This is a quick look at a serial console program for Mac OSX. There are not many serial consoles programs available and I wanted to review this for my own use. I have blogged previously on using the Terminal to get a console at Serial Console on OSX but this option uses a dedicated program which is easier to use. The most important feature is that it supports the break character for interrupting the boot cycle for network devices such as Cisco IOS routers and ASA firewalls.
Download the software
Download the goSerial software from http://www.furrysoft.de/?page=goserial and install it in the usual manner. Connect the serial adapter.
The status bar shows the currently connected USB-Serial converter that is connected to my device.
Configure the serial port installed
Configue the serial port that you want the goSerial to use.
Select the correct Baud Rate
Success
And we have a connection to the serial console of an ASA.
You can save the session for future use.
Upload files
There isn’t any information on the upload mechanism so I can’t tell you if it supports X-Modem or not. But ti certainly looks like it.
Break Key
Sending a Break Character
The menu shows you that a break character uses this magic hand wave
And it works.
Wrapup
Ultimately, a serial console for a network engineer doesn’t need to do very much. goSerial does exactly what I need. I have looked at some commercial clients, but the cost is bit too high for the occasional use that I needed. Combine this tool with it’s ability to issue the break character to get ROMMON access to network equipment, and use the terminal with ‘screen’ for most other console access might be an excellent balance.
I would be very keen to hear about your experience. I had goSerial crash a couple of times, but since I was plugging the USB in/out and had screen running (and other things), I don’t think that is the software but my testing.
