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Frequently Asked Questions

Can USBLAN be used as an ActiveSync replacement?​

Probably. It is not as full-featured as ActiveSync, but you can do the following:

  • Communicate over USBLAN using standard TCP/IP or UDP/IP communication
  • Deploy and debug apps in Visual Studio 2008. See "How can I use a USBLAN connection for Visual Studio debugging?" below.
  • Use Datalogic's device-sync command line tool in place of ActiveSync tools like CECopy and RAPI Start
  • Use Datalogic DXU for Remote Desktop functionality

How can I use a USBLAN connection for Visual Studio debugging?​

Follow the directions below. This is useful if you can't or don't want to use ActiveSync to debug your app in Visual Studio 2008. You can debug over USBLAN, Ethernet dock, and a Wi-Fi connection to your WEC7 device (Skorpio X4 or Falcon X4) instead. The following steps assuming you will be using a USBLAN connection and the device-sync command line tool. The device-sync tool is not strictly necessary, as you could copy the files over and start the processes another way, but it makes the whole process much easier. These steps were adapted from this article.

On your PC​

  • Follow the steps here to configure Visual Studio 2008 (one time setup).

  • If you have a SD card, you could copy the files there. In that case, skip to the Device Steps section

  • Download the latest version of the device-sync tool

  • Open a command prompt in the unzipped folder and run these commands. (You could put all these in a .bat file if desired):

    device-sync mkdir /debug
    device-sync push "C:\Program Files (x86)\Common Files\microsoft shared\CoreCon\1.0\Target\wce400\armv4i\clientshutdown.exe" /debug/
    device-sync push "C:\Program Files (x86)\Common Files\microsoft shared\CoreCon\1.0\Target\wce400\armv4i\CMAccept.exe" /debug/
    device-sync push "C:\Program Files (x86)\Common Files\microsoft shared\CoreCon\1.0\Target\wce400\armv4i\ConmanClient2.exe" /debug/
    device-sync push "C:\Program Files (x86)\Common Files\microsoft shared\CoreCon\1.0\Target\wce400\armv4i\DeviceAgentTransport.dll" /debug/
    device-sync push "C:\Program Files (x86)\Common Files\microsoft shared\CoreCon\1.0\Target\wce400\armv4i\DeviceDMA.dll" /debug/
    device-sync push "C:\Program Files (x86)\Common Files\microsoft shared\CoreCon\1.0\Target\wce400\armv4i\eDbgTL.dll" /debug/
    device-sync push "C:\Program Files (x86)\Common Files\microsoft shared\CoreCon\1.0\Target\wce400\armv4i\emulatorstub.exe" /debug/
    device-sync push "C:\Program Files (x86)\Common Files\microsoft shared\CoreCon\1.0\Target\wce400\armv4i\TcpConnectionA.dll" /debug/
    device-sync push "C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft.NET\SDK\CompactFramework\v3.5\WindowsCE\Diagnostics\NETCFv35.Messages.EN.cab" /debug/
    device-sync start /debug/conmanclient2
    device-sync start /debug/cmaccept
note

As of version 1.4, all device-sync commands support the --ip parameter. You can use this to connect to a device over Wi-Fi for example. Here is the first line from the script above with the --ip parameter included:

device-sync mkdir --ip 10.1.1.2 /debug

Device steps​

Note: these steps are only necessary if you are not using the device-sync tool. Otherwise, you just started these processes :)

  • Open a command prompt on the device, cd into debug and run:
conmanclient2
  • Open a 2nd command prompt on the device, cd into debug and run:
cmaccept

Install required cab file for VS 2008 debugging​

This is somewhat unrelated, but usually required to properly use Visual Studio 2008 debugging mode for DotNet apps, even over ActiveSync

  • Open Explorer, navigate to /debug, and double click on NETCFv35.Messages.EN.cab. Say yes
  • Start your app in Visual Studio 2008 as normal.

What Datalogic devices (and firmware versions) include the driver?​

DeviceFirmware version required
Falcon X32.30
Falcon X3+2.30
Skorpio X32.30
Falcon X4 WEC71.20
Skorpio X4 WEC71.20

What should happen when I plug in the device?​

After reboot, with the device connected, the device should connect and use the driver you installed in Step 1. The device will show up in Windows Device Manager as "Datalogic USBLAN Adapter #1" or similar. If you do an 'ipconfig' on your Windows 7/8 box from a command prompt, you will a new adapter similar to this:

 Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection 15:

    Connection-specific DNS Suffix  . :
    Link-local IPv6 Address . . . . . : fe80::b900:ee93:f400:5ee2%51
    IPv4 Address. . . . . . . . . . . : 169.254.1.1
    Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.248
    Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . :

You should be able to ping the device from a cmd prompt (ping 169.254.1.2) You can connect to the device using DXU by connecting to IP address 169.254.1.2.

Are there any configurable settings?​

Yes, take a look at the manual for descriptions of specific registry values.

The path to the production USBLAN driver registry settings is:

\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\DatalogicUSBLAN\

How do I remove the driver from my PC?​

If the basic uninstallation steps don't work for you, repeat the following steps with every hardware ID (i.e. each specific device) you've used so far.

  • Run Device Manager and look for your device. If you find it, right click and select "uninstall" and check the "Remove Driver Software" checkbox.
  • Unplug the device and connect it again. You may find a previous edition of USBLAN matches.
  • Repeat the above until the device manager reports "unknown device"
  • Repeat the preceding steps for other HIDs.
  • We're still not finished: connect your device to other USB ports on the PC -- make sure you get "unknown device" reported.
  • Under Windows 10, there is a version on Windows Update. When the removal of local versions is complete, Windows Update will supply a new version. This can be prevented by temporarily suppressing internet access.
  • For completeness, technically, the DatalogicUSBLAN folder in the registry should be removed (\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\DatalogicUSBLAN). After this the machine will need to be rebooted.

What IP addresses do devices get?​

Device connectedWindows NDIS IP addressDevice IP address
1st device169.254.1.1169.254.1.2
2nd device169.254.1.9169.254.1.10
3rd device169.254.1.17169.254.1.18
4th device169.254.1.25169.254.1.26
5th device169.254.1.33169.254.1.34
6th device169.254.1.41169.254.1.42
7th device169.254.1.49169.254.1.50
8th device169.254.1.57169.254.1.58