The Discovery Tool for LXI Devices discovers LXI Devices on your LAN subnet, the place where your computer and LXI Device can ―see each other. The tool can discover LXI Devices, because it understands the services and protocols required by the LXI specification.
Since programming LXI Devices typically requires the VISA Library (Virtual Instrument Software Architecture) for communication, you may already have Agilent, National Instruments, Rohde & Schwarz, or Tektronix VISA I/O Library installed on your computer. If so, each of those software packages already includes a discovery and configuration tool. Agilent Connection Expert, NI MAX, RsVisaTester, and TekVISA Configuration are the associated discovery and configuration tools. Refer to their Help documentation for more information on your particular installation to learn more.
For the purposes of these guides, the Discovery Tool for LXI Devices provides the only tool needed to discover and communicate with your LXI Device. It will not interfere with the VISA Library software you may already have installed.
LXI devices compliant with the LXI Consortium‘s Standard must support Multicast DNS (mDNS). The Discovery Tool for LXI Devices does not depend exclusively on mDNS; it can also use other LXI discovery mechanisms, including VXI-11. However, mDNS provides a particularly fast and efficient method of locating compatible devices on the local network, and has been widely implemented in LXI instruments since 2008.
Disclaimer: The LXI Consortium no longer supports the LXI Discovery Tool. Please click the link below to get the Pickering Interfaces’ Discovery Tool for LXI Devices, which has been independently developed and is supported by Pickering Interfaces.