VirtualBench 17.0 Readme

May 2017


This file contains important information about VirtualBench 17.0, including any system requirements and supported devices for the application and the driver software. VirtualBench 17.0 adds support for LabVIEW 2017.


Supported Operating Systems

Application Software Support

NI Software Support for Microsoft Windows 7, Windows Vista, Windows XP, and Windows Server 2003

Product Security and Critical Updates

New Features

Driver Version Naming Changes

Devices Supported in VirtualBench

Automating the Installation of NI Products

Using NI Software with Microsoft Windows 10

Using NI Software with Microsoft Windows 8.1

Legal Information


Supported Operating Systems

VirtualBench supports the following operating systems:


  • Windows 10/8.11/7 SP12
  • Windows Server 2012 R21
  • Windows Server 2008 R2 SP12

1 NI software installs VC2015 Runtime and .NET 4.6.2. Windows 8.1 and Windows Server 2012 R2 require Microsoft updates to support these items. Refer to Microsoft KB2919442 and KB2919355 for more information about how to install these updates.


2 NI software is signed with a SHA-256 certificate. Windows 7 SP1, and Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1 require Microsoft updates to support SHA-256. Refer to Microsoft KB3033929 for more information about how to install this security update.


Application Software Support

The following table lists the NI application software versions, including service packs, supported by VirtualBench.


NI Application Software Versions Supported by VirtualBench
LabVIEW 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017

Microsoft Visual Studio Support

The following table lists the programming languages and Microsoft Visual Studio versions supported by this version of VirtualBench.


Programming Language Visual Studio Versions Supported by VirtualBench
ANSI C 2003, 2005, 2008, 2010, 2012, and 2015

VirtualBench 16.0 Drops Support for Microsoft Windows 7 RTM, Windows Vista, Windows XP, and Windows Server 2003

With this release, VirtualBench drops support for Microsoft Windows 7 RTM (with no service pack), Windows Vista, Windows XP, and Windows Server 2003. VirtualBench 16.0 and later will not install or run on an unsupported OS. You cannot deploy or distribute applications that use VirtualBench 16.0 to an unsupported OS. Additionally, after installing VirtualBench 16.0, you cannot use any installers built on this computer with any version of LabVIEW, LabWindows™/CVI™, NI TestStand™, or Measurement Studio on an unsupported OS.


For more information about the changes to our OS support for 2016, refer to KB 79UC78LS, Why Does my LabVIEW, LabWindows/CVI, Measurement Studio, or TestStand Built Installer Fail on Windows XP/Vista and Server 2003?.


Product Security and Critical Updates

Visit ni.com/security to view and subscribe to receive security notifications about NI products. Visit ni.com/critical-updates for information about critical updates from NI.


New Features

This version of VirtualBench adds support for LabVIEW 2017.


Note  For additional information on features in Windows versus iOS, refer to the VirtualBench Features for Windows Application and iPad App. For more information on what has changed with each firmware update, refer to the VirtualBench Firmware Release Notes.


Driver Version Naming Changes

VirtualBench versions are now aligned with the versions of major NI application software products. This alignment gives you information about the year the driver was released and the most recent software version the driver was designed to work with. Driver versions now start with a two-digit year indicator: <ProductName><Year-BasedVersion>. For example, VirtualBench 15.0 is the version released with LabVIEW 2015. The last version released under the old numbering scheme is VirtualBench 1.2. The first version released under the new numbering scheme is VirtualBench 15.0.


Devices Supported in VirtualBench

The following devices are supported in VirtualBench:


  • NI VB-8012
  • NI VB-8034
  • NI VB-8054

Automating the Installation of NI Products

You can automate the installation of most NI products using command-line arguments to suppress some or all of the installer user interface and dialog boxes. However, starting with the August 2012 releases (products using NI Installers version 3.1 or later), you may need to perform additional steps before or during a silent installation of NI software.


If the NI product you are installing uses Microsoft .NET 4.0, the .NET installer may run before any NI software installs and may require a reboot before the installation of NI software begins. To avoid a .NET reboot, install .NET 4.0 separately before you install NI software.


For more information about automating the installation of NI products, refer to the following KnowledgeBase articles:


Using NI Software with Microsoft Windows 10

Microsoft Windows 10 is the latest version of the Windows operating system and features significant changes compared to previous versions. Windows 10 introduces several new capabilities and also combines features from both Windows 7 and Windows 8. For more information about NI support for Windows 10, visit ni.com/windows10.


Using NI Software with Microsoft Windows 8.1

When you install NI software on Microsoft Windows 8.1, you will notice a few additional tiles in the Apps view, including shortcuts to NI application software products such as NI LabVIEW, Measurement & Automation Explorer (NI MAX), and NI Launcher. For more information about NI support for Windows 8.1, visit ni.com/windows8.



Legal Information

Copyright


© 2014–2017 National Instruments. All rights reserved.


Under the copyright laws, this publication may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, storing in an information retrieval system, or translating, in whole or in part, without the prior written consent of National Instruments Corporation.


NI respects the intellectual property of others, and we ask our users to do the same. NI software is protected by copyright and other intellectual property laws. Where NI software may be used to reproduce software or other materials belonging to others, you may use NI software only to reproduce materials that you may reproduce in accordance with the terms of any applicable license or other legal restriction.


End-User License Agreements and Third-Party Legal Notices


You can find end-user license agreements (EULAs) and third-party legal notices in the following locations after installation:


  • Notices are located in the <National Instruments>\_Legal Information and <National Instruments> directories.
  • EULAs are located in the <National Instruments>\Shared\MDF\Legal\license directory.
  • Review <National Instruments>\_Legal Information.txt for information on including legal information in installers built with NI products.

Trademarks


Refer to the NI Trademarks and Logo Guidelines at ni.com/trademarks for information on NI trademarks. Other product and company names mentioned herein are trademarks or trade names of their respective companies.


Patents


For patents covering the NI products/technology, refer to the appropriate location: Help»Patents in your software, the patents.txt file on your media, or the National Instruments Patent Notice at ni.com/patents.


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