
                      Release Notes PN 93000501

                           Digi Connect ME

                            82000856_B EOS

                          September 29, 2003


INTRODUCTION

    This is a production release of firmware for the Digi Connect ME.

    The Digi Connect ME embedded device server web and network enables
    products easily without the complexities of extensive hardware and
    software integration. The Digi Connect ME provides powerful
    "plug-and-play", customizable and future-safe features, and
    performance in one of the smallest solutions available.


SUPPORTED PRODUCTS

    Digi Connect ME


ENHANCEMENTS

    "Reverse Telnet", i.e. making a telnet connection to a serial
    port, has been added, including RFC 2217 support.

    A command line interface has been added, accessible via telnet
    to the standard telnet port (23).

    The ability to autoconnect to a remote device via telnet has
    been added.

    The autoconnect feature has been extended to allow one to
    autoconnect based on an arbitrary pattern string.

    TCP socket connections now can be given a configurable
    idle timeout for connection closure.

    The "alarm" functionality has been extended to allow one to
    generate email when pattern strings are present in the data
    stream.

    LPD server support has been added.

    "Socket ID" support (the insertion of a static identifier
    string into the first transmitted data packet for a TCP
    socket session or into every datagram carrying data for a
    serial port over UDP) has been added.

    The serial over UDP functionality has been extended to
    allow 64 destinations per serial port.

    We have updated the Configuration Applet to support these
    features.  You must upgrade the applet on your Digi Connect
    ME in order to configure these new features from the UI.
    See the section, UPGRADING THE CONFIGURATION APPLET, for
    instructions.

BUG FIXES

    CPU utilization reported by the web/applet interface is now
    more representative of the average utilization of the system.

    The serial over UDP functionality now correctly handles IP
    broadcast addresses as valid UDP destinations.

    The interface now automatically reboots after reverting to
    factory defaults, as it previously implied it would.


KNOWN ISSUES

    When attempting to upgrade the firmware on a unit which
    has password authentication enabled, the initial release
    of the firmware would fail.  This current release
    includes a workaround to this behavior by allowing the
    user to disable passwords during the time period of the
    firmware upgrade.

    If it becomes necessary to DOWNGRADE the firmware from
    version B (or greater) back to version A, it is necessary
    to clear the persistent storage BEFORE downgrading because
    the version A firmware has a defect in the way it handles
    unexpected data in the persistent storage.  Failure to
    clear the persistent storage during a DOWNGRADE from B to
    A can result in an unusable unit.  The recommended
    procedure, therefore, to preserve as many settings as
    possible during a downgrade is to backup the configuration,
    then clear the persistent storage, downgrade the firmware,
    then restore the configuration.
    
    In order to clear the persistent storage from the CLI
    one can execute the "boot action=factory" command.  The
    only web accessible method for clearing the storage is
    available via the reset functionality in the
    administrative pages at "admin/factory_defaults.htm".

    When attempting to replace files in the file system, simply
    overwrite the existing version of the file rather than deleting
    the file first.  Attempting to delete the file first defeats
    the internal file versioning maintained by the firmware, and
    can confuse your browser's cache.

    For the most consistent experience with the user interface,
    it is suggested that you clear your Internet cache.


DOCUMENTATION ERRATA

    Password authentication can be enabled in this release, but
    authentication is OFF BY DEFAULT.  A security screen has been
    added to the user interface to allow one to enable username
    and password authentication.  When password checking is
    enabled, the user will be challenged when accessing the
    initial screen of the UI, and if the user uses a Digi Device
    Discovery tool.  The user will also be challenged when
    accessing the "administrative" web pages, except for the
    page responsible to reset the unit to the factory defaults.


ADDITIONAL INFORMATION 

    The configuration save and restore tools will save every
    configurable parameter (including IP configuration) except
    for those related to password authentication.

UPGRADING THE CONFIGURATION APPLET

    Prior to upgrading the configuration applet, you must remove
    the existing files.  The main reason for this is that the
    new configuration applet has been split into two parts and
    thus the filenames are different.  If you are simply uploading
    newer versions of files with the same name, it is not necessary
    to first delete the files.

    Removing the existing files:

    1. Access the administration web interface by entering the
       following URL in in a browser's URL window:
       http://ip-address-of-device/admin/administration.htm 
    2. Select File Management under the Administration menu.
    3. Check the check box adjacent to the files you wish to
       remove.
    4. Click the delete button.
    
    You must load the jar and HTML files onto the device (this
    only has to be done once). When executed, the configuration
    applet will connect back to the device it was loaded from.

    Loading the updated configuration applet files:

    1. Access the administration web interface by entering the
       following URL in in a browser's URL window:
       http://ip-address-of-device/admin/administration.htm
    2. Select File Management under the Administration menu.
    3. Click Browse. Locate and select the common.jar file
       then click Open.
    4. Click Upload.
    5. Click Browse. Locate and select the configapp.jar file
       then click Open.
    6. Click Upload.
    7. Click Browse. Locate and select the index.htm file
       then click Open.
    8. Click Upload.
    9. Click Browse. Locate and select the config.ini file
       then click Open.
   10. Click Upload.
   11. Click index.htm to run the configuration applet from
       the device (to access the applet directly use the URL
       http://ip-address-of-device/index.htm). 

HISTORY

    82000856A

        Initial Release.


