How to download on board drivers

Install FTDI Drivers

Once you have downloaded and installed Arduino, it's time to connect the RedBoard to your computer! Before you can use the board, though, you'll need to install drivers.

Windows Driver Installation

After initially plugging your RedBoard in, your computer will try to search for a compatible driver. It may actually succeed! The FTDI drivers are pretty common, so Windows Update may know a little something about them. If the drivers do automatically install, you should see a little bubble notification saying so:

If your computer failed to find drivers, we'll have to install them manually. Check out our Windows FTDI Driver Install guide for driver install instructions.

Mac Driver Installation

If you're lucky, the FTDI drivers should automatically install on Mac OS X, otherwise you'll have to manually install the drivers. Check out the Mac FTDI Driver Installation guide for help installing the drivers.

In short, the process involves heading over to the FTDI driver website, and downloading the most up-to-date VCP drivers. Then you'll simply run the "FTDIUSBSerialDriver_v2_2_dmg" file you downloaded, and follow the installation prompts.

Linux Driver Installation

Linux is actually pretty good about automatically installing the drivers. If you have any trouble, check out our Linux FTDI Driver guide.

Now it's time to breathe easy! You'll only have to run through this driver installation process once, the first time you connect the board to your computer. Now it's time to upload a sketch!