Common NI-DAQmx Error Codes and Solutions: Codes -50103, -50251 and -200000 to -200299

Updated Jul 26, 2023

Reported In

Hardware

  • DAQ (Legacy)

Software

  • LabVIEW

Driver

  • NI-DAQmx

Issue Details

What does my NI-DAQmx error code mean, and how do I resolve it?

Solution

Below is a list of some of the most common NI-DAQmx errors.  If the error code you are receiving is not in this list you can look up error information in LabVIEW by going to Help » Explain Error...  This will provide a description and possible causes of the error to aid in troubleshooting.


Error code:
- 50103
- 50251
- 200041
- 200077
- 200078
- 200079
- 200172
- 200220
- 200279
- 200284


Error code: - 50103
Description: The specified resource is reserved. The operation was completed by ignoring or overriding the specified resource.
Possible cause:  There are several cases where this error can occur.  A common case is when the device is in use by another program/VI, or a previous DAQ task did not release the device resources.
Solutions:  Make sure you have freed the device for use by another program or task instance. For example, you might not have wired a stop condition to a DAQ Assistant Express VI configured for single point acquisition.

Note: See Error -50103 When Using NI-DAQmx With LabVIEW or in NI-MAX for more information about this error.

Error code: -50251
Description: The specified software component is not available. The component was not loaded.
Possible cause: This error is commonly caused as a result of corrupted device drivers or anti-virus software blocking the full installation of the driver.
Solutions: Refer to Error -50251 in NI Device Drivers or NI MAX.

Error code: - 200041
Description: Destination terminal to be routed could not be found on the device.
Possible cause: An invalid constant or control is wired to the output terminal input. 
Solutions: Make sure the terminal name is valid for the specified device. Refer to Measurement & Automation Explorer (MAX) or your hardware documentation for valid terminal names.


Error code: - 200077
Description: Requested value is not a supported value for this property.
Possible cause: The operation you are trying to perform or the values you selected are not supported on the device you are using. You might be designating options for the data acquisition that are not available on your device, such as in triggering or clock configurations. Likewise, you might be trying to configure invalid ports or self-calibration parameters.
Solutions: Many examples might contain configurations that only work on a certain series of devices. Make sure that the configurations in the example will work with your device. Consult your hardware documentation to make sure the operation and values are valid for your device. Make sure that the parameters you are trying to set are not already set by default.


Error code: - 200078
Description:
 AI task started or committed during a counter 0 DMA acquisition.
Possible cause: You have wired your program such that the counter 0 operation has started before the AI task. 
Solutions: If possible, use counter 1 instead of counter 0. Otherwise, start/commit the AI task before starting the counter 0 DMA acquisition.


Error code: - 200079
Description:
 AO task started or committed during a counter 1 DMA acquisition.
Possible cause: You have wired your program such that the counter 1 operation has started before the AO task. 
Solutions: If possible, use counter 0 instead of counter 1. Otherwise, commit the AO task before starting the counter 1 DMA acquisition.


Error code: - 200172
Description:
 Buffer size must be zero when the data transfer mechanism is programmed IO.
Possible cause: The buffer size is incorrect for the data transfer mechanism (set to 0), you have set the data transfer mechanism before the timing, or you have tried to verify a task before setting all of the properties
Solutions: Set the buffer size to zero or data transfer mechanism to something other than programmed IO. Also, you may need switch the order of the timing and data transfer mechanism operations.


Error code: - 200220
Description:
 Device identifier is invalid.
Possible cause: You have indicated a device/chassis that is not present, or you have wired an incorrect device ID or string.
Solutions: Check to make sure your device is present in Measurement & Automation Explorer (MAX) under DAQmx devices. You may have configured the device/chassis in Traditional NI-DAQ and not NI-DAQmx. Also check your device ID or string identifier to make sure that it matches with the ID in MAX.


Error code: - 200279
Description:
 Attempted to read samples that are no longer available. The requested sample was previously available, but has since been overwritten.
Possible cause: The application did not retrieve the data from the buffer fast enough, so the data was overwritten.
Solutions: Increasing the buffer size or reading the data more frequently may correct the problem.


Error code: - 200284
Description:
 Some or all of the samples requested have not yet been acquired.
Possible cause: The sampling rate is set too low or your DAQmx Read VI requires a longer timeout. This timeout error could also happen if a start trigger was never received or a task is configured for external timing and no clock is supplied. The default (unwired) value for DAQmx Read timeout is 10 seconds. The timeout input is not always labeled in the context help; it is an orange wire on the left side of the VI.
Solutions: To wait for the samples to become available use a longer read timeout or read later in your program. To make the samples available sooner, increase the sample rate that you have specified.


The Product Manual for NI-DAQmx .NET Class Library Help for Visual Studio 2010 has a complete list of NI-DAQmx Driver Error Codes . This information is accurate as of August 2012 and should reflect the error codes in LabVIEW and other programming environments using the NI-DAQmx driver.
 

Additional Information