July 2021
This file contains installation instructions and compatibility information for NI CompactRIO 21.0 and Drivers:
You can find more release information on ni.com.
Installing NI CompactRIO 21.0 and Drivers
Product Security and Critical Updates
What's New in NI CompactRIO 21.0 and Drivers
Supported Hardware and Software
Preserving Device Aliases when Upgrading Software
LabVIEW NXG Support and Considerations
Using NI Software with Microsoft Windows 10
Unsupported Windows Operating Systems
Installing NI CompactRIO 21.0 and Drivers requires at least 2 GB of RAM in addition to the requirements for LabVIEW, the LabVIEW Real-Time Module, and the LabVIEW FPGA Module.
NI CompactRIO 21.0 and Drivers supports the following operating systems:
Note Refer to Unsupported Windows Operating Systems for more information about support for Microsoft Windows OSes.
NI CompactRIO 21.0 and Drivers supports the following application software versions, including service packs.
| Application Software | Versions Supported |
|---|---|
| LabVIEW | LabVIEW 2021 LabVIEW 2020 SP1 LabVIEW 2019 SP1 LabVIEW 2018 SP1 |
| LabVIEW NXG | 5.1 |
Complete the following steps to install NI CompactRIO 21.0 and Drivers for use with LabVIEW. Refer to the Supported Hardware and Software section to confirm which software versions support your specific hardware devices.
Visit ni.com/security to view and subscribe to receive security notifications about NI products. For information about critical updates from NI, refer to Available Critical and Security Updates for NI Software.
Refer to the Software Support for CompactRIO, CompactDAQ, Single-Board RIO, R Series, FlexRIO, and EtherCAT support document on ni.com for a complete list of the hardware and LabVIEW software versions supported by each version of NI CompactRIO.
Visit ni.com/compactrio for additional NI CompactRIO product support and information.
Note The myRIO-1900 and myRIO-1950 are not supported in NI CompactRIO 21.0 and Drivers. Use version 20.5 or earlier for these devices.
Ensure that you back up any aliases for local RIO devices before you upgrade the software on your system, or ensure that the devices remain connected to the system during the upgrade. Any local aliases that are not associated with a connected device might be removed during the upgrade.
In the LabVIEW Help, click the Contents tab and select NI CompactRIO and Drivers to access the software help for your NI CompactRIO device.
The following sections detail considerations for using LabVIEW NXG 5.1 with NI CompactRIO 21.0 and Drivers.
Software support for LabVIEW NXG differs in the following ways:
NI CompactRIO 21.0 and Drivers supports the following devices in LabVIEW NXG 5.1
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.
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.
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.
NI CompactRIO and Drivers no longer supports Windows Vista/XP/7/8.x, Windows Server 2003/2008/2012, or any 32-bit Windows operating system. 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 https://www.ni.com/r/win32bitsupport.
Copyright
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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.
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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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