MODBUS POLL ALTERNATIVE

A project-based alternative to one-off Modbus polling

Modbus Poll is a familiar reference point because it gets engineers to a register quickly. Busloom keeps that directness, then adds the parts that usually end up in spreadsheets, screenshots, terminal logs, and handwritten notes.

Download Busloom→Read the documentation→

FEATURE MATRIX

What each tool actually covers.

Busloom 0.3.1 compared with the currently published Modbus Poll 13 documentation. “Different” means both products cover the need through materially different workflows.

Source: Modbus Poll 13 user manual↗

AREACAPABILITYMODBUS POLLBUSLOOM

SYSTEM

Desktop platformsBUSLOOM WORKFLOW

Windows 7–11, with x86, x64, and ARM64 downloads.

Windows, macOS, and Linux with the same project format and core workflow.

WORKSPACE

Saved engineering contextBUSLOOM WORKFLOW

Saves workspaces and individual polling-window definitions.

One readable .busloom.json project stores profiles, sources, tags, decoding, Trends, presets, and automation.

PROTOCOL

Transport variantsMODBUS POLL BROADER

RTU, ASCII, TCP, TLS, UDP, plus RTU/ASCII encapsulation over TCP or UDP.

RTU, TCP, and Modbus/TCP Security (TLS).

PROTOCOL

Function codesMODBUS POLL BROADER

FC01/02/03/04/05/06/08/11/15/16/17/22/23 and FC43/MEI 0x0E.

FC01/02/03/04/05/06/15/16 and FC43/MEI 0x0E device identification.

DISCOVERY

Finding devices and addressesBUSLOOM WORKFLOW

Slave Scan and Address Scan.

Serial-port discovery, Unit-ID discovery, Quick and Exhaustive address scans, visible request counts and direct view creation.

VALUES

Decoding and displayDIFFERENT APPROACH

16/32/64-bit integers, float, double, hex, binary, byte/word order, scaling, aliases, and conditional colors.

Boolean, 16/32-bit integers, float32/64, ASCII, hex, binary, byte/word order, scale, offset, units, named tags, and groups.

EVIDENCE

Charting and value logsDIFFERENT APPROACH

Real-time charts plus text-file and direct Excel logging per polling window.

Saved multi-series Trends, source-state visibility, statistics, CSV export, typed recording, and read-only session Replay.

EVIDENCE

Raw communication trafficBUSLOOM WORKFLOW

Traffic window with stop, clear, copy, save, file logging, and stop-on-error.

Searchable structured TX/RX frames correlated with source requests, filters, timing, recording, and Replay.

DIAGNOSTICS

Health and failure analysisBUSLOOM WORKFLOW

Status-line exceptions, error messages, and communication traffic inspection.

Connection Health separates exceptions, timeouts, CRC and transport errors, with latency percentiles and breakdowns by source and function.

TESTING

Arbitrary request experimentsMODBUS POLL BROADER

Test Center sends user-composed byte strings with optional CRC or LRC.

No arbitrary-frame composer; operations stay inside supported Modbus functions and visible write controls.

AUTOMATION

Repeatable test proceduresDIFFERENT APPROACH

OLE Automation for Excel, VBA, Python, and other Windows automation clients.

Professional: structured scenarios, Lua, datasets, assertions, waits, reusable steps, reports, CLI/CI, and local MCP tools.

WORKFLOW

Version controlBUSLOOM WORKFLOW

No documented project-level Git workflow.

Professional: local Git history for the project file, including focused project-only commits.

This is a workflow comparison, not an affiliation or interoperability claim. Modbus Poll is a product of Witte Software. Professional-only Busloom capabilities are marked in the table.

Where the workflow differs

Busloom treats the device setup as a project rather than a collection of window positions. A project carries named connection profiles, read sources, tags, decoding rules, saved Trends, and test procedures between sessions and operating systems.

Windows, macOS, and Linux builds
Explicit PDU and documentation addressing
Raw TX/RX inspection tied to the source request
Recorded Trend and traffic sessions that reopen as Replay tabs

What Busloom does not pretend to replace

Busloom is not a SCADA package, PLC programming environment, or passive network sniffer. It actively communicates as a Modbus client and focuses on device engineering, diagnostics, and repeatable tests.

A practical migration path

Start with one known register range and reproduce the expected values. Add names and decoding only after the raw words match. Save the project, then add diagnostics, recording, or automation when the manual polling workflow is already proven.

TRY THE WORKFLOW

Start with one device and one known value.

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