Connecting baseflight or cleanflight via USB on Mac OSX Yosemite and El Capitan

One of my bugbear was getting off WinTel and getting baseflight / cleanflight to work in OSX.  The USB would not show up and I could not connect to the flight controller.

Here are the steps:

1. Download Google Chrome web browser.

2. Start up the Google Chrome browser and start the Google Webstore.

3. Search for baseflight or cleanflight.

4. Download / install your preferred app.

5. Download USB driver for your flight controller.

    (CP210x USB to UART Bridge VCP Drivers from Silicon Labs)

    (https://www.silabs.com/products/mcu/Pages/USBtoUARTBridgeVCPDrivers.aspx)

    (Mac_OSX_VCP_Driver.zip driver 4.10.7 works on Yosemite and El Capitan)

6. Install the driver.

7. Check install log 

  /var/log/install.log for errors. (just in case)

8. Check driver code signature 

  codesign -vvvvd /Library/Extensions/SiLabsUSBDriver.kext/ (just in case)

9. Reboot your machine (just in case)

10. Make sure you have a proven DATA + CHARGE USB Cable.

      (preferably one was supplied with the controller. Some cables have CHARGE only or DATA only electrical wiring connections and they will not work.)

11. Connect the MAC with USB Data+Charge cable to your controller.

12. Startup the Application

13. Select /dev/cu.SLAB_USBtoUART  from the drop down list in your app.

14. Select 115200 as speed connection (this may depend on you controller)

15. Connect (DO NOT TRY baseflight and cleanflight at the same time as only one will work at a time)

2016-05-14 @ 11:41:07 -- Running - OS: MacOS, Chrome: 50.0.2661.102, Configurator: 1.2.1

2016-05-14 @ 11:41:09 -- Serial port successfully opened with ID: 4

2016-05-14 @ 11:41:09 -- MultiWii API version received - 1.16.0

2016-05-14 @ 11:41:09 -- Flight controller info, identifier: CLFL, version: 1.12.1

2016-05-14 @ 11:41:09 -- Running firmware released on: Apr 10 2016 19:57:39

2016-05-14 @ 11:41:09 -- Board: AFNA, version: 2

2016-05-14 @ 11:41:09 -- Unique device ID received - 0x11223344556677889900112

  

16. Once connection test ok, disconnect and perform your firmware upgrade.