Avanti supports two default serial ports. Both onboard COM1 and COM2 UARTs are present to the Alpha firmware even when a port has no host-side connection in the configuration file; an unconnected port remains idle and does not open a Telnet listener or host COM port. The two virtual serial ports are included in a zero-unit configuration; assigning physical host COM ports requires license units. Virtual serial ports can be accessed using the supplied PuTTY terminal emulator or a commercial terminal emulator such as KEA or Reflection.
Tip: Migration Specialties recommends enabling both virtual serial ports when building, modifying, or troubleshooting an Avanti configuration. Having two serial access points to a virtual Alpha system is useful in case one session locks up or network problems block telnet access.