Problem- I'm about to buy a replacement Arduino Mega 2560

[herring_fish]

My Arduino Mega 2560 stopped allowing new sketches to finish uploading. I tried both versions 0022 and 1.0 on Windows 7.

I have been having problems getting COM 5 to stay free lately. I normally Disable and then re-Enable it to get it working again. Now, all of a sudden, I can not finish an Upload.

It starts fine but just doesn't finish. I tried to change the serial port, under TOOLS, to 3 but when I go to the Device manager, it always read COM 5 no matter whether I have it set to COM 3 OR 5. Of course I have stone cold rebooted a few times but that has not helped either.

I went to the Arduino.cc forum under, Using Arduino : Installation & Troubleshooting. I jumped the reset pins to ground. I connected a jumper from the TX pin (Digital Pin 1) to the RX pin (Digital Pin 0) and ran the Loop-Back Test Instructions but I didn't get any feed back from the Serial Monitor on step #8 when I typed in letters.

What can I do? I don't think that I did anything to fry the board but of coarse that is a possibility. Noted above, I also installed the new version and had been using it successfully for about a week or two before this latest issue. Does anyone have any ideas?

I tried pulling the cable out and replacing it. The Device Manager gives a tone and re-paints the screen without COM 5. Then, when I plug it back in, it gives a tone and re-paints again with it.

Next, I tried downloading the new version of the Arduino software package onto a different computer and I get the same results. I have tried the two different cables on that computer as well.

This is the error that I get if I hold down the shift key and hit upload.


Ok.
1. I have run rudimentary diagnostic tests.
2. I have tried different versions of the software on one computer along with lots of stone cold rebooting.
3. I jumped the reset.
4. I have tried a clean new version of the software on the second computer.
5. I have tried two different cables on each computer.

I can't think of anything else. Failing some great idea, I will give up. I guess that it must be fried. I will just order a new board.

Thank for reading this post.