LabVIEW Real-Time Module 8.2.1 Readme

December 2006

This file contains important information about the LabVIEW Real-Time Module 8.2.1, including installation, upgrade, and compatibility issues.

Installation

You must install LabVIEW 8.2.1 before you install the LabVIEW Real-Time Module 8.2.1. Refer to the LabVIEW Real-Time Module Release and Upgrade Notes for more information about upgrade and compatibility issues, a list of new features, and installation instructions. The LabVIEW Real-Time Module Release and Upgrade Notes is included as a printed booklet with the kit. You also can access this document by selecting Help»Search the LabVIEW Help in LabVIEW and navigating to the Real-Time Module»Real-Time Module Related Documentation topic on the Contents tab.

New Supported Target

At the time of this release, the LabVIEW Real-Time Module 8.2.1 supports the following new RT target, in addition to the targets supported by version 8.20.

PXI-8106 RT Controller

Supported Platforms

The Real-Time Module supports Windows 2000/XP and Windows Vista (32-bit and 64-bit). The Real-Time Module does not support Windows NT/Me/9x.

Refer to the LabVIEW Real-Time Module Release and Upgrade Notes for a complete list of system requirements.

Bug Fixes

LabVIEW Real-Time Module 8.2.1 includes the following bug fixes.

Bug ID	Issue
41AEB7NM	Fixed an issue where shared variables with the RT FIFO enabled always returned a 0 timestamp.
41EBS33Q	Fixed an issue where programmatically creating FIFOs using the Format Into String VI resulted in duplicate FIFOs.
41C5TUQR	Fixed an issue where the RT Wait Timer configured for microsecond resolution caused a memory leak when used on a Windows PC.
41B9Q3BK	Fixed an issue where lateness detection for Timed Loops failed when two or more Timed Loops were used in VxWorks.
44I832KI	Fixed an issue where the RT target would crash if the Halt system if TCP/IP fails setting was disabled and the target was unable to initialize the network device.
41A96VBK	Fixed issues related to using RT FIFOs to transfer data between Timed Loops with different priorities.
42CHH33W	Fixed an issue where using the Stop Timed Structure VI to repeatedly stop a Timed Loop nested inside of a While Loop caused instability.
43KEAEM3	Fixed an issue where cRIO 900x Controllers did not function properly on a DHCP server with infinite lease time.
44DDLOKI	Fixed an issue where running an executable with an RT FIFO on a Windows PC caused instability.
42JAIUPI	Fixed an issue where the RT Get Timestamp VI returned late values.
N/A	Fixed various other minor issues related to RT FIFO functions.

Known Issues

All Target Platforms

In Windows Vista, you cannot use the RT Disk Utilities in NI Measurement & Automation Explorer to create bootable floppy disks. However, if you have Administrator status in Vista, you can create a Desktop PC Utility USB drive by selecting Tools»RT Disk Utilities»Create Desktop PC Utility USB Drive in MAX.
The Real-Time FIFO VIs have been replaced with the Real-Time FIFO Functions. These functions perform faster and contain additional functionality. For compatibility with upgrading applications, the previous Real-Time FIFO VIs still load from an existing LabVIEW block diagram, but they are no longer available on the Real-Time palette.
When you install the Network Variable Engine on an RT target, you also must install the Variable Client Support with the same version number. When you upgrade a target from LabVIEW 8.0.x to LabVIEW 8.2.x, you also must upgrade the Network Variable Engine and the Variable Client Support. For the LabVIEW Real-Time Module 8.2.x, you must install Variable Client Support 1.2 and Network Variable Engine 1.2 on the RT target using the LabVIEW Real-Time Software Wizard in Measurement & Automation Explorer.
In the Real-Time Module 8.0, if you make changes to a shared variable in the Multiple Variable Editor and click the spreadsheet without first clicking the Apply button, LabVIEW discards the changes as though you clicked the Revert button. If you make changes to a shared variable and then add a new shared variable, duplicate the shared variable, or click the Previous or Next buttons without first clicking the Apply button, LabVIEW applies the changes you made. In the Real-Time Module 8.2.x, LabVIEW prompts you to apply changes when you click the spreadsheet, add a new shared variable, duplicate a shared variable before applying changes to the original shared variable, or click on the Previous or Next buttons. If you do not click the Apply button before you save the current project library or close the Multiple Variable Editor, LabVIEW does not apply the changes you made.
The Real-Time Module 8.0 returns error code �2222 to indicate that a shared variable with the Enable Real-Time FIFO option selected has no value. The Real-Time Module 8.2.x no longer returns error code �2222 but instead returns error code �1950679034 (0x8BBB0006) to indicate the same problem. This error code is consistent with shared variables that have the Real-Time FIFO disabled.
You must enable the W2 hardware jumper to upgrade the RT Engine of an NI PXI-8145RT controller from version 7.1.1 and earlier to version 8.0 or 8.2.x. Refer to the PXI-8140RT Series User Manual for information about the settings and options for the onboard jumpers and switches.
In the Real-Time Module 8.0, executables you build with LabVIEW and the Real-Time Module have a .rtexe extension, which is changed from the .exe extension in earlier versions. Although the extension change was cosmetic, in the Real-Time Module 8.2.x you might notice different behavior associated with the extension change. In the Real-Time Module 8.0 and earlier, you can run an executable built with LabVIEW and the Real-Time Module on Windows, and then use FTP to transfer the executable to an RT target and run it when you boot the RT target. In the Real-Time Module 8.2.x, you cannot run an RT executable (.rtexe) on Windows.

If you want to run an RT executable on Windows and on the RT target, you must create and build two build specifications (one for Windows and one for an RT executable) and drag the necessary VIs for the build specification to each target in the project.

Executables for VxWorks targets do not run on Windows or on Phar Lap ETS targets.

ETS

The NI PCI-7041 is no longer supported with the Real-Time Module 8.2.x and later.
OHCI USB controllers are not supported under the Phar Lap ETS operating system so you cannot use high-speed USB devices on RT systems with OHCI USB controllers. You can use UHCI (low-speed) and EHCI (high-speed) USB controllers with ETS.
The following USB thumb drive is not supported for RT target booting or storage: SanDisk Cruzer with U3 smart technology.

VxWorks

If you read paths from a file or convert paths from strings and if you use different delimiters for file paths, the paths do not match in comparison operations even though the paths are functionally equivalent but with different delimiters. Review all paths and verify that all use the correct delimiter. Do not use UNC paths.
Running the Execution Trace Toolkit on a VI containing Timed Loops might show incorrect thread names of Timed Loop threads if the trace is longer than a few seconds.

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