Dropped or knocked off whatever I had it sitting on a number of times. CD player and power cord/transformer has been replaced. Floppy drive no longer works, neither does the serial port. A few chips are missing out of the casing (others have been glued back on), and there is a big scratch across the screen.

Nahhh, fixing it would undoubtedly be a waste. In the meantime she works well enough, as is. I'll keep her and use her as is until she rolls over and plays dead cockroach.

[jogas]

I just received my BlackBox P/N IC199A-R3 USB to DB9 Converter (under $40).
It took about 2 minutes to get it installed and I just connected to a Staefa NCRS with it.
BTW, I ordered it last night at 8:30 P.M., it arrived at noon today with 2nd day air shipping.
Cool. I LOVE good service
jogas

[network 101]

The Edgeport that comes with the JCI cable pro 300 has worked fine for my Dell. I have both serial and USB connections. The serial is com 1 and I assigned the USB to com 2. This way my laptop can work without any changes abd I use WinXP. I did have more problems with an older laptop running Win 2000 and the Edgeport converter. Good Luck