mpptracker shows nothing

Luqman1
Luqman1 Registered Users Posts: 2
I have an inverex mks 5kva and I tried connecting it to my laptop via ethernet cable and downloaded mpptracker in my laptop but nothing showed up on my screen. Do I have to do some settings? The communication cable came with the inverter had an rs232 port on one side and lan port on the other (picture of which is attached below) and I did not have rs232 port in my laptop so I had to use an ethernet cable to connect my inverter to the laptop

Comments

  • BB.
    BB. Super Moderators, Administrators Posts: 33,431 admin
    Do you have a router that you can connect to your device?

    It has been a very long time since I tried connecting a laptop to some other device via 10/100 Base-T cabling directly...

    What operating system is the laptop? What brand and how old is the laptop?

    -Bill
    Near San Francisco California: 3.5kWatt Grid Tied Solar power system+small backup genset
  • Luqman1
    Luqman1 Registered Users Posts: 2
    BB. said:
    Do you have a router that you can connect to your device?

    It has been a very long time since I tried connecting a laptop to some other device via 10/100 Base-T cabling directly...

    What operating system is the laptop? What brand and how old is the laptop?

    -Bill
    Thanks for the reply, bill. I have a router but I don't think it connects to the router. If it does, do I need to connect via the ethernet cable? because it does not have wifi or Bluetooth. there is just one ethernet port on the inverter so if I connect it to the router, I cannot connect it to the laptop.
    This is the inverter I own:



    and this is the wire that came with the inverter but because my laptop does not have an rs232 port, I had to switch to the ethernet cable:


    I have windows 10 20h1 version running on a dell latitude 3340
  • Photowhit
    Photowhit Solar Expert Posts: 6,002 ✭✭✭✭✭
    I find it odd that if it came with a RS232 cable it wasn't for the inverter.

    If you are connecting directly to your computer, you may need a network 'crossover cable' though I had understood these were no longer needed in the last 10 years or so... Then again one of the supplied cables is RS232...

    You can likely still find them, maybe still required. Alternatively post in a local computer group and someone will make you one for a couple bucks.


    Home system 4000 watt (Evergreen) array standing, with 2 Midnite Classic Lites,  Midnite E-panel, Magnum MS4024, Prosine 1800(now backup) and Exeltech 1100(former backup...lol), 660 ah 24v Forklift battery(now 10 years old). Off grid for 20 years (if I include 8 months on a bicycle).
    - Assorted other systems, pieces and to many panels in the closet to not do more projects.
  • Michael57
    Michael57 Registered Users Posts: 24 ✭✭
    edited June 2020 #5
    Luqman1 said:
    there is just one ethernet port on the inverter so if I connect it to the router, I cannot connect it to the laptop.
    Routers have multiple ports, so you'd connect both the inverter and your laptop to the router.  The router will give each device an IP address which allows them to communicate with each other.  

    Off Grid Weekend Cabin: 4 300W Sun Module SW 300 Array, Conext MPPT 60 150, Conext XW+ 6848 Inverter, 48 Volt 435AH Trojan FLA Battery Bank, Conext AGS, SCP, and Gateway.
  • BB.
    BB. Super Moderators, Administrators Posts: 33,431 admin
    I am going to take a wild guess and say that is not an RS-232 to xBase-T Ethernet converter... But just a simple DSUB-9 to RJ45 connector (using RJ connectors for wiring instead of DSub connectors).

    https://www.amazon.com/COOSO-Serial-Female-Ethernet-Console/dp/B01MCVC81A
    https://www.amazon.com/CGTime-Serial-Female-Ethernet-Console%EF%BC%8818CM/dp/B07DCPVLBC

    If you where looking to converter from RS-232 to Eithernet, then you would want something like these (I think--too many years since I have worked with this stuff):

    https://www.amazon.com/Serial-Ethernet-Converter-Device-Server/dp/B00FJEHNSO

    -Bill

    Near San Francisco California: 3.5kWatt Grid Tied Solar power system+small backup genset