Setting Up Your Instruments

Before you use instruments with the Lager Client, you must identify and organize the connected devices. This applies to both the CLI and the Python library.

View Connected Instruments

To view all instruments currently connected to a specific Lager Box, run:

lager instruments --box my-lager-box

This command detects and lists all physical instruments connected to the Lager Box via USB or network. Example output:

Name                     Channels                                                       VISA Address
========================================================================================================================
Rigol_DP831              power-supply: 1, 2, 3                                          USB0::0x1AB1::0x0E31::DP8C123456789::INSTR
LabJack_T7               adc: AIN0, AIN1, AIN2, AIN3, AIN4, AIN5, AIN6, AIN7, AIN8,     USB0::0x0CD5::0x0007::::INSTR
                         AIN9, AIN10, AIN11, AIN12, AIN13
                         dac: DAC0, DAC1
                         gpio: CIO0, CIO1, CIO2, CIO3, EIO0, EIO1, EIO2, EIO3, EIO4,
                         EIO5, EIO6, EIO7, MIO0, MIO1, MIO2, FIO0, FIO1, FIO2, FIO3,
                         FIO4, FIO5, FIO6, FIO7
                         i2c: FIO4-FIO5
                         spi: FIO0-FIO3
Aardvark                 gpio: SCL, SDA, MISO, SCK, MOSI, SS                            USB0::0x0403::0xE0D0::2420032::INSTR
                         i2c: I2C0
                         spi: SPI0

Each line in the Channels column names a net type and the channels for that type. To view configured nets (logical mappings to instruments), use:

lager nets --box my-lager-box

This shows the nets you created, grouped by instrument. Each group shows the instrument address.

Example Output:

    Name      Net Type    Channel
======================================
Aardvark [USB0::0x0403::0xE0D0::2420032::INSTR]
├── I2C_0     i2c         I2C0
└── SPI_0     spi         SPI0

LabJack T7 [USB0::0x0CD5::0x0007::::INSTR]
├── ADC_0     adc         AIN0
├── GPIO_0    gpio        FIO3
└── GPIO_1    gpio        FIO2

SiLabs CP210x [USB0::0x10C4::0xEA60::0001::INSTR]
└── UART      uart        /dev/ttyUSB0

Create Nets

Lager does not create nets when you plug in an instrument. Create them with one of these commands:

lager nets add creates one net on a channel that you name.
lager nets add-all creates a net for each free channel of each connected instrument.
lager nets add-batch creates the nets in a JSON file.
lager nets tui opens the Net Manager, where you select nets to add.

Some instruments carry several channels of the same type, such as a 4-channel oscilloscope. You can assign and configure a Net for each channel. The LabJack T7 and the LabJack U3 report no serial number. Two units of the same model on one Lager Box cannot have nets. See the Nets reference for this rule and the other channel rules.

Modify or Assign Nets Using the TUI

The interactive TUI (text user interface) assigns new Nets on a multi-channel instrument such as a LabJack or a PicoScope. It also renames an existing Net. To launch the Net TUI, run:

lager nets tui --box my-lager-box

Within the TUI, you can:

Add new Nets
Pick the pins of a LabJack T7 i2c or spi Net
Rename existing Nets
Edit Details of a Net: its purpose, notes, and tags
Delete unused Nets

See the nets tui reference for the full list.

RS-232 Instruments (Manual Assignment)

Some instruments have no USB control port. They connect through a USB-serial adapter instead, such as a Rigol DP711 power supply on its RS-232 port. The Lager Box sees only the adapter cable. It cannot tell which instrument is behind that cable, so nothing appears automatically.

Rigol DP711 — crossover cable required. The DP711’s RS-232 port is wired as DTE, the same as the RS232-to-USB adapter Rigol ships with it. Connecting the two directly will not work — TX talks to TX and nothing gets through. You must insert a null-modem (crossover) cable or adapter between the DP711 and the USB-serial adapter so the TX/RX lines are swapped. Without it the cable shows up in lager nets assign --list but the supply never responds to commands.

Tell the box what the cable is connected to, once per cable:

# See the unassigned USB-serial cables on the box
lager nets assign --list --box my-lager-box

# Assign the cable to the instrument — and create a supply net in one step
lager nets assign Rigol_DP711 --serial 00000006 --as-net main_supply --box my-lager-box

The Net TUI (lager nets tui) offers the same flow under the Assign Device button. Pick the cable, pick the instrument, and name the net. After you assign it, the instrument appears in lager instruments and in the TUI like any auto-detected device. You add nets for it in the usual way. The box stores the assignment, which survives a reboot and a replug. See the nets assign reference for port-pinned assignments, baud-rate overrides, and removal.

Debug Nets

For debug instruments (e.g., Segger J-Link, ST-Link), you must specify the target MCU when creating the net. This is easily done through the TUI, as it will prompt you to input the MCU type.

Important: The MCU type must match a valid target device supported by your debug probe. If the MCU type is not recognized, the debugger will not function correctly.

Next Steps

With your instruments configured, start controlling them:

Interacting With Nets — Send commands to your instruments via CLI or Python

Getting Started

Resources

Setting Up Your Instruments

View Connected Instruments

Example Output:

Create Nets

Modify or Assign Nets Using the TUI

Within the TUI, you can:

RS-232 Instruments (Manual Assignment)

Debug Nets

Next Steps

​View Connected Instruments

​Example Output:

​Create Nets

​Modify or Assign Nets Using the TUI

​Within the TUI, you can:

​RS-232 Instruments (Manual Assignment)

​Debug Nets

​Next Steps

View Connected Instruments

Example Output:

Create Nets

Modify or Assign Nets Using the TUI

Within the TUI, you can:

RS-232 Instruments (Manual Assignment)

Debug Nets

Next Steps