HINT: If your not sure how to install the License Key once you've activated it online with Rigol. Take your new 28 digit KEY, open the Generator via USB via NI VISA or other VISA tool and use the following to install the key:
:LICense:INSTall 1234567890123456789012345678
(the 12345.. above is just an example.. please use your real activated Key there)
I REALLY do not like the sound of that NI VISA crap. I know NI (National Instruments) sells VERY EXPENSIVE software (dwarfing the price of the function generator I just bought). Is there ANY alternative method to install the license key in the function generator?
Yes, stay away from NI VISA. It's massive and it's awful.
Usually with Rigols you just connect an ethernet or USB cable, use telnet to connect to them on port 5555, then send the string shown above.
nb. It's just plain ASCII text. You can also connect via a Python script or whatever and send it that way.
So I connected my Rigol function generator and my Windows device manager shows a device called "DG1000Z Serials", which seems to indicate that the USB circuit in the func-gen is a USB-to-serial converter, but it will need a driver to function, as the device manager also shows that this device has no driver installed. I would LOVE to be able to follow your instructions by serial comm to my func-gen, but the problem is no drivers, which is where the NI VISA thing comes in.
I first tried to download the IVI driver JUST for my device from the Rigol website, but it said the driver can't be installed without first installing a certain NI framework (but not VISA) called NI-ICP. So I downloaded that as it was a MUCH smaller file (only 500MB instead of 2GB for VISA), so I decided to try this option, installing NI-ICP and then Rigol's own IVI driver for the func-gen. I then checked the Windows Device Manager and it said the driver is still not installed. I then tried to have Windows Device Manager automatically detect and install the driver, but it said it can't find a driver for the device on the computer!
THIS IS CRAP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Why does Rigol make it SO HARD to JUST INSTALL A SIMPLE DRIVER?! WHY DO THEY REQUIRE NI'S CRAP!? Rigol should release their OWN STANDALONE DRIVER, and NOT depend on third party driver frameworks like NI's crap. Not EVERYBODY who has this func-gen will want to be LOCKED IN to using it with the NI framework. Some HOBBIESTS like myself, just want to USE THE DEVICE.
I'm considering doing the nuclear option, and installing the FULL NI-VISA framework, JUST TO MAKE SURE I can install the 16M-point memory upgrade license, and then UNINSTALLING all that NI crap to save harddrive space, once the memory upgrade license is installed.
Also, I keep seeing various references to one piece of software called "Ultra Sigma". WHERE do I download that from? It's NOT available in the downloads page on the official rigolna.com website.