SparkFun Serial Basic CH340C Hookup Guide

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Contributors: Elias The Sparkiest
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Which COM Port Do I Need?

Most programs will show you a description of the USB device that created the port. To verify that your driver is working, you can use a serial terminal, Arduino IDE, device manager, or command line.

Serial Terminal

Look for the port associated with CH340C. The image below shows the Serial Basic enumerating on a COM port within a serial terminal.

Serial port with CH340G named

Arduino IDE Ports

If you're using the Arduino IDE, figuring out which COM port is the one you want is more difficult. Here's the quick way to figure it out: attach the Serial Basic to your computer, and check which COM ports are listed. In the image below, we have two ports. Now close the Tools menu by clicking on the main Arduino IDE window.

Arduino serial com port sub menu

Which COM port should I select?

Unplug the Serial Basic, and re-open the Tools -> Ports submenu. You will see one of the serial ports is missing. That's the one you want! Plug your Serial Basic back in, and use that COM port.

Missing COM port in Arduino IDE Tools -> Ports Menu

Note: You need to close and re-open the tools menu before Arduino will refresh the port list. If you have the tool menu open simply click on the main window, then click back on Tools -> Port.

Windows: Device Manager

You can also verify that the board is installed if it shows up in your device manager. You can click the Start or (Windows) button and type "device" to quickly search for the application. (*On Windows 10, the quick search function is picky on the spelling of the application you are searching for. For example, you may get results using "_devi_" and none for "_device_".)

Windows 10 Device Manager Window
Screenshot of Window 10 Device Manager with Serial Basic on COM42. Click to enlarge.

Mac OSX: Command Line

To verify on a Mac via the command line. To open a command line window, head to your Applications folder, Utilities folder, then double-click on Terminal. Otherwise, press (Command) + space bar (Space Bar) to launch Spotlight and type "Terminal," then double-click the search result.

Run the following command "ls /dev/cu*" in a Terminal and check for the following changes (your board may show up under a different device name).

language:bash
ls /dev/cu*

You should get something similar as shown in the image below.

Mac OSX CLI Command Entry
Screenshot of Mac OSX terminal with Serial Basic on cu.wchusbserialfd1410. Click to enlarge.

Note: If you are still unsure of how to access the Terminal, watch this video or read this Apple support article.

Raspbian: Command Line

Run the following command "ls /dev/ttyUSB*" in the CLI/Terminal and check for the following changes (your board may show up under a different device name).

language:bash
ls /dev/ttyUSB*

You should get something similar as shown in the image below.

Raspbian CLI Command Entry
Screenshot of Raspberry Pi CLI with Serial Basic on ttyUSB0. Click to enlarge