Changing the Installation Folder of My Software in NI Package Manager?

There is no explicit way to change the installation folder in the user interface of NI Package Manager (NIPM). NI provides the following steps a possible but not officially supported workaround to achieve this. Please note that NI does not guarantee a working installation for all NI software even if the installation process could be completed successfully. 

To change the installation folder, registry edits are required. Follow the steps below to change the default installation directory of NI software before running your installations:

1. Manually create the desired root directories for 32 and 64-bit NI software. For example:
   • 32-bit: D:\Bin\NI\32-bit\
   • 64-bit: D:\Bin\NI\64-bit\
2. Open the Windows Registry Editor.
   • This can be done by using Windows search for "Run" and inputting "regedit" in the open prompt.
3. Create the following registry keys and add a string value that is the root directories you created previously:
   • 32-bit: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\National Instruments\Common\Installer 
     • NIDIR= <Installation Directory Path>
   • 64-bit: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\National Instruments\Common\Installer
     • NIDIR64= <Installation Directory Path>

The 32-bit key will change the installation directory of 32-bit software and the 64-bit key will change the installation directory of 64-bit software. These two keys should generally not point to the same installation directory. These edits need to be made before installing the software for them to work. 

Additional Information - Change the Installation Directory for NI Package Manager

If you'd like to change the installation directory for the NI Package Manager application:

1. Manually create the desired directory for NI Package Manager (NIPM). For example:
   • D:\Bin\NI\NIPM\ 
2. Manually create the following two registry keys:
   • Computer\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\National Instruments\NI Package Manager\CurrentVersion
   • Computer\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\National Instruments\NI Package Manager\CurrentVersion
3. In each registry key created, add a string value with the name Path and values that are the same as the installation directory path. For example:
   • D:\Bin\NI\NIPM\
   • Note: Both the 32 and 64-bit key will point to the same installation directory for NIPM.
4. Install NI Package Manager.