National Instruments NI PCI-GPIB User manual

PCIe-GPIB

March 2009
372131B-01
INSTALLATION GUIDE
Installing Your NI PCI-GPIB,
NI PCIe-GPIB, NI PXI-GPIB, or
NI PMC-GPIB and NI-488.2
for Solaris
This document describes how to install and configure your GPIB hardware and
NI-488.2 software. Refer to the section that describes the installation for your
particular board. Other documentation, including the software reference manual,
is available on your NI-488.2 software for Solaris CD in the \documentation
folder.
Before you install your GPIB controller, consult the manual that came with your
workstation for specific instructions and warnings. You must have superuser
privileges to install the hardware and software.
™

Installing Your GPIB Hardware and NI-488.2 for Solaris 2 ni.com
Installing the NI PCI-GPIB or NI PCIe-GPIB
Caution Electrostatic discharge can damage several components on
your GPIB board. To avoid electrostatic damage when you handle the
module, touch the antistatic plastic package to a metal part of your
computer chassis before you remove the board from the package.
Complete the following steps to install the NI PCI-GPIB or NI PCIe-GPIB.
1. Log on as superuser. To become a superuser, type su root and enter the root
password.
2. Shut down your system by typing the following commands at the command
line prompt:
sync;sync;shutdown
3. Power off your computer after it has shut down. Keep the computer plugged
in so that it remains grounded while you install the GPIB board.
4. Remove the top cover (or other access panels) to give yourself access to the
computer expansion slots.
5. Find an unused PCI or PCI Express slot in your computer.
6. Remove the corresponding slot cover.
7. Insert the GPIB board into the slot with the GPIB connector sticking out of the
opening on the back panel, as shown in Figure 1. It might be a tight fit, but do
not force the board into place.
8. Replace the top cover (or the access panel to the PCI or PCI Express slot).
9. Power on your computer. The GPIB interface board is now installed.

© National Instruments Corporation 3 Installing Your GPIB Hardware and NI-488.2 for Solaris
Figure 1. Installing the NI PCI-GPIB and NI PCIe-GPIB (NI PCI-GPIB Shown)
1 PCI Board 2PCISlot 3 Personal Computer
3
1
2

Installing Your GPIB Hardware and NI-488.2 for Solaris 4 ni.com
Installing the NI PXI-GPIB
Caution Electrostatic discharge can damage several components on
your GPIB board. To avoid electrostatic damage when you handle the
module, touch the antistatic plastic package to a metal part of your
system chassis before you remove the board from the package.
Complete the following steps to install the NI PXI-GPIB.
1. Log on as superuser. To become a superuser, type su root and enter the root
password.
2. Shut down your system by typing the following commands at the command
line prompt:
sync;sync;shutdown
3. Power off your PXI or CompactPCI chassis after it has shut down. Keep
the chassis plugged in so that it remains grounded while you install the
NI PXI-GPIB.
4. Choose an unused PXI or CompactPCI peripheral slot. For maximum
performance, the NI PXI-GPIB has an onboard DMA controller that can
only be used if the board is installed in a slot that supports bus master
cards. National Instruments recommends installing the NI PXI-GPIB in
such a slot. If you install the board in a non-bus master slot, you must
disable the NI PXI-GPIB onboard DMA controller using the board-level
call ibdma. Refer to the NI-488.2M Software Reference Manual for a
complete description of ibdma.

© National Instruments Corporation 5 Installing Your GPIB Hardware and NI-488.2 for Solaris
5. Remove the filler panel for the peripheral slot you have chosen.
6. Touch a metal part on your chassis to discharge any static electricity that might
be on your clothes or body.
7. Insert the NI PXI-GPIB into the selected slot. Use the injector/ejector
handle to fully inject the device into place. Figure 2 shows how to install
the NI PXI-GPIB into a PXI or CompactPCI chassis.
8. Screw the front panel of the NI PXI-GPIB to the front-panel mounting rail
of the PXI or CompactPCI chassis.
9. Power on your PXI or CompactPCI chassis. The NI PXI-GPIB interface
board is now installed.

Installing Your GPIB Hardware and NI-488.2 for Solaris 6 ni.com
Figure 2. Installing the NI PXI-GPIB
1 Injector/Ejector Handle (in Down Position)
2 NI PXI-GPIB Board
3 PXI Chassis
4 Injector/Ejector Rail
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
ON STANDBY
3
2
1
4

© National Instruments Corporation 7 Installing Your GPIB Hardware and NI-488.2 for Solaris
Installing the NI PMC-GPIB
Caution Electrostatic discharge can damage several components on
your GPIB board. To avoid electrostatic damage when you handle the
module, touch the antistatic plastic package to a metal part of your
computer chassis before you remove the board from the package.
Complete the following steps to install the NI PMC-GPIB.
1. Log on as superuser. To become a superuser, type su root and enter the root
password.
2. Shut down your system by typing the following commands at the command
line prompt:
sync;sync;shutdown
3. Power off your system.
4. Find an unused PMC slot in your system. You may need to remove the host
from the system to access the slot.
5. Remove the corresponding slot filler panel from the host.
6. Touch a metal part on your chassis to discharge any static electricity that might
be on your clothes or body.
7. Insert the NI PMC-GPIB into the slot as shown in Figure 3. It might be a tight
fit, but do not force the board into place.
8. Use the mounting hardware provided to fasten the NI PMC-GPIB to the host.
9. Reinstall the host, if you removed it to install the NI PMC-GPIB.
10. Power on your system. The NI PMC-GPIB interface board is now installed.

Installing Your GPIB Hardware and NI-488.2 for Solaris 8 ni.com
Figure 3. Installing the NI PMC-GPIB
1 Host Face Plate 2 NI PMC-GPIB Board 3 Mounting Screws
1
2
3

© National Instruments Corporation 9 Installing Your GPIB Hardware and NI-488.2 for Solaris
Installing NI-488.2
Complete the following steps to install NI-488.2 for Solaris.
1. Insert the NI-488.2 for Solaris installation CD-ROM.
2. You must have superuser privileges before you can install NI-488.2 for
Solaris. If you are not already a superuser, type su root and enter the
root password.
3. Add NI-488.2 to the operating system by doing the following:
a. The CD automatically mounts as soon as you insert the CD. If this feature
is disabled on your workstation, you must manually mount your CD-ROM
device.
b. Enter the following command to add NI-488.2 to your system:
/usr/sbin/pkgadd -d /cdrom/cdrom0 NIpcigpib
4. Follow the instructions on your screen to complete the installation.
Configuring the Software with ibconf (Optional)
ibconf is an interactive utility you can use to examine or modify the
configuration of the driver. You might want to run ibconf to change the settings
of the software parameters. You must have superuser privilege to run ibconf.
ibconf is largely self explanatory and contains help screens that explain all
commands and options. For more information on using ibconf, refer to the
NI-488.2M Software Reference Manual.