in reply to Using Win32::SerialPort on Win7-64bit under 64-bit Strawberry Perl

A few days ago user jismake reported having trouble with Win32::SerialPort on 64-bit Strawberry Perl on Win 7 64 bit that were solved by installing the 32-bit Strawberry Perl, although it was unclear whether the issue was with the module or with the virtual COM port drivers. That thread is here.

The "Win32" part of Win32::SerialPort does not necessarily mean that it is a 32-bit only module. Windows, even 64-bit, is still referred to "MSWin32" (e.g. $^O).

Having said that, it may very well be that a few bits of that module do not work right on 64-bit Windows, I don't know. CPAN Testers does show that tests on 64-bit Windows don't seem to pass, and even 32-bit is spotty.

I believe that Win32::SerialPort is "the" module for COM port access in Windows, and Device::SerialPort in *NIX.

  • Comment on Re: Using Win32::SerialPort on Win7-64bit under 64-bit Strawberry Perl

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Re^2: Using Win32::SerialPort on Win7-64bit under 64-bit Strawberry Perl
by Anonymous Monk on Nov 15, 2016 at 11:08 UTC
[reply]
      Author here...As I said in response to the bug report, I don't consider it a bug. But it is true that the "make test" will fail badly if it doesn't see a hardware port. In 1999, when the test setup was initially designed, almost all systems DID have a COM1. And for the few exceptions, I allowed overriding the port from the command line. Since, at that time, very little installed cleanly from CPAN on Windows, I considered it adequate. The command line installer did not even need "make".

      I run both 32 and 64 bit perls in parallel on my 64-bit windows box. I also have received some suggestions and patches to address actually running in a 64 bit perl. But I have been short of TUITs. I agree, the next update should include a no-hardware-detected default fallback. I'll make sure that is on the list and it should fix the CPAN concern, too.

      -bill

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