Trixology
WeatherCat => WeatherCat General Discussion => Topic started by: tizza on May 01, 2016, 05:11:16 PM
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This did work BUT it is not a permanent fix! Modified May 16, 2016 read my entry way below listing 2 weeks of trouble shooting
I've had this intermittent problem with my sil labs driver ever since Yosemite and it actually got better for me with El Capitan until yesterday. Basically 95% of the time it does drop my sil labs driver is when my USB cable is knocked out. I have been uninstalling and installing drivers for the last 16 hrs to no avail until I tried this and it worked immediately.
http://macappstore.org/silicon-labs-vcp-driver/
The fastest way to check is to open a System Report and under Hardware click on USB to see if the installation worked. The most frustrating thing today was I see my SLAB_USB to UART missing. The most frustrating then is going down to Extensions and seeing that the SilLabs driver was actually installed on my computer but it was not switched on. It also said that is was loadable but it just would not activate until I tried the link above.
I do not think this is a Sil Labs OR WeatherCat problem, I think it's an Apple issue. The computer will deactivate for no reason at all sometimes and it works for moths even during OS X updates without any problems. Most software just doesn't act like that and why would it turn itself off? It's one annoying problem I've been dealing on and off with for a while until I found this today and it was a mind-blowing fix. Now when you cut and paste what is on that page let terminal do it's thing, it stops and starts and might take a couple of minutes and ask you for you system password at the end to complete it. Then you pop in one more command into terminal and bam, very happy person. It also loaded the newest SLAB driver too, Feb 2016.
Seeing it sit there all day saying:-
Loaded: No
Loadable: Yes
was such a pain, if anyone else is or have had this problem or are stuck with it, please let me know if you try it and it works. I'd also like to know if anyone has feedback about this website and if it's a trustworthy source. Thanks
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Dear tizza and WeatherCat system caregivers,
I've had this intermittent problem with my sil labs driver ever since Yosemite and it actually got better for me with El Capitan until yesterday. Basically 95% of the time it does drop my sil labs driver is when my USB cable is knocked out. I have been uninstalling and installing drivers for the last 16 hrs to no avail until I tried this and it worked immediately.
http://macappstore.org/silicon-labs-vcp-driver/
I don't know anything about the website from where you found this, but the actual source appears to be online code repository. The instructions look like this:
ruby -e "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/master/install)" < /dev/null 2> /dev/null ; brew install caskroom/cask/brew-cask 2> /dev/null
brew cask install silicon-labs-vcp-driver
This code is actually stored on this service:
https://github.com/ (https://github.com/)
Somehow I would be surprised at least that Silicon Labs would have products with source-code stored off-site (but I could be wrong.)
As the old saying goes: "if it ain't broke, don't fix it." Still, I have no clue why this would be fix. I'll take your word for it that it is working, but this is the sort of solution that gives not feel comfortable to me . .
Oh well, . . . . Edouard
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As the old saying goes: "if it ain't broke, don't fix it." Still, I have no clue why this would be fix. I'll take your word for it that it is working, but this is the sort of solution that gives not feel comfortable to me . .
Oh well, . . . . Edouard
THANK YOU Edouard for being honest with me, until I ran it the first time late last night I freaked a bit as code was being sucked in online live. I honestly think that ANYONE who is very computer savvy and would take one for the team might record it while it works. It sucked in a lot of info but I honestly think it does flip that bloody switch from NO to YES, it crashed already as my USB came loose again. I ran the code again and it said to use a force start code but I didn't need to.
Whatever it did it switched my SLAB driver back AGAIN from NO to YES under a sys report>extension>SilLabs210x I have to get a new lead pronto!
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OK so I replaced my USB cable and now I'm back to stage 1. Nothing will work again and yes I shutdown WC before I did it. Weather is now doing that annoying repetitive launch.
Look it did work well, I'll reboot
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Somehow I would be surprised at least that Silicon Labs would have products with source-code stored off-site (but I could be wrong.)
Huh??? GitHub is the largest repository of open-source code in the world, Edouard!
Even Apple's Swift programming language (swift.org) is mirrored on GitHub.
Background:
http://www.wired.com/2015/03/github-conquered-google-microsoft-everyone-else/
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Dear tizza, Felix, and WeatherCat troubleshooters,
Whatever it did it switched my SLAB driver back AGAIN from NO to YES under a sys report>extension>SilLabs210x I have to get a new lead pronto!
OK so I replaced my USB cable and now I'm back to stage 1. Nothing will work again and yes I shutdown WC before I did it. Weather is now doing that annoying repetitive launch.
Look it did work well, I'll reboot
Sorry that you are having so much trouble with this. One of my concerns is that Silicon Labs would release a new version of this driver after the launch of El Capitan and not list it as El Capitan ready. I don't know what's going on here, but that is very strange.
Huh??? GitHub is the largest repository of open-source code in the world, Edouard!
I would have had no worries if this driver was also an open-source project. I had an open-source project of my own on SourceForge for a while. My worries are two-fold. Silicon labs haven't indicated that this is an open-source project, if it was you would expect some mention of it on the driver website. Second, the information about this GitHub repository is coming from a 3rd party website that I personally don't know anything about. So exactly what is the status of this driver?
It is commonplace for open-source projects to make development builds available. Usually though they are described as such. It could be that Silicon Labs decided to keep the code for this driver on GitHub. Perhaps they have nothing to fear in having people look at this code. Nonetheless, they aren't advertising that development builds are available. If they are available on the sly, one thing is for sure - anyone using them does so at their own risk.
There is clearly a potential problem with using Davis stations on El Capitan. If you cannot find a satisfactory driver but this one, desperate times require desperate measures. Still, I've run a Linux server with so much beta code that only about 50% was trustworthy. I guess I've grown old . . . living on the bleeding edge of software is likely to - cut ya' . . . . (http://www.canebas.org/WeatherCat/Forum_support_documents/Custom_emoticons/computer_sock_it_to_me.gif)
Oh well, . . . . Edouard
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Remember Edouard, that some of us Catters out here had trouble with serial communication and solved it by inserting a USB hub between the computer and the Davis Vantage pro 2's output. Instant gratification! Been working ever since.
[tup]
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Dear Herb and WeatherCat IT oldtimers,
Remember Edouard, that some of us Catters out here had trouble with serial communication and solved it by inserting a USB hub between the computer and the Davis Vantage pro 2's output. Instant gratification! Been working ever since.
But did you have insert that hub by the light of a full moon and say some magic incantations that came from a druid? . . . . .
Yesterday, I finally got around to upgrading two pieces of software: EarthDesk and Voila (which is now called mysteriously: Capto.) Both have problems and Capto clearly didn't get any beta testing at all.
The whole thing reminds me of another Murphy-ism:
If architects and engineers built buildings the way programmers and software engineers create software, the first woodpecker that came along would destroy civilization!
Grumble, grumble, grumble . . . . . . Edouard
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Remember Edouard, that some of us Catters out here had trouble with serial communication and solved it by inserting a USB hub between the computer and the Davis Vantage pro 2's output. Instant gratification! Been working ever since.
[tup]
Hey Herb, do you mind me asking what hub you installed? I've had past issues with Mavericks but literally a couple with El Capitan but now I can't get anything to work. I'm still new to the workings of WC but can a hardware hub work with a Davis data logger?
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My data logger was loose, ARGH what an idiot, sorry guys. Even though I have foam packed in there it did take a fall the other day so it must have been on the verge of connecting and disconnecting. I just packed a lot more foam in there and the SilLabs Driver loaded instantly and is working fine again.
Herb I'd still love to hear what hub you use.
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Well, tizza, that particular hub was a GE USB 2.0. It was lying around in a drawer for awhile before I fished it out for this issue. There's nothing special about it, except that, previously when the computer's USB port was where the cable was plugged into, I got no communication. Simply using the hub made all the difference. And, this issue came about when I moved from a 2011 iMac to a 2008 iMac with WeatherCat. Connected directly, it worked fine on the 2011.
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Dear Tizza and WeatherCat station caregivers,
My data logger was loose, ARGH what an idiot, sorry guys. Even though I have foam packed in there it did take a fall the other day so it must have been on the verge of connecting and disconnecting. I just packed a lot more foam in there and the SilLabs Driver loaded instantly and is working fine again.
Well, glad you found out what the problem was anyway and that you are now getting your data without difficulty.
Cheers, Edouard
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OK so after nearly 2 weeks of tinkering and troubleshooting I now know that:
1. My data logger was not loose
2. There is nothing wrong with my leads
3. There is nothing wrong with my Davis Console
4. There is nothing wrong with WeatherCat software
5. There is nothing wrong with my SilLabs Drivers
6. There is something wrong with Apple, whether it's OS X or hardware I don't know! What I do know is that this problem was "initially" a lot worse with both Yosemite and Mavericks, but not El Capitan until now 10.11.4 and for no good reason I can pinpoint.
It was always fixed by running the SilLabs uninstaller.sh in terminal then re-installing the SilLabs Driver. I'd then be up and running again.
Now I need to run the uninstaller.sh in terminal, re-run the SilLabs driver and reboot in Safe Mode by holding down the Shift key on launch immediately after installing the driver. I can then download all my WC data for the the last day or two, back it up IMMEDIATELY and restart the MBP again.
After it has restarted in normal mode, weathercat will then work flawlessly for anywhere between 30minutes up to 3HRS and then my SilLabs driver is switched off again by my MBP!
It shows up in sys repots>USB>USBtoUART controller and under sys report>extensions>SilLabs driver working "YES" once WeatherCat crashes though, the USBtoUART controller vanishes from sys report>USB devices but still shows up in sys report>extensions>SilLabs driver working "NO"
I need to find out what has caused my MBP to flip keep shutting off this driver. It was working fine on 10.11.4 for ages until now!
Confused and frustrated.
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One clue is that things seem to work in Safe Mode. As you probably know, Safe Mode disables all non-Apple extensions/kernels and even some of Apple's own. That's one of its two main purposes.
Since others here are not reporting this problem, even with 10.11.4, I'd say it's safe to say the problematic extensions are not from Apple; everyone else is operating with all of Apple's code with that OS, including me (I'm using v. 4.1.1, 3/17/15 of the SiLab driver).
However, it is very likely that you have accidentally or intensionally installed an extension directly or installed a non-Apple app that then installed an extension that is causing this problem. The solution, then, is to find that app or extension. That may not be enjoyable, but it can be done with patience and attention to details.- Is there any critical software on that
mini(oops, I now see it's a MBP, probably lots of "critical software on it! [banghead] )? - How much work are you willing to put into the effort?
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Der Tizza, X-Air, and WeatherCat troubleshooters,
There is something wrong with Apple, whether it's OS X or hardware I don't know! What I do know is that this problem was "initially" a lot worse with both Yosemite and Mavericks, but not El Capitan until now 10.11.4 and for no good reason I can pinpoint.
Well, first thing to try is update to 10.11.5 which was just released. Perhaps Apple fixed the bug in question. By far the best policy is to disconnect any backups you have before updating so that you can roll back to 10.11.4 in case it makes things even work. Impossible? Clearly you are not familiar with Murphy's law! [banghead]
It was working fine on 10.11.4 for ages until now!
Are you aware of any other software that you might have changed at about the same time as you made the upgrade to 10.11.4? That would be most likely the culprit - especially anything that would include kernel drivers.
Since others here are not reporting this problem, even with 10.11.4, I'd say it's safe to say the problematic extensions are not from Apple; everyone else is operating with all of Apple's code with that OS, including me (I'm using v. 4.1.1, 3/17/15 of the SiLab driver).
I think we should be a bit cautious of such claims. Others are having problems with this driver and needing to use a USB hub to restore connectivity is - to say the least - uncool. (http://www.canebas.org/WeatherCat/Forum_support_documents/Custom_emoticons/nope.gif)
Silicon labs is unwilling to claim their latest driver is compatible with El Capitan and it is now only 2 months old - much later than the El Capitan release. No company avoids stating that they support the latest version of an operating system - it is good publicity and should drive sales. If Silicon labs refuses to rate the latest driver as stable on El Capitan - there has got to be a reason. So far no WeatherCatters have found out what is that reason - da' hard way! [banghead] Let's all hope it stays that way!
Cheers, Edouard [cheers1]
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No company avoids stating that they support the latest version of an operating system
Perhaps they are "avoiding" making that statement because this version is not compatible? Not sure they are even concerned about "sales" to Mac users, anyway. I don't know of any of their products I've paid for.
Is there a thread listing those having problems?
Did those reporting problems install the new version(s) due to advice from SiLab? I've found at least one post that claims to be successfully running a version even older than mine. Jist sayin'...
As I've said before, just because a new version (of anything!) is available, no one should feel forced to install it unless it claims to fix a known problem for that specific user. [banghead] I have canceled (as well as it is possible, now) the notification to install the 10.11.5 update at least three times. What's the rush? None of the "fixes" marginally described at the <Apple Support page (https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT206230)> seem to be affecting me. Being that distrustful of Apple also applies tenfold to most other third-party developers (present company definitely excluded!).
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OK so I have been using the SiLabs driver from June 24, 2015 in conjunction with 10.11.2 when this problem refused to acknowledge the previous SiLabs driver v. 4.1.1, March 17, 2015 any longer. SiLabs driver v. 4.1.1, March 17, 2015 is my nemesis and that was where all my current problems began, my puter will not recognise or load that driver whatsoever but I installed the newer driver back then on 10.11.2 and all was fine until 2 weeks ago.
Murphy's Law and I are the best of friends [banghead] :)
I'd also like to state that these are my personal problems and all comments I've made are pertaining to me and my personal situation/setup. I should have put more thought into the heading of the thread, and opened my first post with this line. I have seen a few others with this problem and they've troubleshot it with a hub. I'm thinking of buying a MeteoBridge if this happens to this extent again. I'm not a tech head and from what I struggled thru, everything is pointing to my computer and Apple deactivating any SiLabs kernel after 30 mins.
The June 24, 2015 SiLabs Driver worked flawlessly for me after this happened even while I upgraded thru to 10.11.3 and 10.11.4 which I upgraded a week after their respective releases and without a single problem until 2 weeks ago. OH and this is why I upgraded to that driver, I forgot to mention that when this happened the first time while I was on 10.11.2, it actually did state in the SiLabs release notes that 10.11 was included BUT that vanished very quickly, literally the next day, so that is why I installed and used the modified June 24, 2015 driver, it did not state it supported El Capitan though just the numbers 10.11, but hey, the timing? Returning to read up further once things were running smoothly the next day, I noticed that it was back to supporting 10.9 and 10.10 instead of 10.10 and 10.11????? QUANDARY. .
Thanks to everyone who's listened to my non tech idiot ramblings, I really appreciate it. It's just that WC works so well for me I never really have a need to come in here. I do however desperately need help getting my station online but only for WC users. I'm not having a pity party or looking for ANY sympathy here either but this would never have been a problem for me until I fell I'll 6 years ago and it has messed with my cognition so badly that the simple things in life that I took for granted are now long arduous tasks. However my memory might be shot but like today I remembered this information above and I also just remember that why. That day I could not find a fresh copy of the SiLabs driver v. 4.1.1, March 17, 2015. I was told that once that if a kernel is rejected the root cert. is blocked and you need a new one (I conceded 100% that I have no idea how true this is so I dug around for my old Davis software to find the copy and that wouldn't work either. It was the original from that, that had failed)
Thanks for the 10.11.5 upgrade tip, I didn't know it was released yesterday and normally I'd wait a week or two just to see what might pop up.
WC is now running on 10.11.5 with SiLabs Driver 4.10.7 Last Modified: 27/02/2016 and has been going strong for 9-HRS straight now. Aside from once since this happened the average cutoff time before my SiLabs Driver was switching off was 30-40 minutes max, but once I got 3HRS out of it. I'll keep you posted if it crashes again
Special thanks to all but especially xairbusdriver If I hadn't tried safe mode last week, I'd have lost more than a weeks data when it all began.
One clue is that things seem to work in Safe Mode. As you probably know, Safe Mode disables all non-Apple extensions/kernels and even some of Apple's own. That's one of its two main purposes.
Thank you so much, I didn't know that was the reason why it was allowing me to collect my data. That is one very, very valuable piece of information for me. xo
Since others here are not reporting this problem, even with 10.11.4, I'd say it's safe to say the problematic extensions are not from Apple; everyone else is operating with all of Apple's code with that OS, including me (I'm using v. 4.1.1, 3/17/15 of the SiLab driver).
Actually, not to be rude xairbusdriver, but there are others with this problem, but only on this one point. It also doesn't seem to matter which version of 10.11 they're running either, they have used a hub.
However, it is very likely that you have accidentally or intensionally installed an extension directly or installed a non-Apple app that then installed an extension that is causing this problem. The solution, then, is to find that app or extension.
The horror, seriously I'm not joking!
That may not be enjoyable, but it can be done with patience and attention to details.- Is there any critical software on that
mini(oops, I now see it's a MBP, probably lots of "critical software on it! [banghead] )? - How much work are you willing to put into the effort?
[/b]
Hmmm the thought of going thru my software makes me feel violently ill. Is there somewhere in sys report or another way to collate data as to what software I have installed that is either hiding or is off aside from extensions? I have actually deleted loads of software, older versions of Aperture, Lightroom, Photoshop, Nikon, etc. . . and cleared my SSD of 750GB which was at 700GB down to 400GB to no avail. I'll just have to keep going.
LOL yes not mini I have a 750GB SSD and 2x6TB LaCie LittleBig's and loads of critical photographic software, mostly Abode software, except for plug-ins and FCPX with plug-in's, which is finally cooking with gas after years upgrades. My Camera is a Nikon D800 and the Raw files are 80MB, if I shoot in tiff mode they're around 210MB each so doing time-lapse = massive memory. My computer fills up so quickly it's ridiculous and par for the course, things go haywire quickly when this happens but I just can't find what is causing ONE out of so many kernels to keep shutting off.
HOWEVER, as I have been quite ill this last month the only things I have d/l'ed have been audiobooks, I had not downloaded a single thing for at least two weeks before this happened?
Cheers to all and thanks again.
Paul
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not to be rude xairbusdriver, but there are others with this problem
First, I'm the one who is too often "rude"! So I know what it looks like and I do not see any in any of your posts! Second, I was aware that there are others with similar problems. I'm just not sure there is any consensus about where the problem lies. I'm willing to bet that absolutely less than 0.1% of this forums members have exactly the same hardware/software setups. That's what often makes trouble-shooting extremely difficult.
I suspect you already have external drives but that's where I would suggest storing most of those massive image files. Actually, in two different drives, as large as you can afford, and completely different than ones you use for 'regular' backups. I'm talking about at least four external drives, but it's your money so I don't mind spending it!!! :o [cheer] [tup]
Hang in there! I'm still hoping others have some useful solutions for you! And take care of yourself!!
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Thanks again and yes it is a minuscule amount of people with a similar problem. WC has been running for 14hrs now, the longest stretch of time in over 2 weeks. It had to be 10.11.5 upgrade that's helped so far. It did hang once but that was due to me tinkering.
I do keep all my photographic files on my external thunderbolt HD's. I think I have 14TB's worth now.
Maybe it's time to drop some rarely used software over there now too.
Thanks to everyone who's thrown in comments, tip's and idea's. It's still early days but the combined effort has me up and running again so thank you all [bounce]
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Dear Paul, X-Air, and WeatherCat pessimistic IT observers,
Murphy's Law and I are the best of friends [banghead] :)
Yeah I know, Murphy (and law) are one of the most popular guys around! (http://www.canebas.org/WeatherCat/Forum_support_documents/Custom_emoticons/clonk_head.gif)
Thanks for the 10.11.5 upgrade tip, I didn't know it was released yesterday and normally I'd wait a week or two just to see what might pop up.
WC is now running on 10.11.5 with SiLabs Driver 4.10.7 Last Modified: 27/02/2016 and has been going strong for 9-HRS straight now. Aside from once since this happened the average cutoff time before my SiLabs Driver was switching off was 30-40 minutes max, but once I got 3HRS out of it. I'll keep you posted if it crashes again.
[wink] . . . Gasp! Just as I feared! . . . . (http://www.canebas.org/WeatherCat/Forum_support_documents/Custom_emoticons/woman_scream_emoticon.jpg)
It was foretold in the Book of Revelation, the prophesies of Saint Malachy and Nostradamus, (not to mention the secret revelations of the Berkeley Macintosh User Group - BMUG) that if Apple actually fixed a bug before releasing their new car . . . . . .
The end of the world is at hand!! . . . . . (http://www.canebas.org/WeatherCat/Forum_support_documents/Custom_emoticons/nervous_smiley.gif)
So okay, Apple actually fixing a bug - is - unusual, but perhaps it isn't quite so apocalyptic! [lol2]
Seriously, glad you are back in business! [tup]
Cheers, Edouard [cheers1]
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Tizza, glad to see you are getting some improved mileage out of your new configuration. Let's hope it holds.
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What! A real bug fix?
According to some reports, there are 67 bug fixes. [rolleyes2]
Yes, Virginia, Apple does fix bugs... eventually. They just rarely tell you what they are.
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30+ HRS since upgrading to 10.11.5 and no problems YET! I shouldn't have said that
You guys have all been great What! A real bug fix?
According to some reports, there are 67 bug fixes. [rolleyes2]
Yes, Virginia, Apple does fix bugs... eventually. They just rarely tell you what they are.
LMAO, so very true!! :)
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Another option to fix these driver issues is to not use a USB driver. I use a Meteobridge that WeatherCat sees on my network, it acts as a backup for uploading to services, and I don't have a worry in the world about driver updates, driver incompatibilities, upgrades, running things in Terminal, etc.
Just my 0.02?
dfw
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Dear dfw and WeatherCat PWS "survivalists," . . .
Another option to fix these driver issues is to not use a USB driver. I use a Meteobridge that WeatherCat sees on my network, it acts as a backup for uploading to services.
That's true. I suppose that would be my "Plan-C." My Plan-B is to switch to a Davis IP logger. Metrobridge isn't as exciting to me because I've been using WeatherCat to upload for so long that Metrobridge isn't complete enough. If I have to use WeatherCat for some uploads, it makes more sense to keep all the controls in one place.
I don't have a worry in the world about driver updates, driver incompatibilities, upgrades, running things in Terminal, etc.
[wink] . . . . Awe shucks! So where does that leave you? Are you stuck worrying about the fact you don't have enough things to worry about! . . . [lol2]
Cheers, Edouard [cheers1]
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Yes meterobridge is my plan C is this happens to this magnitude again.
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Metrobridge[sic] isn't as exciting to me because I've been using WeatherCat to upload for so long that Metrobridge isn't complete enough. If I have to use WeatherCat for some uploads, it makes more sense to keep all the controls in one place.
You don't have to use Meteobridge for any uploads to solve the USB driver issue.
Personally speaking though, I like the robustness of Meteobridge, even for uploads, because it's a much more robust solution than using a computer with desktop software.
dfw
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FIX: if on OS X 10.11, update to 10.11.6!
I know that this topic has not been active lately, but I have not seen anyone post a fundamental solution. I just faced this issue and came upon this thread. I had a total disk failure and had to install OS X from scratch, moving up from 10.9 to 10.11 on an older MBP. The install thumb drive I had for this was 10.11.3, and immediately I had the uart issue; thus finding this thread. I tried updating the Silab driver to no avail.
However, I soon got a notice to update the OS to 10.11.6. When I did this, it solved the problem. So, incase someone else happened to be in that situation, I wanted to post this experience.