Regarding Shell Scripting for FPGA validation

[anandkumarcr]

Hi,

I wanted to know how exactly scripting can be used to validate a design on FPGA . I recently read an article that script is used instead of I2C drivers to validate the design. I wanted to know whether script only re-compiles the modified source code and downloads the generated bit stream to the board or does it have some sort of a connection with the FPGA board ?

 

[jimwu88]

Your question is kind of vague. Which FPGA? What kind of design? In any case, there needs to a connection between the FPGA board and your host. The connection can be as simple as a JTAG port or as complex as a PCIe link.

Cheers,
Jim
My FPGA Blog

Hi,

I wanted to know how exactly scripting can be used to validate a design on FPGA . I recently read an article that script is used instead of I2C drivers to validate the design. I wanted to know whether script only re-compiles the modified source code and downloads the generated bit stream to the board or does it have some sort of a connection with the FPGA board ?

 

[anandkumarcr]

Hi jimwu88,

Thanks for your reply. Yes I agree the question is kind of vague having gone through it second time now. What I was trying to ask can be summarized as follows :-

Let's say I have an IP for which data has to be written into it's configuration registers to control it's functioning. So the only approach I knew was to give it some kind of a software interface/drivers by wrapping the IP around a bus wrapper (let's say in case of xilinx- exporting the design as PCORE or writing a PLB/AXI wrapper to connect it to Microblaze).
According to what I read - "Instead of writing drivers, shell scripting can be used to control the IP". So I was not clear how exactly script was of help here. That was my question (whether the script recompiles and generates new bitstream or else it acts as a substitute for a Processor to write into the config registers) ?

 

[jimwu88]

Three other options I can think of to test your IP without using a processor and writing drivers:

1. Use HDL hardware cosimulation (HWCOSIM) in ISIM. You can change the configuration registers in HDL on the fly (i.e. while your IP is running on HW)
2. If you have System Generator (SysGen), you can use the SysGen HWCOSIM I/F and change the configuration registers using Matlab scripts.
3. If you have Chipscope, you can use the VIO core to change the configuration registers using Chipscope TCL APIs (i.e. using Tcl scripts).

Cheers,
Jim
My FPGA Blog

Hi jimwu88,

Thanks for your reply. Yes I agree the question is kind of vague having gone through it second time now. What I was trying to ask can be summarized as follows :-

Let's say I have an IP for which data has to be written into it's configuration registers to control it's functioning. So the only approach I knew was to give it some kind of a software interface/drivers by wrapping the IP around a bus wrapper (let's say in case of xilinx- exporting the design as PCORE or writing a PLB/AXI wrapper to connect it to Microblaze).
According to what I read - "Instead of writing drivers, shell scripting can be used to control the IP". So I was not clear how exactly script was of help here. That was my question (whether the script recompiles and generates new bitstream or else it acts as a substitute for a Processor to write into the config registers) ?

 

[anandkumarcr]

Hi Jim,

Thanks for the post. It was quite useful