Installing eLink with RM for the 1st time issues.

[Chrissaf]

For christmas my son goe a western master elink, but we have been trying to install for 7 days, it will not reconise the controller. We are running windows 8, i have resorted in removing the whole program from the computer and starting againg, a few things i notice, on first install the controller is found, but once you go out and do the updates it does not work, second u have gone through the driver guide and when it gets to the part in device manager to look for other devices, other devices do not exsist, i am truely stumped on how to get this working for him, please help

 

i assume this question has been asked before (many times) i have tried looking for an answer, i think i could have been dont buy the elink, so frustrating!!!!

[Chrissaf]

It is important to install the eLink driver correctly. This task does seem to cause some issues with some users, particularly if they are not experienced Windows PC users.

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The installation issues usually arise because RailMaster (RM) was originally written for Windows XP, it will run under Windows 7, 8 and 10, but invariably needs a high level of tinkering to do so. The current latest version of RM has been predominately amended and updated in recent times to run on Windows 10, so running it on Windows 8 may be extra problematic, given that Windows 8 is no longer supported and obsolete by Microsoft.

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Once the driver is installed correctly. Your issues will almost certainly be fixed by amending the 'railmaster.ini' file. Having the correct entries in this file are crucial when installing RM for the very first time.

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OK that's the background covered. In order to get your RM working there are two key tasks than need to be successfully completed.

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TASK 1

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The first task is to correctly install the driver on Windows 8 (the Hornby provided driver guide for Windows 8 installation you have been following so far is in my opinion as useful as a chocolate teapot).

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I have written a 'step by step' guide. It was written originally for Windows 10 but should be equally good for W8 or W8.1. Note the my written guide states Elite. The eLink uses exactly the same driver and the driver installation process is identical. Ignore the references to Elite firmware mentioned in this guide. You are only interested in the installation of the Windows driver part of it. Once 'Device Manager' shows the "USB Serial port (COM x)" entry where x is a number (preferably 3 or 4) then the driver installation is complete and you can move on the guidance documented further below. But do make a note of the number x equals as this number will be needed later.

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https://www.hornby.com/uk-en/forum/windows-10-drivers-for-hornby-elite/?p=1

See my two posts in this linked thread above. My post 3rd one down and my post 6th one down from the top. The screen capture in the 6th post down shows the 'Device Manager' driver entry you are looking for. Remember that the Elite and eLink both use the same driver, so ignore the reference to Elite.

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TASK 2

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Once the driver is correctly installed using the guide in the link above. You need to amend the 'railmaster.ini' file as detailed in this following link.

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Be sure to perform the suggested modification to the "Reset eLink on start" line first.

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Again, due the age of this post, it makes reference to downloading the 1.70.2 RM version. When reading the guidance, substitute 1.70.2 with 1.72.0 which is now the latest current RM version (note that the download link still shows 1.71.0 and has not had the displayed download text updated yet, but clicking the link does download 1.72.0). At the time of writing this reply it is I.72.0 - however if you're reading this thread in the future, the latest version may be a higher revision than 1.72.0

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https://www.hornby.com/uk-en/forum/train-will-not-run-on-elink-plus-other-issues/?p=1

My post....3rd one down on the page.

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You can also see more RailMaster technical support information on this external to Hornby site:

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https://octaviancs.com/railmaster/rm.php

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The site above is written, hosted and maintained by another member of this forum.

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TIP: As this is your very first post, just be aware that the 'Blue Button with the White Arrow' is not a 'Reply to this post' button. If you want to reply to any of the posts, scroll down and write your reply in the reply text box at the bottom of the page and click the Green 'Reply' button.

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See also – further TIPs on how to get the best user experience from this forum.

https://www.hornby.com/uk-en/forum/tips-on-using-the-forum/

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[nikibmx01]

Thank you after a week of pain we now have a working train set. 

[Chrissaf]

Yes it is a pity that HRMS have not employed me to write their documentation. Unfortunately the original HRMS documentation is not kept updated with the feedback of user experience. Glad my posts helped you out. I suggest in future that the forum is your first port of call when you want to find out how to do something in RailMaster. I have written many posted topics on the subject of RM configuration.