Getting latest VisaNS assembly (version 15 something or higher)

[ChuckZ]

I am returning to C# code I wrote 3 years ago that leveraged the VisaNS for instrument communications. I am writing my own Device Drivers in C# and leveraging the VisaNS for the communications. There is a version mismatch between the VisaNS DLL (v 13.???) and the version that the Common DLL I am using has (v 15.???). I have attempted to install the latest toolkits but the VisaNS DLL I get still only shows version 13 something.

Questions:

* Is VisaNS the currently recommended low-level communication method, or is it deprecated? If so what replaced it?

* How do I get the specific version of VisaNS that I need (the Common DLL is looking for v15 somenting)?

I am on the road and cannot get the exact error I saw so I apologize if you still need more specific info to answer the question. Thanks

[Kurt-P]

Hey ChuckZ,

The VisaNS v13.??? is mostly likely the most recent version of the VisaNS api. Since that release, NI has come out with the NI-VISA.NET library. It supersedes the VisaNS API is is compilant with the VISA Implementation Specification for .NET from the IVI foundation. You can read more about the release and the breaking changes in this article:

https://www.ni.com/en/support/documentation/supplemental/15/national-instruments-visa--net-library.h...

Now your second issue with NI.Common is a little confusing. NationalInstruments.Common.dll is designed to be backswards-compatibile with all previous versions. Any number of installers can update the DLL, but it could be the case that your project required a specific version. Even if that is the case, if you are using the same computer that you had 3 years ago, you should be able to find the correct version on your computer. The DLL isn't removed when it is updated; rather NI users a publisher policy file to redirect to the latest version of common. 

If you do not have a hard requirement on a specific version of common, you should be able to reference the new version in your project.