My experience with: 1.- CAT ports missing from SmartSDR and 2.- Red light twice blink and reboot

YV5WZ

Be aware!!  Covid-19 Kills !!
Protect yourself and your family, we don't want you be missing on air

Since 2014 I've been a proud FlexRadio user; Excellent quality radios and top of technology for ham radio amateurs.
However, does heart not jump? (part of dealing with windows) when a CAT port disappears, radio does not transmit or light blinks red...who does not?

Anytime  I have had a trouble with my Flex (better say with my PC), I've open the browser and "clicked" on "flex community"icon on my desktop.. scared! looking for a fast way answer to solve the problem, most of the time answer is here!! Thanks to all flex users, colleagues, doctors, bankers, engineering, sales rep, Elmers...and of course: Flex employees (Big thanks to them) 

Thanks to my CAT ports mysterious disappearance I learned  (thanks to Bill -VA3WTB)  there is a Flex manager to restore your cat settings? https://www.flexradio.com/downloads/smartsdr-settings-file-manager/

and exists a procedure to re-associate CAT Ports with Virtual Serial Ports:

 https://helpdesk.flexradio.com/hc/en-us/articles/360004248471-How-to-Re-associate-CAT-ports-with-Virtual-Serial-Ports-

and we can use a little App to Remove  "In Use" Com Ports for Available Com Ports 

https://helpdesk.flexradio.com/hc/en-us/articles/115000504463-Removing-In-Use-Com-Ports-for-Available-Com-Ports


Hey! and Don't forget to back up your transmission, global and mic profiles


if you do all above (perfectly explained) and then perform a factory hard reset:

" Press and hold the Power button for approximately 5 seconds until the power button or power LED turns white. Release the power button and allow the radio to continue booting normally
                                                                                                                       Ken Wells
                                                                                                                        NM9P "

you will get back your Flex Radio CAT ports recovered, and smoothing  start up without red light

my five cents....



Thanks to Ken Well, NM9P  I appreciate the help!!


George,
YV5WZ  /  PY3ZZZ  / HC1OOT