Hi
for some reason I can't change the serial port, therefore cannot upload any code to my Arduino, I am using windows 10 and it is not booted in safe mode and even when I manually change the serial port in the preferences.txt file it doesn't work.
any Ideas?
Why are you changing the serial port in "preferences.txt"?
You should select the port from the IDE, under >Tools >Port.
You say "for some reason I can't change the serial port". Please elaborate.
Is your board a genuine Arduino board or a clone?
(You don't mention which board or which version of the IDE you're using.)
If it's a clone, you will probably need to install a suitable driver, CH340G or similar.
You can also check which port the board is connected to from the 'Device Manager' under "Ports".
In Windows 10:-
Right-click on the "Start" button, then select "Device Manager'. From there: >Ports
this is all such confusing insanity.. Start a new topic? how in the hell am I supposed to do that...? That is the problem I have with all of these "computer places.. you have to learn by osmosis and I am just to damn old for that.... Now I had to get a new copy of arduino ide for my new system I uploaded three different programs and the worked like a charm.. but now the IDe has changed to port COM ! and my system uses COM 3 to communicate with the board.. thee is no other options on my port selection but 1.. now if anyone in this miserable machine sees this.. if you can figure out how to contact me with some kind of answer I will be 1st amazed as hell,, 2nd very appreciative..
If the COM port is not listed in tools -> port, that means that there is a driver problem, or a hardware problem (could you be using a bad USB cable? Shoddy usb cables are all over lately; someone is or was selling DOA or failure prone USB cables with clone arduino starter kits. Did you do anything odd regarding connections, particularly to power before it stopped working? Genuine boards and faithful clones (with the 16u2 as serial adapter) seem to be particularly easy to damage by abusing the power supply, with the symptom being that the computer no longer detects it)
Are you sure that COM1 is not the correct port? Unplug the arduino board, then open the tools menu again (you do have to close the menu and reopen it) - if the port is not listed after you unplug the board, then that's the port you should use.
The algorithm windows uses to decide whether to give a serial device a new COM number defies logic. With some things, it only cares which USB port it's plugged into. With others, the port number will follow the board around, and with others it will almost always use one number, then seemingly at random, decide to renumber the port.
Under windows COM 1 and COM 2 are reserved for the motherboard regardless of whether they have them or not.
Arduinos show up from COM 3 upwards.
If you are using a CLONE arduino you may require additional drivers depending on what the clone uses.
If it is a CH340/341 chip then this one.
If it is a CP2102 then this driver
It does not harm to have both those installed regardless.
Bob.