Hello;
I didn't quite get your question, but when you are using PCI boards, the OS automatically selects all the resources that will be assigned to your board, and MAX only retrieves that information from the registry keys of the OS.
Regarding your other question, when you save a configuration file, you can double check which file max is using by checking the following registry key:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE->Software->National Instruments->NI-DAQ->Current Version->Configuration Manager.
Hope this helps.
Filipe