error opening comm port (code 5)

[wrohdejr]

In my CommListener i keep getting

8:Lor-Reg     [ERROR] Error opening comm port: COM3 (code 5)

Anyone have a clue what this means?

[dibblejr]

Never saw that but when all else fails "unload LOR" and restart.

JR

[TheDucks]

Do you have a built in Modem (my Laptop has one) or Serial connector? Com3 is usually for those.

You can use Windows Device Manager to see what your system sees (you can also use the Advance button on Properties display to Set a different COM

Mine are set to 10,11,12, (and my spare:13) that way I never have a clash with any system I use. (My laptop also gets used with a dual Serial from USB cable)

[wrohdejr]

I have moved the usb port to com 10 and still get the code 5 error. I even bought 2 new usb485 high speed controllers hoping this would fix it and i still get the error. I just sent a support ticket to LOR. Hopefully they can help shed some light on the code error.

 

[TheDucks]

1 minute ago, wrohdejr said:

I have moved the usb port to com 10 and still get the code 5 error. I even bought 2 new usb485 high speed controllers hoping this would fix it and i still get the error. I just sent a support ticket to LOR. Hopefully they can help shed some light on the code error.

 

Each Adapter gets its own Com# when attached, You then need to use the Network Utility  Advanced  screen to Match the Com# assignment to LOR Network name (and adjust the speed).

This is why I mark the Network on the adapter, because it will normally get the same com#

Also NEVER again click Use for Show in HU. That messes up the mapping

[k6ccc]

Open the Windows Device Manager and expand "Ports (COM & LPT)".  See what comm ports are in use.  Plug in your USB to RS-485 adapter, and see what additional comm port shows up.  That is the comm port Windows is assigning for that adapter.  Since you have additional adapters, repeat for each adapter.  Put a temporary label (P-Touch or similar) on each adapter so you will have that info for future use.  I say use a temp label because it could change - and will likely be different on a different computer.  Windows used to routinely change comm port numbers for USB devices, but Windows is much better at that with newer versions.

 

[wrohdejr]

23 minutes ago, k6ccc said:

Open the Windows Device Manager and expand "Ports (COM & LPT)".  See what comm ports are in use.  Plug in your USB to RS-485 adapter, and see what additional comm port shows up.  That is the comm port Windows is assigning for that adapter.  Since you have additional adapters, repeat for each adapter.  Put a temporary label (P-Touch or similar) on each adapter so you will have that info for future use.  I say use a temp label because it could change - and will likely be different on a different computer.  Windows used to routinely change comm port numbers for USB devices, but Windows is much better at that with newer versions.

 

I am only using 1 usb adapter at this time for testing. I first had the adapter on com port 3 but another user said don't use com 3, so I moved it to com 10 and still get the code 5 error. I have updated the com drivers from LOR I can see my units in HU and I can control my 2 ctbpc16 controllers and my 3 pixie2d controllers. But every minute in the commlistener i see the error. I am just trying to track down what the error means. I have submitted a ticket to LOR to find out what code 5 is.

 

[k6ccc]

What does the Windows Device Manager show?  The comm port for a USB adapter is assigned by Windows - NOT LOR.  You can change the Windows assignment using the Windows Device Manager if desired, but you can not change the Windows comm port assignment from within LOR.

 

[TheDucks]

36 minutes ago, wrohdejr said:

I am only using 1 usb adapter at this time for testing. I first had the adapter on com port 3 but another user said don't use com 3, so I moved it to com 10 and still get the code 5 error. I have updated the com drivers from LOR I can see my units in HU and I can control my 2 ctbpc16 controllers and my 3 pixie2d controllers. But every minute in the commlistener i see the error. I am just trying to track down what the error means. I have submitted a ticket to LOR to find out what code 5 is.

 

Does HU find the adapter?

[wrohdejr]

46 minutes ago, k6ccc said:

What does the Windows Device Manager show?  The comm port for a USB adapter is assigned by Windows - NOT LOR.  You can change the Windows assignment using the Windows Device Manager if desired, but you can not change the Windows comm port assignment from within LOR.

 

When I open device manager it finds the usb serial port at com10 and device status is working properly port settings are 9600 bits per second, 8 data bits, 0 parity, 1 stop bit, flow control none. Driver is FTDI  driver version 2.12.36.4 under events in the information box it does say: Device FTDIBUS\VID_0403+PID_6001+AG0JF1GYA\0000 requires further installation.

[wrohdejr]

49 minutes ago, TheDucks said:

Does HU find the adapter?

Yes

[dibblejr]

One thing to add here. I do not kow about others however I and the many people I have helped here have never had success if trying to run the LOR Reg network past com4. I just helped a member yesterday who had attempted to start with com 7. Had a plethora number of issues trying to find and configure controllers. She sent me a pic of her HU screen and I saw com 7. Reassigned to com port 3 and everything worked.

She said the computer would not let her assign lower than 7. I believe when first plugged in her adapter was at port 9

Its to easy to reassign devices to save the hassle. 

Not sure if that is what's going on here but wanted to ref it. 

JR

[wrohdejr]

28 minutes ago, dibblejr said:

One thing to add here. I do not kow about others however I and the many people I have helped here have never had success if trying to run the LOR Reg network past com4. I just helped a member yesterday who had attempted to start with com 7. Had a plethora number of issues trying to find and configure controllers. She sent me a pic of her HU screen and I saw com 7. Reassigned to com port 3 and everything worked.

She said the computer would not let her assign lower than 7. I believe when first plugged in her adapter was at port 9

Its to easy to reassign devices to save the hassle. 

Not sure if that is what's going on here but wanted to ref it. 

JR

I have the issue when I use com port 3

[Orville]

6 hours ago, dibblejr said:

One thing to add here. I do not kow about others however I and the many people I have helped here have never had success if trying to run the LOR Reg network past com4. I just helped a member yesterday who had attempted to start with com 7. Had a plethora number of issues trying to find and configure controllers. She sent me a pic of her HU screen and I saw com 7. Reassigned to com port 3 and everything worked.

She said the computer would not let her assign lower than 7. I believe when first plugged in her adapter was at port 9

Its to easy to reassign devices to save the hassle. 

Not sure if that is what's going on here but wanted to ref it. 

JR

 

6 hours ago, wrohdejr said:

I have the issue when I use com port 3

What does your Com3 show assigned to it?  Or does it show it as available {just com 3 displayed when looking for available com ports to use}?  If it's open, there shouldn't be any issues in using it.

I tried changing mine to a higher comm port in the Device Manager {This done w/ several versions of Windows, Win 98, Win XP and Win 7  - haven't tried this with Win 10 yet, and don't think I'll even try, since this has failed at all previous attempts at doing so.}.  I also changed settings in the Network Pref software to match just to see if Comm3 would ever have an issue, I could use a different comm port.  However, after doing this using several com ports, the Regular network on every port I tried that was open WOULD NOT run under Regular network  {I even tried com port 2}, none of the com ports, although found in the HU, would find my CTB16PC Controllers, RGB Controllers or my N4-G4 MP3 Director.  Once I put everything back on Com 3, everything worked fine. 

This was also using version 4.4.16 Pro and I tried this out on both my old USB485B adapter and the red HS adapter, my red HS adapter works fine on Com 4, but when assigned any other Com Port by manually changing it, rebooting the system for those changes to take effect, it didn't like the com ports I tried, and it too, would NOT find any of the controllers, even though the comm port was available in the HU, it seemed there was nothing connected to it, when I know there was.   Also, if the com port wasn't changed in the NP software {LOR Suite}, and the LOR CP ran {on automatic boot up} the CP would lock in an endless loop with whatever com port was assigned to the adapter, if it was still at 3, but had been reassigned to 2, so the CP would show an error and a message on the line with the offending com port {com port 3 now doesn't exist, and is creating the error, remember it was changed to com 2!}.  However, com 3 still exists in the NP, as it was not changed to com 2 and was not assigned in the NP.  So the CP can't find the adapter now assigned to com 2, so it is now constantly repeating this error until you unloaded the LOR suite, and correct the NP settings to match.   If ANYTHING is MIS-MATCHED in the LOR NP, nothing will work either {EXCEPT the HU} because the CP is running in an endless loop error. 

However, THIS error will affect the HU because there is an issue with that com port NOT being found {error code 5 in the LOR CP}, so even if the com port is found in the HU, the CP HAS NOT assigned it as a viable, working com port {USB adapter}, so the HU may show it, but it's not actually working in the HU, so nothing will be found when refresh is hit to locate controllers.  Com port may be listed, but the adapter is MIA to the HU, and why nothing works or can be found when refresh is clicked on.   Also, if your FTDI Drivers are not fully installed, you will also see problems that look very similar to this, the adapters WILL NOT WORK, not even in the HU, if the FTDI drivers are not completely installed properly!  I've had this experience as well, just re-install the FTDI drivers.

I hope I'm explaining this correctly, but this is what happened when I tried to shift my com ports around, just in case there was ever an issue with one and I needed or wanted to change one.   Can't say for sure about this, but I think once the USB adapter is installed and windows assigns it a com port, too me, it seems it stays with the adapter, when I plug my adapters into another computer, they come up with the same com ports that they had on the previous system I was using.  My USB485B black adapter has seen 2 laptops and at least a half dozen other systems before this one and my new Win 10 system, and on every single system I have ever plugged it into, it would always be on com 3 that was assigned to it when I first plugged it into my first computer I was using for LOR at the time, and that was back in Jan. 2010.  And this com port on this USB485B adapter has NEVER changed on any system I've ever plugged it into since unless I manually changed it, then it didn't work on the new com # assigned to it, always had to go back to com 3 for it to function, since this is for my regular network.  I couldn't get the regular network to work on any other com port, at least not on my system, other than com 3.

I know these adapters contain some electronics, and I may be wrong, but maybe once Windows assigns them their com port, it could possibly stay with them in some manner?   I know I have other electronic devices that retain settings that don't contain a battery, and they can retain their memory for up to 10 years after being disengaged from the device they control, as well as lying on a shelf unplugged from any power source.  I'm not a LOR engineer, so I am guessing at the memory retention possibility.  But to me, it makes sense, since my adapters have always remained with their same com port on the numerous computers I've plugged them into over the years, and those were com 3 {black USB485B} and com 4 {Red HS Adapter} from their very first installation into a USB port.

Just my experience with attempting to change com ports around.  Your experience may be completely different from mine.

 

[TheDucks]

11 hours ago, dibblejr said:

One thing to add here. I do not kow about others however I and the many people I have helped here have never had success if trying to run the LOR Reg network past com4. I just helped a member yesterday who had attempted to start with com 7. Had a plethora number of issues trying to find and configure controllers. She sent me a pic of her HU screen and I saw com 7. Reassigned to com port 3 and everything worked.

She said the computer would not let her assign lower than 7. I believe when first plugged in her adapter was at port 9

Its to easy to reassign devices to save the hassle. 

Not sure if that is what's going on here but wanted to ref it. 

JR

I run Regular on COM10, NetA is COM11, NetB is COM12.   You do need to use the NET Utility. OH! and the Net Utility CAN NOT specify any additional adapters that do not exist when the show runs. I had set COM12 to NetC , but it was my spare/test net (HU does not need the NET to COM defined)

The reason your friend had low number issues, was that PC probably had OTHER devices use those COM ports at some time.  I had been using various USB to Serial (and a USB to Centronics) adapters with my Laptop and each reserved a COM# (or 2). Which is which I force all my PC's to use the same COM if I plug in that adapter. BTW My laptop (the show computer) has a Dialup Modem on COM3 (the old Serial port1)

[wrohdejr]

So I heard back from LOR. The reason for the code 5 is most likely due to having the HU running the same time as the sequencer. When the HU is running it is controlling the COM and when Sequencer is running and you are controlling the lights the program doesn't know what to do so it throws a code 5 error. Make sure you are not running both programs at the same time. So far I haven't seen the error again. If it pops back up I will reopen this thread.

[k6ccc]

Yep, that will do it.  Only one thing can control the serial port at the same time.

 

[Orville]

2 hours ago, wrohdejr said:

So I heard back from LOR. The reason for the code 5 is most likely due to having the HU running the same time as the sequencer. When the HU is running it is controlling the COM and when Sequencer is running and you are controlling the lights the program doesn't know what to do so it throws a code 5 error. Make sure you are not running both programs at the same time. So far I haven't seen the error again. If it pops back up I will reopen this thread.

That's interesting because I have the HU and SE open at the same time, do it quite often at times, usually when I have the HU open{opened first} and then open the SE to check a sequence to see why the colors are correct in HU, but not in my sequence, the SE usually turns off the "Control Lights" option when I open it AFTER the HU is open, don't know what happens if the SE is opened first, then the HU second at the same time, then that error may happen.  Just haven't had it happen to me, but I'll be on the watch for it to see if it ever comes up, and what I did, or didn't do that caused it.

 

[PhilMassey]

They can be open at the same time but can't both control the com port at the same time. Same goes for the show player

[k6ccc]

3 minutes ago, Orville said:

That's interesting because I have the HU and SE open at the same time, do it quite often at times, usually when I have the HU open{opened first} and then open the SE to check a sequence to see why the colors are correct in HU, but not in my sequence, the SE usually turns off the "Control Lights" option when I open it AFTER the HU is open, don't know what happens if the SE is opened first, then the HU second at the same time, then that error may happen.  Just haven't had it happen to me, but I'll be on the watch for it to see if it ever comes up, and what I did, or didn't do that caused it.

Only one can be controlling at the same time.  That's why the "Control Light" option gets turned off if the HU is already open.

Phil largely beat me to it...