December 2015
This file contains important information about the LabVIEW FPGA Module, including installation instructions, known issues, and a partial list of bugs fixed for LabVIEW 2015 SP1 FPGA Module.
FPGA Module System Requirements
FPGA Compile Farm Server System Requirements
Product Security and Critical Updates
Automating the Installation of NI Products
NI Software Support for Microsoft Windows Vista, Windows XP, and Windows Server 2003
With the LabVIEW FPGA Module, you can create VIs that run on NI FPGA targets, such as Reconfigurable I/O (RIO) devices. The FPGA Module helps you design complex systems by providing a highly-integrated development environment, a large ecosystem of IP libraries, a high-fidelity simulator, and debugging features. The FPGA Module also includes FPGA IP Builder and the FPGA Compile Farm Server. You can use FPGA IP Builder to efficiently implement your LabVIEW algorithms for FPGA targets and to generate FPGA code that meets specific performance requirements. FPGA IP Builder supports only a subset of FPGA targets. Visit ni.com/info and enter the Info Code exvxfe for a list of supported targets. You can use the FGPA Compile Farm Server to offload compiles to dedicated computers.
The development computer is a PC or NI PXI/PXI Express system on which you install LabVIEW and the FPGA Module. You can also install the Xilinx compilation tools on your development computer to compile LabVIEW FPGA VIs locally. However, if the FPGA design or target requires more than 2 GB of memory, NI recommends you install the Xilinx compilation tools on a separate computer. This computer is referred to as the remote compile worker.
Visit ni.com/info and enter the Info Code XilinxCompileTools for more information about the NI hardware supported by each Xilinx compilation tool.
Note
1Memory requirements vary according to both the FPGA target and the FPGA VI you create for that target.
2You must use a 64-bit OS to address 4 GB of RAM.
Refer to the LabVIEW Readme for additional system requirements and supported operating systems for LabVIEW 2015 SP1.
If you install the FPGA Compile Farm Server on a separate computer, you can configure that computer to be a remote compile server. If you install the Xilinx compilation tools on a separate computer, you can configure that computer to be a remote compile worker.
Refer to the Remote Compile Server and Compile Worker section of the LabVIEW FPGA Module Release and Upgrade Notes for information about setting up and using a local or remote compile server or compile worker. Visit ni.com/info and enter the Info Code XilinxCompileTools for more information about the NI hardware supported by each Xilinx compilation tool.
The remote compile server must meet the following minimum system requirements:
You can use either a Windows or Linux computer as a compile worker. Refer to the Xilinx Compilation Tools Readme for the operating system to obtain information about the minimum system requirements.
You can install all of your LabVIEW products—including the FPGA Module, FPGA Compile Farm Server, and FPGA IP Builder—using the LabVIEW 2015 SP1 Platform media. You can find installation instructions for the FPGA Module along with activation instructions in the following locations:
To request additional LabVIEW Platform media, refer to the NI website.
Note If you purchased this product with an NI Software Suite or NI Product Bundle, use the installation media that shipped with your purchase to install this product.
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.
You can access the software and documentation known issues list online. Refer to the NI website for an up-to-date list of known issues in the FPGA Module.
The following items are the IDs and titles of a subset of issues fixed in the FPGA Module. This is not an exhaustive list of issues fixed in the current version of the FPGA Module. If you have a CAR ID, you can search this list to validate that the issue has been fixed.
| ID | Fixed Issue |
|---|---|
| 557199 | Compilation failed being unable to parse a pulse width report. |
Refer to the LabVIEW Help, accessible by selecting Help»LabVIEW Help from LabVIEW, for information about the FPGA Module.
Select Help»Find Examples from LabVIEW to launch the NI Example Finder. You can modify an example VI to fit an application, or you can copy and paste from one or more examples into a VI that you create.
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:
NI LabVIEW FPGA Module will drop support for Microsoft Windows Vista, Windows XP, and Windows Server 2003 as of July 1, 2016. Versions of LabVIEW FPGA Module that ship after July 1, 2016 will not install or run on Windows Vista, Windows XP, or Windows Server 2003. For detailed information about NI application software product life cycles, visit ni.com/info and enter one of the following Info Codes:
| Product | Info Code |
|---|---|
| LabVIEW | lifecycle |
| LabWindows™/CVI™ | cvi_lifecycle |
| Measurement Studio | mstudiolifecycle |
| TestStand | tslcp |
| DIAdem | ddlcp |
| SignalExpress | selcp |
| VeriStand | nivslifecycle |
Copyright
© 2003–2015 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.
Third-Party Copyright Notices
The SharpZipLib_Notice.pdf file contains a third-party copyright notice for third-party components used by certain FPGA Module features. The following directory is the default installation location for the file, but the location might vary depending on the configuration of the local computer:
\National Instruments\LabVIEW <version>\FPGA\Legal\
The Python_2.5_notice.pdf file contains a third-party copyright notice for third-party components used by certain FPGA Module features. The following directory is the default installation location for the file, but the location might vary depending on the configuration of the local computer:
\National Instruments\LabVIEW <version>\FPGA\Legal\
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:
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.
374737D-01