Siemens & Dell

D

Thread Starter

Don Black

All,

I am having a problem with not being able to communicate using Siemens Step 7 V5.0 and Dell lap-tops through the serial port. I have three
Dells with the same problem. If I move the software to a Toshiba or Compaq I have no problem. Has anyone seen this before and found a fix.

Thanks in advance

Don
 
A
I have seen problems like this when the laptop is configured for "Power Saving" mode. The output voltages at the serial port are reduced and some types of hardware do not respond.

Try turning off all power saving options in the BIOS.

Alan Brause
 
G

G. Hossein Mazarei

hi Don,
since 1999 some PC manufacturers have been using a new BIOS specification called ACPI BIOS(Advanced Configuration and Power Interface). check whether your dell note book has such a BIOS or not. this new Power Management may deactivate the COM and LPT interface as Windows 98 is started. for online operation I think you have to disable this power management.
G. Hossein Mazarei
[email protected]
 
D

Dobrowolski, Jacek

Hi Don

I encountered this problem in the past. The Dell laptop, I had, didn't work also with CP5511 PCIMCIA card. People from Siemens support had no idea what's up. The only one solution I'd found was to sell this crap (and bought Toshiba).

Regards,

Jacek Dobrowolski
Software Eng.

Automation Department
Secondary Division
ITM Poland Ltd.
26-600 Radom
ul. Warsztatowa 19a
POLAND
direct line: +48(48)3686341
fax: +48(48)3686101
 
D

D. C. Pittendrigh

Hi All

I have seen this before on a Laptech machine belonging to a client, the package was not bought from me and the client was not prepared to pay me to fix it so I didn't, however I always felt the problem was related to non-standard allocation of interrupts or addresses which can be done in the
bios settings.

Good Luck
Donald Pittendrigh
 
Indeed there is a problem with Dell laptop and communication ports.

the problem resides in bios settings:
In any model (CPT Latitude for instance) if you're using win98/95/Me you should encounter problems On IRQ conflict between Com port and Infrared port.

the solution is not to disable the infrared port but to enable it on COM2 I/O:2F8 IRQ:3
then set com1 to Std settings(3F8 I:4)
Verify that Infrared port is recognize in win
and then it should go...

On win2K the problem doesn't exist...
 
T
Hi Again Don,
I am currently using a Dell Inspiron 5000 with a CP551 PCMCIA module and have had no problems. My OS was recently changed from Win 98 to Win 2000 with no ill effects. So I don't understand the dilemma?
 
If the software wont run where other software runs fine maybe it's not the hardware that's crap but the software, hmmm?
 
Top