Virtual PC & Modsoft

golarger

Member
Join Date
Jun 2004
Posts
7
Hi All,

Has anyone managed to get Modbus comms to work using MS VPC running on XP. I have set up a virtual win95 machine and the problem is whenever I try a talk to a Modicom Quantum using MB Modsoft just jumps back to main screen. If i unhook PLC I get the expected error 199 fault.

It looks like a timing issue (Suprise) but cannot get a fix sorted.

Thanks
 
Modsoft is a 16 bit DOS based program. It is not capable of dealing with the WinXP serial port management (timing) issues.

Modicon stopped supporting Modsoft on Windows after Win95 so I don't think you will get any fatory support.

I wish people would stop trying to run their +10yr old PLC software on new PCs. Stop upgrading PCs or start upgrading software. I use a dual boot (DOS/XP) PC for supporting ancient (obsolete) systems.
 
Jim,

Its a also a shame that many of our colleagues get confused if their hardware is not PnP and actually have to work things out. I don't always get the option to Not upgrade OS, Our customers won't always let us Dual Boot there P.Cs. Hell they wont always spend the money to upgrade PLC software. I have to work with what I a given and I guessed that this might be the forum to speak with people who have also had to solve PLC / Comms problems.

Maybe I should wait for the the latest MS PLC PnP USB System with integrated SCADA that works straight out the box.
 
Ranting

I feel your pain, but I do not know anyone that has had success in overcoming WinXP serial port issues. This is a Microsoft problem but the blame falls on Modicon and the solution has to be found by you.

I am always amazed how customers will drop lots of money on upgrading everything from Microsoft but they refuse to upgrade anything else.
 
Re: Ranting.

Jim Dungar said:
I feel your pain, but I do not know anyone that has had success in overcoming WinXP serial port issues. This is a Microsoft problem but the blame falls on Modicon and the solution has to be found by you.

It is Modicon's problem that you upgraded your operating system so Modsoft doesn't work. Blame Microsoft for not maintaining backward compatability. I like the dual boot option or better yet, just dedicate a laptop to WIN95 and don't expect it to do anything else but Modsoft.

Jim Dungar said:
I am always amazed how customers will drop lots of money on upgrading everything from Microsoft but they refuse to upgrade anything else.

Good point!! When you upgrade the OS you often must upgrade much of your software. This costs lots of $$$$ and for what. Don't you guys get it. Microsoft wants to churn the market every couple of years. Selling upgrades is how they make their money. They don't care about compatibility issues. You have got me started. The solution is to buy PCs for a specific purpose and NOT keep loading it down with new **** that it can't run well.

My main development computer is a 550MHZ dell running the same WIN98 that came with it. I have formated and re-installed once. Much of the software on it is DOS based. Borlandc, turbo assembler, paradigm development tools etc... That is all it does. No mail, excel or other stuff.

I have a DSP developement computer. That is all it does. I have my lap top that I am using the write this. It runs win2k. It has all the office, mathcad, and PLC programming stuff on it. I can put all this stuff on it because because this laptop is not where I do most of my real work.

Now why I am waiting for that d$#$%$ hour glass when I have a ...

Have I told you guys how much I hate Microsoft today? We just bought exchange server and the web mail junk filter doesn't work.
 
Guys

Thanks for the posts. Don't MS make our lives interesting!

I understood that MS VPC was supposed to emulate the OS that was installed, even down to the serial interrupts. I guess I'm asking if anyone has succesfully used VPC with modsoft and MB

Chris
 
Ah, Peter, I would love to be able to get away with what you are doing. The only problem is that when we upgrade our programming software, or start on a new brand, we find it won't run on the old OS. Then we upgrade the OS, and then we have to upgrade more PCs to the new OS or we can't share work, and then we have to take two laptops on a service trip if we go to more than one jobsite, and then ......

What a racket. It wouldn't be so bad if the new OS would at least work right, but you have to find bugs, then update with new service packs, and then update the application software, and then find new printer drivers, and then ........

Productivity tool my A$$ !
 
I aggree with everybody that to keep an old PC just for legacy programs is a good idea. I have a Win3.11 laptop for truly old programs.

But maybe there is a workaround for that XP pc.
It is possible that the old software talks directly to the memory addreses 3F8, 3E8, 2F8 or 2E8. These are usually not available on the serial ports on motherboards of today.
I recently saw a serial PCI card (CompUSA p/n 271773) with "legacy remapping" functionality. It mimics the 3F8, 3E8, 2F8 or 2E8 so old 16-bit DOS applications will work.
 

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