Installing The Audio Driver

Before you begin, connect the PC/Server to the WNIP network and set a fixed IP address on the NIC you are using within the WNIP system’s subnet. The default WNIP subnet is 192.168.87.0; your system may be configured differently.

We recommend applying the Wheatstone Network Layer Patch prior to installation of the driver. The Network Layer Patch adjusts Windows 10 and 11 to prevent metronome packets from being delayed by the operating system, when installed on current generation PCs and servers. Download the patch here and instructions here.

IMPORTANT! Copy the downloaded installer file to the PC. Begin installation by right-clicking the installer file and choosing Run as Administrator.

During the installation, the Driver Configuration window opens so you can set (or verify) the NIC   connected to your WNIP system; assign the number of stereo channels that PC is licensed for; and set a unique Device ID # for that PC Blade.

If you purchased the audio driver software with a USB License Key, plug in your USB license key (a green Keylok-brand USB license key or dongle) then Click Apply to run the Keylok driver. Once that is installed, you will return to the Driver Configuration Window, and you should get a pop-up message saying that your license is found. You can then click Cancel to close the Driver Configuration window.

If you did not purchase the driver with a USB License Key, you will get a message saying that a Keylok USB key is not found. You can click through that error message and continue with configuration.

Customers who do not have USB license keys either have a text based, node-locked software license or they have a floating license through WheatNet License Server.

If you have a text (node-locked license, you will need to do the following:

·         Click Obtain A License Key.

·         On the window that pops up, pick the network card for your WNIP network, then copy the text of the seed ID so you can paste it into an email, or click the button to create a text file with the license seed

Obtaining a License Key

Send the Seed ID you copied in the last step to techsupport@wheatstone.com. It’s important to send all the text in the seed exactly as you copied it, including slashes. If you are licensing multiple computers, you can send us all of the seeds in one file and we’ll generate a combo key that you can apply to all of the machines. When emailing us, we need to know the following:

·         The order reference number that you received from us when you purchased the software/system.

·         Your call letters or company name that the order is under

·         How many driver channels on the machine for each seed. IMPORTANT! WNIP driver channels are stereo, so a 1 channel WNIP license is one stereo record and one stereo playback channel, all the way up to a 24 channel WNIP license, which is 24 stereo record and playback channels.

Applying The License Key

To apply the license key you received from Technical Support, reopen the Driver Configuration window. From the Windows Start Menu, go to the Wheatstone folder and find Configure WheatNet IP Driver. Right-click this, choose More and then choose Run As Administrator to open the program.

When the Driver Configuration window opens, make sure you have the correct NIC selected, click Enter A License Key and then copy and paste the entire contents of the text that we sent you into the Window and click OK. Then click Apply, and then Cancel to close the Driver Configuration window.

If we sent you a combo key, just copy and paste the whole thing into the window (Ctrl+A, then Ctrl+C). The config program will parse out the information that it needs. Even if we just sent you one machine’s license, copy and paste the whole thing. If you leave any text out, it may not validate.

After you’ve licensed the driver and clicked Apply, behind the scenes Windows is stopping the driver and restarting it to read the key. When it validates, you will briefly get a pop up message saying that a license is found and how many channels it is licensed for. After about a minute you should see your PC Blade in Navigator.

If You’re Using License Server

Instead of sending a seed to Wheatstone and pasting the license key, you will be connecting to your WNIP system’s license server on your network. Check the Floating license checkbox, which unchecks Node Locked or USB Dongle  and greys out the section about license keys.

Enter the IP Address of your license server and the port. The default port will be 51003.

Replacement License Keys/Replacing Dead Computers

If you are using the USB dongle to license your driver, install the driver on the new machine, set the Blade ID and number of channels, and then move the USB key to the new machine to validate.

If you are using a text based Node-Locked license do the following:

·         Open the Driver Configuration window on the original PC (Start Menu, Wheatstone folder, right click, more, Run as Administrator, Configure WheatNet IP Driver) and copy the text of the original license and paste that into an email.

·         Install the driver on the new PC and click Obtain a License Key. Copy the Seed ID into the email.

·         Send this to techsupport@wheatstone.com along with the call letters/company name.

·         We will issue a replacement license key for the number of channels originally granted and update our database.

If your hard drive has failed, please send the new seed, PC name, and the number of channels required to techsupport@wheatstone.com along with your call letters/company name and we will try to match your request up with the machines we have on file for you.

If you know you will be replacing a lot of machines as part of an upgrade, feel free to contact support for a demo license to speed up the process. Just remember to apply the new license before the demo period runs out.

If you are using the license server, shut down the old machine to put the channels back into your license pool and then bring up the new PC and connect it to the license server.