Operate checkpoint 4800 LCD screen with pfSense (EZIO-G500)
-
Hello,
I am trying to get the screen of my 4800 checkpoint to work with pfSense but I cannot.
I used the same steps as for UTM but it does not work ...
I am totally lost.
I'm also looking for the bios password that I can't find at all ... -
-
Could anyone help me please ? to operate the checkpoint 4800 screen on pfsense.
-
The key fact here is that this is the Portwell EZIO-G500.
https://portwell.com/products/detail.php?CUSTCHAR1=EZIO-G500Unfortunately there is almost no detailed info available for this display (or was not last time I looked) which makes creating a driver very much more difficult. There is no lcdproc driver for it currently.
Steve
-
Hello,
it's a shame if anyone can help or has any information please?
-
If you find any details of the protocol the screen uses let us know. It may not be that hard to develop a driver once that information is available.
Steve
-
do you know where i can find this?
-
Nope, I never found it. You could try to contact Portwell and ask.
-
I believe the only hints about these better EZIO devices came in a PDF document titled "NAR-7100 Series Communication Appliance" by Caswell/Portwell (Google it). It refers to the EZIO-400 but wiring pictures in that document seem awfully similar to your picture above.
There is a list of commands to send, and they do not match the EZIO-100 or EZIO-300 we already have, so maybe they do work for an EZIO-400.
As you have the hardware, you might have to try them at the command line. The device might be attached to COM1 as the documentation suggest, or COM2 (COM1 is usually the serial console).
So, install an operating system you are comfortable with, initialize the COM port (looks like 115200,n,8,1 would be a good start) and hack away. Start by sending a few characters ("Hello"), next try clearing the screen, then put the cursor somewhere and sending another "Hello".
Let us know what you find out.
-
Ah, I see it. Yeah the G400 is also a graphical display, though lower resolution.
The G500 has a bunch more buttons are lights etc. All the bells and whistles.
If you just write raw serial to it (from lcdproc here):
Experiment time!
Steve
-
Hello,
I have pfsense installed on it but I don't know how to run the commands to get it displayed on the screen. How to do it please?
-
Looks promising.
[root@T-160 /bin]# echo -e '\x0c\x0bSome test text\x0a\x0dAnd a new line\x0a\x0dAnd another' > /dev/cuau1Results in:
Seems like there might be a generic driver that would cover this....
-
So you found it?
-
A driver? Nope. I just send commands to the LCD directly to test if the G400 command list works and it appears it does. I haven't tested them all. The backlight command does nothing.
Steve
-
Watching as I too have several of these Checkpoint devices and would love to get the display working.
-MW
-
I would love to be able to get the LCD working on a Checkpoint 4600. I have no programming skills to donate to the cause, unfortunately. but would love to help someway
-
Hello peoples,
I've tapped a Checkpoint 4400's EZIO serial communication; and that some commands are way different from the G400.
I'm still making some data decoding from the tap file, but I've so far, I've discovered that Checkpoint isn't working in text mode, they transfer all menu via graphics...
I don't know how to share my findings ?
-
If can't post here directly you can link to a share somewhere, pastebin etc.
We don't need a graphics mode to use the G500 with lcdproc though.
Steve
-
I've started to build some git site with all information I can collect from the tap, but also from the CP's process...
here is the binary tap file:
https://git.nox-rhea.org/globals/reverse-engineering/ezio-g500/-/raw/master/TapFiles/Tap_1.hex?inline=false
I'm still reading the file and the application to try to find as many information I can find...
-
Hello everyone,
Since I've an working 4400 with demo license on it, I'm able to tap all serial communication...
I've started some RE on the CP's drivers... very interesting...
I've discovered that CP is indeed full graphics...
The LCD graphic mode is very special but logical, each bytes represent 8 pixels 'vertically'...I've also be able to control the 3 LEDs:
https://git.nox-rhea.org/globals/reverse-engineering/ezio-g500/-/blob/master/LED.MDhere is the current command discovered so far:
https://git.nox-rhea.org/globals/reverse-engineering/ezio-g500/-/blob/master/CommandSet.MD -
Ooo this is nice work.
Definitely some differences to the G400 command set then. Mostly the same though.
Steve
-
@Pepito-Payet said in Operate checkpoint 4800 LCD screen with pfSense (EZIO-G500):
perate the checkpoint 4800 screens on pfsen
Did you able to get VGA out to instal pfsense in checkpoint 4800
if you know how to connect the cable to VGA adapter let me know -
Hello,
I used a USB cable to turn it into a VGA cable to plug into VGA inside the checkpoint. But the console cable also works.
-
https://pinoutguide.com/Audio-Video-Hardware/checkpoint_utm-1_pinout.shtml
-
@Pepito-Payet
thank You i will check i need one more help. from below pic what is the correct port will be
))
-
-
This post is deleted! -
This post is deleted! -
you store or your images that you post? I can't seem to get them to post on the forum like you.
-
@saint-frater late to the party but hope I can help anyways. My g500 acts very strange. For instance the “move cursor to leftmost position” is 0x28, the “clear screen command” is 0x38 or the enter button returns a 0x75... odd
The setup I’m using is quite simple: the G500 is attached to a 5v power supply and to read/ write I’m using an arduino nano -
@spolverino long time I've played with that.
I'm quiet sure that the issue you face is due to the voltage of your arduino's serial Interface.
If I remember well, I've the same issues with my arduino, until I use a small USB Serial interface on my PC.
you may see it behind the breadboard, (the DB9 connector):
I think, on the Arduino, the serial interface is 3.3V max, and the G500 is running at 5V... when voltage is not correct, you get strange behavior from the G500, and you may get in trouble with your arduino...
Frater
-
@saint-frater checkpoint 4400 how to get the vga output. can you please share some information.
-
@sranasundaragmail-com Didn't try, since the G500 is only accepting serial input...
if you want to display VGA (on a 64x32pxl) you should write a driver that does this:
- capture current VGA display memory
- resize the windows 640x480 -> 64x32
- reduce color from 256 color -> 2
- serialize the buffer
- loop
it's a loot of effort for a very bad result...
it should be more efficient to write your own graphic drivers and "draw" on the miniscreen... but the pfsense should also be update to take advantage...
-
@saint-frater Thanks for the quick reply. Arduino has to be the problem here. Will try with a raspberry and if that doesn’t work I’ll have to a usb to serial device like the one you use.
An interesting thing I have noticed on the g500 is that it has a usb circuit left blank on the back. It might have been used in testing... -
@spolverino I've also started (but time was a constraint) some reverse engineering of the CP's LCD drivers, you'll find some information there:
https://git.nox-rhea.org/globals/reverse-engineering/ezio-g500
-
For what it's worth, I did some work based on the findings at
https://git.nox-rhea.org/globals/reverse-engineering/ezio-g500
and now have a somewhat working way to write text to the LCD + a way to parse mono BMPs into a format the LCD understands and displays.
C would probably be more suited to the task but I had no compiler handy.
I was also missing a way to set the serial parameters from inside the script, so make sure your ttyS1 is already set to 115200, 8N1, no flow-control.
lcd.zip -
Oh fun!
bmp have to be 128x64? -
@stephenw10 yes, it is not an actual BMP parser, I just used ImageMagick's (known) offset when creating a 1bit bitmap.
something likeconvert -pointsize 11 -size 128x64 -font "Arial" -background white -fill black label:"some text\nand some more text" -monochrome text.bmpand then
perl /path/to/bmp2lcd text.bmpshould work
edit: another thing I noticed: the LCD needs local modem control lines (I can't imagine why, since only three wires are connected to it), like so:
stty -F/dev/ttyS1 clocal speed 115200
