Why does RLink USB driver installation fail for Windows 8 ?

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Q: The RLink USB driver fails to install on Windows 8. Is it supposed to work? How can I install it? Or is there another driver for Windows 8?

A: The Windows 7 RLink driver works in Windows 8 and there is no other driver.

In old versions of the software, the RLink inf file was not signed. By default Windows 8 does not ask you if you want to install the driver (like Windows 7 did), it just refuses without any explanation.

There are 3 ways to resolve this problem:

  • The best option is to update your software (both Ride7 and RKit) from our Extranet website. The latest versions include a signed version of the driver.
  • If this is not possible, you can use this new (signed) version of the RLink USB driver installer: ftp://www.raisonance.com/pub/Support/RL … 121024.exe
  • If this is not possible, here is how you can install the non-signed version on Windows 8:

1. Unplug the RLink, restart the PC.

2. While it boots, press shift+F8 to enter advanced boot mode.

3. Select "Disable Driver Signature Enforcement".

4. Install the driver, either by installing Ride7, or (if it is already installed) by executing this executable "As Admin":
<Ride>\Driver\RLinkDrv\RLinkUSBInstall.exe

5. When Windows warns you that the driver is not signed (if it does) tell it to install anyway (this step and the 2 following are the same in Vista and Win7).

6. Plug the RLink, check that the BUSY LED turns ON and then OFF, and that it appears in the Device Manager without a warning or error icon (on some PCs, the first time you do this, it may take a few minutes).

7. Execute RLinkCapab.exe (from a command prompt, or you can find it in <Ride>\bin\) to test the USB communication between the PC and RLink. It should tell you the RLink Serial Number (if you prefer, you can use any software that uses the RLink at this stage: Ride, RFlasher, etc.).

8. Restart the PC normally. Run steps 6 and 7 above to check the operation of the device and driver.

Apart from this, there is no reason why it would not work, and the tests we performed showed no problem.
However, it is of course possible that we missed something. Please do not hesitate to report any problem in this forum ( after having searched that it has not already been reported)