Yeah, windows 10/11 has broken a ton of stuff. I have to use RS232 plugs for programming controllers at work, and I had to buy new usb-RS232 cables for all our computers because windows 11 broke support for all the older cables. I’ve also had a lot of programs break.
It’s really frustrating to be trying to troubleshoot if an old controller is working or not, and not know if you can’t connect to it because it’s fried or if some new windows update is preventing the connection/software from working.
Those cables more than likely were using clone chips and for whatever reason Microsoft decided to back completely banning them when identified.
You’ll probably know if your old one is a fake chip because it’ll say “not a prolific…” which isn’t just a reboot and edit to allow unsigned drivers, it’s dead.
What’s worse, it’s absolutely impossible to tell if the cable you bought has the fake chip since legitimate stores and legitimate cable makers bought them so the loser is people.
Works fine on Mac and Linux though. Naturally.
From what I’ve read, Microsoft just decided to drop support for the PL-2303HXA/ TA/TB/HXD/RA/SA/EA. Some people report that RA chipsets still work some of the time, but inconsistently.
You can also sometimes forcibly install old drivers, that will continue to work.
Ah sounds like two compounding issues then! I referenced this issue https://www.sleepyponylabs.com/blog/pl2303 since so many cables I had previously, even from the router and switch maker that came with the device, stopped working.
Great to know that there’s a whole other bunch of issues around these cables further making life tough for consumers.