Rigol Ultra Sigma has stopped working... - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / testgear

author: s3rkan
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: August 06, 2016, 12:18:22 pm
content: Hi everyone. I have downloaded the both the 01.06.00 and 01.06.01 versions and tried to install with built in admin account as mentionedhere. I have installed to 3 PCs with windows 8 x64, windows 7 x64, windows 7 x86 but in all of these the program crashed and said ".....has stopped working". Please could someone give me any advice?

author: dagg
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: August 06, 2016, 12:46:09 pm
content: Did you also install the NI-VISA Virtual Instrument Software Architecture? It is mandatory for Ultra Sigma to function.Jan.

author: s3rkan
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: August 06, 2016, 12:56:00 pm
content: Does it have an additional setup file? I think it have been installed with the ultra Sigma setup that I have downloaded from rigol site.

author: dagg
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: August 06, 2016, 01:20:12 pm
content: I can't really remember, but you should have an entry "National Instruments Software" in your software list. If it's not there, please download and install from your mentioned link, and work up to version 15.5 of that through the updates.

author: s3rkan
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: August 06, 2016, 02:54:50 pm
content: Quote from: dagg on August 06, 2016, 01:20:12 pmI have reinstalled the windows 8 x64 and ultra sigma. A screenshot is attached. Also I downloaded the National Instruments Software and installed it. But still it says "... has stopped working"

author: dagg
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: August 06, 2016, 03:24:20 pm
content: Did it already update to version 16.0 (which is the newest for me also)? You might want to force this through the Start Menu item "NI Update Service".

author: s3rkan
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: August 06, 2016, 05:57:10 pm
content: Quote from: dagg on August 06, 2016, 03:24:20 pmI have updated to v16 as you said but same issue againI have spent a whole day to install it but I have nothingThank you anyway dagg...

author: Bicurico
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 06, 2016, 06:09:22 pm
content: Hi.Just a wild suggestion, as I don't even own this device:Try changing the Regional Settings to a different country. Often the cause is just the "." vs "," for tge devimal separato.Regards

author: Kappes Buur
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: August 06, 2016, 06:57:32 pm
content: Ultra Sigma/Help/Ultra Sigma_English.chm mentions these files being installed

author: dagg
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: August 06, 2016, 07:01:37 pm
content: Hi Bicuricothat's a good point...! But it makes no difference over here, all's working fine on ',' or '.' for the decimal separator.s3rkan:Darn!Then I'd suggest to just uninstall Ultra Sigma -maybe more thoroughly needed, ie folders/appdata/registry/etc- and reinstall that. Because it might be that you started off in the reverse order; NI-VISA maybe needs to be installed 1st. I think NI-VISA will be installed correctly.A working Ultra Sigma on W7 is attached. Right-clicking on the highlighted scope, and choosingUltrascopewill start Ultra Sigma then.

author: s3rkan
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: August 06, 2016, 08:11:41 pm
content: Quote from: dagg on August 06, 2016, 07:01:37 pmI have uninstalled the Ultra Sigma and all its components with revo uninstaller. Installed the NI-VISA 16 first and installed the sigma then. Unfortunately, no success

author: dagg
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: August 06, 2016, 08:32:07 pm
content: And version 00.01.06.00?

author: dagg
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: August 06, 2016, 08:46:24 pm
content: Quote from: Bicurico on August 06, 2016, 06:09:22 pm"Each Rigol Software requires DOT as decimal separator. [English/America Notation]So before starting withinstallationor usage of Rigol Software go to your Windows Control Panel and change the Region and Language settings to the right notation!Otherwise your software will not work properly."

author: s3rkan
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: August 06, 2016, 08:52:29 pm
content: Quote from: dagg on August 06, 2016, 08:46:24 pmOK, here is the point: change the regional settings to USAAnd voilaThank you very much dagg and Bicurico!

author: dagg
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: August 06, 2016, 09:03:13 pm
content: Sighhh, congratulations!!

author: Scott_H
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: September 04, 2016, 01:42:57 pm
content: Just had a similar issue, posting here as this thread comes up in a google search...If Ultra Sigma crashes, you've checked " . " is your decimal separator, you've updated all the NI utilities... check if you need to set the "Ultra Sigma.exe" to run in windows 7 compatibility mode.(on Windows 10 Pro.)That took me an entire bloody hour to work out.

author: H.O
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 11, 2017, 09:27:41 pm
content: I'm sorry to drag this thread out of the mud but I thought another data point might be useful for future reference. I've struggled for two evenings getting NI VISA, Ultra Sigma, Python and PyVISA all set up on my new machine with Windows 10. Ultra Sigma kept crashing and I tried running as administrator, running in compatibillity mode, 01.06.01, 01.06.00, changed decimal separator etc.In the end I uninstalled everything, then I re-installed UltraSigma 01.06.01 and allowed IT to install whatever NI VISA version it comes bundled with (instead of installing the latest one) and itlooks likethis has rectified the issue for me.So, Ultra Sigma 01.06.01 with NI VISA 5.4.1 seems to work for me while the latest and greates NI-VISA 16 does not. No need for compatibillity mode, no need to run as administrator, no need to change decimal separator from "," to "."

author: klausES
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: February 29, 2020, 12:48:51 pm
content: Must get this thread out of the sink again ...After ultra sigma worked for me for quite a while (it only spun now and then) it has not worked since yesterday.(Still with the same Win 8.1 64).It can start, I can also enter the ip of my scope and it will be found and added to the device list,but as soon as I open the context menu with the right mouse button, ultra sigma crashes.And most of the time before I do anything e.g. choose ultrascope.Unfortunately, the tip with a dot instead of a comma as a number separator is of no use (previously it was also possible with a comma).An uninstallation and new does not solve the problem.The installation routine runs error-free with everything (including the NI components).However, it is no longer possible with the error as described above.

author: JingleheimerSE
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: January 01, 2021, 05:28:29 am
content: klausES, after installing Ultra Sigma_00_01_06_01 and UltraScope(PC)Installer_00.01.01.07, im having the exact same issue. Ultra Sigma launches and runs just fine but attempting to open Ultra scope leads to nothing but a timeout error.Has anyone else seen this or have a solution?I tried opening one of the crash dumps but was unable to get a full stack trace. I'm wondering if its an issue with the .NET framework it attempted to install as that is the only component that does not get reinstalled when uninstalling and reinstalling the whole suite.

author: S. Petrukhin
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 01, 2021, 01:02:11 pm
content: I'm sorry, why do you need this cumbersome and awkward software? What is the use and what does it do better than the web interface?

author: Tony_G
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 01, 2021, 08:51:48 pm
content: I've found that UltraSigma is a steaming pile of fetid dingoes kidneys in terms of its development. In my particular case, I believe the issue is with the video driver.What I found was installing this in a VM solved the issue (due to a generic video driver/device) and enabled it to run but in the end, it was just better and easier to write my own software than trying to deal with that software turd.TonyG

author: S. Petrukhin
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 01, 2021, 09:19:20 pm
content: Quote from: Tony_G on January 01, 2021, 08:51:48 pm+1

author: smerrett79
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: December 09, 2021, 03:55:30 pm
content: Also got this issue of timeout when trying to open Ultrascope from Ultrasigma. Initially, I was hopeful thatthis workaroundwould be able to fix things but no joy (for me but may help others. Rigol support have engaged with my email so if I get a successful resolution I will post an update for the benefit of those coming after me.

author: Fungus
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 09, 2021, 05:38:10 pm
content: Quote from: Tony_G on January 01, 2021, 08:51:48 pmYep.Half a gigabyte of steaming offal that could have been done in 16kb by any competent programmer.

author: tv84
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 09, 2021, 05:45:24 pm
content: Quote from: Fungus on December 09, 2021, 05:38:10 pm... with full debugging symbols info.

author: smerrett79
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: December 10, 2021, 09:00:54 am
content: Although it may be a "bad" piece of software, I do not have the skills to create an alternative, so I am persisting with trying to make it work. Rigol support has been very responsive but we've not had success yet. As an aside, it looks like UltraSigma is working fine - I can take screenshots that represent what I see on the 'scope fine.We have tried thorough uninstalls of UltraSigma, UltraScope and all the NI / VISA gubbins it relies on, using the advanced mode in Revo uninstaller to remove leftover folders and registry keys etc. They also sent me version 1.2.13 of UltraScope, which I could not find on any of the Rigol download pages (all 1.2.12 or lower) but that did not fix the issue. The other thing they say to check is that .net 3.5 is installed correctly. Although they are still working on getting me a check so I can see if I have my machine set up with .net correctly, I have looked at some online guides and I think it is. No joy.The NI software digs itself deep into the system and several people have struggled to remove sufficient proportions of an installation to be able to do a "clean" install of a different version, for troubleshooting. While I was eventually able to do this with Revo uninstaller and many reboots, there is athread hereabout how to attempt this with built-in windows uninstall tools. They didn't touch the registry, which Revo does, and I think is essential to being able to do a clean install.Other things they think might contribute but haven't been in my case: check you have installed the UltraSigma and UltarScope are installed in a "Program Files" folder. In my case, they were in "Program Files x86". Also check that you use an admin user account.I will report back with any other things they recommend to try and hopefully a fix. If anyone knows any alternative software that can do similar functions for the DS1054Z, please link it here.So far these threadshereandhereseem to have good suggestions, including DSRemote, GazeAt and Sigrok/Pulseview. I'm on Win10 without any WSL/VM set up at the moment but I'm close to jumping ship.

author: Fungus
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 10, 2021, 04:06:51 pm
content: Quote from: smerrett79 on December 10, 2021, 09:00:54 amI think there's a Python script for that, no drivers needed.https://hackaday.com/2019/03/30/grab-an-image-from-your-o-scope-the-easy-way/

author: kudagaci
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: February 08, 2024, 07:59:50 pm
content: Could anyone find a solution for this issue? I'm able to communicate with device via SCPI command tab and able to receive screen print. Power module seems like working too. But when it comes to Ultra Sigma Scope module, it just gives timeout error. I tried to increase Visa Timeout parameter via VISA Interactive Control to give it a more space but no joy.BTW I've made the first installation on a Windows region where the decimal operator was ",". Then uninstalled everything and after changing decimal operator to "." reinstalled everything but I dont know whether if registries are updated or not.

author: Fungus
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 08, 2024, 08:42:46 pm
content: My $0.02: Ultra Sigma is the worst piece of software ever made. Not being able to use it is agoodthing. You're not missing anything, especially with the web interface.