Siemens MXL Programming

I’ve seen a lot of MXL parts for sale on ebay since the MXL is now discontinued in favor of the FireFinder XLS system. My old high school (built in 2006) was equipped with an MXL system and figured, “you know, why not”?. How proprietary is the MXL panel over Simplex’s 4100 or 4100u panels? Also if I were to acquire the csg-m software somehow would I need a dongle or passcode? However, isn’t all panel programming just a excel type file with all devices and settings encoded into a file format that the panel can read? If I were to download the configuration off of a used SMB-2 board, would I be able to open it somehow, edit it, and re-download back to the panel using a parallel pc port without the software? Also would this apply to any proprietary panel like Simplex, EST, and Mircom .etc?

Thanks

Nazeo is right. You need a license to use the csgm software and it has to be renewed every so many years, and the program is compiled into a bunch of files that are then uploaded to the panel with a special cable. To add to that, it’s not very intuitive software (all DOS based), you’d spend a lot of time studying a programming manual (if you can find one) to get things to work.

It’s just not feasible as a hobby system unless you know an active factory tech that can program it for you.