ComCap v4
Beta Test Version

The beta file must
not be distributed
or linked in any way

The file linked from this page is a beta test version of ComCap. The beta version is made available to those that have experienced problems in ComCap, to ensure such problems are fixed before an official release. Please make sure you keep your previous version of ComCap, in case you need to downgrade.

New Features and Bug Fixes 4th November 2008

1 - If the Capture Log New Log Interval is set to Weekly, it's now also possible to set the New Log Open Time, so the log could rotate at 6am on Monday morning instead of midnight.

2 - When ComCap starts, the main window is only automatically minimised if Auto Start is specified.

3 - The Send Data window added in the last beta has been improved to also allow a file to be selected and sent (TCP/UDP only), typically to configure remote capture device, or load new firmware.

4 - A number of remote TCP devices may be configured to identify themselves when a TCP session connects, by sending a device id as the first line of data. For instance the E-Conv 100 serial to TCP/IP converter sends a five digit configurable number as the first line, while some GSM/3G modems send a device type and IMEI number. In Settings, Logging, 'First Line is Device Id' will cause the first captured line to be saved and not logged, and it may be added to subsequent captured lines using 'Add Escaped Text' with the \z command. So effectively the Device Id is added to each captured line to identify it, specifically with TCP Server where lots of different remote devices may be calling home.

5 - Added some more data validation and processing options, to clean up and reject unwanted captured data. In Settings, Logging, 'Remove Leading Spaces' ensures any control characters or blanks before real data are removed. 'Validate Line Length' allows lines shorter or longer than specified limits to be ignored. This check is done after space at the start and/or end of the line is removed, but before escaped text is added. On the Settings, General tab, ticking 'Filter and Alerts' will cause a new tab Filters and Alerts to appear, on which ticking 'Ignore Lines with Phrases (case sensitive)' causes a captured lines to be checked against one or more phrases (entered one line at a time), and ignored if any are found. ComCap now counts how many lines are ignored due to these various filters and checks, and shows the total in the status bar and hourly in the Information Log.

6 - Added the ability to trigger alerts from captured text. The new Filters and Alerts tab includes a tick box 'Alert for Lines with Phrases (case sensitive)' which causes a captured lines to be checked against one or more phrases (entered one line at a time), with an alert being triggered if any are matched. The alert may be a pop-up window,  email or SMS message, as configured in Settings, Common, and will include the channel name and the captured line.

7 - It's now possible to change channel settings during paused capture for both service and interactive versions, not just the latter.

8 - Fixed a bug introduced in Release 4.3 that meant the remote IP address and port could change line by line for TCP Client or Server, if data was being captured from other sessions at the same time.

9 - Fixed a possible bug that meant extra data might appear at the start of TCP session, if the connection was dropped and reconnected without capture being stopped and restarted.

New Features and Bug Fixes 17th August 2008

1 - In order to assist with waking up and configuring remote capture servers, the right click menu has three new options: Resend Start Command, Send Data, and Terminal Window. The first two are only available when capture has been started, the Terminal Window only when it's stopped or paused. Resend Start Command simply resends the same data sent when capture starts, but on demand. Send Data displays a new window allowing custom data to be sent on demand, with the last 50 command sent selectable from a drop down box.

2 - A Telnet Terminal window has been added, to allow interaction with remote TCP/IP Servers. It may be selected from the File menu in the Main Window, or the right click menu when the remote address and port will be set according to the channel settings. Terminal window options may be specified such as font and size, function key behaviour, echo, auto LF and CR, etc. If Log is ticked, anything typed or received in the window is written to a session log with the file name telnet-(date)-(time).log.

3 - It is now possible to add a pause into the Commands to Send Upon Start and Stop Capture, and the new Send Data command. \P (capital only) will cause a 50ms pause in the data being sent, with multiples allowing a longer delay. Note the pause may not necessarily be effective with TCP/IP, because packets may get combined at transport level, nor may the pause be exactly 50ms due to other activity within ComCap.

4 - Fixed a bug that meant the Log Files option Start/Stop in Capture Log did not always write the stop command, specifically if the capture file had closed due to inactivity.

5 - The Add Comment right click menu option is now effective when the ComCap service version is being used. Also, the Command window position is now restored correctly if moved.

If you notice any problems with this beta release, please email with details of the problem and the date of the beta version you are using.

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Copyright © 2008 Magenta Systems Ltd, England. All Rights Reserved.