Upgrading your Software or Firmware

The information provided is for help with Commtest Instruments products:

Ascent®/MAS VB software, vbSeries® instruments, vbOnline device

New versions of software and firmware files are released intermittently as we continue to enhance and develop our products. These upgrades can be downloaded from the Commtest website. To find out more information about the upgrades that are currently available, contact Commtest or your local reseller.

To apply for an upgrade you need to register your vb portable instrument or vbOnline device. To do this go to the customer login area of our website and register your details. After filling out the customer form you will be able to register your product. The product details you need to provide are your product serial number, QA date and a valid e-mail address. The serial number and QA date can be found on the QA Card supplied with your instrument. If you can not find a record of your QA date contact Commtest for assistance.

After registering your product an automated reply will be sent containing your login and password as well as a link to the downloads page so that you can access it directly. The login will be the e-mail address you have supplied on the registration form and the password will be your instrument serial number.

Downloading the Upgrade Files

Do not install the downloaded software until your Ascent security dongle has been delivered. Ascent versions 8.00 and later can only run in demonstration mode without a security dongle.

Go to our customer login area and enter your login name and password.
Once you have logged in, download the product you require by right-clicking the file and selecting Save Target As from the shortcut menu.
In the window that appears, navigate to where you want to save the file on your computer then click Save.

Before you Install the new Software/Firmware

Before upgrading your existing software or firmware please ensure all data is collected, backed up and saved to a secure location.

PROFLASHING the instrument with new Firmware

Full instructions on how to PROFLASH your instrument with new firmware are contained in the following article.

Installing the new Software

If you are installing Ascent software using a parallel port security dongle follow the instructions given in this article. Ignore any references to inserting a CD-ROM and instead double-click the .exe file that you downloaded from the Commtest website.
If you are installing Ascent software using a USB security dongle follow the instructions given in this article. Ignore any references to inserting a CD-ROM and instead double-click the .exe file that you downloaded from the Commtest website.

FAQ ID: 12038 Last Reviewed: 16 February 2005