NI-XNET 20.5.1 Readme

April 2021

This file contains installation instructions and compatibility information for NI-XNET.

You can find more release information on ni.com.

• NI-XNET Release Notes: Known issues, bugs fixed since the last release, and other notes about this release
• NI-XNET Manuals: New features, behavior changes, and other documentation

If you plan to use LabVIEW NXG, refer to LabVIEW NXG Support and Considerations.

Overview

Supported Operating Systems

Application Software Support

Installation Instructions

Product Security and Critical Updates

Supported Hardware

Behavior Changes

Additional Programming Topics

LabVIEW NXG Support and Considerations

Automating the Installation of NI Products

Using NI Software with Microsoft Windows 10

Using NI software with Microsoft Windows 8.1

Legal Information

Overview

NI-XNET is an NI instrument driver that features a common set of easy-to-use functions for reading and writing Automotive Ethernet, CAN, LIN, and FlexRay data on many different platforms including USB, PXI, PCI, NI CompactDAQ, and NI CompactRIO.

Supported Operating Systems

NI-XNET supports the following operating systems:

• Windows 10/8.1¹/7 SP1²
• Windows Embedded Standard 7 SP1²
• Windows Server 2016
• 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, Windows Embedded Standard 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.

Notes

• Support for Windows 32-bit operating systems may require disabling physical address extension (PAE). To learn how this might affect your system and what actions you might need to take, visit ni.com/r/paesupport.
• The NI-XNET installer does not support Windows Server 2003/NT/Vista/XP/Me/2000/98/95 or the Windows Server non-R2 editions.
• NI-XNET does not support guest accounts on Windows 7. You must log into an administrative or user account to use NI-XNET on these operating systems.
• PXI Automotive Ethernet Interface Modules (PXIe-8521, PXIe-8522, and PXIe-8523) do not support the Phar Lap ETS real-time operating system that installs with the LabVIEW Real-Time Module.

NI-XNET Drops Support for Windows 7 (32- and 64-Bit), Windows Server 2008 R2, and All 32-Bit Windows Operating Systems in 2021

NI-XNET will drop support for Windows 7 (32- and 64-bit), Windows Server 2008 R2, and all 32-bit Windows operating systems starting in 2021. Versions of this product that ship after May 1, 2021, may not install or execute correctly on these operating systems. For detailed information about NI operating system support, visit ni.com/r/win32bitsupport.

NI Software Drops Support for Phar Lap ETS Real-Time Operating System in 2022

NI Software will drop support for Phar Lap ETS Real-Time Operating System starting in 2022. Versions of this product that ship after May 1, 2022, may not install or execute correctly on this operating system. For high-level information on the support roadmap for Phar Lap and its replacement, NI Linux Real-Time, please visit ni.com/r/xf35k1. To find out what hardware is supported on PXI controllers running NI Linux Real-Time, please visit ni.com/r/b7g5wi.

Application Software Support

The following table lists the application software versions supported by NI-XNET.

Microsoft Visual Studio Support

NI-XNET supports the following Microsoft Visual Studio versions and associated programming languages.

Installation Instructions

Download the NI-XNET installer from ni.com/downloads. NI software includes NI Package Manager to handle the installation. Refer to the NI Package Manager Manual for more information about installing, removing, and upgrading NI software using NI Package Manager.

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.

Supported Hardware

• USB-8501 Low-Speed/Fault Tolerant USB CAN Interface Device
• USB-8502 High-Speed/FD USB CAN Interface Device
• USB-8506 USB LIN Interface Device
• PCI-8511 Low‑Speed/Fault-Tolerant CAN Interface Device
• PCI-8512 High‑Speed/FD CAN Interface Device
• PCI-8513 Software‑Selectable/FD CAN Interface Device
• PCI-8516 PCI LIN Interface Device
• PCI-8517 FlexRay Interface Device
• PCIe-8510 PCIe Vehicle Multi-Protocol Interface Device
• PXI-8511 Low-Speed/Fault Tolerant PXI CAN Interface Module
• PXI-8512 High-Speed, Flexible Data Rate PXI CAN Interface Module
• PXI-8513 Software-Selectable PXI CAN Interface Module
• PXI-8516 PXI LIN Interface Module
• PXI-8517 PXI FlexRay Interface Module
• PXIe-8510 PXI Vehicle Multiprotocol Interface Module
• PXIe-8521 100BASE-T1 PXI Automotive Ethernet Interface Module
• PXIe-8522 1000BASE-T1 PXI Automotive Ethernet Interface Module
• PXIe-8523 100/1000BASE-T1 PXI Automotive Ethernet Interface Module
• TRC-8542 CAN HS/FD Transceiver Cable
• TRC-8543 CAN HS/FD or LS/FT Transceiver Cable
• TRC-8546 LIN Transceiver Cable

C Series modules:

• NI 9860 C Series Vehicle Multiprotocol Interface Module
• NI 9861 Low-Speed/Fault Tolerant C Series CAN Interface Module
• NI 9862 High-Speed, Flexible Data Rate C Series CAN Interface Module
• NI 9866 C Series LIN Interface Module

Supported platforms for XNET C Series modules:

• CompactDAQ—NI-DAQmx 17.1 (or later) is required for:
  • USB Chassis: cDAQ-9171, cDAQ-9174, cDAQ-9178, and cDAQ-9179
  • Ethernet Chassis: cDAQ-9181, cDAQ-9184, and cDAQ-9188
  • Wireless Chassis: cDAQ-9191
  • cDAQ Controller: cDAQ-9138 (Windows only) and cDAQ-9139 (Windows only)
  • cDAQ Controller: cDAQ-9132 (Windows and RT) and cDAQ-9134 (Windows and RT)
  • cDAQ Controller: cDAQ-9133 (Windows and RT) and cDAQ-9135 (Windows and RT)
  • cDAQ Controller: cDAQ-9136 (Windows and RT) and cDAQ-9137 (Windows and RT)
  • Ethernet Chassis: cDAQ-9185 and cDAQ-9189
• CompactRIO—CompactRIO 20.0 (or later) and LabVIEW 2017 (or later) are required for the following targets:
  • Integrated CompactRIO Real-Time Controller: cRIO-906x, and cRIO-903x
  • Single-Board RIO: sbRIO-9627, sbRIO-9607
  • CompactRIO Real-Time Controller: cRIO-9032, cRIO-9037
  • CompactRIO Real-Time Controller: cRIO-9035 (Sync), cRIO-9039 (Sync)
  • When using a cRIO-903x or cRIO-906x, a bit stream is not needed with NI 986x modules in the project
  • When using a cRIO-903x, cRIO-906x, or sbRIO-96x7, installation in the "Other" programming environment is not supported
  • CompactRIO Real-Time Controller: cRIO-9040, cRIO-9042, cRIO-9043, cRIO-9045, cRIO-9047, cRIO-9048, and cRIO-9049
  • When using a cRIO-904x, NI 986x modules will only be usable in Real-Time mode, and no bit stream is necessary
• CompactRIO—CompactRIO 20.0 (or later) and LabVIEW 2018 (or later) are required for the following targets:
  • CompactRIO Real-Time Controller: cRIO-9053, cRIO-9054, cRIO-9056, and cRIO-9057
  • When using a cRIO-905x, NI 986x modules will only be usable in Real-Time mode, and no bit stream is necessary
• CompactRIO—CompactRIO 20.0 (or later) and LabVIEW 2019 (or later) are required for the following targets:
  • Single-Board RIO: sbRIO-9603, sbRIO-9608, sbRIO-9609, sbRIO-9628, sbRIO-9629, sbRIO-9638
  • When using an sbRIO-9603, sbRIO-9608, sbRIO-9609, sbRIO-9628, sbRIO-9629, or sbRIO-9638, NI 986x modules will only be usable in Real-Time mode, and no bit stream is necessary

Note  The NI-XNET software supports only NI Automotive Ethernet, CAN, FlexRay, and LIN hardware products. For information about software for CAN products from other vendors, refer to the documentation you received with those products.

Additional Programming Topics

NI-CAN Compatibility

If you intend to use the NI-CAN API with NI-XNET hardware, refer to the NI-XNET Compatibility for NI-CAN appendix in the NI-CAN Hardware and Software Manual.

Deployed databases on LabVIEW Real-Time targets

When upgrading the NI-XNET software on your LabVIEW Real-Time target, you need to re-deploy your database files to that target using a host computer that runs the same version of NI-XNET as the target.

Removing and inserting C Series modules on CompactRIO targets during device communication is not supported

Inserting a module into or removing a module from a cRIO chassis that is actively communicating with an NI 986x module can cause application failures and possibly device damage. This does not apply to controllers which support the NI-DAQmx programming method, such as the cRIO-904x family.

RT Bus Monitor requires LabVIEW Real-Time

Installing software to a Real-Time target using the "Other" programming environment will not run the RT Bus Monitor. To use this utility, select a "LabVIEW" or "LabVIEW NXG" programming environment.

Behavior Changes

The following behavior has changed in NI-XNET 20.5.1 from NI-XNET 20.5:

• The NI-XNET IP Stack service no longer starts automatically when NI-XNET is first installed.

LabVIEW NXG Support and Considerations

The following sections detail considerations for using LabVIEW NXG with NI-XNET 20.5.1.

LabVIEW NXG Operating Systems and System Requirements

Software support for LabVIEW NXG differs in the following ways:

• System requirements—Only 64-bit (x64) processors are supported.
• Operating system—Only 64-bit operating systems are supported. Refer to the Supported Operating Systems section for more information.

LabVIEW NXG Help

View context help in LabVIEW by pressing <Ctrl-H> and hovering over an object.

Search for items using the search bar in the upper right corner of the LabVIEW window. You can also view context help for the search results.

Additional documentation is available online at ni.com/manuals.

LabVIEW NXG Examples

Launch LabVIEW and click the Learning tab.

LabVIEW lessons are located in the Lessons tab, and LabVIEW Examples are located in the Examples tab. Follow the instructions in the lessons and examples.

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.

If the NI product you are installing uses Microsoft .NET 4.6.2, 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 4.6.2 separately before you install NI software.

For more information about automating the installation of NI products, refer to Automating an Installer in the NI Package Manager manual.

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

© 2009–2021 National Instruments Corporation. 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.

U.S. Government Restricted Rights

If you are an agency, department, or other entity of the United States Government ("Government"), the use, duplication, reproduction, release, modification, disclosure or transfer of the technical data included in this manual is governed by the Restricted Rights provisions under Federal Acquisition Regulation 52.227-14 for civilian agencies and Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement Section 252.227-7014 and 252.227-7015 for military agencies.

IVI Foundation Copyright Notice

Content from the IVI specifications reproduced with permission from the IVI Foundation.

The IVI Foundation and its member companies make no warranty of any kind with regard to this material, including, but not limited to, the implied warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose. The IVI Foundation and its member companies shall not be liable for errors contained herein or for incidental or consequential damages in connection with the furnishing, performance, or use of this material.

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 NI Patent Notice at ni.com/patents.

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