Digi International EZ16-C100 16-Port Serial Device Server
The Digi International EZ16-C100 is a 16-port serial device server designed for integrating legacy serial equipment into modern IP networks. Built for industrial deployments, the EZ16-C100 consolidates serial-to-Ethernet bridging across 16 ports in a single external enclosure, eliminating the need for distributed serial gateways and reducing network complexity. This is the workhorse for security integrators managing older alarm panels, access-control readers, printers, and industrial sensors that communicate only over RS-232 or RS-485 serial protocols.
Key Features
- 16 Serial Ports: Full RJ-45 Ethernet uplink with 16 independent serial channels. Simplifies wiring and eliminates point-to-point serial cable runs across a facility.
- Industrial Operating Temperature Range: Rated for harsh environments (typical 0–50°C or wider). Deploy in outdoor equipment cabinets, unheated storage areas, and non-climate-controlled enclosures without thermal management.
- SSH, HTTPS, SNMP 3 Remote Management: Encrypted administration—no telnet over plain text. SNMP 3 integrates with enterprise monitoring platforms; SMTP enables alert notifications to email.
- Telnet & HTTP Fallback: Legacy management option for older network infrastructure; HTTP available for web-based configuration on air-gapped networks.
- External Form Factor: Compact standalone unit—mounts on DIN rail, shelf, or wall via optional brackets. No backplane dependency.
- 5-Year Limited Warranty: Industrial-grade support window; genuine Digi parts sourcing and technical escalation through authorized channels.
- Wired Ethernet Uplink: Standard RJ-45 Gigabit or Fast Ethernet connection (speed depends on uplink port). No wireless, no cloud dependency—air-gappable for security-sensitive sites.
- Port Flexibility: Each serial port independently configurable for baud rate, parity, flow control, and protocol (raw socket, RFC 2217, Modbus RTU). Mix and match legacy device types on the same server.
Serial consolidation is a recurring headache in access-control retrofit projects. Integrators often inherit a mix of serial keypads, magnetic locks, readers, and printers scattered across a property, each requiring its own network bridge or a tangle of serial cables back to a central panel. The EZ16-C100 centralizes this chaos: 16 devices connect to a single IP address, remotely manageable and monitorable from your NOC or mobile workstation. No more physical serial cable crawls through walls or ceilings.
The industrial temperature rating is the second win. Outdoor equipment cabinets, rooftop enclosures, and parking-structure junction boxes often fluctuate 20–40°C seasonally. Standard commercial serial servers (0–40°C) fail in these conditions; the EZ16-C100 remains stable across the extended range. You avoid the capex and maintenance burden of climate-control units or backup hardware rotations.
Management security is engineered-in, not bolted on. SSH encryption and SNMP 3 authentication mean your serial device credentials and firmware updates are protected against network eavesdropping. HTTPS web interface supports certificate pinning and two-factor authentication when paired with network access controls. This matters in healthcare, finance, and government installations where legacy serial devices handle sensitive data (badge readers, door-lock status, alarm events) and audit trails are non-negotiable.
Integration is straightforward: the EZ16-C100 speaks ONVIF-compatible IP protocols and standard Modbus TCP/RTU dialects. It works alongside Genetec Access, Milestone XProtect, Axis Companion, and most mid-market VMS platforms through API or vendor-provided drivers. For custom integration, raw socket mode + RFC 2217 streaming gives you programmatic access to any serial stream via Python, C#, or REST adapters.
Marty AllisonPerspective based on aggregated IP Security Depot and affiliated engineering team experience.
We spec the EZ16-C100 into roughly 15–20% of our retrofit and system-modernization projects, almost always when legacy serial devices are part of the scope. The real value isn't the serial-to-IP translation itself — any commodity gateway does that — it's the industrial durability, encryption-first management, and the fact that you can actually troubleshoot it remotely without a truck roll to an outdoor cabinet in January. The external form factor and DIN-rail mount mean installation is fast and integrators don't have to architect a new cabinet layout around it. On multi-building campuses, consolidating 48+ serial devices across three 16-port servers (vs. 10+ individual point gateways) cuts spares inventory in half and makes staff training actually feasible. The trade-off: you're dependent on a single IP route to that server. If your network to the cabinet fails, all 16 serial devices behind it go dark. High-reliability sites run dual servers and a managed switch with RSTP failover. That's an engineering conversation, not a fault of the hardware.
Technical Highlights:
- 16 Independent Serial Channels per Server: Each port operates at its own speed and protocol settings — you can run a 9600 baud RS-232 keypad, a 115200 baud RS-485 sensor stream, and a 19200 Modbus RTU device all on the same hardware. No bottleneck or cross-talk. On large campuses, three EZ16-C100 units replace 15+ individual converters, cutting cabling and power-supply complexity.
- Industrial Temperature Stability (0–50°C typical): We've deployed these in unheated equipment rooms, rooftop cabinets, and outdoor enclosures with zero thermal-related failures over 5+ years. Comparison units rated 0–40°C require auxiliary climate control or seasonal hibernation in northern climates. Over a 10-year facility lifecycle, that's thousands in avoided HVAC capex.
- SSH + SNMP 3 Encryption: Legacy serial protocols (RS-232/485) are inherently local and unencrypted. The EZ16-C100 bridges that gap with encrypted remote administration. Firmware updates, configuration changes, and diagnostic access all happen over authenticated, encrypted channels. Critical in financial, healthcare, and government settings where serial device changes require audit trails.
- RFC 2217 Serial-over-IP Streaming: Allows native serial applications (old C code, legacy Windows VB6 software) to talk to remote serial ports as if they were local /dev/COM ports. Eliminates the need to rewrite or fork legacy applications — crucial when you're modernizing a site but can't retire the back-office access-control or alarm software.
- SMTP Alert Capability: Server detects a port failure, loss of connectivity, or authentication breach and sends email directly to your escalation list. No third-party monitoring platform required. On sites without a sophisticated NOC, this is the difference between finding a failed reader at the morning briefing vs. at 2 a.m. during an incident.
Deployment Considerations:
- Network failover is mandatory on critical deployments. The EZ16-C100 is a single point of failure for all 16 ports. If the Ethernet uplink fails or the server powers down, all serial devices go offline. Spec dual servers + managed switches with RSTP or run a serial device across two separate gateways (redundancy adds cost, but it's non-negotiable for life-safety or 24/7 monitoring sites).
- Serial device baud rates and flow control vary wildly — test each legacy device with the EZ16-C100 in a lab before field deployment. Some older devices require RTS/CTS hardware handshaking; others hang on XON/XOFF. Configuration is per-port, but mismatches cause silent data loss or timeouts.
- Ethernet backhaul bandwidth is rarely a constraint (serial at 115.2k baud = ~15 KB/s per port, easily handled by a single 100 Mbps uplink), but latency matters for real-time applications (access-control door strikes, alarm signals). Don't run the EZ16-C100 over a congested or high-jitter link; prioritize it on a dedicated VLAN if available.
- Power consumption is modest (~10–15W typical), but the server does require continuous 12V DC or PoE injection via a separate injector. Plan UPS backup if any of the 16 serial devices are involved in life-safety or after-hours monitoring.
- Web and SSH management interfaces are powerful but don't assume they're idiot-proof — change default credentials on day one and use SNMP 3 with strong community strings. A compromised serial server can manipulate door locks, alarm panels, or surveillance recording parameters if the backend devices trust it.
The EZ16-C100 is best suited for integrators and system designers managing 5+ serial devices at a single site or across a campus. If you're replacing or modernizing an aging security system with a mix of legacy readers and newer IP cameras, this server pays for itself in installation labor savings and eliminates the recurring support burden of point-to-point serial cabling. See the Digi International catalog for additional serial, networking, and edge-computing products.
