Can't read data from PCIe parallel port add-in card

[ewhite]

Hi there,

I am using LabWindows/CVI 2010 and Windows 7 (not SP1) 32 bit. I can read in data from the built-in parallel port on the motherboard using the inp() function, but cannot read from the StarTech PEX1P PCIe parallel port add-in card. I have found the correct address of the card by looking at the Resources tab of device manager (the card shows up as ECP Printer Port (LPT3)). The stated I/O range is 0xDCF8-DCFF, so the correct address/port number should be 0xDCFC. I have tried all addresses within this range but none of them seem to work.

I have installed a parallel port tester and can manually toggle pins through this software so I know the port can be accessed.

Is this a known issue or am I doing something wrong?

Thanks

[gmcconnachie]

Hi ewhite,

When configuring parallel ports it is recommended to have the NI-VISA driver installed as this automatically detects ports and supports interaction with both serial and parallel ports. Here's the link to the download page - https://www.ni.com/en-gb/support/downloads/drivers/download.ni-visa.html#329456 and the latest version (20.0) is compatible with Windows 7 OS - https://www.ni.com/en-gb/support/documentation/compatibility/17/ni-visa-and-operating-system-compati...

I would also suggest checking that the pins are not floating/ungrounded as with parallel ports this can sometimes cause the port driver to assume that the attached device is busy. It is therefore recommended to ground these pins. The Note section of this Help page explains this in more detail - http://zone.ni.com/reference/en-XX/help/371361R-01/lvinstio/visa_serial_parallel_ports/

Best regards,
Grant M.