Targus Mobile Port Station User manual

BRUSSELS HANNOVER BARCELONA TOKYO MILANO AMSTERDAM SINGAPORE LONDON PARIS NEW YORK LOS ANGELES TORONTO HONG KONG SYDNEY
Mobile Port Station
USER’S GUIDE
Visit our Web site at: www.targus.com
Features and specifications are subject to change without notice. ©2003 Targus Corp.
400-0114-001A

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MOBILE PORT STATION
Introduction
Congratulations on your purchase of the Targus Mobile Port
Station. This ultra portable expansion module directly connects
to a desktop or notebook computer via a Universal Serial Bus
(USB) port.
The port station provides the following ports:
•Audio (out)
•RS232 serial
•Parallel (printer) Enhanced (bi-directional)
•RJ-45 Ethernet 10/100
•Five (5) USB 2.0
Package Contents
In addition to this user’s guide, the package contains:
•Targus Mobile Port Station
•6-foot (180 cm) USB 2.0 cable (A/B type)
•Driver software CD
•AC power adapter
NOTE: The supplied AC power adapter is a universal adapter
that you can use in any 100 to 240 AC volt outlet.

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Mobile Port Station
System Requirements
Hardware
•PCwithanIntel
®Pentium®processor or equivalent and a
hard disk drive
• 64 MB RAM or higher, depending on the operating system
• CD-ROM drive
• USB version 1.1 or 2.0 port
NOTE: When connected to a USB version 1.1 port on your
computer, the port station’s performance level will be less
than optimal. For best results, connect it to a USB version 2.0
port.
Operating System
• Windows®98SE/Me/2000/XP
Installing the Device and Drivers
To use the Targus port station, you must first install the port
station driver onto your computer. Then, connect it to your
computer and install the hardware drivers for each port.
WARNING: You must install the port station software BEFORE
connecting it to your computer. Otherwise, the port station
will not work properly.
Installing the Port Station Driver
Installing the port station driver enables your operating system
to recognize the port station and it’s ports once it’s connected.
1 Turn on your computer.
2 Insert the driver software CD into your computer’s
CD-ROM drive.

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Mobile Port Station
3 If setup does not begin automatically, click Start, Run,
then enter D:\Setup.exe (where D: is the path of your
diskette drive) and then click OK.
The Welcome screen appears.
4ClickNext.
5 If you are running the Windows®XP operating system, the
Important Information screen appears. Click Next.
The PA090 Setup program begins installing the port station
drivers.
The Setup Complete screen appears.
6ClickFinish and restart your computer when prompted.
Connecting the Port Station to Your Computer
After installing the port station software, you are ready to
connect the port station to your computer. To do this:
1 Connect the USB cable’s type B end to the port station.
USB 2.0 cable (A/B type)
2 Connect the USB cable’s type A end into an available USB
port on your computer.
3 Connect the supplied AC power adapter to the AC power
jack on the port station.
Type A Type B

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Mobile Port Station
Installing the Default Device Drivers
Once you connect the port station to your computer, the
following default drivers begin installing for each of the ports:
• Ethernet 10/100
• Serial Interface Controller
•USBDevice
• Parallel Interface Controller
• Audio (out)
This installation process takes a few minutes. The operating
system doesn’t prompt when installation is complete. If you
attempt to open another application during installation, it will
not respond until installation is complete.
Windows®2000/XP Operating System
If you are running the Windows®2000/XP operating system,
some hardware devices may prompt you to install the drivers.
To install the drivers:
1SelectInstall the software automatically
(Recommended) and click Next.
The Found New Hardware Wizard program begins
installing the hardware drivers.
The Completing the Found New Hardware Wizard screen
appears.
2ClickFinish and repeat as needed for each device.
3 Restart your computer.
When your computer restarts, it detects the new drivers.

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Mobile Port Station
LED Status Indicator Lights
Once all device drivers are installed, the LED status indicator
lights glow and you can connect devices to the port station.
• Hub Link light glows green.
• Tx/Rx light flashes green when data is transmitted to or from
the network.
• 100M light glows green when connected to a 100 Mbps hub.
NOTES: The port station supports hot swapping of the
network cable.
• Serial light glows green.
• USB lights glow green.
Installing Additional Drivers for
New Devices
When connecting new devices to the port station, you may
need to install additional software drivers. Consider the
following guidelines:
• If your computer is running the Windows®98 operating
system, a series of screens appear, beginning with the Add
New Hardware Wizard, to guide you through the installation
process.
• If your computer is running the Windows®Me/2000/XP
operating system, the drivers install automatically.
• To properly install additional hardware drivers, you must run
the Setup or Install program for that device.

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Mobile Port Station
Connecting New Devices
When connecting a new device, do not force the cable
connector into the port on the port station, to avoid possible
damage. If the cable connector does not attach smoothly, turn
the connector over and try attaching it again.
Connecting a Serial Mouse
To connect a serial mouse, attach the cable connector to the
serial port on the port station.
Connecting and Configuring a Serial Modem
To connect a serial modem:
1 Attach the cable connector to the serial port on the port
station.
2 Install the modem software driver according to the
instructions that come with the device.
3 When prompted to select the port, choose the Serial USB
(COMx), where xis the COM port number assigned by
your operating system.
Connecting a Handheld Computer
1 Attach the cable connector to the serial port on the port
station.
2 Verify that the COM port setting, in either your HotSync®
or ActiveSync®software, matches the setting on the port
station.
To verify the COM port setting on the port station, refer to
“Verifying Devices are Installed” on page 11.
To verify the COM port setting on your handheld computer,
refer to the documentation that came with it.

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Mobile Port Station
Connecting a Parallel Printer
The logical port for a parallel printer on the port station is
either LPT2 for the Windows®98\Me operating system or
USB001 for the Windows®2000\XP operating system. If the
logical port on your computer is set to LPT1, or LPT1 is the
only option when setting up a new printer, you must change it
so that your operating system recognizes the printer via the
port station.
Connecting and Configuring a Printer for the First Time
1 Attach the cable connector to the parallel port on the port
station.
2 Install the printer software driver according to the
instructions that come with the device.
3 When prompted to select a port, choose either LPT2 or
USB001. If this port does not appear in the list, choose the
LPT1 port, complete the manufacturer’s setup for your
printer and follow the instructions below to redirect your
printer.
Checking and Redirecting the Printer Port Settings
Follow these instructions to check the printer port settings and
redirect your printer from the LPT1 port to either LPT2 or
USB001 on the port station.
1 Unplug the printer cable from your computer and plug it
into the port station parallel port.
2SelectStart, Settings, and then Printers.
3 Right-click the printer device you are reassigning and select
Properties.

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Mobile Port Station
4 In the Printer Properties window, select Details or
Connection for the Printer. (Section titles vary, so check
your printer’s user manual for specific instructions.)
5 Change the setting to either LPT2 or USB001 to redirect
printing to the port station.
Connecting to a Local Area Network
To connect an RJ-45 ethernet cable, attach the cable connector
to the ethernet port on the port station. Additional procedures
to connect to an actual network depend on the type of network
you are using. Contact your network administrator for detailed
instructions.
Connecting a USB Device
To connect a USB device, plug it into a USB port on the port
station and follow the additional instructions provided with the
device.
Things to Remember
Using a Device with the Port Station
Once connected, use any device according to the instructions
provided with the device.
Global Suspend Mode
When your computer is in suspend mode, the port station also
enters suspend mode to avoid power consumption. When your
computer wakes up, the port station wakes up automatically.

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Mobile Port Station
Product Limitations
General
The port station splits a single connection among a variety of
devices and connections. Some devices, which use large
amounts of bandwidth, such as printers and digital cameras,
can consume all available resources and may interfere with the
performance of other devices.
Some devices may halt temporarily when a high data transfer is
occurring. For example, your mouse may respond slowly while
a graphic print job is printing or while you are experiencing
heavy network traffic.
We recommend the following guidelines:
• Do not transfer data to or from multiple high-speed devices,
such as a digital camera or scanner, at the same time.
• If speed degradation does occur, close other programs that
use a USB device to improve device performance.
Parallel Port
If you connect the port station to a USB 1.1 port on your
computer, the parallel port is only compatible with printers and
only supports enhanced bi-directional printer features, such as
returning printer status. For best results, you should connect
high bandwidth external devices, which have a parallel
connection, such as a Zip®drive, directly to your computer.
If you connect the port station to a USB 2.0 port on your
computer, the parallel port supports all parallel devices. No
degradation should occur.