1. Is there a diagnostic program I can use to determine if my RS-422/485 serial PCI board is working?

2. Why can't I get my serial board to perform at 921.6 kbps?

3. Why does the multiplier on my serial PCI board revert to "auto" every time I restart my computer, even though I have changed the setting to something else?

4. What is the difference between a UniversalPCI board and a PCI board?

5. How do I know what signaling voltage my PC uses?

6. Under which OS is my RS-422/485 Serial PCI Board is supported?

7. How do I install my RS-422/485 Serial PCI Board under Windows 2000/XP?

8. What does it mean to have an unregistered Windows XP driver? Why do I get a warning screen when I install some Quatech drivers?

9. How do I disable the Windows XP Driver Signing check?

10. How do I install my PCI Serial Board under Windows 95/98/Me?

11. My PCI serial board installs as COM 5&6 under Windows 95/98/Me, but my application can only use com port 1-4. How can I configure my card to use com ports 1-4.

12. How do I uninstall my PCI Serial Board under Windows 95/98/Me/2000/XP?

13. How do I install my RS-422/485 PCI Board under Windows NT?

14. Where can I find help with using my RS-422/485 Serial PCI Board under OS/2?

15. Do I need local administrator rights to install a Quatech serial device?

16. When installing a product, I get an error message stating "The System Cannot Find the File Specified." How can I fix this?

Q1. Is there a diagnostic program I can use to determine if my RS-422/485 serial PCI board is working?

A. There are several ways to go about testing the product. The easiest way for Windows users is to connect a Loopback on the Port and use HyperTerminal to test it. HyperTerminal is included with Microsoft operating systems. If you don't see it listed in Program Manager, you may need to install it from the Windows CD. OS/2 users may use the HyperAccess Lite application in the OS/2 BonusPak to do the same.RS-422/485 Loopback Instructions

Q2. Why can't I get my serial board to perform at 921.6 kbps?

A. Data rates (or baud rates) are highly system dependent. It is impossible for Quatech to know exactly how one of our products will perform in your specific system. Some major factors that affect baud rate are cabling, OS, and FIFOs. For more information about maximum data rates, see the Quatech "Serial Data Rate Information Sheet"

Q3. Why does the multiplier on my serial PCI board revert to "auto" every time I restart my computer, even though I have changed the setting to something else?

A. This is a problem found in early versions of the Quatech Windows 95/98/Me/NT/2000/XP driver. Please update your driver to version 1.66 or later to correct the problem.

Q4. What is the difference between a UniversalPCI board and a PCI board?

A. The original PCI standard required that plug-in boards use 5V signaling provided by the PCs motherboard. As the PCI standard evolved, the option was added for a 3.3V signaling. Now, with the latest PCI 2.3 release, all PCI plug-in boards are required to support 3.3V signaling.

In order to make sure that a plug-in board receives the correct voltage (as getting the wrong voltage would cause the PC to be badly damaged) a different set of keys was designed for each voltage type. The key is the arrangement of gold fingers at the bottom of the board. Click to see a picture of PCI keying. When a board is inserted into a PCI slot, those goldfingers fit into the appropriate socket. Motherboards using 5V signaling can only accept PCI cards keyed for 5V. Motherboards using 3.3V signaling can only accept PCI cards keyed for 3.3V.

Both PC manufacturers and PCI board developers realize that users would optimally like a combination of both options. So, some motherboards provide universal connectors that can accept both 3.3V and 5V keyed PCI cards. Likewise, some PCI cards specifically designed to function with either 3.3V or 5V signaling use a special key that will fit into either type of motherboard connector. These boards are called UniversalPCI boards.

The motherboards themselves are still manufactured using both types of signaling. Howver, 3.3V signaling is becoming far more popular. Choosing a Universal PCI board, such as Quatech's serial UPCI line, provides added flexibility because it can be used in many different types of systems. Note that Quatech UPCI boards require a 3.3V power rail voltage that may not be present in older PCs.

Q5. How do I know what signaling voltage my PC uses?

A. The easiest way to answer this question is to check the manual for your PC.

If you don't have that, then you can simply open the case and see what type of cards can plug into your PCI slots. Select a 5V PCI board, if it fits, then it is supported. Likewise with a 3.3V board. If they both fit, then you have a Universal Connector. Note that if you purchase a Universal PCI board then you can be assured that it will work in any PCI compatible motherboard (that meets all PCI-specification standards), regardless of the signaling voltage it supports. Also note that you will never be able to damage your system by installing an incompatible board because it simply will not fit in the provided slot without the proper keying. Note that Quatech UPCI boards require a 3.3V power rail voltage that may not be present in older PCs.

Q6. Under which OS is my RS-422/485 Serial PCI Board is supported?

A. View the latest OS support matrix for RS-422/485 Serial PCI Board.

Q7. How do I install my RS-422/485 PCI Board under Windows 2000/XP?

A.

1. Install your hardware according to the instructions in your user's manual. Boot your machine.
2. The "Welcome to the Found New Hardware Wizard" window will open.
3. Click "Next" to continue.
4. Follow the on-screen instructions. When prompted, point Windows to the location in which the Quatech drivers are stored-typically on the Quatech COM CD, or the folder on your hard drive to which you downloaded the drivers.

Q8. What does it mean to have an unregistered Windows XP driver? Why do I get a warning screen when I install some drivers from the Quatech COM CD?

A. Microsoft has implemented a new driver signing program. This program verifies that the driver will not cause problems on the system. Although driver signing isn't a complete indication that a driver is safe or bug-free, it's certainly reasonable to assume that signed drivers are generally safer for overall system health than unsigned drivers. In addition, driver signing ensures against a Trojan horse or virus application being introduced into a driver, or having the driver replaced with other code.

However, just because a driver is unsigned DOES NOT mean that it will not function properly in your system. An "unregistered" driver is one that has not been officially tested and certified by Microsoft. Unlike previous versions of Windows, Windows XP warns users every time they try to install a driver that Microsoft has not certified. Quatech thoroughly tests all drivers before releasing them to our customers. The Microsoft XP warning has nothing to do with the quality of our driver or its ability to function properly in your system.

XP driver development is an ongoing process. We are in the process of submitting all Quatech Windows XP drivers for review by Microsoft, and we fully expect to receive certification for most products in the coming months. However, every time we update a driver it must be re-certified. Until this certification process is complete, the updated driver will remain unsigned. Because we want to provide the best possible service for our customers, we release our XP drivers prior to receiving Microsoft certification--this gets it into your hands faster! However, we will always continue to make the most recent signed driver available even if there are more recent unsigned updates.

When you see this warning during an installation of a Quatech's Windows XP driver, simply tell Windows that you want to install the driver anyway, and continue with the standard installation process.

Q9. How do I disable the Windows XP Driver Signing check?

A. To disable Windows XP driver signing warnings, follow the steps below:

1. Double click on the System icon in Control Panel.
2. Left click on the Hardware tab.
3. Left click on the Driver Signing button. (click here for a screen cap of the Driver Signing Options Window
4. Choose the Ignore option. Click on O.K. and then Apply and O.K.
5. Windows will not warn anymore about driver signing.

Q10. How do I install my PCI Serial Board under Windows 95/98/Me?

A. An "INF" configuration file is included with your Quatech Serial board to allow easy configuration in the Windows 95/98/Me environment. Also, a custom Windows 95/98/Me serial device driver is included with the board to support the use of the 16750 UART's 64 byte FIFO. Windows 95/98/Me uses the "INF" file to determine the system resources required by your board, searches for available resources to fill the boards requirements, and then updates the hardware registry with an entry that allocates these resources.

The following instructions provide step-by-step instructions on installing a Quatech serial PCI board in Windows 95/98/me using the "New Hardware Found" wizard.

1. After booting the computer with a newly-installed PCI serial board, the "New Hardware Found" dialog box will appear. If you have never installed a Quatech PCI communications adapter before, the dialog box may simply indicate that it has found a "PCI Card."
2. Select the radio button for "Driver from disk provided by hardware manufacturer." Click the "OK" button to continue.
3. An "Install From Disk" dialog box should pop up. Insert the Quatech COM CD with the Quatech INF files on it, select the correct drive letter, and click the "OK" button. Windows 95/98/Me automatically browses the root directory for an .INF file that defines configurations for Multi-function Adapters. If no INF files are found, click the "Browse" button and navigate to the "\Serial Port Adapters\Drivers\Windows 95, 98, Me for PCI" folder on the Quatech COM CD. You are not required to select the file name. After finding the directory containing the INF files, Windows 95/98/Me will choose the correct file.
4. The "New Hardware Found" dialog box will appear again, this time for an "Unknown Device."
5. Again select the radio button for "Driver from disk provided by hardware manufacturer." Click the "OK" button to continue.
6. Another "Install From Disk" dialog box will pop up. The path should already be pointing to the Quatech COM CD. Click the "OK" button to continue.
7. You should now see the "Copying Files" dialog box as Windows 95/98/Me copies the driver files from the CD.
8. The installation utility will ask for your Windows 95/98/Me system CD. Serial communication ports require two drivers supplied by Microsoft to function: SERIAL.VXD and SERIALUI.DLL. Insert the Windows CD and click "OK"
   
   NOTE: You may be able to skip this step if you are certain that your system has the latest version of these files installed. If you do not have your Windows 95/98/Me system CDs immediately available, click "OK" anyway. A dialog box appears with an option to Skip the files. Click the Skip button and the files will not be installed. This is all right if the latest versions of these drivers are currently in the \WINDOWS\SYSTEM directory.
   
   
9. The "New Hardware Found" dialog will repeat as each serial port is registered with Windows 95/98/Me
10. Installation is complete.

Q11. My PCI serial board installs as COM 5&6 under Windows 95/98/Me, but my application can only use com port 1-4. How can I configure my card to use com ports 1-4.

A. See our COM Port Enumeration Tip Sheet for answers to common questions about installation.

Q12. How do I uninstall my PCI serial board under Windows 95/98/Me/2000/XP?

A. The following procedures should be used to uninstall a Quatech PCI board- where noted specific instructions will be given for any platform dependent procedures. The uninstall procedure should be used when you want to completely delete a Quatech card from your system--either because you will no longer be using the card, or if you want to "start from scratch" with a newer version of the driver.

Step 1: Remove the product from Device Manager

1. Open Device Manager and find the Quatech product.
2. Highlight the product and click on the Remove button (Win9x)
   or right click on it and chose uninstall from the menu (Win2000/XP).
3. The Quatech product will now be removed from the Device Manager Tree.
4. If you do not see your Quatech Product in Device Manager please try the following (Win2k/XP Only).
   1. Enable Device Manager to view hidden devices: Start/control panel/System/Advanced/Environment Variables
   2. Under System Variables, click New.
   3. For variable name, enter "DEVMGR_SHOW_NONPRESENT_DEVICES".
   4. For value, enter 1.
   5. "OK" all the way back out.
   6. Close and reopen Device Manager. Select "View/Show Hidden Devices".
   7. As a test, there should be a new category called "Non-Plug and Play Devices." (Ignore it)
   8. Look for any Quatech related entries. Delete them.

Step 2: Delete .inf and .pnf files

1. In Windows Explorer, go to the Tools menu and select Folder Options...
2. On the View tab enable Show Hidden files and folders.
3. Uncheck Hide extensions for known file types.
4. Uncheck Hide protected operating system files (Recommended).
5. Click on Apply and O.K.
6. Find the inf folder on the left hand side of Windows Explorer. It will be located at c:\windows\inf or c:\winnt\inf (Win2k).
7. Right click on the inf folder and select Search or Find...
8. Fill in the following information for the search Results Window.
   All or part of file name: *.inf
   A word or phrase in the file: quatech
   Look in: inf
9. Click the search button.
10. The search results will list a file called msports.inf. Do nothing with this file.
11. The files of interest are anything named oem?.inf. ? meaning a number (i.e. oem3.inf). Delete the oem?.inf file that is returned for you from the c:\windows\inf folder.
12. You will also see a oem?.pnf (i.e. oem3.pnf) file. This "sister" file must also be deleted.

Q13. How do I install my RS-422/485 PCI Board under Windows NT?

A. Quatech provides a Device Manager for Windows NT that is used to install serial PCI boards. The Quatech Device Manager utility includes a simple add hardware wizard to guide you through the installation. The Device Manager is located on the Quatech COM CD.

Q14. Where can I find help with using my RS-422/485 Serial PCI Board under OS/2?

A. Though OS/2 is becoming increasingly less popular, Quatech knows that there are many dedicated users out there, and we are committed to continued support of OS/2. See our OS/2 tip sheet for answers to common questions about installation, un-installation, configuration, and troubleshooting.

Q15. Do I need local administrator rights to install a Quatech serial device?

A. Yes. When installing most kinds of hardware, you must have local admin rights or equivalent on the PC. If your computer is part of a Domain or participates in a networked environment, please contact your local LAN Administrator for assistance.

Q16. When installing a product, I get an error message stating "The System Cannot Find the File Specified." How can I fix this?

A. Windows 2000/XP has a bug that it cannot properly detect new hardware by *.inf files, if the RunOnce registry key is missing.
This key is often used by installers to execute post-reboot programs, but sometimes they accidentally delete this key.

Go to Start » Run and enter "regedit"
Go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion
With CurrentVersion Highlighted, go to the Edit menu and select New » Key
Name the key RunOnce  - Leave everything else about the key alone.
The RunOnce key should now exist underneath the CurrentVersion key.

Reboot your PC.
Once the key exists, Windows 2000/XP stops redetecting the Hardware