HW Group PortStore5 User manual

PortStore5 Manual
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PortStore5
MANUAL

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Safety information
The device complies with regulations and industrial standards in force in the Czech Republic and the
European Union. The device has been tested and is supplied in working order. To keep the device in
this condition, it is necessary to adhere to the following safety and maintenance instructions.
The device must not be used in particular under any of the following conditions:
∂The device is noticeably damaged
∂The device does not function properly
∂Unfastened parts can move inside the device
∂The device has been exposed to moisture or rain
∂The device has been serviced by unauthorized personnel
∂The power adapter or power supply cable are noticeably damaged
The manufacturer warrants the device only if it is powered by the supplied power adapter or an
approved power supply.

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PortStore5
RS-232 or RS-485 to Ethernet converter + 4 MB serial buffer + system messages by e-mail
PortStore5 is an Ethernet to serial
converter (“terminal server”), featuring
support for full 9-bit RS-232 and RS-485
serial ports and 4096 kB Flash buffer for
storing data whenever the TCP
connection is unavailable.
In the TCP Client/Server mode,
PortStore5 automatically establishes a
TCP connection and attempts to upload
data to the server.
If the internal buffer is full, an e-mail
alert is sent.
Basic features
ƒ1x full RS-232 (9-pin) or RS-485 serial port accessible over the Ethernet.
ƒSerial port data are stored in a 4096 kB Flash buffer and uploaded after establishing a TCP
connection. When the connection is established, stored data are sent as a continuous “RAW
TCP stream”.
ƒThe remote port can be controlled with a virtual driver for Windows just like, for example,
COM 5 (a Windows XP / Vista / Windows 7 / Windows 8 / Server 2003 / Server 2008 / x64
driver is available free of charge). Compatible with RFC2217.
ƒ100 Mbps Ethernet interface – 100BASE-Tx, RJ45.
ƒSupport for TCP/IP terminal, TELNET – NVT type (Network Virtual Terminal).
ƒTwo devices can „tunnel“ the serial port over the Ethernet.
ƒWeb-based configuration interface.
ƒWide range of supported serial interface parameters:
oCommunication speed configurable from 300...115200 Bd
oHandshake (CTS/RTS, Xon/Xoff, none)
oFull serial port (Cannon DB9M - RxD, TxD, CTS, RTS, DSR, DTR, RI, CD, GND)
oSupport for 7th to 9th parity bit (9th parity bit transferred over the Ethernet)
ƒSDK (Software Development Kit) is available for the device with examples for MS Visual Basic,
Delphi, Borland C++, JAVA, PHP and more.

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Technical specifications
RS-232 serial port
+ Data bits 7 or 8 or 9
+ Stop bits, parity 1 or 2, None / Odd / Even / Mark / Space parity
+ Baudrates 50 to 115.2 kBd – entire range
+ Data flow control XON/XOFF, CTS/RTS, None
+ Interface 1x DB9M (RxD, TxD, CTS, RTS, DSR, DTR, RI, CD, GND)
+ Implemented RS-232 signals RxD, TxD, CTS, RTS, DSR, DTR, RI, CD
RS-485 serial port
+ Termination None (We recommend external 120-470Ωtermination)
+ Isolation RS-485 line not optocoupled to the device’s power supply
- electrically isolated RS-232/485 to Ethernet (1000 V)
Ethernet port
+ RS-232 Buffer memory 4096 kB Flash for incoming serial data
+ Buffer overflow signaling Network:None
RS-232:HW or SW handshake if buffer is full
+ Buffer type Linear FIFO data space
+ Buffer data readout format RAW binary TCP/IP stream
Ethernet port
+ Interface RJ45 100BASE-T / 100 Mbit/s
+ Compatibility Ethernet: Version 2.0/IEEE 802.3
+ Supported protocols IP: ARP, TCP + NVT (Network Virtual Terminal)
+ TCP connection closing Data – 5s timeout (with NVT – ACK/NOP support)
Physical parameters & Environment
+ Temperature & humidity Operating: -10 to 75°C (14 to 167 °F)
Storage: -10 to 85°C (14 to 185°F), humidity 5 to 95 %
+ Power supply requirements 8-30V / Max. device current consumption 200 mA DC
- barrel (coaxial) power connector, GND on the shield
+ Dimensions / Weight 120 x 94 x 25 [mm] (H x W x D) / 260 g
Note: This parameter table is only indicative.
For a valid table, see the specifications for the particular device model.

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Connectors
Connector pinouts
DIP 1 DIP 2 Functions
ON OFF RS-232 Setup mode (9600 8N1) Ethernet is disabled
OFF OFF RS-232 serial port mode
OFF ON
RS
-
485
serial port
mode
- check the &R and &H parameters (recommended: &R3 &H1)
LEDs:
Power – green……………………........ External power connected
LINK – amber…………………........... Ethernet activity
Status – green..................................... Device starting up, firmware upgrade
Setup – red..............................……… Device in Serial Setup mode
RS-485 Port
Pin Signal
A
+ (A>B)
B
-
RS-232 Port
Pin Signal
1 <
-
CD
2 <
-
RxD
3
-
>
TxD
4
-
>
DTR
5
--
GND
6 <
-
DSR
7
-
>
RTS
8 <
-
CTS
9 <
-
RI
Cannon 9
-
Male
Power LINK

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Quick SETUP
Connections
∂Connect the supplied power
adapter to an electrical outlet.
∂Set DIP1 and DIP2 to OFF.
∂Connect the device to the
Ethernet.
∂Connect the power adapter to
the power connector at the
device.
∂If the power is OK, the green
Power LED lights up.
∂If the Ethernet connection works
properly, the LINK LED lights
up, and then flashes whenever
data transfer takes place
(activity indication).
Configuring the IP address
∂Start the “Hercules.exe” utility. It is available on the DVD (included in the “set” package) or for
free download at www.HW-group.com.
∂In the “UDP Setup” tab, click “Find modules”. The MAC address of the device appears in the
left column. Single-click the MAC address and set the required parameters (at least the IP
address, mask and gateway).
∂Make sure that “Enable TCP Setup” is checked. Click “Set module” to save the parameters to
the device.
∂You have now configured the IP address and other networking parameters and you can work
with the device.
MAC address not present in the list?
LINK LED did not light up or the device does not respond? Please double check the following.
- Are you using a correct TP cable (straight-wired TP Patch when connecting to an Ethernet
switch, crossover cable when connecting to a PC)?
- Check the DIP switch settings (all should be OFF).
- Check your power adapter, make sure the Power LED is on.
- Check the firewall settings at your PC.

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Configuring the device over WWW
In the UDP Setup tab, click the correct MAC address and press Open in the WEB browser.
You need to log in to access the configuration.
The default credentials are “admin” + “1234”.
Default login:
ƒadmin
ƒ1234

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Setting up the device using TCP Setup
∂Change to the “TCP Client” tab and enter the configured IP address. Set the TCP port to 99.
∂Click “Connect”. The listing on the left displays the “WEB51>” prompt. Click inside this pane
and press ENTER. The window displays the current configuration.
∂To set a parameter, enter the
corresponding letter and the desired
value (for example “I192.168.6.8” to
set the device IP address). To
show the help for a command, enter
the command and a question mark,
and press ENTER – for example,
“I? <Enter>“. All the settings are
described in detail later in this
manual.
∂After setting the parameters, use R
for Reboot and press “Disconnect”
to disconnect from the device. The
device restarts.
∂Note: TCP Setup can be disabled
with the “Enable TCP setup” option.
When unchecked, the device
refuses connections to port 99.
Setting up the device using a RS-232 terminal
If you do not have Windows or our Hercules utility available, you can set up the device over RS-232
using any terminal.
∂Set DIP1 = ON,DIP2 = OFF.
∂Connect RS-232 (port 1) to a PC using the
supplied LapLink cable.
∂Open your favorite terminal program (e.g.
Hyperterminal), choose the correct serial
port and configure it to 9600 8N1.
∂Connect the power adapter to the
electrical outlet and to the device.
∂If the power is OK, the green Power LED
lights up.
∂If the serial cable and terminal program
are working, the text menu for configuring
the device appears.
Continue by following the steps as in the previous
case.

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Setting up the device – Frequently Asked Questions
∂Ethernet no longer works but LINK is lit.
Perhaps the device was left in the “RS-232 Setup” mode that is activated by setting DIP1 = ON? In
this mode, the Ethernet does not respond. Set DIP1 = OFF and restart the device by disconnecting
the power supply for at least 3 seconds.
∂RS-485 communication does not work.
Make sure that termination resistors (120 – 470 Ohms) are present at the line or at the
connector.
∂When using a RS485 converter, configure &I1 or &I2 and remember to turn on HALF DUPLEX
using &H1.
∂I need to supply power to a RS-232 application.
If you don’t need to control data flow (HW handshake) but need to power a device connected to the
serial port (max. 5 – 10 mA), power your application from the RTS output (pin 7 at the RS-232
connector). Use the &R0 parameter (&R:RS485/RS422 control) in the setup mode to connect +8 V
to +12 V to this pin.
∂5-second timeout is too short to work with, is it possible to do something about it?
Yes, enable “Keep connection” in the Setup. PortStore5 then sends a command every 6 seconds
that appears as “NVT: NOP” in the receiving pane. This prevents the connection from timing out.

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HW VSP – Virtual Serial Port
Virtual serial port driver for Windows is a software tool that adds a virtual serial port (e.g.
COM5) to the operating system and redirects data from this port via the Ethernet network to
another hardware interface.
∂The driver works in Windows 8, Windows 7, Windows XP, Vista, Windows 2003 Server,
Windows 2008 Server, including 64-bit versions.
∂If the device supports RFC 2217 (NVT), you can set the remote serial port parameters (speed,
parity, stop bits).
∂The communication can be recorded to a log file for easier debugging.
∂It is possible to create multiple virtual serial ports on a single computer (COM5, COM6,
COM7) by starting VSP.EXE from the command line with appropriate parameters.
Using HW VSP with PortStore5
∂Install HW VSP (“HW_VirtualSerialPort” directory on our CD). When installing, make sure to
check the option to install the second part. After installation, make sure to restart your PC.
∂Make sure that NVT is enabled at the UDP Setup tab in the Hercules utility. If not, enable
NVT and save the settings.
∂Start HW VSP and find the device at the “UDPsetup” tab. Select the MAC address of the
device and click “Use this IP”. Change to the “Virtual SP” tab. The IP and Port should be
already set. This search via UDP Broadcast works only on a local network.
∂Select a serial port to create from the COM1 to COM20 range and click “Create COM”. The
“LAN status” pane shows whether the device has been
found. If so, the virtual serial port is created.
∂As soon as you start any application that opens the selected
virtual serial port (COM5 in this example), the HW VSP
driver establishes a connection with PortStore5, configures
the remote port (speed, parity, number of bits, handshake)
to match the virtual serial port being opened, and starts
transferring data.
Some applications have problems with serial port numbers
higher than COM4. You can always use Hyperterminal in
Windows, the Serial tab in the Hercules setup utility, or the
“Terminal.exe” utility originating from Slovenia and available
on the CD in the utils directory.

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HW VSP settings
TEA Key pane
You can use TEA authentication to secure TCP/IP access. The
same TEA key must be set and enabled at both sides of the
communication.
NVT pane
Enables RFC2217 and detection of our remote ports. Remember
to activate NVT support on the remote device as well.
∂NVT filter – Filters out NVT control characters from the data flow.
∂NVT port setup – Configures the remote port parameters via control
commands to match the VSP in your PC. For example, if your
terminal program (e.g. Hyperterminal) changes the baudrate to 19200
Bd and this box is checked, the VSP driver sends a NVT command
(according to the RFC 2217 standard) to change the baudrate of the
remote TCP/IP serial port.
∂Keep Connection – Keeps the TCP/IP connection open even after
50 seconds of inactivity.
Main HW VSP parameters
∂Log enabled
The VSP driver logs the virtual serial port activity to “C:\serialport.log”.
∂TCP server mode
Activates VSP as a TCP/IP server. The driver then behaves as a TCP Client/Server device –
the first side to receive any data switches to Client mode and establishes the connection.
The incoming TCP server port is configured at the main “Virtual SP” tab. We recommend
using port numbers higher than 1025.
∂Create port on start VSP
Automatically creates virtual ports when the driver is started. To create virtual ports at
Windows startup, the “Start VSP on boot” box must be checked, too.
∂Hide on startup
Hides VSP to to the system tray. The VSP icon is accessible near the clock.
∂Don't create port if ping fail
Before creating the virtual serial port, tests if the device IP address responds.
∂Connect to module if port is closed
If the virtual serial port is not in use by any application, checking this box can lead to losing
some received data from the remote device.
∂Start VSP on boot
Inserts the VSP path to the RUN key
(HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\run) in the
Windows registry. VSP is then started every time Windows starts.

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Configuring PortStore5 – Command description
The description of the settings combines WWW-based configuration and TCP setup or Serial setup.
Some functions are only available in Serial setup / TCP setup (TEA security settings, QUIET mode).
PortStore status page
Shows an overview of the basic device parameters.

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Network parameters

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MAC Address 00:0A:59:00:95:6C
MAC address is a unique device address in the Ethernet network and it is always factory-preset. You
can find it on the label. Using this address, individual devices can be distinguished for example in the
UDP section of the setup program.
The address respects restoring of the default configuration with the “D0” command.
I: Address 192.168.6.15
Configures the IP address of the device.
J: Port 23
Configures the device's communication port –
from 1 to 65535.
Port 99 is reserved for TCP Setup, if supported
by the particular model and enabled in the setup.
M: Mask 255.255.255.0
IP network mask applicable in the local network.
Communication with all devices outside of the local
network (as determined by the IP address and
network mask) is directed through the gateway.
G: Gateway 192.168.6.254
Address of the Gateway that enables access to
external networks (outside of the IP range defined
by the device's IP address and the mask).
====== In IP Setup ======
W: Address 0.0.0.0
IP address of a network or a computer that is allowed to communicate with the device. This value must be
the result of a bitwise AND of the remote IP address and the restriction mask (option N), otherwise the
device does not react.
N: Mask 0.0.0.0
This mask restricts addresses that are allowed to communicate with the device. Security can be
enhanced by setting a fixed address or a suitable restrictive mask that disallows communication with
unauthorized parties.
X: Port 0.0
Y: Port Mask 0.0
Restricts the range of TCP ports that can
communicate with the device.
MASK, IP address and Gateway functions:
An Ethernet device communicates:
Within a local Ethernet network
No Gateway is used or needed. However, IP
addresses of both sides must be within the
configured mask. For example, a mask of
255.255.255.0 means that the IP addresses
can only differ in the last byte.
Outside of the local network – through the
Gateway, which itself must have an IP
address within the range delimited by the
mask.
In addition to this basic configuration, it is
possible to restrict the range of IP addresses
allowed to communicate with the device in “In
IP Setup”. For debugging, we therefore
recommend to keep this parameter set to
0.0.0.0.
(
IP attempting to access
AND
N
) =
W
Access is granted if the above condition is
true. AND represents bitwise multiplication.

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====== Out IP Setup ======
S: Send to IP 192.168.0.252
U: Port 23
If the address in the S option is different from 0.0.0.0,
PortStore5 works as a Client/Server in the TCP mode.
This means that if no TCP/IP connection is established and
the device receives serial port data (even a single byte), the
device establish a TCP socket to defined IP address as TCP
client.
The device remains in the TCP Server mode in between
attempts.
In the UDP mode, PortStore5 sends data from the serial port to this address/port.
Set S = 0.0.0.0 to switch the converter to the TCP Server mode.
B: IP Protocol Retry 124
Determines the TCP connection timeout if no communication
takes place. Predefined values are available through the
asterisk notation:
*1: 30 s (n = 35)
*2: 1 min (n = 45)
*3: 2 min (n = 63)
*4: 5 min (n = 77)
*5: 10 min (n = 101)
*6: 15 min (n = 124)
*7: 30 min (n = 144)
*8: 1 h (n = 179)
*9: 2 h (n = 249)
The timeout can be fine-tuned by specifying a value from 10 to
255 according to this formula:
n <16 .. n * 0.2 s
n < 32 .. (n- 15)* 0.8 s + 3.0 s
n < 64 .. (n- 31)* 3.2 s + 15.8 s
n <128 .. (n- 63)*12.8 s + 118.2 s
n <256 .. (n-127)*51.2 s + 937.4 s
Example: B42 => (42-31)*3.2+15.8 = 51s
P: IP Active Call Timer (65535 – Off)
Setting the connection length
Keeping a TCP socket open is
useful when small volumes of
data need to be transferred as
soon as they come in but HW
VSP is not used or a permanent
connection needs to be avoided.
For the duration specified by the B
option, the connection is kept
open and data are sent
immediately, without the delay for
establishing a TCP connection.
On the other hand, a long
timeout means a long period of
inaccessibility through other
sockets (disconnected cable,
TCP setup).
Port configuration in UDP mode
When UDP communication is
used, the remote address must
be specified here.
Otherwise, the communication
will be unidirectional. Data are
sent only to the specified
address.

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TCP mode settings

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T: IP mode TCP
Switches between TCP and UDP protocols. UDP communication is faster but prone to lost packets or out-
of-order delivery; therefore, it is only suitable for communication on a local network segment in a request-
response mode, usually to convert RS485 communication.
The “broadcast Rcv” parameter allows receiving broadcasts.
0: TCP
1: UDP with broadcast Rcv Off
2: UDP with broadcast Rcv On
V: NetworkVirtualTerminal Off
Network Virtual Terminal enables interpretation of Telnet sequences, including certain RFC2217
extensions that enable on-the-fly changes of serial port parameters (speed, parity, etc.). NVT
description can be found at our website: >> “Support & download” >> “NVT (Network Virtual
Terminal) protocol description”.
When communicating with the serial port using telnet, e.g. with the TeraTerm program or the
Hercules utility, NVT should be enabled. If you don't want to use this option, set your client to “RAW”
communication mode.
0: Off (do not use telnet control codes, pass through to serial port)
1: On (accept telnet control codes)
K: Keep connection Off
Keeps TCP connections alive to avoid automatic termination upon timeout specified by the B: IP
protocol retry time parameter. When enabled, the device sends a NVT NOP command
approximately every 5 seconds to check the connection state. If port sampling is enabled with the #T:
Trigger AND mask parameter, the device sends an I/O keep command (FF FA 2C 37 ..) instead of a
NOP (see #K, #L, #M, #N). NVT must be enabled for this parameter to take effect – when NVT is off,
PortStore5 repeats the last packet sent and the Keep function is dependent on the remote TCP
implementation.
0: no keep connection (prefered)
1: keep connection
E: Erase buffer on Open connection
Clears the internal device buffer whenever a connection is established or closed. This option is useful
for instance when your remote peripheral periodically sends some kind of “I'm alive” characters, you
only need to access it once in a while, and receiving all these characters from the buffer wastes time.
0: none
1: Close TCP/IP connection
2: Open TCP/IP connection
3: Open & Close TCP/IP connection
UDP/IP mode does NOT support
:
-NVT commands
-TEA authentication
Challenge-response protocols
respond up to 40% faster.

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UDP/IP mode settings
If you select “T: IP mode UDP”, the device will communicate with the remote side using UDP
packets. Also, the following menu appears in the Setup.

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==== Trigerring Setup =====
*L: Trigger Length 1
Number of bytes for the packet start and packet end triggering condition. Allowed values are 0 to
4. If the lengths of your start and end conditions differ, use the trigger condition mask and
remember to include the masked characters in the length of the triggering condition, even though
they contain actual frame data.
*P: Post Trigger Length 0
In some protocols, the packet end condition is followed e.g. by a checksum. This condition defines
the number of characters that make up a packet after the packet termination condition. If the start
and stop trigger conditions are equal, this value specifies the packet length without the leading 0 to
4 bytes of the start trigger.
*S: Start Trigger Pattern 58.0.0.0
Start trigger condition for packet transmission. Four bytes
are set; however, only the number of bytes specified in “L: Trigger Length” is considered.
*M: Start Trigger Mask 255.0.0.0
Mask of the start trigger condition. Masking works similarly to the Ethernet netmasks using a bitwise
AND. Value of 255 means that the tested character must be equal to the character specified in “V: Start
Trigger Pattern”. For example, to start the transfer with any ASCII control character (0..31d), use
0.0.0.0 for the trigger pattern, 224.0.0.0 for the mask and 1 for the length. If you set the character to 0
and the mask to 0, the trigger matches any character.
*X: Stop Trigger Pattern 10.0.0.0
Sets the stop trigger condition for sending data to the Ethernet.
*Y: Stop Trigger Mask 255.0.0.0
Mask of the stop packet trigger condition for serial line data. For
example, the settings displayed here are intended for
transferring data in the IntelHEX format over RS485. The start
trigger is a colon and the transfer is terminated after receiving
the <LF> (0Ah = 10d) control character.
*E: Max. Start-Stop Length 999
Maximum number of characters that the device sends after the
START trigger, unless the STOP trigger is encountered sooner.
After transmission, another START trigger is expected.
Essentially, this is a “timeout” specified as the number of
characters.
==== UDP/IP Mode Setup =====
A: Max. Packet Length 250
Maximum UDP packet length in bytes.
Configuration example
To send all data from the serial
line to the remote device, use
this configuration:
*L: Trigger Length 0
*P: Post Trigger Length 0
*S: Start Trigger Pattern 0.0.0.0
*M: Start Trigger Mask 0.0.0.0
*X: Stop Trigger Pattern 255.0.0.0
*Y: Stop Trigger Mask 255.0.0.0
*E: Max. Start-Stop Length 200
(
4B input data
AND
*M
) =
*S
(
4B input data
AND
*Y
)=
*X