Troubleshooting Communication between Hardware and Computer, Hardware Unavailable, Cannot Find a Hardware Unit

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Introduction

When you launch any eDAQ software, the software will normally check to see if any eDAQ hardware is connected to the computer and turned on, and then the software will try to communicate with it. If the software cannot communicate with any eDAQ hardware, it will show one of the following messages:

  • Hardware Unit Unavailable, Chart is unable to find a Hardware Unit. (in Chart software)
  • Hardware Unavailable, Cannot find a hardware unit (in EChem and Scope software)
  • Hardware Unavailable, Cannot find a recording unit (in PowerChrom software)
  • Z100 Navigator, No device found (in Z100 Navigator software)
  • Device Selector, Please select a C4D device (in C4D Profiler V2 software)
  • Device Selection, Unable to detect any ER430 HV Sequencer units. (in QuadSequencer Software)


Chart software
EChem and Scope software
PowerChrom software


Z100 Navigator software
C4D Profiler V2 software
QuadSequencer software

Analysis Mode

You may want to continue in Analysis Mode. This lets you view a previously saved data file, analyse your data and save the data file, but you won't be able to communicate with any hardware or collect new data.

If you want to collect new data, you need the software to communicate with the hardware.

Note: To always run in Analysis mode. You may want to install the eDAQ software on a computer that will never be used to run experiments on. Maybe it’s a computer outside the lab, in your office or a personal laptop, on which you only want to view and analyse the data you collected in the lab. You can set the software so that, each time it’s launched, it won't check to see if eDAQ hardware is connected to the computer. You can set this by:

  • In Chart software, go to the menu Edit, select Preferences, Hardware Unit Startup, and click Always start in analysis mode
  • In PowerChrom software, go to the menu Edit, select Preferences, Hardware-Startup and click Always start in analysis mode


Check List

Perform the checks listed below. DON’T MISS ANY STEPS until your problem is solved!

  1. Check the hardware unit is turned on! Make sure that the LEDs on the front of the hardware unit are lit. If you see red LEDs flashing on the front of the hardware unit, turn the hardware unit off and on to see if that clears the problem. If the red LEDs are still there, there is something wrong with the unit; please contact eDAQ.
  2. The USB cable:
    • Make sure the USB cable is connected to the computer and to the hardware.
    • Try a different USB cable. USB cables can break or become intermittent, so it’s a good idea to try a different one. eDAQ equipment uses either the standard USB cable used by other electronic devices like printers, or the mini USB cable, so you should be able to borrow a cable from a different device.
    • Connect the eDAQ hardware to a different USB connector on the computer. The computer might have a faulty USB port. USB ports on the front of a desktop PC can be a bit more troublesome, due to the extension leads used to connect them to the motherboard; try connecting to the back of the computer. Windows can also get confused, and refuse to have that device on a particular USB port (at least until the next reboot).
    • If you are using a USB hub, try connecting the eDAQ hardware directly to the USB connector on the computer. The USB hub might be interrupting the communication.
  3. Reinstall the eDAQ software, to ensure the latest version of the driver is installed. Don’t rely on using the software that came with the equipment. Older software versions won't be able to work with new hardware. Make sure you are installing the latest version of the software downloaded from the software download webpage.
    • turn the hardware off
    • reinstalling the eDAQ software for that device
    • turn the hardware on
    • it may take Windows a 2-3 minutes to find and install the driver correctly.
  4. Try a different computer. A virus on a computer, or a particular setting on a computer, can stop the communication to the eDAQ hardware. Try installing the eDAQ software on a different computer and connecting the eDAQ hardware to that computer, to see if the same problem occurs.
  5. Make sure that Windows is using the correct driver for eDAQ hardware. Do this by:
    1. Press the Windows key on your keyboard (or click the Start button) and type Device Manager.
    2. In the Device Manager window, find your eDAQ hardware; it might be under the headings “eDAQ e-corders” or “Ports (COM & LPT)”. If there is a problem, it may show under Universal Serial Bus controllers or other devices.
    3. Hover the mouse pointer over the eDAQ hardware and right click the mouse; select “Properties”. A window will open and will give you information in the "Device status" section.
    4. If the issue is that the driver is missing (it will have a yellow triangle on the icon in Device Manager):
    5. Let Windows try to find the driver (will only work after installing the eDAQ software for the device):
      • right-click on the device
      • choose "Update driver"
      • select the "Search automatically" option
      • Wait 2-3 minutes for Windows to find and install the driver
    6. If that doesn't work, manually install the driver:
      • First get the standalone copy of the driver files. These can be found on the eDAQ software install USB sticks, and in the "Utilities and Tools" section of the eDAQ website.
      • If the download is an "exe" file, then:
        • Turn off your device
        • Run the "exe", to install the drivers
        • Turn the device on, and wait 2-3 minutes for Windows to install and configure it.
      • If the download is a ZIP file with an "inf" file in it:
        • Extract the ZIP file's contents
        • Right-click on the device in device manager
        • choose "Update driver"
        • Select the "Browse my computer for driver software" option
        • Browse to the extracted files, select the folder/INF file
        • It may take Windows a 2-3 minutes to then install the driver
  6. If you are using eDAQ hardware that has virtual serial protocol (such as the USB isoPods, the ER815 and ER825 C4D Detectors or the ER430 High Voltage Sequencer) try see if you can communicate with the hardware using terminal emulation software compatible with serial (COM) ports (for example, Tera Term or HyperTerminal)
  7. If none of the above suggestions solve your problem, please could you fill in with as MANY DETAILS as possible, the Technical Help Request form. Let us know what you tried from the instructions on this page, and what did/didn't happen.