Introduction
Manual Documentation Number: ESP904-4513m
Chapter 1
1
B&B Electronics Mfg Co Inc – 707 Dayton Rd - PO Box 1040 - Ottawa IL 61350 - Ph 815-433-5100 - Fax 815-433-5104 –
www.bb-elec.com
B&B Electronics Ltd – Westlink Commercial Park – Oranmore, Galway, Ireland – Ph +353 91-792444 – Fax +353 91-792445 –
www.bb-europe.com
C
C
h
h
a
a
p
p
t
t
e
e
r
r
1
1
:
:
I
I
N
N
T
T
R
R
O
O
D
D
U
U
C
C
T
T
I
I
O
O
N
N
The
VLINX Model ESP904 Quad-Port Ethernet Serial Server
provides
Ethernet to Serial connections for RS-232, RS-422 or RS-485 devices. The
serial ports can be accessed over a LAN/WAN using
Direct IP Mode
,
Virtual
COM Port
, or
Paired Mode
connections. The 10/100 Mbps Ethernet
connection auto-selects 10BaseT or 100BaseTX and indicates the type of
connection with a bi-color link light.
Features
4 multi-interface serial ports
- RS-232, RS-422, RS-485; software
selectable connections
10/100 Mbps Ethernet
with Auto Selection
LAN and WAN Communications
TCP or UDP Client or Server operation
- configurable
Software Support -
Windows 98/ME/2000/2003/NT 4.0/XP and Vista
Firmware Upload
for future revisions/upgrades
Configuration
of Ethernet and serial port settings can be accomplished
using any of four methods:
o
VLINX ESP Manager Software for Windows
allows
configuration via a network connection or directly from the
Ethernet port of a computer (using an Ethernet crossover cable).
o
Web Server
allows configuration via the network using any
web browser.
o
Telnet
allows configuration via the network by accessing the
setup configuration menu.
o
Console Mode
allows configuration through an RS-232 serial
port in using a VT100 Terminal Emulation program and an RS-
232 crossover cable.
Virtual COM Driver Software for Windows
- installs a virtual COM
port, viewable in the Windows Device Manager under
Ports (COM &
LPT)
. Virtual COM port provides access to any of the ports on the
ESP904, like any other serial port (legacy, PCI, USB or PCMCIA) on
the computer. Any program running on the computer and using
Windows-based COM ports can access the serial devices attached to the
