User Guide
Trademark Notices Comtrol and RocketPort are trademarks of Comtrol Corporation. Windows and Microsoft are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation. Other product names mentioned herein may be trademarks and/or registered trademarks of their respective owners. Second Edition (Rev B), September 12, 2011 Copyright © 2007 - 2011. Comtrol Corporation. All Rights Reserved.
Table of Contents Overview...................................................................................................................................5 Product Overview.......................................................................................................................................... 5 Before Installing the RocketPort EXPRESS SMPTE ............................................................................ 5 Locating the Latest Drivers and Documentation .......................
Table of Contents iv - Table of Contents RocketPort EXPRESS SMPTE User Guide: 2000482 Rev.
Overview Product Overview The RocketPort EXPRESS SMPTE is a high-speed in-server serial expansion card for use in a PCI-Express (PCIe) compatible slot in a host system. The RocketPort EXPRESS SMPTE was designed to support speeds up to 921Kbps and supports RS-422 exclusively, in either DCE or DTE mode.
Locating the Latest Drivers and Documentation 6 - Overview RocketPort EXPRESS SMPTE User Guide: 2000482 Rev.
Card and Interface Installation This section discusses the following: • Installing the Card • Attaching an Octacable Interface Cable on Page 8 • Attaching an Interface Box on Page 9 • Installing a Rackmount Interface Box on Page 10 Installing the Card Use the following procedure to install a RocketPort EXPRESS SMPTE card. 1. Turn off the host computer. 2. If necessary, set the DCE/DTE DIP switch for your environment.
Attaching an Octacable Interface Cable Do not connect an interface to the card when the host system is powered on, this can cause the card to fail. Caution 9. Attach the appropriate interface (octacable or interface box) to the RocketPort EXPRESS SMPTE: • Attaching an Octacable Interface Cable on Page 8 • Attaching an Interface Box on Page 9 • Installing a Rackmount Interface Box on Page 10 Attaching an Octacable Interface Cable Use this procedure to complete the octacable installation. 1.
Attaching an Interface Box Attaching an Interface Box Use this procedure to complete the installation with an interface box. Do not connect the cable to the RocketPort EXPRESS SMPTE card or interface box when the computer is powered on. The interface is not hot-swappable. Caution Connecting the cable to the RocketPort EXPRESS SMPTE card or interface box while the computer is powered on may damage the electronics on the card or interface box. 1.
Installing a Rackmount Interface Box Installing a Rackmount Interface Box Rackmount interface boxes are sturdy enough to allow you to stack several units on a shelf, or you can mount it directly into a rack. Do not connect the cable to the RocketPort EXPRESS SMPTE card or interface box when the computer is powered on. The interface is not hot-swappable.
Connecting Serial Devices This section provides information about the RocketPort EXPRESS SMPTE connectors, in the event that you need to build cables or loopback plugs. A loopback plug is a serial port plug with pins wired together that you can use with application (for example, the diagnostic, Test Terminal, or minicom) to test serial ports. See Before Calling Technical Support on Page 15 for information about using the test application shipped with the RocketPort EXPRESS SMPTE.
DB9 Signals DB9 Signals Refer to the manufacturer’s installation documentation if you need help with the connector pinouts or cabling for Pin 5 the serial device. SMPTE 207M DB9 Female Connector Pin 1 DCE Mode (SMPTE) Pin 1 Pin 9 Pin 6 DTE Mode Chassis Ground Chassis Ground 2 RxD- TxD- 3 TxD+ RxD+ 4-6 Not used Not used 7 RxD+ TxD+ 8 TxD- RxD- 9 Female Chassis Ground Chassis Ground Note: DTE and DCE mode are controlled with the DIP switch on the RocketPort EXPRESS SMPTE.
Building Interfaces 68-Pin VHDCI Connector Use the following table if you need to build a cable for a proprietary serial device.
68-Pin VHDCI Connector 14 - Building Interfaces RocketPort EXPRESS SMPTE User Guide: 2000482 Rev.
Troubleshooting If you are experiencing problems with the RocketPort EXPRESS SMPTE, review the troubleshooting procedures for your system before calling Technical Support. Before Calling Technical Support Review the following information before calling Technical Support because they will request that you perform many of the procedures or verifications before they will be able to help you diagnose a problem. • Verify the cabling using Connecting Serial Devices on Page 11.
Running the Bootable Diagnostic If you cannot locate the Diagnostic CD, you can burn a replacement with the .iso file on the Comtrol Software and Documentation CD shipped with your adapter or download the latest version from the ftp site (Page 5). Running the Bootable Diagnostic Use the following procedure to run the diagnostics. Note: If the diagnostic goes into sleep mode while unattended, press the Num Lock key to activate the screen. Use Ctrl/Alt Delete to kill the diagnostic process at any time. 1.
Troubleshooting Windows Systems Troubleshooting Windows Systems If you are using a RocketPort EXPRESS SMPTE driver on a Windows system and the diagnostic verified that the card is functional, you can check the following: 1. Verify that the RocketPort EXPRESS SMPTE has installed by checking the Device Manager to verify that the RocketPort EXPRESS SMPTE card displays. 2. Verify that you are addressing the port correctly. In many applications, device names above COM9 require the prefix \\.
Comtrol Utility 3. Click Next. 4. Click Install. 5. Click Finish. 18 - Troubleshooting RocketPort EXPRESS SMPTE User Guide: 2000482 Rev.
Using PortMon to Test the Driver Installation 6. Go to Using PortMon to Test the Driver Installation on Page 19. Using PortMon to Test the Driver Installation You can use PortMon to check whether the RocketPort EXPRESS SMPTE can communicate through the device driver for Windows. If necessary, use Comtrol Utility on Page 17 to install PortMon. 1. From the Start menu, select Programs > Comtrol > Utilities > Port Monitor (PortMon2). 2.
Using PortMon to Test the Driver Installation an application, it displays as OPEN, and displays Actual Throughput, TxTotal and RxTotal statistics. Normally, there should be no data errors recorded or they should be very small. To find out what the actual errors are, scroll to the right. You will see three columns: Overrun Errors, Framing Errors, and Parity Errors. If the errors are: 20 - Troubleshooting • Overrun Errors represent receive buffer overflow errors.
Using PortMon to Test the Driver Installation 4. You can view additional statistics to Port Monitor by adding columns. Click Tools and Add Columns. 5. Highlight or shift-click to add multiple statistics and click Ok. Note: See the Port Monitor help system if you need an explanation of a column. RocketPort EXPRESS SMPTE User Guide: 2000482 Rev.
Using Test Terminal to Test a Port 6. Scroll to the right to view the new columns. 7. If you want to capture this session, you can save a current session as a report. To do this, select one of the following save options: • File > Save As • File > Save - if the report already exists in an older format • Save Active Session button Reports can be opened, viewed and re-used when needed. To open and view a report: a. Select File > Open or the Open Existing Session Session dialog appears. button.
Using Test Terminal to Test a Port 2. From the Start menu, select Programs > Comtrol > Utilities > Test Terminal (WCom2). 3. Select File > Open Port, the appropriate port (or ports) from the Open Ports drop list and Ok. Note: If you left Port Monitor open from the previous subsection, you should show that the port is open. 4. Install the loopback plug (DB9 Loopback Plugs on Page 11) onto the port (or ports) that you want to test. 5. Select Port > Send and Receive Test Data.
Troubleshooting Linux Systems Troubleshooting Linux Systems You can use the following subsections to test the serial ports. lcom(1) Comtrol has available lcom(1), which is a multiport serial I/O test program. You can use lcom in test mode to send test data to any serial port. lcom is available on the Software and Documentation CD or you can download the latest version. Note: For assistance using lcom, use the manual page, lcom(1) that accompanies the program.
Technical Support Technical Support Comtrol has a staff of support technicians available to help you. You should review Before Calling Technical Support on Page 15 before calling Technical Support.
Technical Support 26 - Troubleshooting RocketPort EXPRESS SMPTE User Guide: 2000482 Rev.
Index A attach interface 8 serial devices 11 B bootable diagnostic using 15 C cables null-modem (DTE to DTE) 12 straight-through (DCE to DTE) 12 card installation 7 troubleshooting 15 Comtrol contact information 25 connect serial devices 11 connector 68-pin VHDCI 13 D DB9 loopback plugs 12 signals 12 DCE to DTE cables 12 device drivers download 5 devices connect serial 11 diagnostics using 15 documentation download 5 download drivers 5 Downloads 25 drivers download 5 DTE to DTE cables 12 I installation bef
Index S Send and Receive Test Data 22 serial devices connect 11 signals DB9 12 T Technical Support 25 28 - Index Test Terminal 17 testing ports Linux 24 Windows systems 17 troubleshooting 15 W web site 25 RocketPort EXPRESS SMPTE User Guide: 2000482 Rev.
