CP2104-EK
Rev. 0.7
3
5. CP2104 Software Interface
If the Virtual COM Port drivers are used, the CP2104 will appear as a COM port in the Device Manager, as shown
in Figure 2. The CP2104 will always use the lowest available COM port for operation. For instance, if COM ports 1
and 2 are in use by other peripherals and applications, the CP2104 will use COM 3.
The CP2104 functions identically to a COM port from the reference point of both the host application and the serial
device, and it can support serial device control requests defined in the Microsoft Win32
®
Communications API.
Examples for how to communicate with the device as a serial COM port are included in AN197 on the
www.silabs.com/interface-appnotes
page or in the SDK.
If the USBXpress drivers are used, the CP2104 will appear as a USB USBXpress device as shown in Figure 2.
Examples for how to communicate with the device using the USBXpress interface are included in AN169 on the
www.silabs.com/interface-appnotes
page.
Figure 2. CP2104 in Device Manager