Connecting to a serial port/COM1 in Windows 7

serialwindows 7

I have an external device (running a small Linux-based OS) that I need to log in to via the Windows 7 command line. The device is connected to COM1 with a USB-to-serial cable. How do I do this without HyperTerminal (which doesn't come w/7)? I know how I'd connect to a remote IP address or similar location via ssh, but I'm not very familiar with Windows & am having a hard time finding info on how to replicate this particular function of HyperTerminal …

Edit:
All three suggestions (PuTTy, KiTTy, Tera Term) just returned gibberish, suggesting to me that maybe there's something wrong with the device, my cable, or I just need to read up on how serial ports work some more, I don't know (turned out to be a weird connection speed issue). But it's good to know there are alternatives to Hyperterminal (I really wanted Tera Term to work, too – the vintage 1999 brilliant turquoise website and Y2K disclaimer were fun).

Best Answer

Current versions of PuTTY can connect using a serial port.