Ports Class

.NET Framework (current version)

Other Versions

Provides a property and a method for accessing the computer's serial ports.

Namespace: Microsoft.VisualBasic.Devices
Assembly: Microsoft.VisualBasic (in Microsoft.VisualBasic.dll)

Inheritance Hierarchy

System::Object
Microsoft.VisualBasic.Devices::Ports

Syntax

C++

[HostProtectionAttribute(SecurityAction::LinkDemand, Resources = HostProtectionResource::ExternalProcessMgmt)]
public ref class Ports

Constructors

	Name	Description
	Ports()	Initializes a new instance of the Ports class.

Properties

	Name	Description
	SerialPortNames	Gets a collection of the names of the serial ports on the computer.

Methods

	Name	Description
	Equals(Object^)	Determines whether the specified object is equal to the current object.(Inherited from Object.)
	Finalize()	Allows an object to try to free resources and perform other cleanup operations before it is reclaimed by garbage collection.(Inherited from Object.)
	GetHashCode()	Serves as the default hash function. (Inherited from Object.)
	GetType()	Gets the Type of the current instance.(Inherited from Object.)
	MemberwiseClone()	Creates a shallow copy of the current Object.(Inherited from Object.)
	OpenSerialPort(String^)	Creates and opens a SerialPort object.
	OpenSerialPort(String^, Int32)	Creates and opens a SerialPort object.
	OpenSerialPort(String^, Int32, Parity)	Creates and opens a SerialPort object.
	OpenSerialPort(String^, Int32, Parity, Int32)	Creates and opens a SerialPort object.
	OpenSerialPort(String^, Int32, Parity, Int32, StopBits)	Creates and opens a SerialPort object.
	ToString()	Returns a string that represents the current object.(Inherited from Object.)

Remarks

The My.Computer.Ports object provides a straightforward entry point for accessing the .NET Framework serial port class, SerialPort.

The following table lists examples of tasks involving the My.Computer.Ports object.

To	See
Dial a modem attached to a serial port	How to: Dial Modems Attached to Serial Ports in Visual Basic
Send a string to a serial port	How to: Send Strings to Serial Ports in Visual Basic
Receive strings from a serial port	How to: Receive Strings From Serial Ports in Visual Basic
Show available serial ports	How to: Show Available Serial Ports in Visual Basic

Availability by Project Type

Project type	Available
Windows Application	Yes
Class Library	Yes
Console Application	Yes
Windows Control Library	Yes
Web Control Library	No
Windows Service	Yes
Web Site	No

Examples

This example describes how to send strings to the computer's COM1 serial port.

The Using block allows the application to close the serial port even if it generates an exception. All code that manipulates the serial port should appear within this block, or within a Try...Catch...Finally block with a call to use the Close method.

The WriteLine method sends the data to the serial port.

Sub SendSerialData(ByVal data As String)
    ' Send strings to a serial port.
    Using com1 As IO.Ports.SerialPort = 
            My.Computer.Ports.OpenSerialPort("COM1")
        com1.WriteLine(data)
    End Using
End Sub

For more information, see How to: Send Strings to Serial Ports in Visual Basic.

Version Information

.NET Framework
Available since 2.0

Thread Safety

Any public static ( Shared in Visual Basic) members of this type are thread safe. Any instance members are not guaranteed to be thread safe.