Error LED Blinks Continuously in a NI 9144/9145 EtherCAT Device

Issue Details

I have a NI 9144 or NI 9145 connected by EtherCAT to a CompactRIO (cRIO). I can't make the 9144/9145 slave(s) go into operational state. The error LED is continuously blinking in the 9144/9145.

There is an invalid configuration from an unsupported module, bad device profile, object dictionary, or configuration.

Solution

The next steps assume you have already setup and configured your EtherCAT system. You can find the steps to setup your EtherCAT network between NI Master and Slave devices here: Setting Up EtherCAT on NI Programmable Automation Controllers.

1. Make sure you have the correct software and installed in the correct order: Installation Order for Multiple NI Software Products. To work with the NI 9144 and 9145 you will need:
   1. LabVIEW Development System
   2. LabVIEW Real-Time Module
   3. LabVIEW FPGA Module
   4. NI-RIO. Review NI-Industrial Communications for EtherCAT and NI-RIO Compatibility for the driver's compatibility with LabVIEW.
   5. NI-Industrial Communications for EtherCAT. Review NI-Industrial Communications for EtherCAT and NI-RIO Compatibility for its compatibility with the NI-RIO driver.
2. Disconnect the power supply of the NI 9144/9145.
3. Reconnect its power supply again.
4. Add and remove the modules you have in your LabVIEW project so that they match your hardware setup.
   1. To remove a module from the LabVIEW Project, right clicking the module, and selecting remove from project.
   2. To add a module, right click the EtherCAT device (NI 9144/9145) and select New>>C Series Modules…

5. Deploy the target in the LabVIEW project by right clicking the CompactRIO target (cRIO) and selecting Deploy All.
6. Recompile the NI 9144/9145's FPGA code using its build specifications, and download the FPGA bitfile to the devices.