Chapter 1 Installing RTI Connext

RTI® Connext® is delivered as static and dynamic libraries with development tools, examples, and documentation that will help you use the libraries.

If you are installing a purchased version of Connext, see 1.1 Installing a Regular Version. If you are evaluating Connext or using it for research purposes, see 1.2 Installing an Evaluation or LM Version. Note that all evaluation and LM versions require a license key file to run. All use of both regular and LM versions is subject to RTI's Software License Agreement #4000. The evaluation version is subject to RTI's Software Evaluation License Agreement #4045.

1.1 Installing a Regular Version

Connext distributions are provided in two types of bundles: hosts and targets.

• A host bundle contains non-target-specific files, such as documentation, header files, tools, and infrastructure services executables. The host bundle is provided in a .run, .exe, or .dmg file that will run an installer.

  Host bundles are named:

  • rti_connext_dds-<version>-<package_type>-host-<host-platform>.<extension>

  The <package_type> is usually pro.

  Note: The legacy core package type does not include all functionality. Please contact your local RTI sales representative or email sales@rti.com for more information.

  The <host_platform> depends on your development platform: x64Linux for Linux® systems, x64Win64 for Windows® systems, or x64Darwin or arm64Darwin for macOS® systems.

  The <extension> is run for Linux systems, exe for Windows systems, or dmg for macOS systems.

• A target bundle contains libraries and any applications that have target-specific dependencies. A target bundle is an “RTI Package” (*.rtipkg) file that must be installed on top of your host bundle.

  Target bundles are named:

  • rti_connext_dds-<version>-<package_type>-target-<target_architecture>.rtipkg

  The <target_architecture> depends on your target machine (where you will deploy your completed application). These strings are listed in the RTI Connext Core Libraries Platform Notes; examples are x64Win64VS2017 and x64Linux4gcc7.3.0.

  Note: You may have more than one target bundle if you are developing for multiple targets.

  Note: If you are developing C# applications, you need to download NuGet packages as well. For detailed instructions, see Installing Connext in the RTI Connext Getting Started Guide for C#.

If you are installing a patch release (for example, a 7.3.1.x release), read 2.2 Upgrading to a Patch Release.

There are two ways to install a Connext host bundle: 

• using an installer, which will prompt you for information such as where to install, or
• using a script, which allows you to run in "unattended mode" so you will not be prompted for information while it is installing.

Both ways are described below.

Running from a Script (Unattended Mode)

When running in unattended mode, the installer will use default values for its parameters unless you specify them at the command line (see Table 1.1 Command-Line Options when Installing from a Script).

Table 1.1 Command-Line Options when Installing from a Script

Parameter	Values	Meaning	Default
--mode	win32 gtk xwindows osxqt text [not available on Windows] unattended [all platforms] [not available for "eval" or "lm" package]	Should the installer display a graphical or a text-based UI? Should the installer ask for user feedback?	GUI available on your platform
--unattendedmodeui	none [not available on Windows] minimal [not available on Windows] minimalWithDialogs [required on Windows if using --mode unattended]	If you chose --mode unattended, how much graphical feedback should the installer display?	none
--prefix	directory to install into	The installation directory the product will be placed into. Note that the installer will always place the product in a directory named rti_connext_dds-7.3.1. See Chapter 3 Paths Mentioned in Documentation	Platform-dependent Windows Example: c:\program files\rti_connext_dds-7.3.1
--disable_copy_examples	true false	Should the installer disable the copying of examples into rti_workspace during installation (true) or not (false)?	false

1.1.1 Installing on a Linux System

In these instructions, we assume your host bundle is named rti_connext_dds-7.3.1-pro-host-x64Linux.run and your target bundle is named rti_connext_dds-pro-target-7.3.1-x64Linux4gcc7.3.0.rtipkg. Your filenames will be different depending on your package type and architecture.

1. Download the host and target bundles to a location of your choice; for example, /home/<your user name>/Downloads.
2. Install the host bundle. As described above, you can use an installer or a script:
• Using the installer:

Run the host bundle installer (the .run file). For example:

/home/<your user name>/Downloads/rti_connext_7.3.1-dds-pro-host-x64Linux.run

Follow the on-screen prompts. You will be asked if you want to use the default installation directory (/home/<your user name>) or specify a different path. We refer to the installation directory as <NDDSHOME>, see Chapter 3 Paths Mentioned in Documentation.

• Using a script:

Run from a command prompt:

rti_connext_dds-7.3.1-<package_type>-host-<host_platform>.run 
--mode unattended --prefix <installation path>

The --prefix option allows you to specify the installation directory; if you omit this, the installer will install into a default location.

For example (enter on one line):

rti_connext_dds-7.3.1-pro-host-x64Linux.run 
--mode unattended --prefix /home/user/rti_connext_dds-7.3.1

3. Install the target bundle(s). There are two ways to do this:
• From RTI Launcher:

Start RTI Launcher (<NDDSHOME>/bin/rtilauncher), select the Configuration tab, and click on Install RTI Packages. Add the location of your target file. Click Install.

• From the command line:

Open a command prompt and change to the rti_connext_dds-7.3.1/bin directory. Use <NDDSHOME>/bin/rtipkginstall to install the target bundle. For example (enter on one line):

rtipkginstall 
  /home/<your user name>/Downloads/rti_connext_dds-7.3.1-pro-target-x64Linux4gcc7.3.0.rtipkg

4. Read Chapter 4 License Management.
5. See 1.3 After Installation.

1.1.2 Installing on a Windows System

In these instructions, we assume your host bundle is named rti_connext_dds-7.3.1-pro-host-x64Win64.exe and your target bundle is named rti_connext_dds-7.3.1-pro-target-x64Win64VS2017.rtipkg. Your filenames will be different depending on your package type and architecture.

Depending on your version of Windows and where you want to install these files, your user account may or may not require administrator privileges.

1. Download the host and target bundles to a location of your choice; for example, C:\Users\<your user name>\Downloads.
2. Install the host bundle. As described above, you can use an installer or a script:
• Using the installer:

From your file explorer, open (double-click) the host bundle installer (the .exe file).

Follow the on-screen prompts. You will be asked if you want to use the default installation directory (C:\Program Files) or specify a different path.

• Using a script:

Run from a command prompt:

rti_connext_dds-<version>-<package_type>-host-<host_platform>.exe 
--mode unattended --unattendedmodeui minimalWithDialogs --prefix <installation path>

The --prefix option allows you to specify the installation directory. If you do not specify a prefix, the installer will install into a default location.

For example (enter on one line):

rti_connext_dds-7.3.1-pro-host-x64Win64.exe --mode unattended 
--unattendedmodeui minimalWithDialogs --prefix c:\program files\rti_connext_dds-7.3.1

When running in unattended mode on a Windows system, you must specify --unattendedmodeui minimalWithDialogs or the installation will fail.

3. Install the target bundle(s). There are two ways to do this:
• From RTI Launcher:

Start RTI Launcher (<NDDSHOME>\bin\rtilauncher or from the Windows Start menu), select the Configuration tab, and click on Install RTI Packages. Add the location of your package file. Click Install.

• From the command line:

Open a command prompt and change to the rti_connext_dds-7.3.1\bin directory. Use the rtipkginstall batch file to install the target bundle. For example (enter on one line):

rtipkginstall C:\Users\<your user name>\Downloads\rti_connext_dds-7.3.1-pro-target-x64Win64VS2017.rtipkg

4. Read Chapter 4 License Management.
5. See 1.3 After Installation.

1.1.3 Installing on a macOS System

In these instructions, we assume your host bundle is named rti_connext_dds-7.3.1-pro-host-arm64Darwin.dmg and your target bundle is named rti_connext_dds-7.3.1-pro-target-arm64Darwin20clang12.0.rtipkg. Your filenames may be different depending on your package type and architecture.

1. Download the host and target bundles to a location of your choice; for example, /Users/<your user name>/Downloads.
2. Double-click on the host bundle .dmg file. You should see a screen appear.
3. Double-click on the icon in the screen to run the installer application.
4. Follow the on-screen prompts. You will be asked if you want to use the default installation directory (/Applications/rti_connext_dds-7.3.1) or specify a different path. Note that the installer will always place the product inside a folder named rti_connext_dds-7.3.1. We refer to the installation directory as <NDDSHOME>, see Chapter 3 Paths Mentioned in Documentation.

Note: If you do not install Connext in the default installation directory (/Applications/rti_connext_dds-7.3.1), the Launcher icon might not display in the macOS Launchpad (see the Launchpad User Guide). You can still access the Launcher application in the rti_connext_dds-7.3.1 directory.

5. Install the target bundle(s). There are two ways to do this:
• From RTI Launcher:

Start RTI Launcher (<NDDSHOME>/RTI Launcher), select the Configuration tab, and click on Install RTI Packages. Add the location of your target file. Click Install.

• From the command line:

Open a command prompt and change to the rti_connext_dds-7.3.1/bin directory. Use <NDDSHOME>/bin/rtipkginstall to install the target bundle. For example (enter on one line):

rtipkginstall /Users/<your user name>/Downloads/rti_connext_dds-7.3.1-pro-target-arm64Darwin20clang12.0.rtipkg

6. Read Chapter 4 License Management.
7. See 1.3 After Installation.

1.2 Installing an Evaluation or LM Version

In addition to Connext Professional, the evaluation ("eval") and LM ("lm") packages include RTI Real-Time WAN Transport, RTI Cloud Discovery Service, RTI Security Plugins, and OpenSSL® version 3.5.1. (The installer provides a prebuilt version of OpenSSL 3.5.1. If you wish to build your own version of OpenSSL 3.5.1, you can find the source code here: https://github.com/openssl/openssl.)

Evaluation and LM distributions usually combine the host and target in a single bundle, named after the target. For example, rti_connext_dds-7.3.1-eval-x64Win64VS2017.exe combines the x64Win64 host with the x64Win64VS2017 target in a single evaluation bundle; the same is true for the rti_connext_dds-7.3.1-lm-x64Win64VS2017.exe LM bundle. The target architecture depends on your target machine where you will deploy your completed application. These strings are listed in the RTI Connext Core Libraries Platform Notes; examples are x64Win64VS2017, x64Linux4gcc7.3.0, and arm64Darwin20clang12.0.

Some evaluation and LM distributions require you to install two bundles:

• A combined host/target bundle (.run, .exe, or .dmg), such as rti_connext_dds-7.3.1-lm-x64Linux4gcc7.3.0.run or rti_connext_dds-7.3.1-eval-x64Linux4gcc7.3.0.run.
• A separate LM target package (.rtipkg) for the specific target architecture, such as rti_connext_dds-7.3.1-lm-target-armv8Linux4gcc7.3.0.rtipkg.

For example, suppose your target machine uses Ubuntu 18.04 LTS on an Arm v8 CPU. RTI does not currently provide a combined evaluation or LM host/target bundle for this architecture. So first you would install an evaluation/LM bundle for any Linux architecture, then install the LM target package for your Ubuntu 18.04 LTS target on an Arm v8 CPU. The instructions below explain how.





Note: Evaluation and LM packages cannot be installed in "unattended mode."

1.2.3 Installing an Evaluation or LM Version on a macOS System

1. Download the evaluation or LM bundle (for example: rti_connext_dds-7.3.1-lm-arm64Darwin20clang12.0.dmg) to a location of your choice; for example, /Users/<your user name>/Downloads.
2. Double-click on the host bundle .dmg file. You should see a screen appear.
3. Double-click on the icon in the screen to run the installer application.
4. Follow the on-screen prompts. You will be asked if you want to use the default installation directory (/Applications/rti_connext_dds-7.3.1 or specify a different path. Note that the installer will always place the product inside a folder named rti_connext_dds-7.3.1. We refer to the installation directory as <NDDSHOME>, see Chapter 3 Paths Mentioned in Documentation.

Note: If you do not install Connext in the default installation directory (/Applications/rti_connext_dds-7.3.1), the Launcher icon might not display in the macOS Launchpad (see the Launchpad User Guide). You can still access the Launcher application in the rti_connext_dds-7.3.1 directory.

5. Read Chapter 4 License Management.
6. See 1.3 After Installation.

1.2.4 Telemetry Data Collected by Evaluation Version

After installing the Connext, you will see a TELEMETRY_DATA.json file, which contains general product usage information without any personal data or personal identifiers. If usage data sharing is enabled, this is the only file that is shared with RTI, for "eval" bundles only.

Note: Although you will see the TELEMETRY_DATA.json file in all Connext installations, usage data sharing occurs only with the evaluation bundle (bundles with "eval" in their name). See information about the "Preferences Dialog," in the Configuration Tab section of the RTI Launcher User's Manual to learn how to enable/disable usage data sharing in the evaluation bundle.

TELEMETRY_DATA.json is in the following locations:

• macOS systems: /Users/<your user name>/rti_workspace/7.3.1/.tdata/
• Linux systems: /home/<your user name>/rti_workspace/7.3.1/.tdata/
• Windows systems: <your Windows documents folder>\rti_workspace\7.3.1\.tdata\

Where 'your Windows documents folder' depends on your version of Windows. For example, on Windows 10, the folder is C:\Users\<your user name>\Documents.

1.3 After Installation

After installation:

• From Launcher, right-click each icon to access documentation about that component. See the RTI Launcher User's Manual (in <NDDSHOME>/doc/manuals/connext_dds_professional/tools/launcher).
• See the RTI Connext Getting Started Guide (in <NDDSHOME>/doc/manuals/connext_dds_professional/getting_started_guide).

Note: On some Linux operating systems, executing the desktop shortcut for Launcher might report that the application has not been marked as trusted. This is a harmful warning that will prevent you from executing Launcher using the desktop shortcut. To remove this warning, click "Trust and Launch":

This will mark the desktop shortcut as a trusted application, allowing you to run the application. If the warning doesn't appear and the desktop shortcut still doesn’t run, right-click the shortcut and click "Allow Launching":

On some Linux operating systems, the desktop shortcut might not execute and will need to be run through the terminal or in the Activities panel. In some newer versions of GNOME, the "Allow Launching" option is missing from the context menu, preventing the desktop shortcut from being run. Launcher can still be run from the Activities panel:

Or you can run Launcher through the terminal by entering the following command:

gtk-launch rtilauncher.desktop