 |
|
Q. Will
it run on the new Windows 11?
|
|
|
A. Yes it runs just fine
in Windows 11.
|
|
|
|
Q. Will
it run on Vista or Windows 7, 8 or 10?
|
|
|
A. Yes we have customers
using Win 7 & 8 (32bit & 64bit) no problem at all.
dnc4U will run on Windows 95, 98, 2000, ME, NT4, XP, Vista
& Win 7, 8 & Win10. We do not really recommend
Win95 though.
|
|
|
Q. After
I install dnc4U for the first time, it will not load when
I click the icon.
|
|
|
A. Right mouse click the
dnc4U icon, and "Run As Administrator". That should
make the software run everytime.
|
|
|
Q. After
I install dnc4U for the first time, it says there are zero
days left.
|
|
|
A. Right mouse click the
dnc4U icon, and "Run As Administrator". That should
make the software run for 60 days. If it still will not load,
download the version of dnc4U that performs an online license
check.
|
|
|
Q. I
get error message "component MSCOMCTL.OCX or one of its dependencies
not correctly registered; file missing or invalid."
|
|
|
A. Right mouse click the
dnc4U icon, and "Run As Administrator". Unless you
already have administrator rights, then on newer systems that
have secure permissions some controls are unable to register
during usage.
|
|
|
Q. After
I purchase what else will I get?
|
|
|
A. dnc4U is only available
via electronic-download, so you won't receive any boxes, CD's
or printed manuals. You will receive a link to your licence
keyfile by e-mail immediately after purchase, you should check
your spam folder if it does not arrive as it is always without
exception emailed to you, it will be your system that blocks
it. In addition you will also receive an invoice (VAT number
if entered too) by email very shortly afterwards.
|
|
|
Q. I've
purchased dnc4U but I haven't received anything yet.
|
|
|
A. All purchase and product
fulfillment are through FastSpring
a trusted reseller for www.dnc4u.com. As soon as you make
the purchase, you will receive several e-mails for your order.
One of these will contain links to your licence keyfile, so
please look in your spam folder if nothing arrives. Also please
do make sure that you enter your own e-mail address correctly
or we may find it impossible to contact you until you contact
us asking where it is!.
If you have an email address from an ISP like AOL or maybe
a free-account, then we have recently noticed their e-mail
filters are actually blocking e-mails coming through, and
customers assume that we have not sent anything, but we always
do!. We now send the information as a URL within the e-mail
rather than an attachment, as anti-virus and firewalls may
block those with attachments. Just click the hyperlink and
save the unlock keyfile to your desktop- then follow the easy
to use instructions in the e-mail.
|
|
|
Q. I
need to change computer will the software keyfile still work?
|
|
|
A. No it won't work, however we are happy to replace the code FOR FREE.
For
replacement keys please
email us!
Give the NEW software code, if possible the OLD software
code
And the COMPANY NAME that it was bought under, we will email a replacement back ASAP
|
|
|
Q. Why
isn't my USB to Serial adapter working?
|
|
|
A. Since the release of
Windows XP many laptop manufacturers no longer have a "proper"
serial port at the back. Notable exceptions are quite recent
IBM Thinkpads and some Dells with the docking station. Instead
there are only USB ports. As a result users are finding that
a USB to serial adapter is the only way they have to communicate
with their CNC machines.
Unfortunately all USB convertors are not created equal, especially
if they contain the "prolific" chipset. Devices
intended for use at home are now expected to work in the harsh
industrial environment, and unfortunately many are not up
to the job. Many manufacturers of USB to serial adapters are
not 100% compatible and communication with CNC machines
is either unreliable, very slow, or limited to one way transfer.
For laptops you could use a PCMCIA/Express to serial card,
they are far superior and often not much more expensive, preferably
with some form of isolation.
If you must use a USB device, then we have used Keyspan USB
to RS232 adaptor cables - they work great when others just
don't >> Click
Here and are reasonably priced. We have reports from several users
that MOXA
are also reliable.
Unfortunately it's not as simple as listing USB to RS232 devices
that work for one user, because sometimes the same one will
not work for another. So whilst we list several options above,
there is just no 100% guarantee that any will work with your
computer.
Quite often we think that it is well worth the while to buy
a secondhand laptop off ebay with a proper serial port. In
many cases this would work out cheaper and far more reliable
than having to buy things such as USBs or Express cards.
|
|
|
Q. When
I try to change the CNC settings, it says I have insufficient
access to save the changes away.
|
|
|
A. This is because you
do not have rights to edit the settings file. This file is
called "dnc4u-settings.ini" and is located in the
dnc4U folder.
Right
click the "dnc4u-settings.ini" file, and then click
properties
Click
the security tab
Under
group or user names, click your name and see the permissions
you have. You need full control
|
|
|
Q. Will
dnc4U work with my CNC?
|
|
|
A. This is one of the most
commonly asked questions. All we can say is that if your CNC
supports the RS232 protocol, then yes it will. We even supply
a list of predefined CNC templates to get you started for
many popular machines. We do not support exotic proprietory
protocols that are outside the scope of RS232, such as LSV2,
Fidia etc.
|
|
|
Q. What
computer access rights should I give?
|
|
|
A. dnc4U needs to be able
to create temporary files and be able to write to your system
registry. If it can't it may lock you out saying its expired.
If you get this, then you should do the standard thing of
giving users full access and then gradually tighten things
up. For typical use, a standard "power user" would
be just perfect, they have Modify, Read/Execute, Read and
Write properties.
You should
install dnc4U using Admin rights and run the software at least
once with admin rights to ensure correct operation and installation
of dnc4U.
|
|
|
Q. Do
I need any specific hardware to use dnc4U?
|
|
|
A. Depends. If you are
using a PC computer or a laptop that has a free com-port in
the back then no you dont need anything extra. If you are
using a newer laptop, then the odds are that you may have
a USB port only, in which case the cheapest a USB to Serial
cable convertor, they are cheap only about $30 However, we
always recommend either PCMCIA or EXpress cards as they are
usually far more reliable than USB
|
|
|
Q. Can
I send and receive to more than one CNC machine at a time?
|
|
|
A. Yes you can run up to
64 CNC machines at once, simultaneously, all you need do is
load dnc4U as many times as you need it, because you can run
up to 64 "instances" of dnc4U at the same time.
You do however, need a free communication port for each CNC
transmission. You can get multi-port serial cards, we really
like MOXA
we've used them for years and they are really easy to setup.
|
|
|
Q. How
much is all this going to cost me ?
|
|
|
A. You can see our latest
price list click here..
We give great discounts for multiple purchases, and once you
have bought there are no upgrade costs, ever.
|
|
|
Q. Does
dnc4U support Heidenhain Blockwise for drip feeding large
files?
|
|
|
A. Yes.
|
|
|
Q. Does
dnc4U support Haas Xmodem for drip-feeding large files?
|
|
|
A. Yes.
|
|
|
Q. Does
dnc4U support Mazatrol?
|
|
|
A. No.
|
|
|
Q. Does
dnc4U support transfers using Fanuc Data Server?
|
|
|
A. Yes. You can use the
optional ftp pack to transfer files as a client to the Fanuc
data server.
|
|
|
Q. Does
dnc4U support direct TCP/IP transfers to Wireless devices?
|
|
|
A. Yes. You can use the
optional wireless pack to transfer direct to wireless or ethernet
devices using an IP and port, so bypassing the need for virtual
com ports. In this mode simultaneous transfers to multiple
machines is possible.
|
|
|
Q. I
receive files from my CNC and after a while the data is garbage
then OK then garbage again.
|
|
|
A. You need to either turn
off your communication port receive FIFO buffer or reduce
the receive value to its smallest level. You access these
by going into Windows Control Panel, Device Manager, LPT &
Com Ports. Select your com port and click the advanced tab.
Then turn off the FIFO option. You may need to do this for
each of your com ports. Also tweak the size of the receive
buffer inside dnc4U, this can affect older computers.
|
|
|
Q. I
try and send or receive a file and all I see are XXXXXX.
|
|
|
A. dnc4U has expired. To
purchase we need your computer software code. You get this
by clicking the register menu and entering this info onto
our webpage.
|
|
|
Q. After
I receive the unlock file it does not register.
|
|
|
A. Please follow the instructions
in our e-mail that we send you after purchase. You have to
do it in a specific sequence. We have never had a code fail,
we are afraid it is always down to incorrect input or failure
to follow our instructions.
Additional Info
for Vista, Win7 & Win 8 & Win10
|
|
|
Q. Do
you charge an annual maintenance fee?
|
|
|
A. No we hate that idea,
unlike other DNC software vendors we don't do it, once you
have paid for dnc4U you can download the latest
version at all times free of charge. We do not notify you
either as we don't want to send you any spam, its entirely
up to you if and when you want to upgrade. FREE LIFTIME SOFTWARE UPGRADES
|
|
|
Q. I
want to run dnc4U on more than one computer, can I copy dnc4U
onto more than one computer with a single license?
|
|
|
A. You need a license for
every computer you run dnc4U on. We look at it this way. If
you made 100 parts for one of your customers, would you charge
him for 1 part or for 100 parts ? However, we have price breaks
and we offer very good discounts for multiple licenses.
|
|
|
Q. Which
languages does dnc4U support?
|
|
|
A. dnc4U is only available
in English BUT - you can fully customize the texts, menus
and buttons into your own language
|
|
|
Q. I'm
drip feeding large files and it stops after a few hours with
a timeout message?
|
|
|
A. dnc4U sends data in
bursts, usually block by block, but also in constant sized
chunks. Either way it will stop if an XOFF is sent (or the
CTS goes low) and will not start again until an XON is received
(or CTS goes high). If your CNC is taking a long time to interpret
the NC code then dnc4U will timeout after 600 seconds - it
assumes that transfer has stopped because nothing has happened
for this length of time. If this happens to you, increase
the timeout to say 36000. This means dnc4U will not timeout
for 10 hours, enough time to restart drip-feeding - there
is no increase in cycle time whatever value you use (we also
recommend that you turn off the receive FIFO buffer and turn
off all power saving features such as screen savers etc)
|
|
|
Q. Its
says its expired, I have never run dnc4U before?
|
|
|
A. If you have NEVER run
the software before, then you do not have sufficient access
rights and permissions to run the software. You should log
in as administrator - this will see if that cures the problem.
Then get your IT guy to slacken up on some of the access rights.
The installation setup has a file called diagnose.exe, run
this and run the test. You need read/write access to the registry
- use regedit and set permissions for users to access the
registry. For XP, Vista and Win7 we always recommend that
you run the software "as administrator" simply by
right mouse clicking the dnc4U icon and selecting that option
from the list.
If this still happens, try our online license check version
of dnc4U with a permanent internet connection.
|
|
|
Q. I'm
drip feeding large files do I need to do anything special?
|
|
|
A. Not all CNC will drip-feed,
so you should consult your manual to see if it uses special
protocols. But basically drip-feeding on CNC's like Fanuc,
Haas and many Japanese and US CNC's is simply a case of handshaking
between your PC and CNC. We would always recommend that you
turn off or reduce to minimum value the receive FIFO buffer.
If you use a com port that shares an IRQ with another device
such as a mouse or modem, that this other com port is not
used. ie com1 shares an IRQ with com3 and com2 shares an IRQ
with com4. All screen saving devices and power management
devices are turned off. Some USB devices can "go to sleep"
after a while and if data is sent every 20 minutes, which
is common, then the USB may not respond either fast enough
or not at all to any XON/XOFF etc.
|
|
|
Q. What
is dnc4U export information?
|
|
|
A. ECCN=5D992
LIC=NLR
CCATS=N/A
|
|
