Question about Serial Ports?

Question

Hi everyone,

I am working with embeded systems and serial ports are unavoidable (still). New computers come without serial ports but one can add then in form of USB adapters for example.
My old units work just fine but I just got two more USB-serial adapter from Ultra (ULT40315).
They install and work like charm but there is a problem - these units show no Resources tab in Device Manager. This means that one cannot check assigned base address or interupt.

So is there a utility that can list out assigned resources?

Another question is, is there utility that will name application or process that currently uses certain serial port?

(Btw. This machine is running Vista 64-bit.)



Regards,

p.

Addiitonal info. I was also trying to reassign high COM ports to lower values (COM2 for example) but for some reason port would no longer work (with or without reboot). Once configured back to roiginal Com number, it would run normally. This is just weird, I think I've tried everything, I'm starting to think about reinstalling OS (which I don't have time for now)

Iby K · Accepted Answer

it must be annoying having to deal with issues with tool (PC) when you want to focus on work on target platform. ihave been looking for software that will identify application or process that uses com port. no luck... if you find one, let me know.

credo quia est absurdum · Answer

I feel your pain.  I had some luck with d/l the latest drivers from USB-Serial adapters, some luck with writing drivers and 'lying' to the equipment that the USB was actually just a RS232 port but for 4 of the lathe machines there was no recourse.  I had to install RS-232 cards in the computers and even install DOS on one of them.  NONE of the would even talk to Vista or Win7.
The company refuses to update the equipment so the I.T. dept is stuck with keeping the older stuff running.

Cupcake · Answer

I think you are stuck here, basically, using a USB-Serial adapter under Vista are mostly driven all by software, unlike a direct serial port where one could assign the IRQ for a hard contact, you may need some form of API from Ultra to allow monitoring of the ports.

? · Answer

In computing, a serial port is a serial communique actual interface by which guidance transfers in or out one bit at a time (evaluation parallel port).[a million] in the process many of the heritage of non-public computers, records flow by serial ports related the computing device to instruments collectively with terminals and different peripherals. collectively as such interfaces as Ethernet, FireWire, and USB all deliver records as a serial flow, the term "serial port" many times identifies hardware greater or much less compliant to the RS-232 common, meant to interface with a modem or with a matching communique device.

Question about Serial Ports?

4 Answers