Serial Port Configuration

Ok, some assumptions here. The devices on the Ethernet (why 2? can't bare to use a switching hub?) are TCP/IP. (?) The device connected to the second (not modem) serial port needs to "dial out", my question : is it a device that also uses TCP/IP (over PPP for example) or is it just a "serial device" that would need to be converted to TCP/IP ?

What you would want is mgetty running on the modem port along with pppd and you would setup the routing in the linux part to route packets from the ethenet devices to the network.

What type of comunications will the other devices be using? What kind of machine will be dialing into the server? Tony

Yes, both are TCP/IP. (One is AXIS2420 network camera and other is SitePlayer (SP).... SP will also use UDP messages.)

I would like to eliminate the need for another piece of hardware in a remote/solar powered system. I've found several target boards that might work, Soekris 4501 or AXIS 82. I think the Soekris may be more suitable for my newbishness since it won't require cross compilation.

TCP/IP....It can dial into an ISP. (Actually it is the AXIS2420 also....quite a confusing interconnection, but quite functional for what I need to accomplish.)

Big Picture:

MODEMLINUX EMBEDDEDAXIS2420 | ^ ^ | | | | |___________________| | SitePlayer

(The serial connection from the 2420 is for dialing out and the Ethernet is for configuring by dialing into the LINUX EMBEDDED server.)

I'm currently working on a full size platform, learning Linux, attempting the configuration that is obvious. I've found good info on setting up a Dial-In Server, so that shouldn't be too difficult. The question is...what is the terminology for what I want to do in the other direction, i.e. have the Linux server echo the cameras serial comms out the other serial port so it will be able to dial out?

Do you need more than above?

Remote PC....Win2K(just because I have the most experience...) box w/ dial-up connection. The embedded system will have a couple of html pages to allow access to the SitePlayer and 2420.

Thanks for the help,

John

Ok, here me out on this... Now from my limited knowledge of network cameras, the 2420 is probably able to connect to a FTP server somewhere and drop pictures on it. Why not, just have it drop the pictures onto the embedded linux device. The embedded linux could run a script to dial out the modem and connect to whatever when the pictures are present and upload them to the server there. That eliminates the serial port connection to the 2420. Then with this linux serial port open, you can connect it to whatever the siteplayer is connected to (unless the siteplayer is designed into something, I don't think you said what the function of the siteplayer was).

So you have MODEMLINUX EMBEDDEDAXIS2420 | | (serial) | | (whatever the siteplayer is connected to)

What am I missing? Tony

^^^^- on second though, I am an idiot...maybe you shouldn't HEAR me out. Tony

I've thought of every different possible way to put this thing together.... The best way would be this:

MODEMAXIS2420 | | (Ethernet) | | (SitePlayer)

And have the camera, which is already an embedded Linux server handle the packet forwarding. BUT, I ruled that out because there is no development support for the camera (unless you are a huge company.) It is also a eLinux 2.0 kernel that won't handle modules, so I can't just add PPP and anything else I might need.....)

The SitePlayer will be connected to a custom board with a PIC to monitor and control the individual pieces in the system. I'm using the SitePlayer to provide a web interface to the control and monitoring functions.

I'm leaning towards the COTS solutions to minimize actual wrench twisting in building the system.

I prefer the 2420 serial interface because it can generate an email on its own for the notification of the alarm situation. (Once again, I'd like to stick with the existing capabilities/functions of the system parts to minimize rebuilding the functionality on another piece of hardware.

So we come back around to how to do what I asked in the first post.....

To do what you want you would need some kind of program running on the linux server that would detect the 2420 raising some kind of RTS line ( a behavior the people who make the camera could verify) or something, then after detecting that it would need to lock the outgoing serial port for transmit and pipe incomming charaters to and from the both serial ports, possibly even capture and forward modem signal lines.

I still think that having the camera FTP a picture to the linux part (which according to the docs is a built in function) and then having the linux server run a script that does the emailing wouldn't be all that bad.

I suppose it comes down to what you think is easier, a program that pipes two serial ports to each other while monitoring incomming connections from either one. (Launch PPPD for connections coming from the modem and launch the pipe connector program for connections going out from the camera.

Also , you should be able to configure the linux server to dial out on demand (if a request for an address not on its net is required, then it automatically dials out). Not sure the procedure on that. If that could be worked out then you could go back to etherent only, then when the camera attempts to connect to the mail server, the linux server will open the connection and then forward the packets on through.

I was just curious on the siteplayer part, if it is actually built into your pic design or if it is just a separate ethernet to serial conversion. Its capabilities could easily be put into the linux server side.

I guess if you are just trying hard to just shoestring together you are OK using the siteplayer, but rethink the Camera opertion. Then again, you might get lucky and find someone out there redirecting serial services on demand.

My 6 cents now. Tony