Cannot communicate with the Davis console

[W2IRT]

Hello all,
This is my first day using my new weather station. I have been successful in installing the Weatherlink package and Davis' hideous software is functional in USB mode. Being as how I do not live in 1985, and appreciate modern software, I'd like to get Cumulus working properly but so far it's giving me nothing but fits.

There is a virtual COM port installed (COM-11), created using the Davis CP210X USB to Virtual Serial Convertor and its settings are 19200, N-8-1.

With the Davis software is closed, and the console connected to the PC via USB cable and COM-11 active, I receive an error upon initialization. And that's as far as I can get. I receive [ERROR -32701 while trying to initialize the station.].

Is there anybody still alive with knowledge of how to make serial ports (even virtual ones) behave? Or better yet, is there *any* possibility of running both the Davis software and Cumulus off USB?

Thanks in advance.

[steve]

With the Davis software is closed, and the console connected to the PC via USB cable and COM-11 active, I receive an error upon initialization. And that's as far as I can get. I receive [ERROR -32701 while trying to initialize the station.].

Are you using Weatherlink in USB mode? If so, that will stop Cumulus being able to use the station in serial mode. You need to switch WL to serial mode. See http://wiki.sandaysoft.com/index.php?ti ... Cumulus.3F

If you are already using WL in serial mode, you could try the latest drivers from Silicon Labs. If you're already using those, and you have WL working in serial mode, then I'm afraid I don't know why Cumulus won't talk to the station. The communication with the station is handled by a DLL which Davis supply.

Or better yet, is there *any* possibility of running both the Davis software and Cumulus off USB?

In theory, Cumulus should be able to drive the station in USB mode, the Davis DLL allows this. But for some reason it doesn't work. Someone kindly sent me a USB weatherlink adapter so I could experiment, but ironically I could only get it to work in serial mode and not in USB mode. Experimenting is a bit difficult as the Davis is my 'live' weather station and isn't connected to my development PC.

[W2IRT]

AHA! That did the trick. The Davis software was converted back into Serial mode and now all is well.

Without opening up another thread (unless it's a major kettle of fish), is there any way to get Cumulus to run as a service or, in some other fashion to report to CWOP and Wunderground, without being open as a foreground application?

Many thanks.
Cheers,
Peter, W2IRT
http://www.wunderground.com/weatherstat ... =KNJWESTC2

[steve]

Some people are running Cumulus as a service using things like SrvAny, but I haven't tried it myself. I just have it in my startup folder and set to run minimised to the task bar at startup.

[W2IRT]

That's what I'm doing now and it seems to be fine. My only real concern is that this PC occasionally gets used for a mission-critical database with bi-directional hardware control across numerous virtual serial ports. I'm trying to ensure that I can still feed data to the Weather sites while doing this critical work without fear of a conflict. If necessary, I will just cease reporting during those 48-hour periods.

Conversely, is it possible to run Cumulus and receive updates if installed within a VM?

[steve]

Conversely, is it possible to run Cumulus and receive updates if installed within a VM?

Yes, if the environment gives it access to the hardware port.

[W2IRT]

Splendid! I'll give it a whirl when I get some time to relax (and after Ghosting my hard drive just to be safe!)