As many of you may know, NI released a myRIO Software Bundle for LabVIEW 2019, which worked with LabVIEW 2019 to provide a "myRIO Environment" that facilitated developing LabVIEW projects that involved the myRIO as both a flexible I/O device and two additional processors (counting the FPGA as another processor). But there was no myRIO Software Bundle for LabVIEW 2020, nor was there a myRIO Software Bundle for LabVIEW 2021, until the day that LabVIEW 2022 was released! And, curiously, this was the myRIO Software Bundle for LabVIEW 2021 SP1!
So I tried to download and install it. I'm currently working on a Project that involves the myRIO, so most of the PCs I use run LabVIEW 2019, so I probably used a VM that included LabVIEW 2021 SP1. Whatever the case, it worked. It required me to update the firmware of the myRIO (making it now "incompatible" with the LabVIEW 2019 code), but I was reasonably sure of a migration path forward.
Until I tried to install it on a second PC. I'm pleased to say that it only took me about three months to "learn the secret", and even then, I got it wrong! I recently was able to talk with some of the NI Developers with knowledge of the myRIO Software Bundle for LabVIEW 2021 SP1 (hereafter called simply the myRIO Software Bundle) and learned how the software was intended to be installed. I was astounded, but I can verify that it works!
Here's what you do. Start with a Windows 10 PC that has no NI Software installed. Think of the following scenario: A Professor is teaching a class in "LabVIEW and myRIO" and requires each student to purchase a myRIO (or provides one for each student). All of them have Windows laptops, none of them have any NI Software installed.
The Professor says "Go to the NI Software Download Site" (www.ni.com/en-us/support/downloads) and choose "Software Suites". You should find "LabVIEW myRIO Software Bundle Download". Choose as Version "2021 SP1" and hit "Download", which will download ni-myRIO-software-bundle-x86_8.0_suite_online. Run this Application.
[Note -- Online installation takes a long time, like 2.5 hours. You can, instead, choose "Offline" Installation, which downloads a 17 GB file instead of the online 6 MB file, but especially if the Professor does the Download and creates a USB "Installer" stick with it, it will probably speed the installation process.]
For this next step, you need an NI Account. If you've already established one, go log in. Otherwise, ask your Professor to log in for you. Once you do, the Installer starts and installs NI Package Manager, Version 2022 Q4.
You are now on a Selection Page for Software and Drivers. You want to install the following:
- LabVIEW, 2021 SP1
- LabVIEW myRIO Toolkit, 2021 SP1
- LabVIEW Real-Time Module, 2021
- LabVIEW FPGA Module, 2021 *
- LabVIEW FPGA Compilation Tool for Vivado 2019.1 *
- JKI VI Package Manager
The two FPGA entries, marked with *, are needed only if you want to program the myRIO's FPGA yourself, rather than use the pre-built Express VIs that come with the Toolkit and handle the myRIO's hardware functionality for you. You probably should not select Drivers that are not already pre-selected unless you know you'll be using them with LabVIEW (you can always add them later).
You'll be given a list of Additional Items to install (all will be pre-selected). I selected about a dozen of them. Once you have finalized your selected and told NIPM to proceed, it will start downloading Packages from NI and installing them. This process took me two and a half hours, and required 70 GB of disk space, but when it was finished, I had LabVIEW 2021 SP1, with myRIO Toolkit installed.
I'm going to post this here in the Academic Forum, and will post a link to it in the main LabVIEW Forum. I will also post in the main LabVIEW Forum how to "manually" get LabVIEW 2021 SP1 with the myRIO Bundle which might not require first uninstalling NI Software. So if you want to see this more labor-intensive approach, look there.
