Unreliable access to PXI boards

[rpfrancis]

I am using a PXI-1033 chassis with PXI-5405, PXI-6541, and PXI-5105 connected to a PC via PCI-PXI 8331 MXI.  The first time I loaded the drivers and software, then turned off the PC (Windows 7), then I switched on the PXI-1033 and all of the boards were identified and access LEDs turned on.  Several days later, when switching on the PXI-1033, the chassis powered on successfully and was linked, but the PXI boards' access LEDs never turned on.  I tried several times switching on and off in different orders with no success.  Each time, the devices showed up in device manager, so I tried re-installing the drivers.  That day the devices worked correctly again.  But now, 1 week later, the access LEDs do not turn on!

I need a solution that doesn't require reinstalling all drivers everytime I want to use the devices.

Thanks!

[Joe_S]

Hello rpfrancis,

When the access lights on your modules are not turning on, do the cards themselves still function (can you get input/output from them)?  Do the devices still show up in MAX?  You are correct in turning on the PXI-1033 chassis first.  You will always need to boot the chassis first, then the PC.

Also, have you taken a look at the troubleshooting section of one of your module's user manual?  There is a section about access LEDs not turning on that gives steps to try to fix the issue.  It sounds like you may have already done a couple of the steps, but I recommend trying the each step in the manual.  Let me know!

Regards,

Joe S. 

[rpfrancis]

Thank you for the reply, Joe.  Yes, I have repeatedly gone through the troubleshooting steps.  After manually removing and reinserting the boards for a second time the access LEDs finally turned on this afternoon.

 It did this last time, and then stopped working about a week later.  I will monitor closely to see if there is anything that causes it to stop working this time.  

Thanks again,

Robert