by 5B4AIY » 19 May 2016 07:47
Hi, Erich,
The Ingenia loader was originally written to execute under Windows XP, but with the advent of the later operating systems, (Win-Vista, Win-7, Win-8, Win-10) it is necessary to ensure that the compatibility options are set appropriately in order for it to execute correctly. As you seem to have already downloaded my notes, you need to set the compatibility options to Windows XP, SP3, and although not essential, it is often necessary to set it to run with administrative privileges. This is explained in my notes. I have tested the Ingenia loader under Win-XP, Win-7 (32 bit and 64 bit), and Win 10 (64 bit), and it worked perfectly well in all cases with the compatibility settings as described.
Equally, it is absolutely vital that the replacement configuration file (ibl_dspiclist.xml) is loaded into the folder where the loader executable is located. This is typically, for a 32-bit system:
C:\Program Files\Ingenia\ingeniadsPICbootloader\
or, for a 64-bit system:
C:\Program Files(x86)\Ingenia\ingeniadsPICbootloader\
Without this file you will not be able to communicate satisfactorily with the flash writer in the transceiver or linear amplifier.
You can verify that you have the correct configuration file, its 32-bit CRC is: D5465531
You also need to make certain that the RS-232 port in the transceiver/linear is functioning correctly, and again, there is a simple check for this in my notes. With these factors taken care of, then it is necessary to ensure that the RS-232 to USB converter is also functioning correctly. Using a terminal program you can test this by invoking the serial test facility in the transceiver or linear.
The flash writer and loader are written so that they will automatically select the speed, but you can preset it yourself. Try using a slower speed, as sometimes the highest speed does not work very reliably. Most communication difficulties are caused by (in order of frequency):
1. Failing to replace the .xml configuration file;
2. Failing to set the compatibility and administrative options;
3. Using an incompatible RS232 to USB converter;
4. Hardware fault in the MAX232 port of either the transceiver or linear amplifier;
5. Corrupted flash writer in either the transceiver or linear.
73, Adrian, 5B4AIY