"Access denied" opening com1

[Lou Drumond]

Trying to communicate to another device using null modem serial cable. Getting access denied message when com software tries to open com1. Running W2K Pro on an older laptop, hardware manager reports com1 working OK. Am logged in as an admin user, have never attempted to use com1 previously, am I missing something basic here?
Thanks,

 

[Antiodontalgic]

Some serial cables you have to have a special adapted to redirect the cables to the specific pin. (This usually appears in serial cable connected modems.)