How to Upgrade Motor Control Firmware
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Linux users, Sascha Peilicke has an excellent how to article here and Mike Clements has an excellent how to article here. |
Beginning with mounts designed in 2014 and later, the motor control firmware in the mount is now updated with Celestron Firmware Manager (referred to as CFM for the rest of this document). Download CFM from Celestron's web site:
https://software.celestron.com/updates/
Click the CFM folder and download the "zip" file and follow the directions
below.
OR
https://www.celestron.com/pages/drivers-and-software
Click the Drivers and Software category link, then Show More
towards the bottom of the page and search for the Celestron Firmware
Manager. Download the "zip" file and follow the directions below.
CFM uses Java (download the latest from www.java.com) to work on Windows, macOS and Linux.
Updating your scope also requires a connection between the port on the bottom of the hand control and your PC or laptop.
The current NexStar+ and StarSense hand controls (all those manufactured since April 2016) have a USB port on the bottom for connections to a PC/laptop. This port is actually a connection to a USB-to-serial adapter inside the hand control. For details on the cable required, read this. You must connect this cable between a USB port on your computer and the port on the bottom of the hand control. You will also need to load a driver, read this for more information (also, if you are using a Mac, see the note at the bottom of that page about approving third-party kernel extensions).
NexStar+ and StarSense hand controls manufactured prior to April 2016 have an RS-232 port (looks like a phone jack). You will need the Hand Control RS-232 Port Cable that plugs into the bottom of the hand control. For details on the cable and sources to purchase one, read this. You must connect this cable between a serial port on your computer and the port on the bottom of the hand control. If your PC does not have a serial port, you will need a USB-to-serial adapter available at most computer stores. See PC Control on this website for more information and options regarding computers without a serial port.
Alternately, if your scope has Celestron WiFi (built-in on the Evolution and Astro Fi, available as an add on for many mounts by using the Celestron SkyPortal or SkyQ Link WiFi module), you can connect your PC to the scope's WiFi network and connect without cables. Then change the connection method in CFM's Options/Connections menu to WiFi.
After downloading CFM, you must then "unzip" or "extract" it to a folder on your computer. Don't lose track of the location of this folder as you will need to navigate to it to start CFM later.
Upgrade Process
Additional Notes
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