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JMRI Install Guide: MacOS X

  1. Determine if your system software is up to date

    2. MacOS X version 10.2 or later is required for JMRI.

  2. Determine if you have the needed hardware.

    No Macintosh that runs MacOS X has built-in serial ports, so you're likely to have to use a USB to serial adapter.

    You will need MacOS X drivers for the serial hardware you're using. We test using a Keyspan PDA Adapter; those drivers are available at http://www.keyspan.com/downloads/. Some device drivers will list each port under several names, e.g. starting with "/dev/tty" or "/dev/cu", for example "/dev/tty.KeyUSA19181.1". In that case, you must select the one that starts with "cu", e.g. "/dev/cu.KeyUSA19181.1".

    As of October, 2006, Belkin doesn't make a USB-to-serial adapter that works with MacOS X. Their technical support has confirmed that they don't (yet) have MacOS X drivers for their adapters.

    There's a MacOS X driver for USB-serial adapters based on the Prolific PL2303 chipset available here. If you can't access your USB dongle and it seems to use that chipset (you can check in the USB tab of System Profiler), this driver will make it available as /dev/cu.PL2303-xxx.

    Note that because of baud rate limitations in MacOS X itself, it's not possible to use a Digitrax MS100 currently.

    See our page on USB adapters for more information

  3. Install the serial communications libraries

    4. Although MacOS X comes with an up-to-date Java, it doesn't include the Java communications libraries. These are needed to talk to a command station, so we provide an installer.

    If you're using MacOS X 10.5, download the installer for the default communications library from http://prdownloads.sourceforge.net/jmri/RXTX-Leopard.pkg.zip?download (This installer works for both PowerPC and Intel-based Macintoshes running MacOS X 10.5 only) If the installer doesn't start automatically, double click on the downloaded and expanded file to install it. You will need the MacOS X administrator password to run the installer.

    If you're using MacOS X 10.4, download the installer for the default communications library from http://prdownloads.sourceforge.net/jmri/RXTX-for-Intel-Mac.pkg.zip?download (This installer works for both PowerPC and Intel-based Macintoshes) Double click on the downloaded and expanded file to install it. You will need the MacOS X administrator password to run the installer.

    If you're using MacOS X 10.2 or 10.3, download the necessary installer for the default communications library from http://prdownloads.sourceforge.net/jmri/JavaCommInstaller2.hqx?download If the installer doesn't start automatically, double click on the downloaded and expanded file to install it. You will need the MacOS X administrator password to run the installer.

    Note that you will have to reinstall the driver and javax.com package if you have to reinstall the system software, or if you do a "clean install" of an OS update.

  4. Get JMRI

    5. Download a version of JMRI, either the latest production version, or a "test version". Since the version numbers change with every release, this link takes you to the general JMRI download page, where you can select whichever version you like.

    The JMRI project is continuously adding features, bug fixes, examples and tutorials to the release, and so a new "test" versions appear every couple of weeks. You may find one of these has features that you really want. These are announced in the "jmriusers" Yahoo discussion group at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/jmriusers/.

  5. Install JMRI

    6. Normally, the download will open a new window showing a JMRI folder. If not, double-click the file you downloaded above. This will open a window with the "JMRI" folder.

    To install, you just have to move the JMRI folder to where you want it on your computer. Many people put it in "Applications", which is the standard location for this. To do that, just drag the JMRI folder onto the "Applications" icon. If you want to keep it somewhere else, just drag the folder to the desired location.

  6. Connect your computer system to your command station hardware.
  7. Installation is complete.

    8. You can run the program by double-clicking on the "DecoderPro" or "PanelPro" or application icons in the JMRI folder.