15.3 Introduction
(Ask a Question)Design debug is a critical phase of the FPGA design flow. Microchip’s SmartDebug tool complements design simulation by enabling verification and troubleshooting at the hardware level.
Using SmartDebug, you can debug Microchip FPGA arrays and SerDes via their respective Joint Test Action Group (JTAG) port(s) without requiring an internal logic analyzer. SmartDebug can also capture FPGA device status, MSS register access, and flash and DDR memory content.
SmartDebug uses dedicated and specialized probe points built into the FPGA fabric to accelerate and simplify the debug process significantly. It also allows you to select or change different probe point on-the-fly without additional overhead, saving significant recompile time.
SmartDebug can be accessed within the Libero® design flow or as a standalone software application.
15.3.1 Supported Device Families
(Ask a Question)Device Family | Description |
---|---|
PolarFire® | PolarFire FPGAs deliver the industry’s lowest power at mid-range densities with exceptional security and reliability. |
RT PolarFire | RT PolarFire is Microchip’s family of next-generation radiation-tolerant FPGAs that enable higher computing and connectivity throughput at 40 to 50% lower power than competing SRAM FPGAs. |
PolarFire SoC | PolarFire SoC is the first SoC FPGA with a deterministic, coherent RISC-V CPU cluster, and a deterministic L2 memory subsystem enabling Linux® and real-time applications. |
RT PolarFire® SoC | RT PolarFire SoC FPGA is the industry’s first embedded, real-time, Linux®-capable, RISC-V-based Microprocessor Subsystem (MSS) on the flight-proven, radiation-tolerant PolarFire FPGA fabric. |
SmartFusion® 2 | SmartFusion 2 addresses fundamental requirements for advanced security, high reliability, and low power in critical industrial, military, aviation, communications, and medical applications. |
IGLOO® 2 | IGLOO 2 is a low-power mixed-signal programmable solution. |
RTG4™ | RTG4 is Microchip's family of radiation-tolerant FPGAs. |
15.3.2 Supported Tools
(Ask a Question)The following table lists the device family support for SmartDebug tools. A check mark indicates that the tool is supported.
SmartDebug Support per Device Family | PolarFire® and RT PolarFire | PolarFire SoC and RT PolarFire® SoC | SmartFusion® 2 | IGLOO® 2 | RTG4™ FPGAs |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Active Probes | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
Fabric DDR | ✔ | ✔ | ☓ | ☓ | ☓ |
MSS DDR | ☓ | ✔ | ☓ | ☓ | ☓ |
Debug IOD | ✔ | ✔ | ☓ | ☓ | ☓ |
Debug SNVM | ✔ | ✔ | ☓ | ☓ | ☓ |
Debug Transceiver/SerDes | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
PCIe Debug | ✔ | ✔ | ☓ | ☓ | ☓ |
Debug uPROM | ✔ | ✔ | ☓ | ☓ | ☓ |
Event Counter (needs FHB Auto Instantiation) | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
FPGA Hardware Breakpoint (needs FHB Auto Instantiation) | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
Frequency Monitor (needs FHB Auto Instantiation) | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ☓ |
Live Probes | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔️ | ✔ |
Memory Debug | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
MSS Register Access | ☓ | ✔ | ☓ | ☓ | ☓ |
Probe Insertion (available only through Libero® flow) | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
TVS Monitor | ✔ | ✔ | ☓ | ☓ | ☓ |
View Flash Memory Content—eNVM Debug | ☓ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ☓ |