Desktop ETS systems

[Richard P.]

Hi All,

Would anyone who cares to post the specifications (brand, form factor, speed, any trick to use to get it going) for their Desktop ETS systems?

Frequently people struggle with finding a compatible target, but if we chip in we can give our colleagues a starting point. If you remember, list how long ago you prurchased the target hardware.

This is only for Desktop ETS systems, as described here: https://knowledge.ni.com/KnowledgeArticleDetails?id=kA03q000000x4PhCAI&l=en-US

Thanks!

[Richard P.]

Hi again,

I've seen some discussion on the forums about different systems that have been proven compatible. Can anyone repost their system spec's so they can be consolidated to one post? The most important pieces of data are: Make, Model, and Year. Year is an important one since manufacturers might change underlying parts without changing the model number. I'll post one to start:

1) WinSystems PPM-TX-266 motherboard (http://www.pc104plus.com/products/pc104plus/ppmtx.html)

2) WinSystems PCM-CFLASH2 (http://pc104.winsystems.com/products/pc104/pcmcflash2.html)

3) Fall of 2006.

I have to give credit for these to someone else but I don't want to post his name without permission. Thanks! I am not attaching any personal or NI endorsement to these, I am just letting everyone know that someone was successfull installing and running ETS on them.

[MHn]

We spend a couple of time in making a IBM xSeries206m server compatible to LabVIEW RT ETS 8.2, used for a high performance optical fluid monitoring system.

Our customer had used it before in a 24x7-application under Win2000, which was replaced by an stable operating system (LabVIEW RT) and a stable software.
He wanted to keep IBM's worldwide 24h-service and the good cost ratio for this system.

Main features are: Pentium4, 3.2GHz, 1024MB RAM, 2x 80GB SATA, 2 + 2 PCI-slots.

The onboard network adapter will be detected by LabVIEW RT, but doesn´t really work.
You have to deactivate the onboard network adapter und plug in an standard Intel Pro 100 PCI adapter.
The onboard SATA controller works fine with LabVIEW RT in compatible mode, also USB and boot from USB do so.
Sure, the onboard RAID-controller doesn´t work with LabVIEW RT, to keep RAID-functionality, we built in a fully hardware-RAID from StarDom (SR2600) instead of the optical drive.

Don´t use the internal IDE-controller to connect HDD´s or CF-adapter. It doesn´t work or will cause very strange behaviour. IBM only supports optical drives at its IDE-ports.

We also use IMAQ-IEEE1394 with LabVIEW RT and this machine with a standard OHCI-compatible firewire-card from Adaptec. Consider to use the latest driver-versions, because not all chipsets are supported in older versions of the NI TNF-driver.

All parts are active, we will maintain this system configuration for the future.
 
Martin

[aasenjo]

HI,

Another configuration we have been able to boot LabVIEW Real-Time ETS on is the Dell Precision 390.
We used a parallel ATA drive and a PCI Intel 100 Pro Ethernet adapter.

Alejandro

[Jimmie_A.]

Hello,

Customer experience issues with a industrial PC that uses a motherboard from Rocky based on the Intel 865GV chipset. Another customer reported issues running RT on a motherboard using the very same chipset and the manufacturer were Rocky once again.

More detailed information from the customer on what they have done and what kind of motherboard they are using:

“I've attached the datasheet for the CPU board we're using (an IEI ROCKY-4786EVG-RS-R40 industrial PC), which gives all the information you should require.  It's being used with a 2.8GHz Pentium 4, 2 GBytes DDR400 SDRAM, 2 x 500GByte PATA hard disks (one FAT32 which we plan to use with RT, one NTFS which we planned to use with Windows, but only very occasionally), NI PCI CAN XS2 board and a number of other peripheral boards, all made by NI, apart from two North Atlantic PCI-76CS1 resolver to digital converter cards which are crucial to the operation of the system.

To crash the system it is enough just to start the LabView RT, then switch off the PC while RT is running. Starting up after this always results in the system remaining dead (fans and PSU LED's on OK, but no POST beeps, no video output, no indication that the CPU is actually running).  It doesn't matter whether we have executed any RT applications or not, the result is the same.

We have found two workarounds:

•          If we press the hardware reset button and then switch off power to the PC a second or so later, usually it will come back to life when powered up again afterwards.

•          Also unplugging and re-plugging the main 220V power cable will usually bring the system back to life

However, these do not always work, and then we have major problems in restarting and this is of course the nightmare, and why we need to fix the problem.”

What they have done:

·         Both motherboard LANs are disabled and we are using a PCI LAN card using the Intel PRO/100 S chipset.

·         USB legacy support is disabled

·         Serial support is disabled.

·         Parallel support is disabled.

[Richard P.]

I heard that a lab at Virginia Tech is using this hardware:

1.Winsystems PPM-TX, PC-104/PC-104+, www.winsystems.com

• This is being discontinued.
• Needs external PC/104 video card in order to install RT.
• No on-board Compact Flash, need to purchase separate add-on.
• To use all four serial ports, you need to edit the NI-Serial INI file and add entries for COM3 and 4, and figure out which IRQs to use.

2. Ampro ReadyBoard 800, EPIC 1.0 www.ampro.com

• Pentium M
• Need to change many BIOS settings.

3. Micro/sys SBC 1586, PC-104, www.embeddedsys.com

• reports that this was easiest setup: easy to make COM port output terminal data.

Richard

[srhoar]

I am using a stock DELL GX270 with a PCI-6025E DAQ

[Richard P.]

Thank you srohar,

Any indication what year/month you purchased the 270, as Dell revises the parts underneath frequently.

So a GX270 now might not == a GX270 six months from now.

Thanks again!

[Jimmie_A.]

Hello,

I believe that the chipsets they use in the Optiplex models don't change over time. GX270 have an Intel 865G chipset.

[dwisti]

Works on LV-RT v8.2.1.  Still waiting on v8.5 to arrive so I can use the second cpu core.

Axiomtek SHB100V2G Single Board Computer:
http://www.axiomtek.com/products/ViewProduct.asp?view=383

and the data sheet that goes along with that SBC:
http://www.axiomtek.com/Download/Spec/shb100.pdf

Haven't been able to get USB boot to work. BIOS see's a USB flash drive as a FDD not a HDD. So, I installed LV-RT with floppys.