Dear all,
What are the smartest way to make a solo FPGA project capable of field
updates? I'm very new in the FPGA world so I don't much about the
practical use of them. Normally when I uses microcontrollers I make them
updateble via USB, serial or SD cards.
What techniques are possible when I want to avoid having a uP in the
project.
My target is a Xilinx Spartan 3A or 3AN
Regards
Jan
Field update
Started by ●October 19, 2008
Reply by ●October 19, 20082008-10-19
Jan wrote:> Dear all, > > What are the smartest way to make a solo FPGA project capable of field > updates? I'm very new in the FPGA world so I don't much about the > practical use of them. Normally when I uses microcontrollers I make them > updateble via USB, serial or SD cards. > > What techniques are possible when I want to avoid having a uP in the > project. > > My target is a Xilinx Spartan 3A or 3ANYou may find it very hard to safely avoid a uC entirely. If your power can fail at any time, you need to avoid a path-of-no-return. That might mean two copies in the loader memory, one default boot copy, and a second runable-if-ok copy. -jg
Reply by ●October 19, 20082008-10-19
Jan <1@2.3> wrote:>Dear all, > >What are the smartest way to make a solo FPGA project capable of field >updates? I'm very new in the FPGA world so I don't much about the >practical use of them. Normally when I uses microcontrollers I make them >updateble via USB, serial or SD cards. > >What techniques are possible when I want to avoid having a uP in the >project. > >My target is a Xilinx Spartan 3A or 3ANIt is possible to do partial (re-) configuration on Xilinx devices through JTAG. However I don't know if the FPGA could program itself. Xilinx has some application notes on this subject. If it turns out to be possible, you can have a small amount of logic (for example includign a picoblaze cpu) which can load the rest of the FPGA from configuration memory and update this memory through a serial port (the picoblaze package comes with a UART). -- Programmeren in Almere? E-mail naar nico@nctdevpuntnl (punt=.)
Reply by ●October 20, 20082008-10-20
Jan wrote:> Dear all, > > What are the smartest way to make a solo FPGA project capable of field > updates? I'm very new in the FPGA world so I don't much about the > practical use of them. Normally when I uses microcontrollers I make them > updateble via USB, serial or SD cards.That's the way to do it. Save multiple images in flash. The uP handles networking and loading images to flash and fpga.> What techniques are possible when I want to avoid having a uP in the > project.You could put the project on a pci[e] card and have the host pc do the updates. -- Mike Treseler
Reply by ●October 20, 20082008-10-20
I think the MultiBoot feature available in Xilinx FPGAs is especially useful for field updates. MultiBoot allows you to update the FPGA while maintaining a failsafe image. Avnet has an example application note showing how to do this, updating the secondary image in serial Flash with a new image arriving over ethernet. "S3A1800DSP Serial Flash Bistream Update over Ethernet" at https://www.em.avnet.com/common/filetree/0%2C2740%2CRID%3D&CID%3D42106&CCD%= 3DUSA&SID%3D32214&DID%3DDF2&SRT%3D1&LID%3D32232&PRT%3D0&PVW%3D&PNT%3D&BID%3= DDF2&CTP%3DEVK%2C00.html?ACD=3D3 Bryan On Oct 19, 9:25=A0am, Jan <1...@2.3> wrote:> Dear all, > > What are the smartest way to make a solo FPGA project capable of field > updates? I'm very new in the FPGA world so I don't much about the > practical use of them. Normally when I uses microcontrollers I make them > updateble via USB, serial or SD cards. > > What techniques are possible when I want to avoid having a uP in the > project. > > My target is a Xilinx Spartan 3A or 3AN > > Regards > =A0 =A0 Jan
Reply by ●April 18, 20192019-04-18
вторник, 21 октября 2008 г., 6:40:26 UTC+4 пользователь Bryan написал:> I think the MultiBoot feature available in Xilinx FPGAs is especially > useful for field updates. MultiBoot allows you to update the FPGA > while maintaining a failsafe image. Avnet has an example application > note showing how to do this, updating the secondary image in serial > Flash with a new image arriving over ethernet. > > "S3A1800DSP Serial Flash Bistream Update over Ethernet" at > https://www.em.avnet.com/common/filetree/0%2C2740%2CRID%3D&CID%3D42106&CCD%3DUSA&SID%3D32214&DID%3DDF2&SRT%3D1&LID%3D32232&PRT%3D0&PVW%3D&PNT%3D&BID%3DDF2&CTP%3DEVK%2C00.html?ACD=3 > > Bryan > > On Oct 19, 9:25 am, Jan <1...@2.3> wrote: > > Dear all, > > > > What are the smartest way to make a solo FPGA project capable of field > > updates? I'm very new in the FPGA world so I don't much about the > > practical use of them. Normally when I uses microcontrollers I make them > > updateble via USB, serial or SD cards. > > > > What techniques are possible when I want to avoid having a uP in the > > project. > > > > My target is a Xilinx Spartan 3A or 3AN > > > > Regards > > JanHi, nobody knows, how to get this reference design. The link doesn't work
Reply by ●April 19, 20192019-04-19
On Thursday, 18 April 2019 12:38:42 UTC+2, polovn...@gmail.com wrote:> вторник, 21 октября 2008 г., 6:40:26 UTC+4 пользователь Bryan написал: > > I think the MultiBoot feature available in Xilinx FPGAs is especially > > useful for field updates. MultiBoot allows you to update the FPGA > > while maintaining a failsafe image. Avnet has an example application > > note showing how to do this, updating the secondary image in serial > > Flash with a new image arriving over ethernet. > > > > "S3A1800DSP Serial Flash Bistream Update over Ethernet" at > > https://www.em.avnet.com/common/filetree/0%2C2740%2CRID%3D&CID%3D42106&CCD%3DUSA&SID%3D32214&DID%3DDF2&SRT%3D1&LID%3D32232&PRT%3D0&PVW%3D&PNT%3D&BID%3DDF2&CTP%3DEVK%2C00.html?ACD=3 > > > > Bryan > > > > On Oct 19, 9:25 am, Jan <1...@2.3> wrote: > > > Dear all, > > > > > > What are the smartest way to make a solo FPGA project capable of field > > > updates? I'm very new in the FPGA world so I don't much about the > > > practical use of them. Normally when I uses microcontrollers I make them > > > updateble via USB, serial or SD cards. > > > > > > What techniques are possible when I want to avoid having a uP in the > > > project. > > > > > > My target is a Xilinx Spartan 3A or 3AN > > Hi, nobody knows, how to get this reference design. The link doesn't workI have simply searched for "S3A1800DSP Serial Flash Bistream Update over Ethernet", here is the first result I get: <https://forums.xilinx.com/t5/Embedded-Development-Tools/Bootloader-for-Spartan-6-with-SPI-FLash/td-p/158360> That said, it is very bad etiquette to resurrect old threads: open a new one, possibly with links to any old posts or whatever is relevant... HTH and good luck, Julio
Reply by ●April 19, 20192019-04-19
пятница, 19 апреля 2019 г., 9:02:21 UTC+3 пользователь Julio Di Egidio написал:> On Thursday, 18 April 2019 12:38:42 UTC+2, polovn...@gmail.com wrote: > > вторник, 21 октября 2008 г., 6:40:26 UTC+4 пользователь Bryan написал: > > > I think the MultiBoot feature available in Xilinx FPGAs is especially > > > useful for field updates. MultiBoot allows you to update the FPGA > > > while maintaining a failsafe image. Avnet has an example application > > > note showing how to do this, updating the secondary image in serial > > > Flash with a new image arriving over ethernet. > > > > > > "S3A1800DSP Serial Flash Bistream Update over Ethernet" at > > > https://www.em.avnet.com/common/filetree/0%2C2740%2CRID%3D&CID%3D42106&CCD%3DUSA&SID%3D32214&DID%3DDF2&SRT%3D1&LID%3D32232&PRT%3D0&PVW%3D&PNT%3D&BID%3DDF2&CTP%3DEVK%2C00.html?ACD=3 > > > > > > Bryan > > > > > > On Oct 19, 9:25 am, Jan <1...@2.3> wrote: > > > > Dear all, > > > > > > > > What are the smartest way to make a solo FPGA project capable of field > > > > updates? I'm very new in the FPGA world so I don't much about the > > > > practical use of them. Normally when I uses microcontrollers I make them > > > > updateble via USB, serial or SD cards. > > > > > > > > What techniques are possible when I want to avoid having a uP in the > > > > project. > > > > > > > > My target is a Xilinx Spartan 3A or 3AN > > > > Hi, nobody knows, how to get this reference design. The link doesn't work > > I have simply searched for "S3A1800DSP Serial Flash Bistream Update over > Ethernet", here is the first result I get: > > <https://forums.xilinx.com/t5/Embedded-Development-Tools/Bootloader-for-Spartan-6-with-SPI-FLash/td-p/158360> > > That said, it is very bad etiquette to resurrect old threads: open a new one, > possibly with links to any old posts or whatever is relevant... > > HTH and good luck, > > JulioI also found this topic on the forum. Unfortunately, all links related to this project do not work.
Reply by ●July 8, 20192019-07-08
On Monday, October 20, 2008 at 10:54:20 AM UTC-7, Mike Treseler wrote:> Jan wrote: > > Dear all, > > > > What are the smartest way to make a solo FPGA project capable of field > > updates? I'm very new in the FPGA world so I don't much about the > > practical use of them. Normally when I uses microcontrollers I make them > > updateble via USB, serial or SD cards. > > That's the way to do it. > Save multiple images in flash. > The uP handles networking and > loading images to flash and fpga. > > > What techniques are possible when I want to avoid having a uP in the > > project. > > You could put the project > on a pci[e] card and have > the host pc do the updates. > > -- Mike TreselerThere are small FPGAs with dual flash that simplify the field upgrade. Look at Lattice MachXO2 or Intel MAX10.
Reply by ●July 8, 20192019-07-08
On Mon, 08 Jul 2019 09:40:49 -0700, camil.matiska wrote:> On Monday, October 20, 2008 at 10:54:20 AM UTC-7, Mike Treseler wrote: >> Jan wrote: >> > Dear all, >> > >> > What are the smartest way to make a solo FPGA project capable of >> > field updates?Xilinx FPGAs can be loaded by serial EPROMS with no external circuits. Xilinx's own SPROMS are really expensive but I use the SST family, I think now sold by Atmel. The 1 mbit one I use is $0.89 in small quantity. One downside is they don't make a DIP version, so I solder them to a little adapter board, that fits an 8-pin DIP socket. Of course, you can use an external flash ROM or something like the Spartan 3 AN with internal flash chip. These can be programmed via a JTAG tap. Jon
