Get Ready for Windows Vista

Windows Vista, the latest version of the Microsoft operating system, released to the general public on January 30, 2007. See the FAQ below for information on National Instruments product and Windows Vista OS compatibility.

1. Are National Instruments products compatible with Windows Vista?
2. Is National Instruments working on releases compatible with Windows Vista?
3. How can I obtain National Instruments software compatible with Windows Vista once it is available?
4. When will NI Developer Suite include software compatible with Windows Vista?
5. Can I upgrade my Windows XP/2000 machine running National Instruments software to Windows Vista?
6. Which National Instruments device drivers will be updated for Windows Vista?

Are National Instruments products compatible with Windows Vista?

Currently some National Instruments products are compatible with Windows Vista. These include the following software products:

• LabVIEW 8.2.1 and later
• LabWindows™/CVI 8.1.1 and later
• Measurement Studio 8.1.1 and later
• DIAdem Development System 10.2 and later
• NI Circuit Design Suite 10.0.1 and later (includes Multisim and Ultiboard)

Find the current list of hardware drivers and software updates compatible with Windows Vista (32-bit) here.

Find the current list of hardware drivers and software updates compatible with Windows Vista x64 Edition (64-bit) here.

Note that some drivers and software updates are compatible with only the 32-bit version of Windows Vista. Find a current list of these 32-bit updates here.

National Instruments recommends that customers not install LabVIEW 8.2 (or earlier) or NI device drivers not tested on Windows Vista.

Is National Instruments working on releases compatible with Windows Vista?

National Instruments is continually working on new software versions, and has been planning for the Windows Vista release for some time. Although we have many software and hardware drivers now compatible with both the 32- and 64-bit versions of Vista, we are still working on developing all of our products to be fully compatible with Windows Vista.

How can I obtain National Instruments software compatible with Windows Vista once it is available?

Customers who have purchased recent National Instruments application software, such as LabVIEW 8.2 or LabWindows/CVI 8.1, with the NI Standard Service Program (SSP) should have automatically received updates for Windows Vista at no additional charge.

Customers who have an active NI Standard Service Program with National Instruments products for which a Windows Vista update has not yet been released will receive Windows Vista updates for their products as soon as they are available at no additional charge.

When will NI Developer Suite include software compatible with Windows Vista?

The NI Developer Suite software bundle is shipped four times per year and includes almost the entire NI software platform. To incorporate software compatible with Windows Vista, the next NI Developer Suite release is shipping later than the typical date.

Can I upgrade my Windows XP/2000 machine running National Instruments software to Windows Vista?

National Instruments recommends uninstalling all NI software (both application software and drivers) before upgrading an existing Windows machine to Windows Vista.

Which National Instruments device drivers will be updated for Windows Vista?

Both the 32- and 64-bit versions of Windows Vista require vendors such as National Instruments to provide updated hardware drivers (and installers). In addition, the 64-bit version of Windows Vista requires 64-bit, digitally signed drivers. NI currently provides 32- and 64-bit versions of the following drivers:

• NI-DAQmx 8.5 and later
• NI-VISA 4.1 and later
• NI-488.2 2.5 and later
• NI-Serial 3.2 and later
• NI-RIO 2.3 and later
• NI-FieldPoint – not yet compatible with Windows Vista
• NI-CAN 2.5.2 and later
• NI-Sync 3.0 and later
• NI-RFSA 2.0.5 and later
• NI-RFSG 1.3 and later
• NI-SCOPE 3.3 and later
• NI-DMM 2.7 and later
• NI-FGEN 2.4.5 and later
• NI-IMAQ 3.7.1 and later
• NI-Motion 7.5 and later
• NI-985x 1.3 and later
• NI-5690 1.0.5 and later
• NI-845x 1.1 and later
• NI-DNET 1.6 and later
• NI-HSDIO 1.5.1 and later
• NI-SWITCH 3.5 and later

Please note that this list is not necessarily comprehensive and may not include all driver software being updated for Windows Vista.

The mark LabWindows is used under a license from Microsoft Corporation.

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Updated Information
For those of you trying to find updated information, please visit: http://zone.ni.com/devzone/cda/tut/p/id/6893 This page will be removed shortly
- Elijah Kerry,National Instruments. Elijah.Kerry@ni.com - Jan 09, 2008

Update your website please
This document is outdated. LabVIEW 8.2.1 and 8.5 both are compatible with Windows Vista 32-bit and 64-bit. I used DAQmx 8.5 on Vista. Please update your website. This is really confusing.
- Dec 12, 2007

Update Info
Update this page ASAP. I'm looking for Vista compatability for LabVIEW, LabWindows/CVI, TestStand and supporting drivers/APIs.
- Nov 12, 2007


Can National Instruments add support for Windows Vista for the Traditional/Legacy NI-DAQ drivers? Thanks!
- Sep 11, 2007

Update please!
This document no longer provides useful informaton!
- Jun 21, 2007

Wrong info
This page provides erroneous information to your custimers. You guys just released 8.2.1 with compatability for Vista., didn't you?
- Jun 20, 2007

time to update page

- Mar 28, 2007

Vista Device Driver Support
This page says that the Device Drivers are not supported in Vista, but NI-DAQmx 8.5 says it is compatible with both 32-and-64 bit versions, and I tested it on a 32-bit Vista Business machine with no issues.
- Mar 23, 2007