Microprocessor development systems

• US 6,574,590 B1
• Filed: 12/01/1999
• Issued: 06/03/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 03/18/1998
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Avago Technologies General IP PTE Limited (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: LSI Logic Corporation (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Inventors: Kershaw, Simon Martin, Kirsch, Graham, Slade, Brendon
• Primary Examiner(s): Broda, Samuel
• Assistant Examiner(s): THANGAVELU, KANDASAMY
• Application Number:
  US09/423,596
• Time in Patent Office: 1,280 Days
• Field of Search: 703/23, 703/25, 703/27, 703/28, 703/21, 714/30, 714/726, 714/727, 714/227, 714/35, 714/39, 714/724, 714/733, 712/16, 712/18, 712/227, 717/124, 717/128, 717/129
• US Class Current: 703/28
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3656 using a specific debug interface

Abstract

A procedure and processor are disclosed for avoiding lengthy delays in debug procedures during access by a memory mapped peripheral device. The processor includes in-circuit emulation means comprising one or more scan chains or serially connected registers for access by an external host computer system. The procedure comprises:

a) the host computer system carrying out a debug procedure via said scan chains, and selectively interrupting such debug procedure for access to a peripheral memory mapped device;

b) the host computer system writing into an area or memory of the processor a program for reading and/or writing data at a specified memory location; and

c) the host computer system causing said processor to run said program, and then to return to said debug procedure.

In another aspect, in order to permit small debugging programs to run, in serial scan in circuit emulation processes, on a processor in a deeply embedded application where no program RAM is provided, the processor includes one or more chains of serially connected registers coupled to interface means for access by an external host to enable a serial scan procedure to be carried out, one such chain including a set of serially coupled registers for storing one or more processor instructions read into a set of registers through the interface means, and the processor including address means, for addressing program memory, coupled to said set of registers for addressing the set of registers, and means for reading the processor instructions in the set of registers to an instruction resister of the processor.

Claims

1. In a processor including in-circuit emulation means comprising one or more scan chains of serially connected registers for access by an external host computer system, a method of carrying out a debug procedure comprising:

the host computer system carrying out a debug procedure at a debug processing speed via said scan chains, and selectively interrupting said debug procedure for access to a peripheral or other memory mapped device;

in response to said host computer system selectively interrupting said debug procedure, the host computer system writing via said scan chains into an area of memory of the processor a program for reading and/or writing data at a specified memory location for access to a said peripheral or other memory mapped device; and

the host computer system configuring the processor to execute the program upon the host computer system exiting the debug procedure;

the host computer system exiting the debug procedure causing the processor to execute the program at a full processor speed; and

upon a completion of the execution of the program by the processor, the program causing the host computer system to reenter the debug procedure.

2. A method according to claim 1, wherein prior to writing said program to said area of memory, the host copies data in said area of memory to the host computer, and upon return to the debug procedure, writes such data back into said area of memory.

3. A method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein upon return to said debug procedure, the data at said specified memory location is written to the host.

4. A method according to claim 1, wherein the host computer system includes a file for determining the configuration of the processor for different types of memory mapped devices, and configuring the processor in accordance with the file.

5. A method according to claim 1, wherein prior to running the program, the host system selectively configures predetermined registers of the processor for said program.

6. A host computer system for carrying out the method of claim 1, the computer system including interface means for supplying data and instructions to one or more scan chains of a target processor for carrying out a debug procedure, and the host computer including a file means for a plurality of memory mapped devices of the target processor, the file means including configuration information of selected registers of the target processor, and the host computer system including a plurality of monitor programs for selectively loading into an area memory of the target processor for reading and/or writing data at a specified memory location.

7. A processor including in-circuit emulation means comprising one or more chains of serially connected registers coupled to interface means for access by an external host to enable a serial scan procedure to be carried out, one such chain including a set of serially coupled registers for storing one or more processor instructions read into a set of registers through the interface means, and the processor including address means, for addressing program memory, coupled to said set of registers for addressing the set of registers, and means for reading the processor instructions in the set of registers to an instruction register of the processor:

coupling an input into the registers to an address bus of the processor;

coupling an output of the registers to one input of a multiplexer;

coupling another input of the multiplexer to an output of a program memory of the processor;

providing an output of the multiplexer, wherein the output of the multiplexer is either data received from the program memory or data received from the registers; and

in response to a direction to the processor to address the register set, causing the multiplexer to select its input coupled to the registers, such that data is being read from the registers instead of from the processor'"'"'s program memory.

8. A processor according to claim 7, wherein said registers are implemented as chains of flip-flops or latches.

9. A processor according to claim 7 or 8 wherein the set of registers is coupled to said address means so as to be addressable within the normal unextended address range of the processor.

10. A processor according to claim 7 wherein each said register has a parallel output coupled to an instruction bus of the processor.

11. A processor according to claim 7, including a multiplexer means having a first input coupled to the outputs of the registers, a second input coupled to the program memory, and an output coupled to the instruction register of the processor, the inputs being selectable under the control of a debug control signal.

12. A method of in-circuit emulation for a processor comprising:

providing in the processor one or more chains of serially connected registers coupled to an interface means, one of said one or more chains including a set of serially coupled registers,

coupling an input into the registers to an address bus of the processor;

coupling an output of the registers to one input of a multiplexer;

coupling another input of the multiplexer to an output of a program memory of the processor;

providing an output of the multiplexer, wherein the output of the multiplexer is either data received from the program memory or data received from the registers;

(b) feeding to the registers set, through said interface means and said one scan chain, one or more processor instructions,

(c) directing the processor to address the register set using its address bus; and

in response to a direction to the processor to address the register set, causing the multiplexer to select its input coupled to the registers, such that data is being read from the registers instead of from the processor'"'"'s program memory.