Identifiying a USB device under /dev/ folder

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Level 1

8 points

Identifiying a USB device under /dev/ folder

Hello,
I got a Mac Mini and a Poweware 5110 UPS. It is suppoused to be connecte to computer via USB. Unfortunately Powerware software doesn't work with MacOSX (at least the usb communication software, which is the one I am interested).
I found out the NUTs Linux software can comunicate with it and there is a Fink port to use it but seems I need to indicate in the configuration file which device (from /dev/ folder) is the one representing the powerware UPS.

if i run ioreg I can see the following:

+-o USB1@1D <class IOPCIDevice, registered, matched, active, busy 0, retain 9>
| | | +-o AppleUSBUHCI <class AppleUSBUHCI, registered, matched, active, busy 0, retain 9>
| | | +-o UHCI Root Hub Simulation@1D <class IOUSBRootHubDevice, registered, matched, active, busy $
| | | | +-o AppleUSBHub <class AppleUSBHub, !registered, !matched, active, busy 0, retain 6>
| | | | +-o IOUSBInterface@0 <class IOUSBInterface, !registered, !matched, active, busy 0, retain 6$
| | | +-o *Powerware UPS@1d100000* <class IOUSBDevice, registered, matched, active, busy 0, retain 8>
| | | +-o IOUSBCompositeDriver <class IOUSBCompositeDriver, !registered, !matched, active, busy 0$
| | | +-o IOUSBInterface@0 <class IOUSBInterface, registered, matched, active, busy 0, retain 5>

I also compiled usbutils from linux and I get:
minimac:dev root# /usr/local/sbin/lsusb
Bus 001 Device 001-05ac-8005-09-00: ID 05ac:8005 Apple Computer, Inc.
Bus 001 Device 002-0592-0002-00-00: ID 0592:0002 Powerware Corp.

But I cannot imagine which one of the devices will be handling it.

In the System Profile tool you can see (sorry the tags are in spanish as my OS):

Bus USB:

Ubicación del controlador de servidor: USB incorporado
Driver del controlador de servidor: AppleUSBUHCI
ID del dispositivo PCI: 0x27c8
ID de la revisión de PCI: 0x0002
ID del fabricante de PCI: 0x8086
Número de bus: 0x1d

Powerware UPS:

Versión: 0.50
Potencia del bus (mA): 500
Velocidad: Hasta 1,5 Mb/s
Fabricante: Powerware
ID del producto: 0x0002
ID del fabricante: 0x0592

Powerware UPS:

Versión: 0.50
Potencia del bus (mA): 500
Velocidad: Hasta 1,5 Mb/s
Fabricante: Powerware
ID del producto: 0x0002
ID del fabricante: 0x0592

Anybody can help me?
It will also be great (rather than knowing the actuall device) knowing how each USB port is mapped (if it is) int devices in the /dev folder

Message was edited by: kafre

Mac Mini, Mac OS X (10.5.5), Powerware UPS 5110 USB port

Posted on Oct 8, 2008 1:18 PM

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Answer 1

orangekay

Level 5

4,085 points

Oct 8, 2008 1:48 PM in response to kafre

You'll need to look at the properties of those registry entries. In your case you can do something like


ioreg -c IOUSBDevice -l -w 0

but the simplest course of action would be to install the developer's tools and run IORegistryExplorer which has a more friendly UI.

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Answer 2

kafre Author

Level 1

8 points

Oct 8, 2008 3:09 PM in response to orangekay

Ok, I have already IORegistryExplorer installed.
I had looked for the Powerware there but I cannot see any reference to any /dev/ file

you can see the screenshoot (is not posible to upload files?) at http://kafre.org/imagen2.png
and at http://kafre.org/imagen4.png

Regards

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Answer 3

orangekay

Level 5

4,085 points

Oct 8, 2008 3:31 PM in response to kafre

You're looking at the wrong plane. In the menu at the upper left of the window set it back to IOService and look for your device. It should have something like an IOSerialBSDClient object somewhere below it that will tell you where its device file lives.

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Answer 4

kafre Author

Level 1

8 points

Oct 8, 2008 11:59 PM in response to orangekay

Ok, thanks for your support by the way,
I did as you indicated and seems not to be IOSerialBSDClient for this object.
Actually the only IOSerialBSDClient belongs to bluetooth interface.

I am afraid I am finally having to run W$ to make it work the UPS,

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Answer 5

orangekay

Level 5

4,085 points

Oct 9, 2008 12:10 AM in response to kafre

If there's no BSD user client showing up anywhere then that device probably doesn't have an entry in the /dev folder.

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Answer 6

kafre Author

Level 1

8 points

Oct 9, 2008 1:39 AM in response to orangekay

Ok , Maybe I was mistaken from the beginning, but I thought it will be one /dev/ device for every USB port.
Afterwards, if OS is able to handle the specific device connected on it it will create an special device which will be specific to handle that specific device, for instance the bluetooth one.

In this case, I know that OS by itself don´t know how to work with this specific device Powerware UPS 5110, but I also know that If I provide to NUT software the device, the general one for the USB port it is connected, it will be able to communicate through it using it own driver.
The problem is I don´t know how this general devices, the ones for every USB port, are called if they actually exists in MACOSX, I think it is the way it works in Linux but probably is not the same in MACOSX.

Again thanks anyway.

Regards

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Answer 7

orangekay

Level 5

4,085 points

Oct 9, 2008 2:04 AM in response to kafre

kafre wrote:
Ok , Maybe I was mistaken from the beginning, but I thought it will be one /dev/ device for every USB port.

Nope. Any kernel-to-user space bridge must be explicitly created by a specific driver loaded for a specific device. To the best of my knowledge you cannot just open up a file and start sending raw USB packets down the bus.

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