LPT3 should be LPT1

[Guest]

Here's the scoop: I have a new computer with an ASUS P5N32-SLI motherboard.
This motherboard has no physical parallel ports at all. It seems to be a new
trend. XP Pro was installed. I now need an LPT1 to interface to some
speciallized IC programming equipment, so I added a MosChip Technoloy
SY-PIO9835-2S1P PCI card which has 2 COM ports and 1 LPT port. When
installation was complete,
the parallel port was added as LPT3. The specialized hardware cannot
communicate on LPT3, so I need this physical parallel port to be reinstalled
as LPT1. In the Device Manager under Ports (COM & LPT), only COM1, LPT3,
COM3, and COM4 exist. The latter 3 are from the MosChip Technology PCI card.
LPT3 cannot be changed to LPT1 on the resources tab because the "Setting
Based ON", "Use Automatic Settings", and "Change Settings" controls are all
greyed out and inoperative. Is this because all 3 LPT ports are though to
exist already, so you can't change one? Under Printers and FAXs, the
properties for any given printer allows assignement to any of the 3 parallel
ports LPT1, LPT2, and LPT3. This suggests Windows thinks they exist. A
regedit search of the registry keys shows that all 3 LPT ports are listed
under HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE >> Software >> Microsoft >> Windows NT >> Current
Version >> Ports. I do not know why LPT1 and LPT2 are listed here if they do
not exist. Is this why the fisrt real LPT port installed itself as LPT3?
How should I correct this? Should I uninstall LPT3, then delete the LPT1 and
LPT2 registry keys from the registry location above, and lastly reinstall the
new physical LPT port? Will this make it come up as LPT1? Are there any
downside risks or considerations to doing this? Thanks.

 

[Ghostrider]

Here's the scoop: I have a new computer with an ASUS P5N32-SLI motherboard.
This motherboard has no physical parallel ports at all. It seems to be a new
trend. XP Pro was installed. I now need an LPT1 to interface to some
speciallized IC programming equipment, so I added a MosChip Technoloy
SY-PIO9835-2S1P PCI card which has 2 COM ports and 1 LPT port. When
installation was complete,
the parallel port was added as LPT3. The specialized hardware cannot
communicate on LPT3, so I need this physical parallel port to be reinstalled
as LPT1. In the Device Manager under Ports (COM & LPT), only COM1, LPT3,
COM3, and COM4 exist. The latter 3 are from the MosChip Technology PCI card.
LPT3 cannot be changed to LPT1 on the resources tab because the "Setting
Based ON", "Use Automatic Settings", and "Change Settings" controls are all
greyed out and inoperative. Is this because all 3 LPT ports are though to
exist already, so you can't change one? Under Printers and FAXs, the
properties for any given printer allows assignement to any of the 3 parallel
ports LPT1, LPT2, and LPT3. This suggests Windows thinks they exist. A
regedit search of the registry keys shows that all 3 LPT ports are listed
under HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE >> Software >> Microsoft >> Windows NT >> Current
Version >> Ports. I do not know why LPT1 and LPT2 are listed here if they do
not exist. Is this why the fisrt real LPT port installed itself as LPT3?
How should I correct this? Should I uninstall LPT3, then delete the LPT1 and
LPT2 registry keys from the registry location above, and lastly reinstall the
new physical LPT port? Will this make it come up as LPT1? Are there any
downside risks or considerations to doing this? Thanks.'

This is supposedly a gaming board so a parallel port could have been
omitted from the I/O backplane. However, this does not necessarily mean
that there isn't a [default] bios setting for LPT1 and/or LPT2. There
could also be headers on the motherboard for LPT1 and a bracket for the
connector...check the manual.

In any event, check whether or not LPT1 and LPT2 are enabled, by default,
in bios setup. If they are, then disable them. This might allow one to
assign LPT1 to the parallel port on the PCI card.

 

[Uncle Grumpy]

Here's the scoop: I have a new computer with an ASUS P5N32-SLI motherboard.
This motherboard has no physical parallel ports at all. It seems to be a new
trend.

You are having a hardware problem, NOT an OS problem.

Take this "scoop" elsewhere.

 

[Guest]

You are wrong. The hardware is correct. It is Windows that is
misconfigured. The supporting context was only included so intelligent
people can better understand the questions about Windows configuration issues.

Ghostrider, Thanks for your help. The motherboard manual does not list LPT
ports, and no such brackets or cables came with it. I will try to compensate
for Windows assumptions using BIOS configuration.

 

[Peter Foldes]

You should be posting this to the xp hardware newsgroup

http://www.microsoft.com/communitie...t.aspx?dg=microsoft.public.windowsxp.hardware

 

[Guest]

Thanks Tim. Yes, I did this but it didn't help at all.

After I and my Friends tried several with no success, I checked with a
number of manufacturers who have the most configurability (including tech
support at www.lavalink.com and and www.cablemax.com (sold thru USBGear and
SerialGear) (LPT-1284-LP, 159548, 158343, etc.)). They infomed me that as
far as they know it is impossible due to the OS.

Since the time I posted this I have found that as of XP, Microsoft no longer
supports fully featured LPT or COM ports. According to Microsoft's article:
"Legacy I/O Removal to Advance the PC Architecture", (and a number of others
I might add) the ability to have IRQs, DMAs, and I/O address ranges is part
of the intentional abandonment of anything having to do with ISA
architecture. This is for the embetterment of humanity by "Removal of
obsolete, slow, complicated, and often poorly understood interfaces
offer[ing] obvious benefits toward this end: simpler, more robust machines,
and a lower cost of goods." From what I can gather, the plan is for
abandonment to become more guaranteed by Vista and its progeny.

My hypothesis is this: When COM and LPT ports are built into the
motherboard, the designers have the ability (at least for now) to add special
hardware and software in the BIOS that may still allow these ports to operate
in a relatively fully featured way. However, if you happen to have a
motherboard without them and try to add them with a PCI card, it will no
longer be possible (as of XP) to have any fully featured ones on your
computer, so just get over it. It takes about 2 person-months of labor to
reconstruct my development environment on a new machine.

Of course, this leaves me with very expensive development systems for
electronics and ICs which I can no longer support with Microsoft. I'm hoping
some creative soul has come up with some viable alternative, but judging from
what I've seen in many days of internet searches, there is no commercially
available solution.

I hope and pray someone truly proves me wrong, but after nearly a dozen
people who deal with things like this as their daily job have come up
enpty-handed, a solution does not seem likely.

PS: While this is clearly an operating system caused problem, I will also
try the hardware group to see if they have any conceivable work arounds for
Microsoft's abandonment of OS support for legacy I/O requirements as of XP.

 

[Guest]

Actually I have almost exact same problem, except for the LPT number is
already LPT1, I don't need to change it. However, the software can not
operate it.
In the Device property/Resources, it says "Input/Output Range DD00 - DD07
not available." and "Input/Output Range DC00 - DC07 not available." and put a
inhibited mark on each icon. Ironically, in the Device property/General page,
it does say "This device is working properly." I don't no how to solve the
problem either.

 

[Unknown]

Since you didn't include the message with your reply, we don't know what the
problem is.