PMDX-1PARPCI Capabilities

[RobF]

Hi,
I would like to find out if the PMDX-1PARPCI Parallel port card that you sell, can be reliably installed in a computer running windows XP.

I am having trouble getting a second parallel port installed on a Dell Optiplex 780 computer that is running Windows XP.  I am using the computer to Run Mach 3.   It has 1 parallel port on the mother board .  I need the 2nd parallel port to give me more inputs for Home switches.

I bought a part #: PCI1P_LP,  PCI Parallel Card, from StarTech, and can't get it to install in the Optiplex 780 running XP.  The interesting thing is I CAN get it to install in a different Optiplex 780 that is running Windows 7.
I would use the Windows 7 machine, but  I believe that I have read somewhere, that  it can be hard, if not impossible to get Mach 3 to run on a windows 7 machine (this windows 7 machine is a 64bit machine).
 
Thanks for your help or suggestions

Rob

[Steve Stallings]

There are three reasons that I can think of that would cause problems running a parallel port for Mach3 on an XP computer.

1) The computer is running a 64 bit version of XP. Rare, but it does exist. All 64 bit versions of Windows prevent direct access from Mach3 to the parallel port hardware as needed for CNC pulse generation.

2) There are BIOS settings or other issues that cause problems with PCI port addressing. PCI cards with drivers to allow addressing them at the legacy 0x278 or 0x378 port addresses are problematic and we recommend using the 0xNNNN style PCI port addressing.

3) The parallel port card has a 5 volt only PCI interface, and the computer is running a 3.3 volt PCI bus.

The 32 bit version of Windows 7 will run Mach3 and allow direct access to the parallel port. Windows 8 is unpopular and poorly supported. Windows 10 will not work with a parallel port for Mach3.

To the best of our knowledge, the PMDX-1PARPCI will install and run on any 32 bit install of XP or Windows 7.