Released in 2020, this was a game-changer. NI realized the need to onboard students, hobbyists, and makers.

NI’s servers can be slow. Use NIPM’s “Repair” function or uncheck unnecessary toolkits. Alternatively, download the offline ISO from NI’s website (requires a large download but is more reliable).

To secure a legitimate and safe copy of the software, follow these steps on the NI Download Page

While NIPM handles NI’s official tools, (from JKI) handles third-party, community-addons. Over 2,000 free libraries are available—from JSON parsing to advanced UI controls.

This article provides a complete, step-by-step walkthrough of the process, covering everything from version selection to post-installation activation.