Anyone noticed that Rohde & Schwarz is blocking firmware informations / updates?

[Martin72]

Nope.
Either you know how an inverter/converter works, or you pay for it.
I have to say that most of our products only have Start/Stop and Remote.
Anyone who needs instructions for that doesn't deserve any better.
(A small note: anyone who orders a document package from us will also receive circuit diagrams and service instructions.)

[KungFuJosh]

That is not the point in my view.

Well, you did use the word "all" for manufacturers, and we know quite well that isn't the case. Siglent rules them all now. 😉

[Neoname]

I am very upset about this.

I have a MXO4, LCX200 and a NGP824 all with options, all bought new.

I previously had some Keysight equipment. All of which I sold off precisely because Keysight UK support refused to deal with me as a private individual after a display failure.

I bought R&S equipment because they had no problem with me as a private individual. The company line in my GLORIS account says "Private - GB - United Kingdom Account for private person" and this was not a problem.

As it stands, I cannot download firmware or see the manual for any of my equipment.

There is a pop-up form that is supposed to enable access, but I cannot submit it because it gives the error "You cannot submit the form. There are errors. Please review" and keeps the company postal code box highlighted in red no matter what I put there.

The postal code under my GLORIS My Profile - Personal Data - Company Data is blank, unsurprisingly.

I'm hoping this is some bug that can be fixed. Else this is just another betrayal.

[ArdWar]

Tried to register a while ago, using company mail, .gov mail, .edu mail. All still shown the "get access" button. Clicking it will gets me "Your request was sent successfully" but they never come back with anything useful.

So, do I get into the naughty list? Apparently not. The resources are still there available for me to access all this time. Just not in the most obvious or logical place. Wtf RS?

The product pages and the request access are completely useless (for now). Instead you need to go to "My Rohde & Schwarz" link below your logged in account menu. You can still access most formerly readily available docs and collaterals from there.

[Hydron]

Can you actually download from those links though? I have GLORIS access and can see stuff but not actually download it. Total mess

[ebastler]

I am not sure I understand what the exact issue is.

• Is the fact that R&S wants a login before offering downloads considered unacceptable?
  
• Or is the problem that they somehow bungled the implementation, so logging in or creating an account does not work? That would be a temporary problem, but they better fix it fast.
  
• Or is their new system working as designed, and in fact does not allow private accounts/customers? That would be a real no-go in my opinion.
  

Thank you for clarifying!

[Hydron]

All of the above, login just for viewing a manual is unacceptable, if you have an account it seems to still be broken or need some intervention, and finally sounds like they're leaving all private owners at the mercy of whoever they bought the gear from (so good luck getting even basic stuff like firmware or a manual if you bought second hand or the distributor went bust).

[rsjsouza]

There is absolutely no excuse to put manuals behing a loginwall.
Potential customers may well want to consult these to look at details to see if a product is suitable for their needs.

^ This.
Before buying any bit of kit I will grab the user manual to see if it does what I need and to get a feel for the UI. The harder this is, the easier it is to look elsewhere.

And not only that but, by allowing anonymous access, you are guaranteed to not have your corporate e-mail spammed by the supplier asking for additional information about you, your position, relevance to the purchasing process and so on. I have my corporate e-mail already spammed enough for the things that I already use at work. I don't need more from simple research and prospective purchases.

[eTobey]

How come, that R&S is supplying the military and has bodyscanners in their portfolio? That is quite far away from test equipment?

[ebastler]

How come, that R&S is supplying the military and has bodyscanners in their portfolio? That is quite far away from test equipment?

They have always sold a wide range of HF equipment to my knowledge.

[electr_peter]

Almost all R&S product related downloads are locked - FW updates, SW (can't even get latest SW release version number), manuals, drivers. All this was available in last month.

This trend (among other signs) does not inspire confidence in R&S as a brand.

[Pinkus]

I think one reason will be that EU law now grants consumers the right to repair (US too?). This would mean that companies would have to provide schematics and sell individual parts ... something they all want to avoid like the plague. So they simply don't sell (and support) to end consumers ... problem solved.
Oh, what good times there were when HP or Tektronix still had circuit diagrams available and every TV set came with detailed schematics.

[KungFuJosh]

I think one reason will be that EU law now grants consumers the right to repair (US too?). This would mean that companies would have to provide schematics and sell individual parts ... something they all want to avoid like the plague. So they simply don't sell (and support) to end consumers ... problem solved.
Oh, what good times there were when HP or Tektronix still had circuit diagrams available and every TV set came with detailed schematics.

Maybe, but I don't think there's anything in the law stating that they specifically need to supply parts or schematics?

[langwadt]

How come, that R&S is supplying the military and has bodyscanners in their portfolio? That is quite far away from test equipment?

They have always sold a wide range of HF equipment to my knowledge.

I went to see their HQ in Munich some time in 90's. Some of the stuff they showed was broadcast radio and TV transmitters and for the military stuff like gear to do real time position tracking of radio transmission

[tv84]

Soon the Rigol firmware schedule will look like a dream!

I say this because who cares about an excellent firmware update policy if one can't download it?? 

[Aldo22]

Soon the Rigol firmware schedule will look like a dream!

I also have no problems with downloads. 
https://hantek.com/DownLoad

[tv84]

I never imagined that I would be putting a "thanks" in a message Hantek related...

Thanks to R&S!!! 

[pope]

I was about to pull the trigger on some R&S TE but guess what...

[Someone]

Almost all R&S product related downloads are locked - FW updates, SW (can't even get latest SW release version number), manuals, drivers. All this was available in last month.

Drivers... locked! truely lost the plot.

[coppercone2]

if its really about the military its silly that they don't split the business up

I doubt radio location and encryption shit has too much to do with normal test equipment.

Don't you feel like the 'closed off' companies feel totally weird ? You always feel like their foreigners and that you are a stereotype. Engineer wise. Kind of like when you visit another country and someone assumes everyone in your country is like obsessed with some niche regional thing that most people you know never heard of and it feels like creepy how they act like they know you but they really don't know you. it some how manifests itself as 'obsessive' actions.

Like there is some ultra elaborate dissection of some esoteric aspect of work that might possibly be related to your work and no one knows how to make use of it but its like a major cost and equipment focus ? And they never figure it out because they just like do B2B surveys (interview trained professional liars that absolutely will act like your on the right 'wavelength' no matter what you say if you have enough money or your boss asked you to)? And then you end up with some hyper engineered feature that no one uses but costs a shit load. Like a $5000 deicer with 15% deicing speed built into those little triangle windows in the back of a car that you forgot existed. Or like those confusing gear choices in MMO's with some necklace that gives you plus 2 spirit on wensday evenings every other full moon.


The R&S supply we have in the lab has some interesting features on it. We were wondering how many more test labs we would need to figure out how to incorporate that feature into a reasonable 'data source'. Like they would need to be trapped in purgatory for 5000 years before someone got interested in that test. 


Older engineers know more about this. I heard "signature analysis" that was being built into alot of equipment in like the late 70's had a 'bright future'. And I am sure you paid ransomly for that

[Kean]

My guess is that it is to do with export controls, exacerbated by the stuff going on in a certain large country in Europe (but not in the EU).

It could also be partly because of management "discomfort" caused by certain popular threads on forums like this one.

[eTobey]

It could also be partly because of management "discomfort" caused by certain popular threads on forums like this one.

What threads would cause discomfort? Their prices are high enough so that they wouldnt have to deal with too many private individuals.

[Kean]

What threads would cause discomfort? Their prices are high enough so that they wouldnt have to deal with too many private individuals.

The license hacking ones, both for their (mostly older generation) equipment but also their competitors.
Business customers historically wouldn't go down that path especially with high value equipment, but as it becomes more mainstream it certainly could impact sales.

[KungFuJosh]

The license hacking ones, both for their (mostly older generation) equipment but also their competitors.
Business customers historically wouldn't go down that path especially with high value equipment, but as it becomes more mainstream it certainly could impact sales.

I'd be surprised if that was a serious concern for them. Nobody in their right mind is going to spend between $50k to $500k (per unit!) on R&S gear and then waste their time or warranty trying to hack it.

[Kean]

I'd be surprised if that was a serious concern for them. Nobody in their right mind is going to spend between $50k to $500k (per unit!) on R&S gear and then waste their time or warranty trying to hack it.

Not on the high end gear, no - but we are mainly discussing support of private purchasers here.
I've seen mentions of people hacking their new equipment valued at more than $10k.  And some licence key hacks could be valued more than that (per sale).

But as I mention, the more this becomes normalized, the more concerning it may be for them.