Serial port not showing up.

[MTBguy]

weirdbal and MTBguy-

I think the programmer may be suspect at this point as you've tried it on so many machines. Can you guys take high res photos of the surface of the programmer? Or can you visually inspect a couple things under a magnifying glass? I want to make sure there isn't a solder flaw we missed.

Check the USB port - inspect the leads as they touch the board and make sure none have solder bridges (where solder touches between two pins). This is very rare and they should have all been inspected and tested, but it's worth a look. Also look at the 5 components to the right of the USB port (C2, C3, D1, R2, R3). Finally have a look at the main IC on the board - make sure you don't see any solder bridges, that all the pins connect to the board, and also check the polarity dot on the part - it's a little dent in the IC package. The dent should be toward the inner side of the board rather than the outer side.

If you keep having issues over the weekend, I can send you out new programmers on Monday that I'll verify myself are working on several computers. That'll either solve the problem or rule out the board as the problem.

Thanks for the cooperation. If we've got something strange happening on the programmers we certainly want to know asap. We've sent out quite a few and this is the first I've heard of the issue not being solved by software or drivers.

Thanks!
-Kevin

I dont have a good camera. Just the one on my cell phone. I looked over the board with a magnifying glass, and everything looks good. I will post this on Arduino and Linux Mint forums and see if there is maybe a software issue on my end. I will report back here with what I find out.

EDIT: I just saw the post about checking the voltages. I have a multimeter, but it is at work. If I have time tomorrow, I will go get it and report back with my findings.

[princeoffools]

Hello everyone, just tried hooking up my ringo for the first time this evening and ran into the exact same problem with the programming adaptor. The FTDI drivers installed properly, the cord works fine, the ringo will charge, but my computer simply won't detect the programming adaptor. I've tried on both Windows 8.1 and Windows 10 devices. I'd be interested to know when a solution comes up. Product looks great, Can't wait to get it running!

[kreiggers]

I tried the trick as linked in a previous post of disabling the Apple FTDI drivers. Rebooted and started again, but no luck. Still not recognized.

Macbook Pro (13-inch early 2011), OS X 10.10.5

[PeteM]

Mac users should be sure to install latest Java. It may help resolve some of these issues. Certainly worth a try.

[a.angel]

Oh, and to provide the full details requested:

1) Two machines running Windows 7, fully patched, and one Macbook Air running OS X 10.10.3.
2) FTDI drivers were installed before ever plugging in the board, with an admin account, and all indications were that it was successful.
3) I was able to manually create a COM port in the device manager and choose the FTDI drivers for it, so they are there and able to be used, but the board does not show up as a device when it is plugged in with multiple different USB cables.

I am curious on the Windows 7 machines you say you installed the FTDI drivers first using an admin account. Did you actually right click on the file and choose to run as administrator? There is a difference between the 2. Also I wanted to note that my pc running windows 7 doesnt appear to show when my programmer is plugged in either. The only time I saw anything when plugging in my adapter was the first time when the drivers installed.

[weirdbal]

Oh, and to provide the full details requested:

1) Two machines running Windows 7, fully patched, and one Macbook Air running OS X 10.10.3.
2) FTDI drivers were installed before ever plugging in the board, with an admin account, and all indications were that it was successful.
3) I was able to manually create a COM port in the device manager and choose the FTDI drivers for it, so they are there and able to be used, but the board does not show up as a device when it is plugged in with multiple different USB cables.

I am curious on the Windows 7 machines you say you installed the FTDI drivers first using an admin account. Did you actually right click on the file and choose to run as administrator? There is a difference between the 2. Also I wanted to note that my pc running windows 7 doesnt appear to show when my programmer is plugged in either. The only time I saw anything when plugging in my adapter was the first time when the drivers installed.

I don't believe I right clicked the first time, but it gave every indication of success. I tried re-installing that way without any difference later.

When you say it doesn't show up anywhere, do you mean it is not even in the device manager as a COM port when plugged in? Does nothing but the Arduino app see it? You say you saw something the first time you plugged it in. Are you referring to the pop-up of the system searching for a driver for the new device that was plugged in? If so, that never even happened for me once.

[a.angel]

Oh, and to provide the full details requested:

1) Two machines running Windows 7, fully patched, and one Macbook Air running OS X 10.10.3.
2) FTDI drivers were installed before ever plugging in the board, with an admin account, and all indications were that it was successful.
3) I was able to manually create a COM port in the device manager and choose the FTDI drivers for it, so they are there and able to be used, but the board does not show up as a device when it is plugged in with multiple different USB cables.

I am curious on the Windows 7 machines you say you installed the FTDI drivers first using an admin account. Did you actually right click on the file and choose to run as administrator? There is a difference between the 2. Also I wanted to note that my pc running windows 7 doesnt appear to show when my programmer is plugged in either. The only time I saw anything when plugging in my programmer was the first time when the drivers installed.

I don't believe I right clicked the first time, but it gave every indication of success. I tried re-installing that way without any difference later.

When you say it doesn't show up anywhere, do you mean it is not even in the device manager as a COM port when plugged in? Does nothing but the Arduino app see it? You say you saw something the first time you plugged it in. Are you referring to the pop-up of the system searching for a driver for the new device that was plugged in? If so, that never even happened for me once.

Yes I was referring to the pop-up of the system searching for a driver and installing it. Strange that this never happened for you. As for whether or not device manager shows a com port I will have to check later.

[weirdbal]

Trent,

I think there is definitely something wrong with your programmer if you're not getting charging when the jumper is in place. If the 5v power from your USB cable is getting into the board at all, it should be charging. Maybe have a close look where the green fuse connects in the upper left and see if maybe it pulled back from one of the pads and somehow got missed in testing. Sometimes it can make/brake intermittent contact if it's really close but not a solid solder contact. Haven't see that on a programmer yet but it is a general problem that could happen to any surface mount part in assembly.

We'll definitely be sending out new programmers to you guys effected on Monday which I'll test thoroughly on a couple of computers - we'll see if that fixes the issue. Then I can get the programmers you already have for further study.

Thanks,
-Kevin

Is the plan still to send out new boards today? Thank you for all your help to get us up and running, much appreciated.

[cheif039]

Just got my Ringos today and having the same issues. Bought the 3 pack with two programming adapters and neither one will work to charge the Ringo or program it.

Bullet point version of issues/tests:

-No charging through adapter
-Will charge through direct USB
-Drivers installed properly
-No windows connection at all (Windows 10, 8, or 7)
-No change by using different cables
-All components appear to be connected securely

Look forward to hearing what the issue was and even more so the solution.

[Kevin]

Okay everyone, I've got some answers.

The problem is with the USB port connector. Some of them were placed slightly too far to the right and some of the pins are not making reliable contact with the board. They were supposed to be all tested before shipping, but I suspect a few un-tested panels ended up being split up and dumped in the "already tested" bin.

After much testing here on the stock will still have in the shop, we found this same issue on a handful of programmers.

I am sending out replacement programmers today to the following people. If I missed you, let me know and I'll get yours out tomorrow. We're also including a return shipment label - can you please put the bad programmer back in the same envelope and return it to us? It's a quick fix for us. The replacement units have been tested and inspected and should work fine.

Sorry again for the hassle. It was actually good news for us - as I was afraid something was happening to the FTDI chip itself, which is rather expensive and not an easy fix to remove/replace.

People getting new programmers today:

weirdbal
trent
cheif039
kreiggers
princeoffools
MTBguy