No authorized interlink found?

[ordabue]

Hi all,

I just installed the G5 for the first time and everything appeared to install fine including activation.

when I run the G5 I get an error saying this: No authorized interlink found. Make sure your interlink plus / interlink elite is plugged in and try again

I have uninstalled and reinstalled at least 6 times and re-entered the serials numbers over and over. The controller is being recognized by windows through the USB port. I am at a lost for ideas, thanks for any info.

I am running Vista 64 bit home premium on a lap top

[jeffpn]

What kind of controller are you using for RealFlight?

[12oclockhigh]

You might just have a defective interlink... call tech support

[bobo8129]

make sure you type the right letters in there for the serial of interlink the middle one is hard to tell what it is, mine was a i looks like a l or a 1 .. then there are other problems huh jeff???

[Chris McVey]

Your best off contacting tech support with this issue. If you have a faulty controller, they are the only ones who can help you.

Contact information: Telephone Contact: 217-398-8970 (Option 1)
Telephone support is available Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM to 7:00 PM CST.


Chris McVey

[cloudsplitter]

My interlink was working fine with G4.5, now it does not recognize it. I have input it per the instructions, with a capital I3 in the center code. No luck. I have tried clearing out G4.5 legacy material. The total attempts at install 6. To say this is frustrating, would be an undertatement.

First it told me I had some extraneous files from G4.5 were incompatible. It did not remove them. Then when I removed them, it accepts the codes and says it's ready to run. It runs, and then repeatedly tells me I don't have an acceptable interlink. If it's ready to run, accepts the codes, the interlink worked yesterday with G4.5, what the heck am I suppose to do! HELP! :mad:

[opjose]

Read post #5

It sounds like you MAY be having problems with the USB port on your computer.

I hope you have no other USB devices plugged into the same "root hub" as your Interlink. Do you?

[cloudsplitter]

I have tried installing this program with several configurations - to no avail. The trail of frustration is listed below:

- I had G4/4.5 upgrade and tried to install G5 over this program.
- It installed fine, but then indicated that there were files that were incompatible.

- Removed G4/G5 and reinstalled G5 alone.
- Program installed fine (Interlink is an I3 type) and indicated ready to run
- When activated, program dialog box came up saying no valid interlink found
- Tried unplugging and plugging interlink into USB port - no change
- Tried moving USB connection - no change

- Removed and reinstalled G5 into C: drive - no change
(Original install and attemps were on my H partition where I was running G4)

- Removed and reinstalled G4 on original partition - ran fine, interlink worked

- Tried reinstalling G5 over working G4 - failed as before
- Still failed after unplugging and replugging interlink into USB port

Currently have given up. Need help from KnifeEdge folks.

Running Vista Ultimate with quad-core 3Ghz, 8Gb ram.

I really enjoy past versions of RF, and have had zero trouble in that regard. This program install has not been smooth however.

HELP! :eek:

[jeffpn]

Cloudsplitter, you'll really need to contact tech support. Click here. (http://www.knifeedge.com/forums/showthread.php?t=22007)

[Chris McVey]

The only time we have seen No authorized interlink found is when the USB ports have been over loaded and the power supply cannot keep up. You might have a faulty interlink, calling tech support is your best bet.


Chris McVey

[jbourke]

I have tried installing this program with several configurations - to no avail. The trail of frustration is listed below:


Cloudsplitter, no one wants you to be frustrated. We're on your side! The best advice we have is for you to call tech support.

Jim

[Snowbird One]

There seem to be A LOT of "faulty" (note the quotes) Interlink controllers out there!

Strange that they work on everything except G5. They work on the demo, they work on other versions of RF, and they work with other flight sims (personal experience).

The worst part of this is that I HAVE PAID for this software, and it won't even let me run it from the keyboard simply because it has it's own issue recognized the controller that came with it. Let me load the program and run it from the keyboard if I can't use the controller immediately.

[Norton]

The only time we have seen No authorized interlink found is when the USB ports have been over loaded and the power supply cannot keep up. You might have a faulty interlink, calling tech support is your best bet.

(Above is a quote from Chris McVey)

Did you try all of your usb ports? In another post you stated that it did work for awhile.

Do you have alot of stuff plugged into usb ports? I-Pod, Camera etc.

If it was working and stopped my guess would be that it's your usb ports.

[Chris McVey]

Snowbird One

Please do not double post.

Chris McVey

[opjose]

There seem to be A LOT of "faulty" (note the quotes) Interlink controllers out there!



No, there are a LOT of faulty USB ports on computers.

And unfortunately the owners of the machines do not realize this.

There are many issues affecting a computer's USB port.

This includes

- Power Draw.

USB allocates LESS than 500mA of available current for ALL USB connections into a "root hub".

One device can eat all of this up.

Two or more will overdraw the supply voltage and over time ruin the regulation circuitry on the motherboard.

- Long term damage

The above also affects the transistors on the IC chips. Over time they can become unresponsive, or not work at their trigger voltages.

A symptom of this, is when a device like the Interlink is not recognized, because Windows cannot receive a proper serial data stream from the device.

Usually plugging the same device into a new computer gets it to work.

- Grounding

Some computer cases bring out the USB bus to a front panel.

These front panels get a lot of use and sometimes abuse.

I've seen many of these small circuit boards grounded to their mounts because they have shifted with use.

The front panel circuit boards are also made by other manufacturers and are often cheaply done with little QC. Cold solder joints are often found causing further problems.

- Multiple devices and Drivers.

Printers ( particularly "dumb" printers without their own memory and rendering processors ) require a background "print processor" to be running on the computer at all times. These processors grab the USB bus communication, and can interfer with controllers.

Camera drivers also do the same thing for the very same reasons, as can other devices.

USB devices can also interfere with each other in a fatal manner.

For instance on one machine I had a Logitech USB "Orb" camera... it worked just fine.

One day I installed TomTom's software for a mobile GPS.

On computer startup, the TomTom software loads a pre-loaded driver. In looking for the TomTom device, this driver managed to command the camera to pivot ( it has head tracking gears in it ), thereby stripping and breaking it's gears.

---

This is just a small handful of examples and problems.

Which is more likely, that as a few people have tried, they connected TWO bad controllers in a row, or that there is something wrong with the USB port in the computer?.... the latter...

That there are a large number of faulty Interlinks, or a large number of computers affected by things like the above? Again the latter.

That is not to say that there are NO faulty Interlinks... but it does help to explain why Chris made the statement that he did.

[Snowbird One]

First of all I prefaced my post with the parenthetical statement "(Note the quotes)" which was in reference to the word 'faulty' being in quotes, which in and of itself connotes sarcasm, or the antonym of the word, or concept, therein contained. Therefore, it was already suggested, both in the quote and the parenthetical remark, that the controller being the issue was suspect. If that weren't sufficient, the next paragraph would also allude to the fact that the blame was not, indeed, being placed on it being an issue of a faulty controller in this particular case.

Apparently that was overlooked in the extensive post about all that ails the USB port. Of greater pertinence is that the post completely ignored the fact that that the controller DOES work - with everything BUT G5. It works with the demo, and it works with several other flight simulators. Is it still a likelihood that the USB port is the issue when it works with the Demo, but not the full version? Although I am in no way an authoritative person in computer expertise, logic would dictate that if all the other programs recognize the controller, it must be the G5 software itself.

However, the fact still remains that a number of people have had to contact either the manufacturer or the distributor of the product to get new controllers, which ultimately fixed the problem. Ergo, the controller was faulty; the only point of dispute in this case, therefore, is the qualitative statement "A LOT" which I shall hereby retract.

The quote "The only time we have seen No authorized interlink found is when the USB ports have been over loaded and the power supply cannot keep up. You might have a faulty interlink, calling tech support is your best bet." contradicts itself, does it not? It first points to the USB port, and then concedes that it could be the controller. In fact a reference to several places on this forum shows that the controller was the issue, not the USB ports, as the problem was rectified with a new controller.

In summary the facts are: there are both faulty controllers, and faulty USB ports, but the evidence suggests that the predominant problem is neither of those two, but instead a problem WITH THE PROGRAM ITSELF. The other fact is that in a percentage of systems, however great or small, the Demo will work, but the full version WILL NOT. And finally, tech support is NOT A FREE CALL.

While some have had hardware issues, this appears to be a software issue in my case. Where it works with everything but G5.

[12oclockhigh]

It Broke, Contact Support, Send Back.

[12oclockhigh]

Seriously, there are a number of controllers that work perfectly fine except for the validation for use in the software.... I suggest, contacting support. If it is what I suspect, they will have you box it up and get a replacement. You might be able to get an exchange from your purchase point...

There are many other threads here on this forum... about exactly the same thing. You should look at the others.

[Chris McVey]

Snowbird One,

We want you to be able to use the software as everyone else does and have a good experience.

The forum are for users to help user understand and use the software.

If you have purchased the software and are having a issue with it, tech support is the only people who can determined if you get a new controller or new software.

Users can only suggest resolves or give advice.

You have to contact Tech support for this issue to be resolved.

I'm glad to see you came and researched on the forums about your issue at hand. Again the only people that can help you resolve this issue is tech support.

If you have further questions about the software feel free to contact me through PM.

Chris McVey

[owensbyjason]

SnowBird One-
I got G5 as a Christmas present this year and experienced the same problems as you describe. Others on this forum blamed everything except the possibility of a faulty interlink controller. In fact windows control panel shows the controller as "ok" when tested in "Joysticks or Gaming Controllers". However after a quick (5 minute call) to tech support they condemned the controller as defective and gave instructions for returning controller for a replacement. Yes after paying $200 for item I was disappointed that I had to make a toll call AND Pay for shipping to return the controller, BUT now I have a replacement controller that works as designed. I would suggest calling tech support for replacement. Good Luck and Happy flying.

[opjose]

"Others on this forum blamed everything except the possibility of a faulty interlink controller. "

That is untrue.

People are all too quick to blame the Interlink as faulty.

e.g. "There seem to be A LOT of "faulty" (note the quotes) Interlink controllers out there! "

To his credit Snowbird One DID receive a faulty one, and did go through eliminating his USB ports as a possible point of failure as suggested.


KE acknowledged that they have seen a small batch of affected controllers go out.

However this has not occurred in high numbers implied.

The after Holidays postings here of "bad controllers" or problems with them has been rather low, being less than a handful.

Considering that Greatplanes EASILY sold hundreds of copies of G5 over the holidays, if not thousands, then the 3 - 5 reports seen here is a TINY failure rate.


Some posters have come in here saying that they've tried two or three NEW controllers in a row, with exactly the same bad results....


That alone tends to point to a problem with their computer's USB ports.

So to rule out wasting time and other possibilities, it is always BEST to start by eliminating them.

Of course those who take offense at such things, can contact tech support, or just fend for themselves, because there is nothing WE can do otherwise to help them.

So if you don't LIKE the answers given, look elsewhere.

[owensbyjason]

opjose: I was referring to MY experiences with MY controller in an attempt to encourage Snowbird One to call tech support as his last post was blaming the software. Out of the thousands of G5 units that I am sure KE sold over the holidays, I only bought 1 and I had a faulty controller. Soley speaking for my experience alone, that is a high number. I am appreciative of the persons including yourself who attempted to solve my problems while tech support was closed for the holidays. Please see other thread:

http://www.knifeedge.com/forums/showthread.php?t=24896&page=2

Regards,
owensbyjason

[opjose]

Soley speaking for my experience alone, that is a high number.

Regards,
owensbyjason

LOL!

I'll certainly give that to you. I know how it feels.

[Snowbird One]

I called tech support last week and waited for 20 minutes on hold - their "call-back" feature was not working, I finally hung up.

I called again today. I described the problem: "I have installed the BRAND NEW software" then plugged in the controller, then ran the program". It comes up as "Interlink not found".

The very first thing he asked me was "Does the controller serial number contain "I3" in the middle of it?"

"Yes."

"Ok, we'll send you another controller." He was not overly concerned about getting the other one back as he casually commented on 'arranging a return order later' but made no further elaboration on it.

When I asked, he stated (or how I understood it) is that there was a programming issue within the controller itself, so that it worked with G4.5, but not with G5. (I'm guessing there's a programmable IC inside the controller itself.)

So, contrary to what has been stated in other places, the controller itself can be the likely problem, and yes, it would stand to reason that "a lot" of them will have this issue.

By the way, I checked the timer on my phone - total time today was 6min 23s. So it was much better today. I hope this resolves the problem.