visa32.dll was found but could not be loaded.

[So13]

Hello,

I tried to connect a scope from Tektronix using NI-MAX and had trouble so I downloaded TekVisa from Tektronix's site and that's when the real trouble started. Now in NI-MAX I have a VISA error that says:

C:\WINDOWS\system32\visa32.dll was found but could not be loaded.

MAX has detected that NI-VISA is installed on your system, but visa32.dll could not be loaded. One or more files that visa32.dll depends on may be missing. Try reinstalling NI-VISA by closing MAX and selecting your NI-VISA installation in Add/Remove Programs in the Control Panel. Follow the steps in the installation dialog to repair your installation. Re-launch MAX, and refresh the configuration tree to view your devices.

Possible causes for this error:
1. NI-VISA was not properly installed on your system.
2. NI-VISA was not properly uninstalled from your system.
3. A file or component that visa32.dll depends on may have been moved to another location on your hard drive.

I tried to uninstall and reinstall NI-VISA a couple times, I force reinstalled it too, and no matter what I do I always get that message again. I removed TekVisa from my system and it didn't help either. What can I do?

Thanks.

[oscarfonseca]

Hello So13,

I would try the steps in this document (After Installing 3rd Party VISA Software NI VISA No Longer Works), as the VISA driver might have changed after installing the TekVisa software. Often there will be leftovers from installer modifications even after the software has been removed from the computer.

All the best,

[So13]

Hello Oscar,

Thanks a lot it worked, my VISA wasn't primary (I couldn't see National Instruments in the properties). Now the VISA error is gone, but my scope still doesn't work properly.

I've entered the IP address in NI-MAX while creating a new device (right-click on Network Devices + Create New VISA TCP/IP Resource) but it says the status is Not Present. What's weird is when I click on the web page tab, I can see my waveform on screen so there IS a connection of some sort. What did I do wrong?

[oscarfonseca]

Hello So13,

Glad to hear that. I am unsure of which scope model you are using, but I would start making sure the IP settings in the device are correct. Then, I would check for firewalls, anti-virus or windows policies that could be blocking VISA to access to the port.

You can find more troubleshooting steps in this guide: Troubleshooting NI VISA, 488.2, Serial, and Modular Instrument Drivers. I recommend you help us mentioning in which step you find troubles, so we can see what you have already tried, and avoid making you duplicate the effort.

All the best,

[So13 · Accepted solution]

Hello Oscar,

Finally it works!

I installed the driver for my scope from NI's site (instead of TekVISA from Tektronix) and this time there's no conflict with NI-VISA and my scope works perfectly well!

http://www.ni.com/downloads/instrument-drivers/

Next time that's where I'll go first when some device won't communicate!

Thanks a lot!