NPort W2150A-W4/W2250A-W4 Series User Manual
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Real COM mode allows you to continue using your serial communications software to access devices that are
now attached to your NPort device server. On the host, the NPort Real COM driver automatically intercepts
data sent to the COM port, packs it into a TCP/IP packet, and redirects it to the network. At the other end of
the connection, the NPort device server accepts the Ethernet frame, unpacks the TCP/IP packet, and sends
the serial data to the appropriate device.
ATTENTION
In Real COM mode, several hosts can have simultaneous access control over the NPort serial port. If
necessary, you can limit access by using the NPort’s Accessible IP settings. Please refer to Chapter 8 for
additional information on Accessible IP settings.
RFC2217 Mode
RFC-2217 mode is similar to Real COM mode, since it relies on a driver to transparently map a virtual COM
port on a host computer to a serial port on the NPort. The RFC2217 standard defines general COM port
control options based on the Telnet protocol and supports one connection at a time. Third party drivers
supporting RFC-2217 are widely available on the Internet and can implement virtual COM mapping.
TCP Server Mode
In TCP Server mode, the NPort serial port is
assigned an IP:port address that is unique on your
TCP/IP network. It waits for the host computer to
establish a connection to the attached serial device.
This operation mode also supports up to eight
simultaneous connections, so multiple hosts can
collect data from the attached device at the same
time.
Data transmission proceeds as follows:
A host requests a connection to the NPort serial
port.
Once the connection is established, data can be
transmitted in both directions—from the host to the
device, and from the device to the host.
TCP Client Mode
In TCP Client mode, the NPort actively establishes a
TCP connection to a specific network host when data
is received from the attached serial device. After the
data has been transferred, the NPort can
automatically disconnect from the host computer
through the Inactivity time settings. Please refer to
Chapter 7 for details on these parameters.
Data transmission proceeds as follows:
The NPort requests a connection from the host.
The connection is established and data can be
transmitted in both directions between the host and
device.
