FrontLine FTS4USB User manual

FTS4USB™ USB 2.0 Analyzer
Quick Start Guide
Copyright © 2000-2011 Frontline Test Equipment, Inc. All rights reserved. You may not reproduce,
transmit, or store on magnetic media any part of this publication in any way without prior written
authorization of Frontline Test Equipment, Inc. FTS, Frontline, Frontline Test System, and ComProbe are
registered trademarks of Frontline Test Equipment, Inc. FTS4BT is a trademark of Frontline Test
Equipment, Inc. The Bluetooth SIG, Inc. owns the Bluetooth word mark and logos, and any use of such
marks by Frontline is under license. All other trademarks and registered trademarks are property of their
respective owners.

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CONTENTS
Minimum System Requirements .................................................................................................................. 1
Introduction .................................................................................................................................................. 2
Hardware Description ................................................................................................................................... 3
Connecting the USB ComProbe II to the Device Under Test (DUT) .......................................................... 5
Connecting only one Device Under Test............................................................................................... 5
Connecting more than one Device Under Test..................................................................................... 6
Connection tips ......................................................................................................................................... 7
Opening/Selecting Data Capture Method .................................................................................................... 8
Capturing data ............................................................................................................................................10
Analyzing Data ............................................................................................................................................ 11
Control Window...................................................................................................................................... 11
Frame Display.......................................................................................................................................... 11
Event Display...........................................................................................................................................14
Common Features................................................................................................................................... 15
Display Synchronization......................................................................................................................15
Duplicate Displays ...............................................................................................................................15
Bookmarks .......................................................................................................................................... 15
Searching............................................................................................................................................. 15
Technical Support .......................................................................................................................................16

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MINIMUM SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS
•PC with Windows XP 32 bit, (Service Pack 2 or higher), Windows 7 (32 and 64 bit).
•Pentium 2 GHz processor
•RAM Requirements: 2 GB minimum
•50 MB free Hard Disk Space (capture file size is limited only by disk size)
•USB 2.0 High Speed enabled port

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INTRODUCTION
FTS4USB™ is a PC-based protocol analyzer capable of capturing and decoding USB packets. FTS4USB
captures traffic between a PC and a USB device using the USB ComProbe II hardware, and transmits the
data to the analyzer PC via a USB port.
You have four general options with FTS4USB
•USB ComProbe I, Bluetooth HCI Captures and decodes Bluetooth data; USB and USB Setup data
will be filtered out.
•USB ComProbe I, USB Captures and decodes USB bus activities and transactions.
•USB ComProbe II, Bluetooth HCI Captures and decodes Bluetooth data; USB and USB Setup data
will be filtered out.
•USB ComProbe II, USB Captures and decodes USB bus activities and transactions.
For this document we will assume that you have already installed the software for FTS4USB. If our
assumption is correct, you can move to the next section and we will get started. If, however, you
haven't installed the software and ComProbe drivers, you need to stop here, open FTS4USB How to
Install.pdf., and follow the instructions to take care of installation.

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HARDWARE DESCRIPTION
The USB ComProbe II hardware is used for external data monitoring. The USB ComProbe II is a high
speed, full speed, and low speed USB 2.0 protocol analyzer that sends data using a high speed USB 2.0
connection.
The front of the analyzer has three USB connections: one for the device being tested, one for the PC the
device is normally connected to, and one digital I/O port (Figure 1a).
Figure 1a – Front Panel
The back panel has one USB connection labeled "Analysis PC" for connecting the USB ComProbe II to the
computer running FTS4USB (Figure 1b).
Figure 1b – Back Panel
There are three LED’s on top of the ComProbe (Figure 1c).
Figure 1c – LED's

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•The orange LED (TST) serves as a Capture Port connection indicator. It glows when the Target
Host is connected.
•The red LED (ACT) indicates bus activity.
•The yellow LED (PWR) serves as an Analysis Port connection indicator. The PWR LED will be
illuminated when the analyzer has been correctly connected to the analysis computer and is
receiving power from the USB.
The Capture side also includes a mini-DIN 9 connector which serves as a connection to the
digital inputs and outputs (Figure 1d). Its pin outs and the cable coloring for the included cable are
described in Figure 3d and Table 1 below.
Figure 1d - mini-DIN Connection
Table 1
Pin Name
Color
Pin Number
Input 1
Input 2
Input 3
Input 4
Brown
Red
Orange
Yellow
Pin 1
Pin 2
Pin 3
Pin 4
Output 1
Output 2
Output 3
Output 4
Green
Blue
Purple
Grey
Pin 5
Pin 6
Pin 7
Pin 8
Ground
Black
Pin 9
The ComProbe is powered from the USB port of the analysis computer and doesn't require an external
power source.

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Connecting the USB ComProbe II to the Device Under Test (DUT)
Once you have the software and the drivers loaded, the next step is to connect your hardware.
The USB ComProbe II is a high speed, full speed and low speed USB 2.0 protocol analyzer that sends data
using a high speed USB 2.0 connection. The recommended configuration requires two computers, one
for communicating with the device under test and the other for displaying the results of the analysis.
Although the USB ComProbe II can download analyzed data on a full speed USB 1.1
connection, it is strongly recommended that you connect it using a high speed USB 2.0
port to obtain optimal performance. If you experience any trouble with your analyzer,
please ensure it is connected on a high speed USB 2.0 enabled host controller before
contacting our technical support.
Connecting only one Device Under Test
The most straightforward configuration involves only one device to be analyzed. Figure 2a shows how to
properly connect the device under test.
Figure 2a – Connecting only one Device Under Test (DUT)
To prevent connection problems, please adhere to the following instructions:
•Make sure that NO USB DEVICE is plugged into the same root hub as the Device Under
Test (DUT). An extraneous USB device can result in FTS capturing data from the
device, not the DUT.
•The Analysis computer cable must be no longer than 5 meters.
•The total length of the Test computer and Device Under Test cables must not exceed 3
meters. A greater length could result in an abnormally high error rate on the bus being
analyzed.
Test Computer
Analysis computer
Device Under Test

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Connecting more than one Device Under Test
USB analyzers are able to analyze traffic coming only from devices connected under them. If a device is
connected above the analyzer, it will only register data packets coming from the host. Figure 2b shows
an incorrect connection: the USB mouse is connected 'above' the analyzer.
Figure 2b – Wrong connection with more than one Device Under Test (DUT)
When the analyzer is used to analyze multiple devices, this analysis must necessarily involve a USB hub.
In this way, you can ensure that all the devices to be analyzed are, in fact, 'below' the analyzer. You
should be aware that the analyzer will record all hub and devices traffic. Though it could result in a large
amount of data, this won't cause inconvenience because the software's functions can filter out extra
traffic very easily. Figure 2c illustrates how to connect correctly several devices under test.
Figure 2c – Correct connection with more than one Device Under Test using a hub
Device Under Test
Analysis computer
Test Computer
Device Under Test
USB hub
Test Computer
Analysis computer

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Connection tips
Most performance problems such as input buffer overflow are the result of improper connections.
To achieve optimal performance from the USB analyzer, we recommend the following configuration:
•Use two high-speed computers, one for the analyzer and one for the device under test
•Use USB 2.0 connections
•Use cables that do not exceed the recommended maximum lengths (the cable connected to the
analysis computer should not exceed 15 feet, and the total length of the cables connected to the
test computer and the device under test should not exceed 9 feet).
Although it is possible to use one computer as both the analysis and the test computer, this requires
that the computer in use is high-speed and has two or more host controllers available.
If the operating system encounters an error when trying to install a device, simply disconnect the device,
then reconnect it and try again.

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OPENING/SELECTING DATA CAPTURE METHOD
Now that the software and drivers are installed and the hardware is positioned correctly, the next step is
to open FTS4USB and select the data capture method.
1. Open "FTS4USB"from the Start menu or from the Desktop folder.
2. Select "Frontline FTS4USB".
The Select Data Capture Method dialog appears (Figure 3a).
Figure 3a – Data Capture Methods
Notice that the four sniffing methods that we identified in the Introduction are displayed here:
•USB ComProbe I, Bluetooth HCI
•USB ComProbe I, USB
•USB ComProbe II, Bluetooth HCI
•USB ComProbe II, USB
If you click on an option, a short description appears on the right of the dialog.