macOS High Sierra (10.13) FTDI Driver Bug Workaround

Did nit initially have the bug ...but as things would happen it"popped" up


My mini does not have a recovery partition. I tried to work around using single user mode but was not able to do anything with the apple extensions

So i disabled the pwoertlinc
What now emerged is that I am getting no x-10 commands even though the interface connetc

Code: Select all

Connected to W800 interface on port usbserial-A4007TsQ

any thoughts?

[jay (support)]

Not really. I would expect that you'd see errors in the Event Log if Indigo were having difficulties talking to the W800, though it's possible that it is experiencing the driver issue but because the W800 is a receiver (not a transmitter) you may not see errors from Indigo since it's not trying to tell the W800 anything.

Ok so i disconnected the W800 and reinstalled and the x10 is back. At this location I can live with out the Powerlinc as I have never been able to get Insteon running here

Thanls for the sounding boards

FYI - I can't boot my late 2012 Mini 2.5 Ghz i5 when my z-stick is plugged directly into the mini's USB ports. I solved the problem by plugging it into a USB hub, which both allows the machine to boot and for Indigo 7 to access the z-stick. I'm using a self powered USB3 generic hub from Amazon.

[jay (support)]

FYI - I can't boot my late 2012 Mini 2.5 Ghz i5 when my z-stick is plugged directly into the mini's USB ports. I solved the problem by plugging it into a USB hub, which both allows the machine to boot and for Indigo 7 to access the z-stick. I'm using a self powered USB3 generic hub from Amazon.

This has been reported sporadically for various USB devices in the past. Our guess (after some have replaced the devices) is that they are marginal in some way that causes the Mac USB hardware to panic.

The Z Stick is may not need a powered USB hub, this fix may also work https://forums.indigodomo.com/viewtopic.php?f=58&t=14060&start=30

Okay, I am hoping for a little bit of clarity here. I am running indigo server 7.2 on a late 2012 Mac mini with a 2.6 GHz Intel core 7 processor and 16 GB of RAM. I just upgraded to Mac OS Mojave 10.14 from Sierra and I am having issues with the indigo server connecting to the powerlinc 2413u. I completed the workaround provided in the block most with the exception of the removal of the AppleUSBFTDI.kext, but it is moved to the main "Macintosh HD" folder and it is not in the system/library/extensions folder. I installed the most up to date FTDIUSBSerialDriver.kext drivers in the link provided but instead of going back into where the original ones were deleted, which were library/extensions and system/library/extensions, the new ones went into library/extensions and library/stagedextension/library/extensions. Are these two locations the correct locations or does it also need to exist in system/library/extensions?

I am still having the issue of the indigo server disconnecting from the 2413U powerlinc modem but when I select a device in the indigo server and turn it on or off it will eventually work but the communication between the device and the server is messed up somehow as the device will turn on but the server will show that the communication failed and not indicate that the device had turned on.

Update: after posting that I upgraded my OS to 10.14.2 and the indigo server would not connect to the 2413u at all. I restarted in recovery mode and removed the Apple driver and restarted. On initial launch of the indigo server it connected with the 2413u but then immediately disconnected. I tried to switch a device (light) on and off and after some hesitation it worked though it did not indicate the light being on in the indigo server. Next, with the indigo server indicating that it was connected to the 2413u, I pressed the turn off button for the light and the 2413u immediately went to red with a line through it and then after about 30 seconds or so the light turned off and the 2413u indicated that it was connected. About a minute later I tried the same thing with turning the light on in the same thing happened.

I don't know if it is worth noting but this Mac mini that I have the indigo server running on has a lot of things installed but the only things I am really running on a are my security spy server and the indigo server. I have a brand-new 2018 Mac mini as well but I am hesitant to move my indigo server over to the new Mac mini as I would like to just use the older one as my server and the newer one for my day-to-day work. I use this software due to a disability so I need it to be reliable. I am about to restore my Mac back to Sierra (if possible) or switch to a different solution if this can't be resolved.

[jay (support)]

I installed the most up to date FTDIUSBSerialDriver.kext drivers in the link provided but instead of going back into where the original ones were deleted, which were library/extensions and system/library/extensions, the new ones went into library/extensions and library/stagedextension/library/extensions. Are these two locations the correct locations or does it also need to exist in system/library/extensions?

When you installed the driver, macOS should have prompted you to approve the driver install. When you do that, it moves the driver to the correct spot. You should be able to go into the Security preference and approve the driver there. Hopefully that will solve your issues.

I installed the most up to date FTDIUSBSerialDriver.kext drivers in the link provided but instead of going back into where the original ones were deleted, which were library/extensions and system/library/extensions, the new ones went into library/extensions and library/stagedextension/library/extensions. Are these two locations the correct locations or does it also need to exist in system/library/extensions?

When you installed the driver, macOS should have prompted you to approve the driver install. When you do that, it moves the driver to the correct spot. You should be able to go into the Security preference and approve the driver there. Hopefully that will solve your issues.

It would work and then stop working and then work and then stop working. I finally said screw it and downgraded back to OS X 10.11.6 (El Capitan) in hopes that that would fix my issue. It did not. I deleted the old FTDI drivers and installed the newer ones and still the problem persists. Attached is a copy of my logs for the past half hour or so. It just keeps connecting and disconnecting

[matt (support)]

Try plugging the PowerLinc into different outlets on different circuits. Since you are just troubleshooting use an extension cord so you don't have to move the Mac. Does it work more reliably on a different circuit? Also try different USB ports on your Mac (and swap the USB cable if you have a spare).

I have been running Indigo for years coupled with an Insteon 2412U on my ~2012ish Mac mini, running the latest MacOS (10.14.2). I got a new 2018 Mac mini this week and all of a sudden this problem has hit me. I followed the instructions and got the FTDI Driver installed and the Apple supplied one removed. Indigo connects to the 2412U on startup, etc, but the connection seems really flaky.

For example, turning a light on/off inside the Indigo app, the light actually turns on an off, but the log shows

Error "Basement Kitchen" off; send failed (no acknowledgment)
Error "Basement Kitchen" on to 100; send failed (no acknowledgment)


Any ideas on anything else I am missing? Given the issues with the Indigo PowerLinc, is there a different recommended device to use in its place?

[jay (support)]

I have been running Indigo for years coupled with an Insteon 2412U on my ~2012ish Mac mini, running the latest MacOS (10.14.2). I got a new 2018 Mac mini this week and all of a sudden this problem has hit me. I followed the instructions and got the FTDI Driver installed and the Apple supplied one removed. Indigo connects to the 2412U on startup, etc, but the connection seems really flaky.

For example, turning a light on/off inside the Indigo app, the light actually turns on an off, but the log shows

Error "Basement Kitchen" off; send failed (no acknowledgment)
Error "Basement Kitchen" on to 100; send failed (no acknowledgment)


Any ideas on anything else I am missing? Given the issues with the Indigo PowerLinc, is there a different recommended device to use in its place?

Those issues aren't related to the driver - those just indicate that you have some signal noise. And given the reports we've had on the new 2018 mini working fine (not exhibiting the driver issue), I'm going to guess that it was never actually the driver issue but rather a signal noise issue that was somewhat coincidental with the Mac upgrade. Work through the signal troubleshooting page to try to identify the signal issue you're seeing. I'd start first with a long outdoor extension cord from your PowerLinc to an outlet in another room and see if you continue to see those no acks. If they go away, then the noise is likely on the same circuit that you had the PowerLinc plugged into.

Okay, I am hoping for a little bit of clarity here. I am running indigo server 7.2 on a late 2012 Mac mini with a 2.6 GHz Intel core 7 processor and 16 GB of RAM. I just upgraded to Mac OS Mojave 10.14 from Sierra and I am having issues with the indigo server connecting to the powerlinc 2413u. I completed the workaround provided in the block most with the exception of the removal of the AppleUSBFTDI.kext, but it is moved to the main "Macintosh HD" folder and it is not in the system/library/extensions folder. I installed the most up to date FTDIUSBSerialDriver.kext drivers in the link provided but instead of going back into where the original ones were deleted, which were library/extensions and system/library/extensions, the new ones went into library/extensions and library/stagedextension/library/extensions. Are these two locations the correct locations or does it also need to exist in system/library/extensions?

I am still having the issue of the indigo server disconnecting from the 2413U powerlinc modem but when I select a device in the indigo server and turn it on or off it will eventually work but the communication between the device and the server is messed up somehow as the device will turn on but the server will show that the communication failed and not indicate that the device had turned on.

Update: after posting that I upgraded my OS to 10.14.2 and the indigo server would not connect to the 2413u at all. I restarted in recovery mode and removed the Apple driver and restarted. On initial launch of the indigo server it connected with the 2413u but then immediately disconnected. I tried to switch a device (light) on and off and after some hesitation it worked though it did not indicate the light being on in the indigo server. Next, with the indigo server indicating that it was connected to the 2413u, I pressed the turn off button for the light and the 2413u immediately went to red with a line through it and then after about 30 seconds or so the light turned off and the 2413u indicated that it was connected. About a minute later I tried the same thing with turning the light on in the same thing happened.

I don't know if it is worth noting but this Mac mini that I have the indigo server running on has a lot of things installed but the only things I am really running on a are my security spy server and the indigo server. I have a brand-new 2018 Mac mini as well but I am hesitant to move my indigo server over to the new Mac mini as I would like to just use the older one as my server and the newer one for my day-to-day work. I use this software due to a disability so I need it to be reliable. I am about to restore my Mac back to Sierra (if possible) or switch to a different solution if this can't be resolved.

I have exact same setup and had the same problem when upgraded to 10.14. This is what I did and it is now stable across reboots:

Shutdown Indigo server
Delete the FTXXX from the Network list
Download theFTDI 2.4.2 driver from https://www.ftdichip.com/Drivers/VCP.htm
Install the driver
Reboot the server
Launch Indigo server

It's been running fine for several weeks now without hiccups. Hope this helps.

I just performed a test upgrade from Sierra to Mojave and I have not observed the bug(s).

Here's my configuration information, FYI, just in case it adds to understanding the error:

Mac mini (Late 2012)
macOS Mojave Version 10.14
PowerLinc 2413U
PowerLinc address 41.ED.88, firmware version 9.14

[jay (support)]

I just performed a test upgrade from Sierra to Mojave and I have not observed the bug(s).

Here's my configuration information, FYI, just in case it adds to understanding the error:

Mac mini (Late 2012)
macOS Mojave Version 10.14
PowerLinc 2413U
PowerLinc address 41.ED.88, firmware version 9.14

Interesting. We've had conflicting reports about that model, but I have one for testing that also seems to work correctly (no driver issues). Thanks for adding to the discussion.