Was There Ever Joy b/w Kingsun IR KS-959 and XP SP3?

Playing with my XP SP3 virtualbox install, my Sigmatel IR adapter works OOTB. The Kingsun KS-959, not so much.

I have a bunch of different downloaded drivers, but they all seem the same, work the same--the adapter installs, Device Manager says it's fine, but no connection at all (ActiveSync, IROBEX, etc) between any WinCE and XP.

Searching this forum shows only disappointed Kingsun users and there's very little info available on the internet. There's oblique reference to SP3 being the culprit, but I haven't found anything definitive except the adapter's general failure.

Has anybody ever gotten this thing working?

Jake

Edited by Jake 2022-11-20 2:35 PM

Not sure if you saw this video on YouTube, but it came up on my search.
I guess the driver site can't really be trusted, but alas, it's for Windows XP... all sites except the original manufacturers are all the same, imo.



Also found a solved thread from long ago, not sure if it still works. Seems like the link on YouTube might work as of an year ago.
https://www.fixya.com/support/t2067404-doesnt_work

Edited by stingraze 2022-11-21 9:24 AM

Thanks, stingraze, for weighing in.

I had come across that video and link. The rub with the video is that I can replicate all the steps, just not produce a connection. It's not clear if the user is on an XP without SP3 or if the user even made an actual IR connection.

I know the ks-959 worked in Linux; back in the days when kernels still were ir-ready, there was a ks-959 module; I used to dial-out for internet.

Thanks again,
Jake

I guess it is better to use dongles that have a lot of users reporting to work then…

I remember syncing my Pocket PC Cassiopeia E-700WE to my dad’s Inspiron 8200 long time ago when it had Windows XP via infrared. From my use case of HPC, I never really used syncing that much since I was still high school student then and didn’t have the use for syncing contacts and files. I just used a CF card to put files since the onboard memory was too small.

Edited by stingraze 2022-11-22 9:20 AM

Yeah, I can't tell if the problem is on the adapter or the vm side.

For instance, I dragged out my Actisys 220L. It installed but I'm not getting anything out of that, either. The 220L/ActiveSync seem to be fighting over the COM port. I'm using a usb-RS232 adapter, which works fine for sync cables, but the port closes down in ActiveSync when I plug in the Actisys.

Jake

I have had problems with COM and VM's before. I chalked it down to cabling, but with the abstraction you can never be sure without a lot of diagnostics.

The fastest way to prove it would be to find anything with XP SP3 on real hardware and try it there.

Another option would be to do something like I did with android the other day and just make sure that you can push terminal ASCII back and forth over the connection.

You will have to kill the ActiveSync process or disconnect it from the COM port as it will always jump to capture the port.

I did find an old SP3 machine with actual serial port and had the same port wars and Actisys failure. The fact that I have these USB-IrDA adapters tells me I must've had trouble with the Actisys in days of yore, but that was many hardware difficulties ago, so my memory is foggy.

Though I found a post here from Rich Hawley and he had an ActiSys working with vm and a true serial port.

Jake

Are you able to try W2K or XP SP2 to see if the issue persists there?

I've read that

Control Panel - Administrative Tools -> Service
has Infrared Monitor.

One person here said that service was stopped and when he re-enabled it, it worked.
The environment is under SP2 so not sure if it will work, but might be worth a try.

He also said that "terminal services" was enabled too.

Japanese site:
http://blog.livedoor.jp/cielo_cielo/archives/64873615.html

This PDF about IrDA / infrared / ActiveSync might help a bit, it notes about the Infrared Monitor here too. (English)
https://jingxinwang.forestry.wvu.edu/files/d/041ced0b-4480-4db1-8b80...

Edited by stingraze 2022-11-24 10:38 AM

Thanks, stingraze. I looked at the Services and everything seemed up and running, but still no ir connection. Just for yucks, I ordered this: https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256801686527820.html?gatewayAdapt=gl...

I keep thinking this is an Actisys issue rather than vm or xp, and while I don't have much confidence in the aliexpress ir adapter, the adapter does seem deliberately dumbed-down--it's irda 1.0 and only has maximum speed of 115k, which might bode well for ActiveSync, but I dunno...

Jake

Nice. I hope it works this time.

An odd follow-up: I installed the IRComm2k program, which allowed me to sync a Psion via ir/Sigmatel. I then installed the KS-959 again, and using IRComm2k auto comm switching, I actually connected to WinCE 2.0 and the Psion, but not HPC2000. From there, I couldn't reconnect to any device, so either the KS-959 is intermittent junk, or it's a VM issue. I also think the Actisys is broken; upon installing of driver, the Actisys shows up in Device Manager whether it's connected or not, so I think the driver installation is separate from the adapter itself.

Still, I had forgotten the ingenuity of IRComm2k and it was nice to see it still soldiers on.

Jake

Might be worth pointing a camera at the thing to see if it's actually outputting anything when it's not working.

Edit:
P.s. the front facing camera on my iphone SE shows infrared. I think they're too cheap to put infrared filters on a lot of front facing cameras

Edited by thenzero 2022-11-27 5:03 PM

A brief follow-up on the aliexpress ir650: don't.

IMO, something went seriously south with SP3 and IR adapters (sans Sigmatel). SP3 toasts the performance of the Kingsun and this one as well.

If I had to redo XP on a virtual box--for WinCE legacy needs--I would find a legit copy of XP SP2 or even SP1.

Since I have one functioning Sigmatel and all my WinCE apps in good shape, I won't dumb down, but SP3 is at best tricky with IR adapters.

Jake

I have an idea not sure if you want to go for it.
If the problematic adapter you have is okay on XP sp1 (and thus windows 2000) id be open to swap my sigmatel for your adapter you don’t like.
My needs are minimal. I only use mine with a windows 2000 vm. I’ll send all of the details before I send it