Comfort Upgrade

[Guest]

Back in 1999 I bought and installed a Comfort system. I added some wired movement detectors and light modules (both the external type MODLS42 and LSM01) and later on added a relay board. I also made use of the X10 interface module TW7223. I have CS-Xpress 2.05 but never used it - all programming was done from the keypad.

Some time ago I took advantage of a special offer to buy a new main board and other bits and pieces but have never got round to installing them. I also downloaded Comfigurator 3.2.4. Now I have some time and am keen to upgrade my system.

The new bits I have are:
Comfort (Ultra I think) PC01-050B/051B firmware ULT 5.045
UCM PC01-017E 5.92
LEM PC01-059A
RGR PC01-054A.

My questions are:

It looks as though from the hardware point of view the main boards are plug compatible - can I just remove one and replace it with the other?

Presumably I should buy a MPU01 so I can upgrade the firmware to latest?

Can I in some way extract the responses I have set up and transfer them to the new board using CS-Xpress or the UCM and Comfigurator?

The UCM has a 9 pin RS232 socket - can I connect this to a USB port on my computer in some way?

Clearly there are some exciting things that will become possible (ethernet, iPhone control etc) so any help in this first step greatly appreciated.

[ident]

When you say you took advantage of an upgrade offer some time ago, do you remember which year that was?

ULT 5.054 firmware was released in June 2006 http://www.comfortforums.com/forum79/817.html

UCM 5.092 is not even  Comfort 2 it is a UCM01 for Comfort I  from 2005! It does not have the flash firmware and cannot be upgraded

The Comfort I to 2 upgrade package offer was posted in 2009 (although it may have been available earlier)

If you upgraded around 2008/2009 you should not have received the Comfort ULT or UCM that you have.

You can buy a MPU01 to upgrade you comfort to the latest firmware 6.xxx. After that your firmware can be upgraded by a new UCM and Comfigurator

Your UCM01 (Rs232)can stil be used with a serial to USB convertor but it will not have the new features like be able to support Bus firmware upgrade or use with the iPhone app or comfort Client
I recommend that you buy a UCM/Ethernet (or UCM/USB for local USB interface)

CS-Xpress has been phased out and replaced by Comfigurator 3  see http://www.comfortforums.com/forum20/2599.html

You can use Comfigurator to read an old cclf file created by csxpress and save in the new cclx format

[Guest]

Thank you for your response. I have located the order and it is dated 25/05/2006 with Comfort Home Controls (UK). There are two items:
Comfort Gen.2 Ultra II Upgrade Bundle Offer
UCM01/A/CF RS232 interface (incl CF License)

Is the following the best course of action?

Install the UCM01 in current system and use Comfigurator (or CS-Xpress?) to upload the current configuration
Buy MPU01/ULT and UCM/Eth02
Install the new Comfort board plus MPU01 and UCM, update the firmware and download configuration.

Also, what advantages would there be in now upgrading to the latest Comfort II Ultra board?

Many thanks for your help.

[ident]

Is the following the best course of action?

Install the UCM01 in current system and use Comfigurator (or CS-Xpress?) to upload the current configuration

If you do not have the original file, you can use CSXpress or comfigurator to read the configuration from the system
However you may or may not have better results by using Comfigurator and the new UCM to read the configuration Sometimes old systems may have incompatibitlies which cause exceptions with new Comfigurator. but Comfigurator is able to read and try to provide meaningful names to the Responses that are read. So I would try to read using CS-Xpress/old UCM  and Comfiugrator/New UCM

Buy MPU01/ULT and UCM/Eth02 Install the new Comfort board plus MPU01 and UCM, update the firmware and download configuration.

Yes

Also, what advantages would there be in now upgrading to the latest Comfort II Ultra board?

The Comfort 2 board with MPU is functionally similar to a brand new Comfort II PCB, but the latest hardware would have improvements like a more accurate real time clock and better protection against surge

[Guest]

ok. Many thanks for your help. One of the best things about Comfort is the superb support provided.

[Guest]

Do I need some sort of mounting adaptor for the Comfort II board? One of the mounting holes appears to be in a different place.

[ident]

Not sure what you mean. MPU plugs on top of Comfort II nonflash boards with version < 5.100

Sebd a photo

[Guest]

Sorry I meant the mounting of the Comfort 2 board in the original enclosure. One of the pillars is in the wrong place for the Comfort 2 board.

Scanning older posts It seems I need an ACC-PLATE01?

[ident]

yes you need ACC-PLATE01



ACC-PLATE02 allows UCM and LEM and RLY size modules to be mounted

[Guest]

ok thankyou. Can the UCM/Eth02 be mounted using the provided short screws on convenient pads in the Comfort enclosure? 4 nylon pillars were provided and I don\'t understand how to use those if they are necessary.

Also, what are the 4 metal pillars on the Comfort II main board for?