Hello Jim and others who suffer trying to rebuild the Windows OS on a NI PXI Embedded Controller do NI’s poor support for their PXI Embedded Controllers. Here are my similar experiences with the PXI-8196:
After a new install of WinXpSp3 on to a PXI-8196, the Windows Device Manager shows three "Other devices" that are in need of drivers. There is one "PCI Simple Communications Controller", and two "Unknown devices".
I think that it is a reasonable expectation that if you install the defaults from the "NI PXI Platform Services" then all of your devices would now have valid drivers for an Embedded PXI Controller in another wise empty PXI Chassis. However, adding the defaults, and all possible other selections from the"NI PXI Platform Services", still leaves "Other Devices" without drivers in the Device Manager.
The next thing to try would be the defaults from the latest NI Drivers DVD. Doing so, applies the GPIB drivers to the "PCI Simple Communications Controller". Selecting the "NI-Watchdog" from the "Real Time and Embedded" from the NI-Drivers DVD will install a driver for one of the two remaining "Other devices" in the Device Manager. However, this installs the driver, but does not apply it. You must then right click the appropriate "Other Device" and have the Device Manager search for the driver to have it applied.
Now you are down to one "Other Device" without a driver. I was unable to find out how to apply a driver from the "NI PXI Platform Services" nor the"NI-Drivers DVD". I was able to find a "nitrigrt.inf" driver for the PXI-8186 at
"ftp://ftp.ni.com/support/pxi/pxi-8180/PXI-8186/peripherals/win2000_xp/smbtrig/".
Using the Device Manager to apply this driver to the remaining "Other device" turns it into a "Mother board resource" in the Device Manager.
I think that it is a reasonable expectation that if you install the defaults from the "NI PXI Platform Services" OR the"NI-Drivers DVD" then all of your devices would now have valid drivers for an Embedded PXI Controller in an otherwise empty PXI Chassis. Note that the latest "NI-Drivers DVD" includes the latest "NI PXI Platform Services". In either case one would expect that the default selections from either should apply drives to all hardware devices of an Embedded PXI Controller in an otherwise empty PXI Chassis. This is a reasonable expectation for ALL NI PXI Controllers in ALL NI PXI Chassis. I don't like this whole work around mentality at National Instruments. Why not just do it right. Lets get with it NI.
Jim I don’t know if any of my experiences will help you with your PXI Embedded Controller? But what do you think? If you install WinXP, and the “PXI Platform Services” and/or the latest “NI-Drivers DVD”,would you not expect that you should have all the drivers for your NI PXI Embedded Controller in an NI PXI Chassis?
Kevin.
Message Edited by kmcdevitt on 05-26-2009 11:01 AM
