To obtain the best chance of a good installation for RailMaster in Windows 10, or indeed previous versions of Windows, it is recommended that you follow these steps from the start and not skip any area. By following the steps in order you are giving yourself the best opportunity of getting RailMaster up and running smoothly. The ONLY differences for Windows Vista, Windows 7 or 8/8.1 users will be menu access and some minor differences in accessing system areas (for Vista based issues regarding anti-virus software see the anti-virus help page). These instructions apply to both 32 and 64 bit operating systems and will work for Home, Professional or Enterprise versions equally.
Before starting any installation of RailMaster, regardless of what media the install files are on (disk or download), it will be wise to uninstall any anti-virus products like Norton’s or McAfee (those with aggressive firewalls primarily) as these programs and their firewalls will give more than their fair share of a huge headache later on. If you leave these programs installed please be aware that you will almost certainly face difficulties later (if you do not, then you are one of the very few lucky ones).
If you have not read the page referring to anti-virus products I strongly advise you do so before continuing further. I will never dictate what programs you use but do strongly advise where the use of RailMaster could be affected by certain software.
Now is a good time to check a couple of things just to be thorough and ensure you will get a good clean install of RailMaster...
You should either have a CD with RailMaster software ready to install or the latest download from rail-master.com or powerpos.com... plus an activation key. Download the software from one the links below...
Official ~ from rail-master.com Official ~ from powerpos.com Official ~ from this site ~ upd 26.03.19 v1.70 Rev 2The official downloads may vary per version numbers whilst the download from this site will always be available if you cannot access the official ones and will be updated as soon as possible after official release.
Switch off the eLink unit if it is on and unattach, if necessary, the USB cable from the PC/laptop only and leave the other end of it connected to the eLink unit.
This is not always required as new versions of the software will overwrite the old one. If it IS necessary then read on... remembering to backup or copy data files. If RailMaster is currently installed and activated then de-activate the software from within its own settings via this method...
1. Click on the large ‘?‘ to open the information dialogue window.
2. Within this window you will see the following: RailMaster License Key (make a note of it to save hunting your disk down), current version, small cog which allows you to edit the RM.ini parameters, help request option, deregister (de-activate) option and a link to purchase the Pro Pack and a couple of other links.
3. Make sure you have a connection to the Internet. Click the Deregister link, the lock icon, and you are asked if you are sure about deactivating the software. Click the tick icon. A second warning appears so again click the tick to confirm. A third dialogue gives further information about installing to another PC if you wish etc. Accept that. Note the lock icon is now greyed out... this means your software is now deactivated.
4. Close all RailMaster related windows.
Go to your installation folder for RailMaster and copy out any Track Plan files etc. you may have to another directory or folder on the system or an external drive or similar. Uninstall the RailMaster program via the Control Panel and Programs and Features option. When done look at the top of the dialogue window and click on the address bar particularly where it says "All Control Panel Items". Open Windows Firewall from here and click "Allow an app or feature through Windows Firewall". Scroll down to where RailMaster would show alphabetically and highlight the row so RailMaster and its settings are highlighted in blue (default). If RailMaster is not shown then skip the next step only.
Click Change Settings at the upper right. Once RailMaster is highlighted click Remove and then Yes on the warning dialogue box. Close the Control Panel.
Return to the RailMaster installation folder and delete it as it is not always completely removed when uninstalling from the Programs and Features option. Close all open windows. If you wish and feel more secure doing so then restart the laptop or PC... although it really is not necessary.
Open the Control Panel and then Device Manager. You’ll notice, alphabetically, that "Ports" is not listed (unless you have other USB hardware attached to your PC or laptop or a RailMaster driver is currently installed. If a port with eLink is showing and there is no software for RailMaster installed then delete the port for RailMaster along with the driver by ticking any box on a pop up window asking if you want to remove the driver also. If no RailMaster port is showing in the list initially then that is fine... no need to worry. Leave this screen open from hereon.
Once you have followed all the instructions from the start on this screen then you are now ready to begin the process for a fresh or new install. If you are happy enough to proceed then, with your PC or laptop on, switch on the eLink unit. When the computer is ready make sure the Device Manager dialogue window is open if you did not have it open already after the steps taken to reach this point.
When the eLink unit is ready attach the USB cable to the PC or laptop via one of the USB ports. Do NOT connect via a USB hub at any time and you should always use the SAME USB socket each time the eLink is attached to the computer. This means the same port number is always used and this should always be port number 4 or below. By using the same USB socket each time the unit is easily recognised by Windows and you should have no further issues with COM Ports and having to change settings later in RailMaster itself.
If you have left open the Device Manager window as requested you will now see ’Ports’ appear in the hardware list. Click the small arrow or plus sign to the left of this and see the hardware for the eLink listed as ’USB Serial Port(COM?)’. The ? will have a number in your case and this should be 4 or less as stated above. If not you are strongly recommended to remove the USB cable from your PC or laptop and reconnect now to a different USB socket. If this means moving other USB plugs then do so.
