Why Do I Get Error -301706 When Trying to Connect to My USB-8451?

Updated Sep 19, 2025

Reported In

Hardware

  • USB-8451

Software

  • Measurement & Automation Explorer (MAX)
  • LabVIEW

Issue Details

I just installed the software for the USB-8451 and am able to see it in Measurement & Automation Explorer (MAX). When I attempt to use LabVIEW to program it, the VISA reference is blank, or the reference is available with the following error message:

Error -301706 occurred at NI-845x I2C Write Read.vi
Possible reason(s):
NI-845x: The device reference is invalid. Verify that the supplied device reference contains a valid device name.

Solution

The NI-845x driver does not support automatic detection within the VISA control. On NI MAX, change the name of the alias for the device to a different one by following the instructions given in the article How Do I Find or Modify My Device's Name? Your device should now run without error.

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