Rithmic, CQG, Continuum or Kinetick, and which one you actually need in NinjaTrader 8

What is causing it

These are different providers of data and order routing, not settings you get to pick freely. Which one you use is determined by your broker and what you have subscribed to.

Why this happens

NinjaTrader supports many connection types so that it can work with a wide range of brokers, but each one is a different company with its own servers, entitlements and login system. The list in the platform is a list of who might supply you, not a menu of options you can switch between.

This is why copying another trader's setup rarely works. Their connection reflects their broker's arrangements, not yours.

The fix, step by step

1. Ask your broker which connection type they route through, because that decision is theirs and using the wrong one will simply fail to authenticate.
2. Use the credentials your broker issued for that specific provider, which may not be the same as your broker's website login.
3. Understand the split of duties: some providers give you both live data and order routing, while others are data only and cannot place trades.
4. If you only want charting and historical data without a brokerage account, a data-only subscription is the appropriate route, and it will not let you trade.
5. If your broker supports more than one route, ask which they recommend for your region and account type rather than guessing.
6. Set up one connection at a time and confirm it connects before adding another.

How to confirm it is fixed

The connection authenticates, live prices appear, and, if it is a routing connection, your real account number is visible in the account list.

Stopping it happening again

Record which provider your broker uses and keep the credentials with that note, so a reinstall does not turn into a guessing exercise.