Start by making sure that the PC has either enough COM ports available for all your equipment or that you have enough converters (such as the dual USB to RS232 converter sold by GDS Instruments which is used in this example) in place to connect all devices to the PC.
Do not connect all devices at once, this can cause confusion and make the process of discovering which device is connected to which com port much more difficult and time-consuming.
By left-clicking on the device (an example of a serial pad in displayed below) you can then select the COM port number, Baud, Parity, Data Bits & Stop Bits.
Instructions
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Open the windows start menu and search for “Device Manager”
Navigate to and select “Ports (COM & LPT)”. In the case of a dual RS232 USB converter sold by GDS, two COM ports will appear, note these numbers.
Select one of these numbers and check if the device is connected. If not, select the other COM port.
Once you have successfully connected to the device you can then connect the next one by repeating this process.
Related articles
If you are unsure of the other com settings of the device you are trying to connect to, follow the linked FAQ below.