2 About the Debugger

The MPLAB PICkit 5 In-Circuit Debugger (PG164150) allows fast and easy debugging and programming of Microchip devices using the powerful graphical user interface of MPLAB X IDE Integrated Development Environment or MPLAB IPE (Integrated Programming Environment). Supported devices include:

  • PIC® and AVR® microcontrollers (MCUs)
  • dsPIC® digital signal controllers (DSCs)
  • SAM (Arm® Cortex®-based) MCUs and microprocessors (MPUs)
  • CEC (Arm® Cortex®-based) MCUs,

See the Device Support List for specific PICkit 5 device support.

The MPLAB PICkit 5 is connected to the design engineer's computer using a USB Type-C® interface and can be connected to the target via a Microchip debug 8-pin Single In-Line (SIL) connector. The connector uses two device I/O pins and the reset line to implement in-circuit debugging and In-Circuit Serial Programming™ (ICSP™). An additional microSDHC card slot and the ability to be self-powered from the target means you can take your code with you and program on the go.

Along with a wider target voltage, the MPLAB PICkit 5 supports advanced interfaces such as 4-wire JTAG, Serial Wire Debug (SWD), and streaming Data Gateway, while being backward compatible for demo boards and target systems using 2-wire JTAG and ICSP. The MPLAB PICkit 5 also has a Programmer-To-Go function with the addition of a microSDHC card slot to hold project code and the ability to be powered by the target board. Additionally, an MPLAB PTG app may be used to select and manage code on the microSDHC card and program code into the target.

The debugger system executes code like an actual device because it uses a device with built-in emulation circuitry, instead of a special debugger chip. All available features of a given device are accessible interactively and can be set and modified by theMPLAB X IDE interface.

The MPLAB PICkit 5 In-Circuit Debugger is compatible with any of these platforms:

  • Microsoft Windows® OS
  • Linux® OS
  • macOS®

See the release notes for versions supported.

The MPLAB PICkit 5 In-Circuit Debugger was developed for debugging embedded processors with rich debug facilities which are different from conventional system processors in the following aspects:

  • Processors run at maximum speeds.
  • Capability to incorporate I/O port data input.
  • Advanced host communication interfaces (Windows, macOS and Linux).
  • Advanced communication mediums and protocols.

In addition to debugger functions, the MPLAB PICkit 5 In-Circuit Debugger system also may be used as a device production programmer.