Automation Studio 6.5 network failure on Parallels VM (Mac)

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What’s happening

After installing Automation Studio 6.5 on a Windows 11 ARM64 VM (Parallels Desktop), all network connectivity was lost - no internet access, no communication with host, completely isolated.

Findings

AS 6.5 installs the WinpkFilter LightWeight Filter (Component-ID: `nt_ndisrd`). When active on the network adapter, it appears incompatible with ARM64 + Parallels.

Comparison tests:

Platform WinpkFilter Network
ARM64 W11 + Parallels Installed & active ✗ Blocked
x64 W11 + VMware 17.6.4 Installed & active ✓ Works

Note: WinpkFilter is NOT installed by AS 6.3.4.31, starting with 6.5.

Tested Environments

  • Affected: ARM64 Windows 11 25H2 on Parallels Desktop
  • Working: x64 Windows 11 25H2 on VMware Workstation 17.6.4

Workaround

Disable the filter in PowerShell:

Disable-NetAdapterBinding -Name "Ethernet" -ComponentID nt_ndisrd

(Replace “Ethernet” with your adapter name - check with `Get-NetAdapter`)

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B&R Automation Studio 6 installation network interface bug
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thanks for sharing @roger.schoch :slight_smile:

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I ran into this issue as well for my AS 6.5 and Parallels VM (Windows 11 ARM64) setup and @roger.schoch’s solution worked for me! I ran it for each of my network adapters and that worked.

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4

I know that it sounds rather hard but B&R does officially not support ARM architecture:

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image978×384 26.7 KB

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5

I encountered the same issue when installing AS6.5.1 on my Mac 26.5.2 using Parallels Desktop 26 26.4.0.

My solution was to directly uninstall Windows Packet Filter x64 3.6.1.1 from Windows “Installed Apps” and restart, which resolved the problem. Thanks to the built-in Prism emulator in Windows ARM64, using Automation Studio 4.12.10 and Automation Studio 6.5.3 on the Mac works well so far, with all basic functions usable.

The number of users running the ARM version of Windows is gradually increasing.

Currently, the only sticking point is Windows Packet Filter x64. If possible, it is suggested that the AS development team also provide an ARM64-compatible version of WinpkFilter when packaging AS in the future.

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