3.3.4.1 JTAG Physical Interface

The JTAG interface consists of a four-wire Test Access Port (TAP) controller that is compliant with the IEEE® 1149.1 standard. The IEEE standard was developed to provide an industry-standard way to efficiently test circuit board connectivity (Boundary Scan). Microchip AVR and SAM devices have extended this functionality to include full Programming and On-chip Debugging support.

To use this target interface with MPLAB X IDE, open the Project Properties window, “ICD 5” category, “Communications” option category, and select JTAG. For MIPS devices, select 2-wire or 4-wire JTAG.
Note: 2-wire JTAG uses standard ICSP pinout.
Figure 3-9. JTAG Interface Basics