Windows XP and Expresscards

  • Thread starter Thread starter Will Pearson
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W

Will Pearson

Hi,

I've recently brought a laptop that has an Expresscard slot, which is the
replacement for the old PCMCIA cards. I'm having some trouble using the
card with the laptop and as part of the diagnostic process I thought I'd
just check to make sure that XP supports the Expresscards. I've done some
checking on the web, and I've found some documents from Microsoft's WHDC
that mention Express cards and XP. So, I assume that XP can support
Expresscards.

The question I have is whether XP SP2 does actually support Expresscards?
If it does then do I need any drivers, updates, or hotfixes beyond those
contained in XP SP2?

Thanks.

Will

Will Pearson
PhD Research Student
Public Computing Research Group
Department of Computer Science
University of Bristol
Bristol, UK
 
Hi,

I've recently brought a laptop that has an Expresscard slot, which is the
replacement for the old PCMCIA cards.  I'm having some trouble using the
card with the laptop and as part of the diagnostic process I thought I'd
just check to make sure that XP supports the Expresscards.  I've done some
checking on the web, and I've found some documents from Microsoft's WHDC
that mention Express cards and XP.  So, I assume that XP can support
Expresscards.

The question I have is whether XP SP2 does actually support Expresscards?
If it does then do I need any drivers, updates, or hotfixes beyond those
contained in XP SP2?

Thanks.

Will

Will Pearson
PhD Research Student
Public Computing Research Group
Department of Computer Science
University of Bristol
Bristol, UK
Click to expand...

Windows XP, as with all versions of Windows, will only support the
hardware that have correct drivers for it. If you have problems with
the Expresscard "slots" you need to consult the laptop maker for the
correct drivers / configurations.
 
Hi,

I've recently brought a laptop that has an Expresscard slot, which is the
replacement for the old PCMCIA cards. I'm having some trouble using the
card with the laptop and as part of the diagnostic process I thought I'd
just check to make sure that XP supports the Expresscards. I've done some
checking on the web, and I've found some documents from Microsoft's WHDC
that mention Express cards and XP. So, I assume that XP can support
Expresscards.

The question I have is whether XP SP2 does actually support Expresscards?
If it does then do I need any drivers, updates, or hotfixes beyond those
contained in XP SP2?

Thanks.

Will

Will Pearson
PhD Research Student
Public Computing Research Group
Department of Computer Science
University of Bristol
Bristol, UK
Click to expand...

Windows XP, as with all versions of Windows, will only support the
hardware that have correct drivers for it. If you have problems with
the Expresscard "slots" you need to consult the laptop maker for the
correct drivers / configurations.

Hi,

Yes. I've got the drivers from both the laptop's manufacturer and the
card's manufacturer. I've checked with both manufacturers and they say that
they don't have any drivers later than the ones that I already have. Both
sets of drivers are for XP.

Will
 
Windows XP, as with all versions of Windows, will only support the
hardware that have correct drivers for it.  If you have problems with
the Expresscard "slots" you need to consult the laptop maker for the
correct drivers / configurations.

Hi,

Yes.  I've got the drivers from both the laptop's manufacturer and the
card's manufacturer.  I've checked with both manufacturers and they say that
they don't have any drivers later than the ones that I already have.  Both
sets of drivers are for XP.

Will- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -
Click to expand...

You need two drivers for Expresscard devices, just like the Cardbus
and the PCMCIA (PCCard) devices. You need the drivers for the "slot"
devices (where you insert the cards) and the card "device" you wish to
use. Both need to be installed for the Expresscards to work.
 
Will said:
Windows XP, as with all versions of Windows, will only support the
hardware that have correct drivers for it. If you have problems with
the Expresscard "slots" you need to consult the laptop maker for the
correct drivers / configurations.

Hi,

Yes. I've got the drivers from both the laptop's manufacturer and the
card's manufacturer. I've checked with both manufacturers and they say that
they don't have any drivers later than the ones that I already have. Both
sets of drivers are for XP.

Will
Click to expand...

For what it is worth, the Expresscard slot connects directly to the
chipset. Unlike the PCCard, which typically had a separate Cardbus controller
chip. The Expresscard should be no more difficult to connect, than a
device on a USB port, or a device plugged into a PCI Express x1 slot
on a desktop system. Expresscard has two interfaces, allowing hardware
manufacturers, if they want, to use their older USB chips in the
Expresscard form factor.

http://www.expresscard.org/photos/expresscard-cardbus-hi.jpg

For example, some Wifi Expresscards, would be nothing more than
a USB2 Wifi solution, in an Expresscard form factor. The existing
USB2 drivers, which have been in WinXP since SP1, would work for
that.

Paul
 
Will Pearson said:
Hi,

I've recently brought a laptop that has an Expresscard slot, which is the
replacement for the old PCMCIA cards. I'm having some trouble using the
card with the laptop and as part of the diagnostic process I thought I'd
just check to make sure that XP supports the Expresscards. I've done some
checking on the web, and I've found some documents from Microsoft's WHDC
that mention Express cards and XP. So, I assume that XP can support
Expresscards.

The question I have is whether XP SP2 does actually support Expresscards?
If it does then do I need any drivers, updates, or hotfixes beyond those
contained in XP SP2?
Click to expand...

Windows XP does support Express cards. The actual drivers required will be
part of the motherboard chipset drivers.

So the answer to your question is: tha provided you have installed the
corect motherboard drivers, then the Express card slot will be supported
without any extra drivers. Of course, any specific Express Card that you
insert may require its own drivers.
 
M.I.5¾ said:
Windows XP does support Express cards. The actual drivers required will
be part of the motherboard chipset drivers.

So the answer to your question is: tha provided you have installed the
corect motherboard drivers, then the Express card slot will be supported
without any extra drivers. Of course, any specific Express Card that you
insert may require its own drivers.
Click to expand...


Will:
As M.I.5... points out, ordinarily the ExpressCard you purchased should
include a driver dependent upon the particular driver that device needs to
operate in an XP environment.

You mention that you're trying to "(use) the card with the laptop and (sic)
as part of the diagnostic process". What exactly is the make/model of this
ExpressCard? And what precisely is its function? And what's the make/model
of your laptop? And what's exactly the "trouble" you're having?
Anna
 
Anna said:
Will:
As M.I.5... points out, ordinarily the ExpressCard you purchased should
include a driver dependent upon the particular driver that device needs to
operate in an XP environment.

You mention that you're trying to "(use) the card with the laptop and
(sic) as part of the diagnostic process". What exactly is the make/model
of this ExpressCard? And what precisely is its function? And what's the
make/model of your laptop? And what's exactly the "trouble" you're having?
Anna
Click to expand...

Hi Anna and all,

The laptop is a Toshiba Satellite Pro U300-13P with an Intel GM965 Express
chipset. The card is a Quatech SPPXP-100 parallel port card that provides a
parallel port connection for the laptop. I have XP drivers for both the
chipset and the card, and the drivers for the chipset have been installed.

The problem is that when I connect the card the add new hardware wizard is
not being displayed as I expected it to be and as the manual for the card
suggested it would be. When I look in device manager the expresscard slot
isn't being displayed, although I don't know whether it should be.

I've ruled out hardware failiure. I originally thought that the hardware
might have failed, and so the motherboard in the laptop has been replaced as
has the card from Quatech. From the replies I've got on this thread I now
don't think the problem is with Windows either.

Thanks to everyone for their help with this so far. I understand software
pretty well having been a dev but I tend to get lost when it comes to
hardware.

Thanks.

Will
 
Will said:
Hi Anna and all,

The laptop is a Toshiba Satellite Pro U300-13P with an Intel GM965 Express
chipset. The card is a Quatech SPPXP-100 parallel port card that provides a
parallel port connection for the laptop. I have XP drivers for both the
chipset and the card, and the drivers for the chipset have been installed.

The problem is that when I connect the card the add new hardware wizard is
not being displayed as I expected it to be and as the manual for the card
suggested it would be. When I look in device manager the expresscard slot
isn't being displayed, although I don't know whether it should be.

I've ruled out hardware failiure. I originally thought that the hardware
might have failed, and so the motherboard in the laptop has been replaced as
has the card from Quatech. From the replies I've got on this thread I now
don't think the problem is with Windows either.

Thanks to everyone for their help with this so far. I understand software
pretty well having been a dev but I tend to get lost when it comes to
hardware.

Thanks.

Will
Click to expand...

(Driver is at the bottom of the page. The .INF is interesting, in the sense
that there isn't much to it.)

http://www.quatech.com/support/drivers_expresscard.php#sppxp1
http://www.quatech.com/ManualsDriversFirmware/Communication/SPP-100.zip

It appears to be an honest to goodness PCI Express to parallel port device.
(I was suspecting that perhaps it was a USB to parallel port "printer only"
type device, but it doesn't look like that.)

http://www.quatech.com/ManualsDriversFirmware/manuals/SPPXP-100UserManual.pdf

It appears Oxford Semiconductor makes such a device, complete with the ability
to connect an EEPROM so you can have custom values returned. So Quatech would
not necessarily have "minted" this chip on their own.

http://www.oxsemi.com/products/serial/documents/DS-0049_OXPCIe840_datasheet.pdf

If it was my card to play with, I'd fire up Everest, and see if the Devices:PCI
shows a Quatech PCI\VEN_135C&DEV_0278 or the like. In Everest, the info is
shown as "Device-ID" and would be something like "135C-0278".

http://www.majorgeeks.com/download4181.html

Paul
 
Will Pearson said:
Hi Anna and all,

The laptop is a Toshiba Satellite Pro U300-13P with an Intel GM965 Express
chipset. The card is a Quatech SPPXP-100 parallel port card that provides
a parallel port connection for the laptop. I have XP drivers for both the
chipset and the card, and the drivers for the chipset have been installed.

The problem is that when I connect the card the add new hardware wizard is
not being displayed as I expected it to be and as the manual for the card
suggested it would be. When I look in device manager the expresscard slot
isn't being displayed, although I don't know whether it should be.

I've ruled out hardware failiure. I originally thought that the hardware
might have failed, and so the motherboard in the laptop has been replaced
as has the card from Quatech. From the replies I've got on this thread I
now don't think the problem is with Windows either.

Thanks to everyone for their help with this so far. I understand software
pretty well having been a dev but I tend to get lost when it comes to
hardware.

Thanks.

Will
Click to expand...


Will:
But what *precisely* is the problem? I assume you purchased the ExpressCard
to provide connectivity to a printer or some such with a parallel connection
interface. I infer from your latest post that you've installed the driver
that came with the Quatech device. Does whatever hardware you've connected
to the ExpressCard port not work?
Anna
 
Will Pearson said:
Hi Anna and all,

The laptop is a Toshiba Satellite Pro U300-13P with an Intel GM965 Express
chipset. The card is a Quatech SPPXP-100 parallel port card that provides
a parallel port connection for the laptop. I have XP drivers for both the
chipset and the card, and the drivers for the chipset have been installed.

The problem is that when I connect the card the add new hardware wizard is
not being displayed as I expected it to be and as the manual for the card
suggested it would be. When I look in device manager the expresscard slot
isn't being displayed, although I don't know whether it should be.
Click to expand...

I don't think the Express card slot shows up as a specific device in drive
manager any more than any other PCI-E slot would.
I've ruled out hardware failiure. I originally thought that the hardware
might have failed, and so the motherboard in the laptop has been replaced
as has the card from Quatech. From the replies I've got on this thread I
now don't think the problem is with Windows either.

Thanks to everyone for their help with this so far. I understand software
pretty well having been a dev but I tend to get lost when it comes to
hardware.
Click to expand...

The last time I had a problem like this, the device driver had installed
(more like half installed), so that XP was convinced the the driver was
installed, but it wouldn't start because it was broken.

Other issues can be that something that is already installed has somehow
disable the ability of the card to work. There are several scenarios here
but the usual ones are that something else has loaded a customised .DLL file
that doesn't have the functionality that the card requires* or changed
something in the registry that the card requires. I am of course shooting
in the dark here.

*XP was supposed to have resolved this, but like many Microsoft fixes, it
didn't work too well.
 
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