Deployment Scenario 1: End User

In this deployment scenario, a single end user installs wRTOS on their development machine and activates and configures wRTOS on the Licensing and Activation page in wRTOS Settings.

Installation

Before beginning the installation, do the following:

Review the MaxRT wRTOS Runtime Install Guide and verify that your configuration meets the requirements described there.
You must have administrator privileges on your system. Log on with administrator privileges or start the wRTOS installation using Run as Administrator.
Exit all Windows programs.
Verify that a valid current boot configuration is present on the system.

Important Considerations

wRTOS Runtime cannot be installed on the same system as an RTX64 or KINGSTAR Runtime.
IntervalZero recommends that you turn off the Windows “Automatically reboot” option. You can find this option under Start > Control Panel > System and Security > System > Advanced System Settings > Startup and Recovery > Automatically Restart. Clearing selection of this option allows you to view blue screen information.
The wRTOS Runtime installer automatically turns off Fast Startup on Windows 11 and Windows 10 machines. When wRTOS is uninstalled, Fast Startup will remain turned off.

Installing

To install wRTOS Runtime:

Download the zip file from the IntervalZero Customer Center.
Extract the contents of the zip file.
Double-click the self-extracting executable.
The MaxRT wRTOS Runtime Installer Wizard appears. Click Next on the Welcome screen.
Read the End User License Agreement, select I accept the terms of the license agreement, and then click Next.
On the Destination Folder screen, optionally browse for a different destination location or accept the default location: C:\Program Files\IntervalZero\MaxRT\wRTOS\. Click Next to continue.
On the Custom Setup screen, select the features and components you want to install. Clear selection of the features and components you don't want to install. Click Next to continue.

Note: TCP/IP requires the wRTOS Basic Networking package license. GigE Vision requires the wRTOS GigE Vision license and thewRTOS Basic Networking license. E-CAT requires the wRTOS Fieldbus package license. Contact IntervalZero Sales to purchase product licenses.

On the Virtual Machine Support screen, leave the Enable virtual machine support check box cleared. Click Next to continue.
On the Ready to Install the Program screen, click Install.
Once wRTOS Runtime has been successfully installed, click Finish to exit the Installer Wizard. If wRTOS is not licensed, or the RTSS Configuration is not set, wRTOS Settings opens, where you can activate components and configure the RTSS core configuration. See Activating and Configuring wRTOS Runtime in the MaxRT wRTOS Runtime Install Guide.
Reboot the system, and then choose the wRTOS boot configuration at system startup: Operating System] - wRTOS

IMPORTANT: If you boot into a non-wRTOS configuration during startup, a warning message will appear, and wRTOS may not behave as expected.

Activating and Configuring

The Licensing and Activation page in wRTOS Settings appears once wRTOS has been successfully installed. You can activate your wRTOS product on this page.

Recommended License Type:

Node Locked – Single Activation. A single activation key licenses a single system.

MaxRT wRTOS Runtime product components must be activated with a valid license. You can activate your product components and lock them to a specific machine or IntervalZero-provided dongle.

If you choose to install the wRTOS Settings feature, which is selected to be installed by default, the wRTOS Settings Licensing and Activation page appears immediately after a successful program installation. If wRTOS Settings is not installed, you can use the MaxRTActivationUtil.exe command line utility to activate wRTOS components and configure system processors.

Note: RTX64 licenses will not work with MaxRT products. You must purchase a new license to activate wRTOS Runtime.

Once wRTOS Runtime product components are licensed, you must configure the Subsystem before you can run a real-time application. You can create an RTSS configuration on the Core Configuration page in wRTOS Settings or through the MaxRTActivationUtil.exe command line utility. See Setting the RTSS Configuration later in this guide.

Activating with wRTOS Settings

If you install the wRTOS Settings feature with wRTOS Runtime, you can activate wRTOS components on the Licensing and Activation page. If wRTOS Settings is not installed, you can use the MaxRTActivationUtil.exe command line utility to activate wRTOS components.

Activation Options

You can activate a wRTOS Runtime product feature with a key or license file.

Note: The steps required to activate the features depend on whether the machine is connected to the Internet.

Option	Description
Activate with a key	Activate using a valid activation key. You can activate immediately over the network (this option requires a network connection with access to the IntervalZero License Server) or generate a fingerprint file with a valid activation key which you can then convert to a license file and import using the Activate with a license file option.
Activate with a license file	Activate by importing a valid license file.

Activate with a key

Use this option to activate your product feature with a valid activation key. You can activate immediately over the network (this option requires a network connection with access to the IntervalZero License Server) or generate a fingerprint file with a valid activation key which you can then convert to a license file and import using the Activate with a license file option.

To activate with a key:

Click Activate with a key.
Determine whether your machine is connected to the Internet with access to the IntervalZero License Server:

Status	Meaning
Connection established	The machine is connected to the network.
Connection not established	A network connection could not be established. Make sure all network cables are plugged in and click the Network icon to refresh. If a network connection cannot be established, you can do one of the following: Follow the steps under Configuring a Proxy Server. Generate a fingerprint file.

Status

Meaning

Connection established

The machine is connected to the network.

Connection not established

A network connection could not be established.

Make sure all network cables are plugged in and click the Network icon to refresh. If a network connection cannot be established, you can do one of the following:

Follow the steps under Configuring a Proxy Server.
Generate a fingerprint file.

Enter a valid activation key.

Note: You can find your activation key in the email you received from IntervalZero Sales upon purchase of wRTOS. If you can't locate your key, click Don't have an activation key? to contact Sales.

Do one of the following:

If your machine is connected to the network, click Activate Over the Network. The product features activated by this key are added to the Licensed components list.
If your machine is not connected to the network, click Generate a Fingerprint File. This creates a fingerprint file with a valid activation key which you can then convert to a license file and import using the Activate with a license file option. See Generating a Fingerprint File for more information on this step.

Configuring a Proxy Server

You can try configuring a proxy server if a network connection cannot be established.

To configure a proxy server:

Click Configure proxy server. The Configure proxy server dialog appears.
Enter the requested settings:

Server
Port
Username
Password

Note: This information can be provided by your IT department.

Click Apply.

Generating a Fingerprint File

Use this option to create a fingerprint file with a valid activation key which you can then import using the Activate with a license file option.

To generate a fingerprint file:

Under Activate with a key, enter a valid activation key, and then click Generate a fingerprint file. A file named Fingerprintfile.rfp is saved to the desktop.
Navigate to the desktop and then copy and paste the file Fingerprintfile.rfp to an external device.
Connect the device to a machine with Internet connectivity.
Launch a web browser and navigate to https://Activation.IntervalZero.com.
Browse and open the file Fingerprintfile.rfp.
Click Activate to generate a license file named License.lic.
Click Save if your browser prompts you to save the license file. Some browsers automatically save the downloaded license file without prompting.
Copy the file License.lic to the external device and transfer it to the machine on which wRTOS is installed.
Follow the steps under Activate with a license file.

Activate with a license file

Use this option to activate a product feature by importing a valid license file, such as a license file created from a fingerprint file.

To activate with a license file:

Click Activate with a license file.
Click Import... and then browse and open the License.lic file.

Activating Product Components to a Dongle

You have three options when purchasing an IntervalZero-provided dongle and a product license at the same time:

Option 1 (default) – IntervalZero activates the dongle for you when you purchase the software and a small form factor dongle. Connect the dongle to use wRTOS. See Using a Pre-Activated Dongle below.
Option 2 – Request that IntervalZero not activate the dongle for you when you purchase the software and a small form factor dongle. You will then need to activate the product to the dongle yourself, following the steps above. See Using a Non-Activated Dongle below.
Option 3 – Use an existing small form factor dongle. You will need to activate the product the dongle yourself, following the steps above. See Using a Non-Activated Dongle below.

Note: You can also license wRTOS features to an IntervalZero-provided dongle using the MaxRT Dongle Activation Utility. This allows you to activate licensed features on other machines similar to the pre-activation service you can request from IntervalZero. You can download the MaxRT Dongle Activation Utility from the Customer Center.

If you have a dongle that has already been activated, jump to step To use a dongle that has already been activated.

IMPORTANT: You cannot license wRTOS features to a dongle when more than one dongle is connected to the machine.

IMPORTANT: You cannot license wRTOS features to a dongle from a remote connection.

Using a Non-Activated Dongle

To activate product features to a non-activated dongle:

Note: You cannot license wRTOS features to a dongle when more than one dongle is connected to the machine.

Make sure wRTOS Settings detects the dongle. If the dongle is not detected, make sure it is securely connected to the machine.

Note: If the dongle isn’t recognized, the wRTOS feature(s) will be locked to the machine.

IMPORTANT: Once features are locked to a dongle, that dongle must be connected to use wRTOS features on that machine.

Choose the appropriate activation option. See Activation Options above.

Using a Pre-Activated Dongle

A pre-activated dongle already contains a license file. Follow the steps below to use a pre-activated dongle.

To use a dongle that has already been activated:

Connect the dongle to a USB port on the machine.
Make sure wRTOS Settings detects the dongle. If the dongle is not detected, make sure it is securely connected to the machine.

Once the dongle is detected, the product features activated by its key are added to the Licensed features list.

Activating with MaxRTActivationUtil.exe (Command Line)

If wRTOS Settings is not installed, you can use the MaxRTActivationUtil.exe command line utility to activate wRTOS components and configure system processors.

To activate your product (Internet connection required):

Navigate to the C:\Program Files\IntervalZero\MaxRT\Common\bin directory and run MaxRTActivationUtil.exe as Administrator.
Type the -a flag followed by your activation key. For example:

MaxRTActivationUtil.exe -a WRTOS64-111-2222-3333-4444-5555-WNET64-111-2222-3333-4444-5555

Note: You can find your activation key in the email you received from IntervalZero Sales.

If running from a command prompt, the activated components are displayed.

Force-Activating to a Dongle or Machine

You can use the -dongle flag to force activation to an IntervalZero-provided dongle. If you want to force activation to ignore a dongle, use the -nodongle flag.

To force activation to a dongle:

MaxRTActivationUtil.exe -a WRTOS64-111-2222-3333-4444-5555-WNET64-111-2222-3333-4444-5555 -dongle

To force activation to ignore a dongle:

MaxRTActivationUtil.exe -a WRTOS64-111-2222-3333-4444-5555-WNET64-111-2222-3333-4444-5555 -nodongle

To look for an IntervalZero-provided dongle and activate to the machine if a dongle is not found:

MaxRTActivationUtil.exe -a WRTOS64-111-2222-3333-4444-5555-WNET64-111-2222-3333-4444-5555

Setting the RTSS Configuration

Once wRTOS Runtime is licensed, you must set an RTSS configuration before you can use it. To do this, assign available processors to Windows or wRTOS on the Core Configuration page in wRTOS Settings, if installed, or through the MaxRTActivationUtil.exe command line utility.

Note: We recommend that you turn off Hyper-Threading. If Hyper-Threading remains enabled, we recommend assigning an even number of processors to Windows so that the Windows logical processor and RTSS logical processor don’t share the same physical processor.

Using wRTOS Settings

If you install the wRTOS Settings feature with wRTOS Runtime, you can create an RTSS configuration on the Core Configuration page. If wRTOS Settings is not installed, you can use the MaxRTActivationUtil.exe command line utility to configure system processors.

To set the RTSS configuration:

Open wRTOS Settings if it is not already open.
Navigate to the Core Configuration page:
From the Home page, click Core Configuration.

From any other wRTOS Settings page, click Core Configuration (Contents / Core Configuration) in the sidebar menu.

View the number of total cores available at the top of the Core Configuration page. This is the number of cores you can assign between Windows and wRTOS. Keep in mind that at least the first core is always assigned to Windows. For example, on a machine with 8 cores, and a Professional wRTOS Runtime license at minimum, you can assign up to 7 cores to wRTOS.
Assign system cores to Windows. Enter a value or choose a number from the Windows combo box.
Assign remaining cores to the wRTOS Real-time Subsystem (RTSS). Enter a value or choose a number from the RTSS combo box.
If the specified configuration is valid, click Apply to complete the configuration.

Note: The Apply button is grayed-out until a valid configuration is provided. A valid configuration meets these requirements:

• The total number of cores assigned to Windows and RTSS is equal to or less than the total number of system cores.

• The number of cores assigned to RTSS is equal to or less than the number of cores allowed by your wRTOS Runtime Edition license.

Choose the wRTOS configuration when the system starts.

Note: Even if you don't reboot immediately, all changes will be saved and will take effect after the next reboot. The wRTOS Subsystem will use the previous settings until after the next reboot.

Using MaxRTActivationUtil.exe (Command Line)

If wRTOS Settings is not installed, you can use the MaxRTActivationUtil.exe command line utility to configure system processors.

Setting the RTSS configuration:

Navigate to the C:\Program Files\IntervalZero\MaxRT\Common\bin directory.
Run MaxRTActivationUtil.exe as Administrator. You must license the product before you configure the system.
Specify the number of Windows -w and RTSS -r processors. For example, to assign 3 processors to Windows and 5 processors to wRTOS on a dedicated system, you would type:

MaxRTActivationUtil.exe -w 3 -r 5

Restart the system.