National Instruments VME-PCI8022 User manual

©2001–2002 National Instruments Corp. All rights reserved.
CVI™, LabVIEW™, MXI™, National Instruments™, NI™, ni.com™, NI-VISA™, and NI-VXI™ are trademarks of
National Instruments Corporation. Product and company names mentioned herein are trademarks or trade names of
their respective companies. For patents covering National Instruments products, refer to the appropriate location:
Help»Patents in your software, the patents.txt file on your CD, or ni.com/patents.
September 2002
323065B-01
VXI/VME-PCI8022 FOR SOLARIS
INSTALLATION GUIDE
Contents
Quick Start ........................................................................................................................... 1
Documentation..................................................................................................................... 2
Hardware Installation........................................................................................................... 3
Installing the NI-VXI Software for Solaris.......................................................................... 5
VME Users .......................................................................................................................... 5
Device Interaction................................................................................................................ 6
Quick Start
You can use this Quick Start section as a guide to quickly configure
and operate your VXI or VME system using the PCI-MXI-2 or PCI-MXI-2
Universal and the VXI-MXI-2 or VME-MXI-2.
The Quick Start summary assumes that you intend to perform a basic
configuration as follows:
• You have one PCI-MXI-2 or PCI-MXI-2 Universal interface module,
which you will install in your PCI-based computer as the Resource
Manager (logical address 0).
• You have either one C-size VXI-MXI-2 or one 6U, B-size
VME-MXI-2, which you will install in a VXI or VME chassis,
respectively, and connect to the PCI-MXI-2 or PCI-MXI-2 Universal.
• You will be using the NI-VXI software for initialization, configuration,
and device interaction.
• You will use the default hardware and software settings.
– The PCI-MXI-2 or PCI-MXI-2 Universal is the main controller,
the VXI/VME Resource Manager, and a message-based device.
– Your system contains only one VXI or VME chassis.
– There is no shared memory used on the PCI-based computer, the
PCI-MXI-2 or PCI-MXI-2 Universal, or the VXI/VME-MXI-2.
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VXI/VME-PCI8022 for Solaris Installation Guide 2 ni.com
Documentation
For more information, or to try a different configuration, refer to the
appropriate hardware or software chapters in the online manuals. They are
in the NI-VXI base directory in Adobe Acrobat portable document file
(PDF) format and describe the installation and configuration steps in
greater detail. With the exception of this Installation Guide,all
documentation is online.
The following list shows the path and filenames of the online manuals
available after you install your software:
• /opt/NICpcimxi/manuals/GettingStarted.pdf
This is the Getting Started manual, which contains an overview of the
MXI-2 hardware and the NI-VXI software, guides you through setting
up your kit and configuring the hardware and software, and helps you
get started with application development. Appendix D, Common
Questions, addresses commonly asked questions you may have about
using the NI-VXI software on the PCI-MXI-2 or PCI-MXI-2 Universal
platform.
• /opt/NICpcimxi/manuals/NI-VXIUserMan.pdf
This is the NI-VXI User Manual, which describes the features of the
NI-VXI software.
• /opt/NICpcimxi/manuals/NI-VXIProgrammerMan.pdf
This is the NI-VXI Programmer Reference Manual, which describes in
detail the VXI/VME function calls in the C/C++ and BASIC
languages.
• /opt/NICpcimxi/manuals/GraphicalUtils.pdf
This is the NI-VXI Graphical Utilities Reference Manual,which
describes the graphical NI-VXI utilities VXIedit, VIC, and the Startup
Resource Manager.
• /opt/NICpcimxi/manuals/TextUtil.pdf
This is the NI-VXI Text Utilities Reference Manual, which describes
the text-based NI-VXI utilities VXItedit, VICtext, and the Startup
Resource Manager.
• /opt/vxipnp/sun/NIvisa/Manuals/NI-VISAUsersMan.pdf
This is the NI-VISA User Manual, which describes how to program
using VISA.
• /opt/vxipnp/sun/NIvisa/Manuals/
NI-VISAProgrammersMan.pdf
This is the NI-VISA Programmer Reference Manual, which describes
in detail the attributes, events, and operations you use in NI-VISA.

©National Instruments Corporation 3 VXI/VME-PCI8022 for Solaris Installation Guide
Hardware Installation
To guard against electrostatic discharge, touch the antistatic plastic
package to a metal part of your computer before removing the PCI-MXI-2
or PCI-MXI-2 Universal from the package. Install the PCI-MXI-2 or
PCI-MXI-2 Universal in an available PCI slot in your PCI-based computer.
Figure 1. PCI-MXI-2 or PCI-MXI-2 Universal Installed in a Computer
By default, the PCI-MXI-2 or PCI-MXI-2 Universal automatically detects
whether it should be the system controller on the MXIbus. Verify that the
correct cable end labeled Connect This End To Device Closest To MXIbus
Controller In This Daisy Chain is attached securely to the PCI-MXI-2 or
PCI-MXI-2 Universal. The cable must be connected in this manner so that
the PCI-MXI-2 or PCI-MXI-2 Universal can correctly detect whether it
should be the system controller on the MXIbus. For more information, refer
to Chapter 2, PCI-MXI-2 Configuration and Installation, or Chapter 3,
PCI-MXI-2 Universal Configuration and Installation,oftheGetting
Started manual.
You received either a VXI-MXI-2 or a VME-MXI-2 in your VXI/
VME-PCI8022 kit. To guard against electrostatic discharge, touch the
antistatic plastic package to a metal part of your computer before removing
the VXI-MXI-2 or VME-MXI-2 from the package. Install the VXI-MXI-2
1 PCI-MXI-2 or PCI-MXI-2
Universal Board
2PCIBusSlot
3 Workstation
1
3
2

VXI/VME-PCI8022 for Solaris Installation Guide 4 ni.com
in the first slot of a VXI chassis, or install the VME-MXI-2 in the first slot
of a VME chassis.
The VXI/VME-MXI-2 default configuration automatically detects whether
it should be the VXI/VMEbus system controller. The VXI/VMEbus system
controllers operate certain VXI/VMEbus lines as required for VXI/VME
systems. Verify that any other VXI/VME devices with system controller
capability in the same chassis are not configured as system controller.
Having more than one device configured as system controller will damage
the VXI/VME system.
Figure 2. MXI-2 Cable Configuration Using a PCI-MXI-2
or PCI-MXI-2 Universal and a VXI-MXI-2
For VXI systems that include VME devices, ensure that the VME devices
are not configured in the upper 16 KB (starting from 0xC000) of the
A16 address space. This region is reserved for VXI device configuration
registers, which are used for initializing, configuring, and interacting with
VXI devices. The PCI-MXI-2, PCI-MXI-2 Universal, and VME-MXI-2
also use this region for this purpose.
1 To External Computer
2 PCI-MXI-2 or PCI-MXI-2 Universal Interface Module
3 MXI-2 Cable
4 VXI Chassis
5 VXI-MXI-2 Slot 0 Module
bus
NATIONAL
INSTRUMENTS
®
1
2
3
4
5

©National Instruments Corporation 5 VXI/VME-PCI8022 for Solaris Installation Guide
Also ensure that no VXI devices in your system are configured for either
logical addresses 0 or 1. These are the default configurations for the
PCI-MXI-2 or PCI-MXI-2 Universal and the VXI-MXI-2, respectively.
For more details on the VXI-MXI-2 or VME-MXI-2 hardware, refer to
either Chapter 4, VXI-MXI-2 Configuration and Installation, or Chapter 5,
VME-MXI-2 Configuration and Installation,oftheGetting Started manual.
Installing the NI-VXI Software for Solaris
The NI-VXI Software includes two installation packages:
•NICpcimxi—the NI-VXI driver software
•NICcvirt—the CVI Runtime Engine (required by the NI-VXI
Graphical Utilities)
These packages are installed using the Solaris standard software packaging
mechanisms.
Note You must be logged in as superuser to install the NI-VXI software.
1. Change to the VXI directory on the installation CD-ROM:
# cd /cdrom/ni-vxi/VXI
Follow the instructions as prompted.
2. Transfer the software packages to the system:
# pkgadd -d .
The packaging utilities will prompt you for installation information as it is
needed.
Note If you want to install the NI-VXI software to a directory other than /opt/
NICpcimxi,usethe-a none pkgadd option:
# pkgadd -d . -a none
VME Users
When used with a VXI-MXI-2, Resman identifies and configures the VXI
devices, including the VXI-MXI-2. When used with a VME-MXI-2,
Resman configures the VME-MXI-2 to allow the PCI-MXI-2 or
PCI-MXI-2 Universal to access devices in the VME chassis. Resman does
not configure VME devices. The VME specification does not specify the
initialization and configuration procedures that the VXI specification
requires.

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You should enter the information about your VME devices into the
vxiedit or vxitedit utility. Resman can then properly configure the
various device-specific VME address spaces and VME interrupt lines. For
more information on configuring non-VXI devices in your VXI system,
refer to the description of the Non-VXI Device Configuration Editor in
Chapter 3, VXI Resource Editor: VXIedit,oftheNI-VXI Graphical Utilities
Reference Manual. For more details about installing the NI-VXI software,
refer to Chapter 5, NI-VXI Software Installation,oftheGetting Started
manual.
Device Interaction
After Resman has detected and configured all VXI/VME devices, you can
view specific information on each device in your system by using the
vxiedit or vxitedit utilities. These utilities include a Resource
Manager Display, which contains a description for each device, including
each VXI device’s logical address.
You can interact with your VXI/VME devices by using the vic or victext
utilities. These utilities let you interactively control your VXI/VME devices
without having to use a conventional programming language, LabVIEW, or
LabWindows™/CVI™.
Try the following in vic or victext:
At the prompt, type:
help vxiinreg
This help file shows you the syntax for this command, which reads VXI
device configuration registers. The first argument is a logical address, and
the second is the offset of the VXI device configuration register to be read.
Now type:
vxiinreg 1,0
This should return a value, such as:
Return Status (0): SUCCESS.
value = 0x4ff6
If the value ends with ff6, you have successfully read the National
Instruments manufacturer ID from the ID register for the VXI/
VME-MXI-2.
You may now want to read the configuration registers from other VXI
devices in your system using the command vxiinreg. This command
accesses only the upper 16 KB of A16 space. Try reading the registers from

©National Instruments Corporation 7 VXI/VME-PCI8022 for Solaris Installation Guide
one of the devices listed in the Resource Manager Display of either
vxiedit or vxitedit. In this way, you can verify that your PCI-MXI-2
or PCI-MXI-2 Universal can access each of the devices in your VXI system
successfully.
You can also access VXI and VME devices that are configured in A16,
A24, and A32 address space by using the vxiin or vxiout commands.
For more information regarding vic operation and commands, refer to the
NI-VXI Graphical Utilities Reference Manual. For more information
regarding victext operation and commands, refer to the NI-VXI Text
Utilities Reference Manual.