Can't get serial access to work

[stuoningur]

Hi all,
I bought an appliance from aliexpress (https://aliexpress.com/item/32794678352.html) and can't get the com port to output anything. I tried different cables and different versions of the serial image, but nothing happens at all. I think it is probably hardware related, but does anyone have any tips to troubleshoot maybe further?

Thanks!

[Grossartig]

Did you check the settings in System > Settings > Administration to ensure that the Serial Console is selected either under Primary or Secondary Console, and that the serial speed is configured correctly?

EDIT: Nevermind, I now realize you are having issues installing it in the first place, not post-install. Since it does have a VGA port, you could try installing it with an attached monitor, and then later ensure the serial port settings are configured correctly as per my above suggestion.

EDIT2: What client app are you using and what OS? I.e. Windows & PuTTY, Linux & minicom etc.

[stuoningur]

Sorry for the late reply.

I currently have it installed via VGA and checked and also tried a few different settings for serial, but still no output.

I should have mentioned it before, I use Windows 10 and Putty.

[meyergru]

There is a setting to use "USB-based serial", which type does your hardware offer?

You could look at ps output to see if there is an active getty on your serial console. If not, you should check if the serial port is enabled on the expected address (some BIOSes allow to set this). This is to rule out if OpnSense can see the serial port at all. You can have a look at dmesg output as well.

If the serial console seems active, check your serial cable for RX/TX mixup and check parameters like XON/XOFF,  DTR/DSR and RTS/CTS.

[stuoningur]

I tried that last night, unless I'm doing something incredibly it seems Opnsense can't see the interface at all. I probably shouldn't have bought the cheapest box I could find.

I will try to contact the manufacturer for help.