PXI Format Hard Drive Disk

The PXI Format Hard Drive Disk reformats the C: drive of the remote system, deleting all data on that system. It then configures the hard disk to boot directly into the real-time operating system, which allows you to boot into the LabVIEW Real-Time Module if LabVIEW Real-Time was not preinstalled. All other operating systems and data are deleted.

To boot your PXI system into either Windows or LabVIEW Real-Time, use a PXI Boot Disk when you want to boot into LabVIEW Real-Time. If you prefer to use your PXI system only for real-time LabVIEW Real-Time applications, use the PXI Format Hard Drive disk once to enable the system to boot into LabVIEW Real-Time without a boot floppy.

Note  You must use Windows XP/2000 computers to create this disk utility. If your system uses Windows Vista, you must create a Desktop PC Utility USB Drive instead.

Creating the PXI Format Hard Drive Disk

Complete the following steps to create a PXI Format Hard Drive Disk from your host PC or PXI system:

1. Place a floppy disk in the drive of the host PC. Any data on the floppy disk will be overwritten.
2. Launch MAX by selecting All Programs»National Instruments»Measurement & Automation Explorer from the Windows Start menu on the host PC.
3. Select Tools»RT Disk Utilities»Create PXI Format Hard Drive Disk.
4. The PXI Format Hard Drive Disk dialog box appears. Click Yes to make the boot disk. Follow the instructions that appear on your screen.
5. Select the version of the disk utilities you want to use.
6. After the system finishes creating the boot disk, remove the floppy disk and label it LabVIEW RT PXI Format Hard Drive Disk.

Using the PXI Format Hard Drive Disk

Insert the boot disk into the floppy drive of the PXI controller you use as the remote system. Power on or reset the controller to format the hard drive.

Note  The hard drive must be formatted FAT32 in order to use the PXI Format Hard Drive Disk.