PCI MUX Cabling Solutions

Executive Summary

Customers migrating from the A6748A/A6749A PCI Multiplexer (MUX) adapter solution to the

AD278A/AD279A PCI MUX solution may encounter device communication failure. This is because of

the RS-232 pin-layout and port interface incompatibility between these two solutions. This white paper

discusses these instances of incompatibility, and describes how to customize the peripheral device

cables to achieve successful migration. This white paper addresses the following topics:

• Hardware information about A6748A/A6749A and AD278A/AD279A serial PCI MUX

solutions

• RS-232 pin-layout of A6748A/A6749A and AD278A/AD279A serial PCI MUX solution

• Instances of incompatibility

• Instructions for customizing peripheral device cables to resolve instances of incompatibility

Intended Audience

This white paper is intended for HP support personnel, HP customers, and converter cable

manufacturers.

Introduction

Customers who are migrating from the A6748A/A6749A PCI MUX adapter solution to the

AD278A/AD279A PCI MUX solution may encounter device communication failure. This is because of

the RS-232 pin-layout and port interface incompatibility between these two solutions. This white paper

identifies the different scenarios in which customers can face issues of incompatibility. It also describes

solutions to achieve successful migration.

A6748A/A6749 Serial MUX Solution Hardware Components

This section discusses the hardware components of the A6748A and A6749A serial PCI MUX

solutions.

Table 1 lists the hardware components of the PCI MUX 8-port adapter A6748A solution.

Table 1: PCI MUX 8-Port Adapter A6748A Solution

Part Number Component Name

A6748-60001 HP PCI MUX 8-port serial adapter

J2482-60014 4 feet (1.21920 meters) Octopus cable

The A6748A Octopus cable provides eight RJ45 RS-232 serial ports.

Note:

The A6748A Octopus cable does not provide 8-port DB 25 connectors.

Table 2 lists the hardware components of the PCI MUX 64-port adapter A6749A solution.

Table 2: PCI MUX 64-Port Adapter A6749A Solution