I've recently bought a laptop with a touch pad that does not completely work under Linux. So I thought I might listen what data is sent to the PS2 controller (IO port 60) under Windows, and update the Linux driver accordingly. Do you know what tools I might use?
Perisoft Bushound - Expensive but very useful.
For your specific purpose I'd use some serial port monitor/sniffer software.
You may write your own tool that does the same, but that's a large amount of work. You should create a so-called file system filter driver (http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/hardware/gg462968).
Related
I have a data buffer of data on my Serial port. This communication is developed in order to transfer the "maximum" value of possible data. Hence, the value of samples "send" if there is no connection with a computer is around ~11500 data/sec. If I attach the controller (who send the data) on a Windows 10 machine and I try to read (with java) the data, the information frequency drops down to ~ 950/1000 data/sec. Otherwise, if I attach the controller to the same machine, with the same software, but under Ubuntu, it reaches ~6000/7000 data/sec. So, there is a way to improve the Serial port under Windows?
If you are using a cheap USB-serial port, it is possible it only works at USB1 speeds, and/or the driver is basically a rebadged device driver demo from the Windows SDK (which is very poor). More expensive USB ports generally have their own drivers which are much better at higher data rates.
It is also possible that there is some sort of hardware flow control that isn't quite as efficient on Windows as it is on Linux.
Without knowing exactly which USB port you have, it's difficult to make suggestions.
I have an Arduino application talking over USB to an application on Windows 8 using the MAVLINK protocol. The connection appears as COM3.
Is there a Windows application that can spy on this connection and display the traffic going in both directions? Raw bytes are fine, I don't need the protocol decoded.
You could log serial port activity using Portmon. (Edit: You need to first connect to the local computer via the Computer menu, and you must start capture on the port before a program opens it.)
You may not want to log USB traffic. Such a log would include a lot of extra information relating to the USB to serial adapter which is providing COM3. Portmon would only give you the bytes transferred over COM3, and the Mavlink protocol is entirely contained within that data stream. If you're sure you want to log all USB traffic to and from that device, then I recommend SnoopyPro. In Windows 7, you need to run it as administrator.
If you can use Windows XP in your environment, USB sniff should work for you. If you need something more powerful (and are willing to pay a fee for it) then USBLyzer might be a viable option.
The answer is SnoopyPro, and you can download it at:
SnoopyPro Sourceforge
This tool allows you to get USB information and also USB communication data. I used it in the past to know how a USB device worked in order to do its driver on Linux. I used this tool as a sniffer.
Basically, SnoopyPro allows you to intercept, display, record and analyze the USB protocol and all transferred data between any USB device connected to your PC and applications. It can be successfully used in application development, USB device driver or hardware development and offers the powerful platform for effective coding, testing and optimization.
inHi, this question is fast, but from my point of view its pretty hard. I have been messing with implementing USB device built from MCU. So I found project called V-USB which is software-emulated USB interface for Atmel MCUs. But this is not so important.
The question is, on their site, they say that using custom USB class, you can simply write host software on Unix, but you need driver DLL for Windows. The problem is, they dont explain why.
So, please, why? I dont know Unix based systems, but I thought that the very basics of different OS are the same becouse thay rise from the same hardware, and even Unix cannot do HW IO operations from user mode.
I know about libraries for USB communication like LibUSB and so, but I want to know the very reason why thay say that its easy on Unix. Thanks.
EDIT:
Thanks for answer, but can I have further question? How this everything is a file works? I mean, my vision of driver on Windows is a program running in kernel mode, thus allowed to access CPU IO ports, which either provides functions to OS by some standarts, to allow Windows to use it (for example HDD driver must be accessible from filesystem driver by standardised set of functions, to allow any HDD work the same).
With this all you have to do is call drivers via WinAPI function or directly call its functions. But USB implements new feature which is different classes. So there is main USB root driver to handle USB and calling right secondary drivers for right devices. Than there is the same procedure, you just call your USB driver.
But if in Unix everything is a file, how are handled different classes? I just cannot imahine how this works in some analogy to Windows way. Does that file represents the way to communicate with USB root driver?
Everything in UNIX is a file, which supports simple operations. No matter if you are communicating via a terminal or a via a usb device, everything is a stream of bytes to a file.
* read
* write
* lseek
* close
I'm developing a project that has a number of hardware sensors connecting to the deployment machine through RS232 serial ports.
But ... I'm developing on a machine without an physical RS232 serial ports, but I would like to make fake serial ports that I can connect to and output data from with the aim of faking input from hardware sensors.
Does anyone know of a way to create a fake serial port and control it on Windows XP?
If you are developing for Windows, the com0com project might be, what you are looking for.
It provides pairs of virtual COM ports that are linked via a nullmodem connetion. You can then use your favorite terminal application or whatever you like to send data to one COM port and recieve from the other one.
EDIT:
As Thomas pointed out the project lacks of a signed driver, which is especially problematic on certain Windows version (e.g. Windows 7 x64).
There are a couple of unofficial com0com versions around that do contain a signed driver. One recent verion (3.0.0.0) can be downloaded e.g. from here.
I know this is an old post, but in case someone else happens upon this question, one good option is Virtual Serial Port Emulator (VSPE) from Eterlogic
It provides an API for creating kernel mode virtual comport devices, i.e. connectors, mappers, splitters etc.
However, some of the advertised capabilities were really not capabilities at all.
EDIT
A much better choice, Eltima. This product is fully baked. Good developer tech support. The product did all it claimed to do. Product options include both desktop applications, as well as software development kits with APIs.
Neither of these products are open source, or free. However, as other posts here have pointed out, there are other options. Here is a list of various serial utilities:
com0com (current)
com0com - With Signed Driver (old version)
Yet another place for com0com with Signed Driver (Pete's Blog)
Tactical Software
Termite
COM Port Serial Emulator
Kermit (obsolete, but still downloadable)
HWVSP3
HHD Software (free edition)
I use com0com - With Signed Driver, on windows 7 x64 to emulate COM3 AND COM4 as a pair.
Then i use COM Dataport Emulator to recieve from COM4.
Then i open COM3 with the app im developping (c#) and send data to COM3.
The data sent thru COM3 is received by COM4 and shown by 'COM Dataport Emulator' who can also send back a response (not automated).
So with this 2 great programs i managed to emulate Serial RS-232 comunication.
Hope it helps.
Both programs are free!!!!!
There's always the hardware route. Purchase two USB to serial converters, and connect them via a NULL modem.
Pro tips:
1) Windows may assign new COM ports to the adapters after every device sleep or reboot.
2) The market leaders in chips for USB to serial are Prolific and FTDI. Both companies are battling knockoffs, and may be blocked in future official Windows drivers. The Linux drivers however work fine with the clones.
Another alternative, even though the OP did not ask for it:
There exist usb-to-serial adapters.
Depending on the type of adapter, you may also need a nullmodem cable, too.
They are extremely easy to use under linux, work under windows, too, if you have got working drivers installed.
That way you can work directly with the sensors, and you do not have to try and emulate data.
That way you are maybe even save from building an anemic system.
(Due to your emulated data inputs not covering all cases, leading you to a brittle system.)
Its often better to work with the real stuff.
i used eltima make virtual serial port for my modbus application debug work. it is really very good application at development stage to check serial port program without connecting hardware.
From time to time, I need to dump USB traffic under Windows, mostly to support hardware under Linux, so my primary goal is to produce dump files for protocol analysis.
For USB traffic, it seems that SniffUsb is the clear winner... It works under Windows XP (but not later) and has a much nicer GUI than earlier versions. It produces huge dump files, but everything is there.
However, my device is in fact a USB serial device, so I turned to Portmon which can sniff serial port traffic without the USB overhead.
After five years waiting, now it's possible to sniff usb packets on windows
See http://desowin.org/usbpcap/tour.html for a quick tour. It works pretty well
Since people don't seem to realize it, Wireshark does monitor USB traffic and has a parser for it; but the catch is it only works under Linux. Wireshark on Windows will not do this.
It may be possible to plug the USB device you want to monitor, along with a Linux machine (with Wireshark running) and your Windows machine and just use the USB device under Windows.
Problem with the above? I don't know how the Linux machine or the Windows machine will detect each other.
Busdog, an open source project hosted on github, has worked well for me. It has a driver it installs to allow it to monitor USB communications. The config window allows you to reinstall or remove the device at any time.
You can select the USB device you want from an enumerated list. A nice feature is to have it automatically trace a new device that is plugged in:
Data communications to and from an SWR analyzer I was reverse engineering were captured flawlessly:
USBSnoop works too - and is free.
Or, you could buy a USB to Ethernet converter and use whatever network sniffer you prefer to see the data.
Personally, I'd use QEMU or KVM and instrument their USB passthrough code, and then use libusb to prototype the replacement driver in user space (this latter bit I've done before; writing USB device drivers in Python is fun!).
Microsoft Message Analyzer was able to capture USB traffic, with Device and Log File parser from MS: link
Update: as mentioned by #facetus, MS Message Analyzer has been retired on November 25 2019.