Linux VME Howto
John Huggins and Michael Wyrick, vmelinux@va.net
$Revision: 1.4 $, $Date: 2002/02/12 19:11:51 $
This document came about to show the embedded system community how to
run Linux on their VMEbus Pentium and other PCI local bus based VMEbus
processor designs. The latest version is always available at Linux
VME HOWTO <http://howto.vmelinux.org/>.
______________________________________________________________________
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
1.1 Knowledge Required
1.2 Why use Linux on VMEbus systems?
1.3 Purpose
1.4 Feedback
1.5 VMELinux Revision History
1.6 Copyright/Distribution
2. Installation of the VMELinux Kernel Driver
2.1 Download the Source
2.2 Install the source to the software
2.3 Compile the VMELinux components
2.4 Load the VMELinux Kernel Module
2.5 Difficulties
3. How to talk to the VMEbus with the VMEUtils and the VMEShell Packages
3.1 What is the VMEUtils program
3.2 What are the VMEShell Scripts
3.3 The "vmemap" command.
3.4 Read Byte, Word or Long
3.5 Write Byte, Word or Long
3.6 Read the VMEbus to a file
3.7 Write a file to the VMEbus
3.8 Parameters
3.9 Options
3.10 A Note about DMA mode.
4. How to talk to the Tundra Universe PCI-VME bridge using the devices drivers.
4.1 The device drivers used with VMELinux
4.2 VMEMaster Device Drivers
4.3 VMESlave Device Drivers
4.4 Direct Control of the Universe Registers
4.5 read()
4.6 write()
4.7 lseek()
4.8 ioctl()
4.9 open() and close()
5. Advantages of the VMEbus, Linux and VMELinux
5.1 Pin and socket connectors
5.2 Eurocard assembly
5.3 Linux is Low Cost
5.4 Linux is Stable
5.5 Linux is Dynamic
6. Current and planned Board Support
6.1 Xycom XVME655 Pentium VMEbus Board
6.2 XyCom XVME656 Pentium VMEBus Board
6.3 Dynatem DPC1-0367
6.4 SBS/Or Computer VP7
6.5 DY4 179, A Power PC board
6.6 Planned Board Support
7. Other "Linux on VME" Projects
7.1 Project List
7.2 Major Device Numbers
8. Conclusion
9. FAQ
9.1 The Shell utilities return a bunch of stars (*) when I access a board I know is there. What gives?
9.2 The Shell utilities still return a bunch of stars (*) when I access a board I know is there. Now what?
9.3 The Shell utilities still return a bunch of stars (*) when I access a board I know is there. HELP?
9.4 How does VMELinux handle interrupts?
9.5 I have RedHat 5.1 and can't get VMELinux programs to compile.
9.6 I have RedHat 6.x so I assume the above issue is fixed. Right?
9.7 When will your ca91c042 Tundra Universe driver support the 2.4 kernels?
9.8 Hey! The Universe II has eight master and eight slave images. You support four each. Why?
9.9 How can we contribute to your VME-LINUX working group?
______________________________________________________________________
1. Introduction
1.1. Knowledge Required
Using Linux on an embedded VMEbus processor board is not difficult.
However, more than fundamental knowledge is required. This document
is not a primer on how to fully configure a Linux machine.
In order to understand this HOWTO document it is assumed that you are
thoroughly familiar with the following:
· Configuring and compiling a Linux kernel to operate the various
peripherals on your board. Kernel-HOWTO
<http://www.linuxdoc.org/HOWTO/Kernel-HOWTO.html>
· Setting up and configuring of network devices NET HOWTO
<http://www.linuxdoc.org/HOWTO/Net-HOWTO/index.html>
· Setting up of inetd NET HOWTO <http://www.linuxdoc.org/HOWTO/Net-
HOWTO/index.html>
· Setting up and use of the Tundra Universe PCI to VME Bridge Chip
Tundra Universe <http://www.tundra.com/page.cfm?TREE_ID=100361>.
The new VMEUtils program makes knowledge of the Universe
unnecessary for those who do not wish to deal with register level
Universe access.
· Compiling and installing various network packages like Apache Site
<http://www.apache.org/> Wu-Ftpd FAQ
<http://www.cetis.hvu.nl/~koos/wu-ftpd-faq.html>
· The VMEbus Rev. D and VME64. Excellent information may be found at
the VMEbus International Trade Association (VITA)
<http://www.vita.com/>.
If you are uncertain of how to proceed with any of the above it is
STRONGLY recommended that you use the links provided to familiarize
yourself with all packages. We may not reply to any mail regarding any
of the above. Please direct any questions to the appropriate author
of the HOWTO or consult the respective hardware manufacturer.
This document describes the installation and use of VMELinux on a
Xycom XVME-655 6U VME processor board. Other brands of VME boards that
use a Pentium and the Tundra Universe chip should be capable of
running VMELinux. Please consult the Board Support Section of the
VMELinux web site for tested boards. VMELinux Project Web Site
<http://www.vmelinux.org/>
1.2. Why use Linux on VMEbus systems?
Operating systems for VMEbus computers are usually Real-time Operating
Systems (RTOS) which have high cost and a significant learning curve.
In return the RTOS offers quick response to real world events for
control of machinery or response to a process.
The VMEbus provides a rugged computer enclosure and interconnection
system. Many system integrators require this ruggedness and also need
very fast real-time response. However, there are many times when
there is little need for real-time response, but the software still
needs:
· networking capability,
· remote access via telnet or similar program,
· file transfer via FTP or similar programs,
· remote booting via BOOTP or similar method,
· a way to respond to system interrupts.
Linux has all these capabilities. Thus, the VMELinux Project
exists.
1.3. Purpose
The purpose of VMELinux is to give the VME system integrator another
choice in operating systems. Rich in features, high in reliability and
low in cost, Linux offers benefits to the embedded computer industry.
High cost operating systems economically prohibit the use of VME in
many applications. With Linux and the VMELinux drivers, the rugged
VMEbus has new possibilities.
The purpose of the VMELinux Project is to:
· Maintain and improve the free VMELinux Kernel Driver software,
· Offer added value software components such as the VMEUtils program
and VMEShell utilities.
· Test the software on various makes and brands of manufacturer
supplied VME processor boards,
· Maintain web based documentation on each tested brand and make of
boards,
· Maintain this HOWTO.
· Integrate user suggested and user supplied improvements into the
virgin code so we may all benefit from the programming talents of
others.
· Become the original source for all the above software so VMELinux
users can be assured of original code from the authors.
1.4. Feedback
As VMELinux is tested in the field, we encourage comments about how
well or how bad it works. Please feel free to send comments to The
VMELinux Project <mailto:vmelinux@va.net>
As we get experience about each brand of VME CPU, we will list the
different configurations in this HOWTO. For now we will describe only
the Xycom board.
1.5. VMELinux Revision History
This document's revision is $Revision: 1.4 $, $Date: 2002/02/12
19:11:51 $.
The latest version is always available at Linux VME HOWTO
<http://howto.vmelinux.org/>.
Linux Kernel Driver
· November 1997, v0.2 - Initial version on Xycom Board
· December 1997, v0.3 - Useable version used for actual work with
project.
· February 1998, v0.6 - DMA mode added to VME access modes.
· June, 1998, v0.8 - Fixed a few things to allow the new VMEUtils to
work.
· June 24, 1998, v0.8a - Last version for the 2.0.x kernels
· April 18 2000, v0.95 - First version for the 2.2.x kernels
· October 16, 2000, v1.00a - Release for the 2.2.x kernels
· April 23, 2001, v1.01a - Same as 1.00a, but with the new device
major number 221.
· October 16, 2001, v1.1 - Our first release with support for 2.4 and
2.2 kernels.
· October 25, 2001 - All version numbers restructured to make more
sense. What was version 1.1 is now 1.2.0. Development tree
started at 1.3.0 which includes support for eight images.
· February 11, 2002, More work done on ca91c042.c driver code
available from the CVS respository.
VMEUtils Program
· February, 1998, v0.6 - Created a command line interpreter to access
the VMEbus
· June, 1998, v0.8 - Fixed several issues to allow VMEShell Utilities
to function
· June 24, 1998, v0.8a - Previous working release.
· April 2000, v0.95 - Pretty much the same as before. Better install
instructions.
VMEShell Utilities
· June, 1998, v0.8 - Created command line utilities that allow access
to the VMEbus from the Linux shell prompt. These shell programs
interface with the VMEUtils program.
· June 24, 1998, v0.8a - Changed the name of all the shell programs
so they all begin with "vme." Current version made available on
the website.
· April 2000, v 0.95 - Improved installation scripts.
1.6. Copyright/Distribution
This document is Copyright 1997-2002 by John Huggins and the VMELinux
Project.
A verbatim copy may be reproduced or distributed in any medium
physical or electronic without permission of the author. Translations
are similarly permitted without express permission if it includes a
notice on who translated it. Commercial redistribution is allowed and
encouraged; however please notify The VMELinux Project
<mailto:vmelinux@va.net> of any such distributions.
Excerpts from the document may be used without prior consent provided
that the derivative work contains the verbatim copy or a pointer to a
verbatim copy.
Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of this
document provided the copyright notice and this permission notice are
preserved on all copies.
In short, we wish to promote dissemination of this information through
as many channels as possible. However, we wish to retain copyright on
this HOWTO document, and would like to be notified of any plans to
redistribute this HOWTO.
2. Installation of the VMELinux Kernel Driver
2.1. Download the Source
Download the distribution from the VMELinux Web Site
<http://www.vmelinux.org/>.
2.2. Install the source to the software
Place the file in your source directory; We suggest /usr/src. Untar
the zipped/tarred file by typing...
tar -xzf VMELinux_1.3.x.tar.gz
Then:
cd vmelinux
You should see three directories:
ca91c042
vmeshell
vmeutils
In ca91c042 you should find:
ca91c042/
ca91c042/Makefile
ca91c042/ca91c042.c
ca91c042/ca91c042.h
ca91c042/README
ca91c042/e
ca91c042/ins
ca91c042/stat
ca91c042/uns
In vmeshell you should find:
vmeshell/vmer
vmeshell/README
vmeshell/vmeseek
vmeshell/cmd.vme
vmeshell/vmew
vmeshell/vmeregw
vmeshell/vmeregr
vmeshell/vmefa
vmeshell/vmecall
vmeshell/e
vmeshell/ec
vmeshell/fa.vme
vmeshell/map.vme
vmeshell/tmp.vme
vmeshell/vmedb
vmeshell/vmedl
vmeshell/vmedw
vmeshell/vmemap
vmeshell/vmerb
vmeshell/vmerf
vmeshell/vmerl
vmeshell/vmerw
vmeshell/vmewb
vmeshell/vmewf
vmeshell/vmewl
vmeshell/vmeww
vmeshell/makelinks
In the vmeutils directory you should find:
vmeutils/commands.cpp
vmeutils/commands.h
vmeutils/universe.h
vmeutils/Makefile
vmeutils/vmeutils.h
vmeutils/unilib.h
vmeutils/unilib.cpp
vmeutils/vmeutils.cpp
vmeutils/README
2.3. Compile the VMELinux components
Enter the "ca91c042" directory and make the VMELinux device driver
module.
make
Now you must create the several /dev driver files. Type:
make devices
DON'T FORGET TO MAKE THE /dev/vme* DEVICES!!!
Once made, you should see the file "ca91c042.o" in the directory.
This is a loadable module. See below for loading information. Plus,
you should find several "vme..." files in the /dev directory. Here is
how the files should look:
hostname:/dev# ls -l vme*
crw-rw-rw- 1 root root 221, 8 Jul 30 10:51 vme_ctl
crw-rw-rw- 1 root root 221, 0 Jul 30 10:51 vme_m0
crw-rw-rw- 1 root root 221, 1 Jul 30 10:51 vme_m1
crw-rw-rw- 1 root root 221, 2 Jul 30 10:51 vme_m2
crw------- 1 root root 221, 3 Jul 30 10:51 vme_m3
crw-rw-rw- 1 root root 221, 4 Jul 30 10:51 vme_m4
crw-rw-rw- 1 root root 221, 5 Jul 30 10:51 vme_m5
crw-rw-rw- 1 root root 221, 6 Jul 30 10:51 vme_m6
crw------- 1 root root 221, 7 Jul 30 10:51 vme_m7
hostname:/dev#
Change to the "vmeutils" directory and type make there.
make
This will compile the "vmeutils" program. This program directly
speaks to the kernel driver. It is a reference work for those of you
who wish to write your own programs to directly speak with the driver.
Copy the program "vmeutils" to your user binary directory or let the
makelinks script do this for your in the next step. On our system
this is "/usr/local/bin." Alternatively, you can create a link in the
user bin directory to the "vmeutils" program.
Change to the "vmeshell" directory. There are no files to be compiled
here. These are shell programs that use the "vmeutils" program to
access the VMEbus. All the files beginning with "vme" should with
have a link made or be copied to the "/usr/local/bin" directory.
just type:
./makelinks
Have a look in the libvme directory for a C++ example on how to
communicate with the driver. You can use the libvme code as your
interface to the driver for your programs if you wish. Docmentation
for this is planned for the future.
You are now ready to try the driver.
2.4. Load the VMELinux Kernel Module
Make sure you are root and insert "load" the VMELinux Kernel Module
for the Universe chip by typing...
insmod ca91c042
Or just type "./ins" to let the shell script do this for you. Once
complete, type...
./stat
or
more /proc/ca91c042
You should see a list of registers displayed on your screen. Some
thing like this...
Universe driver info:
Control Pointer = 0000
Stats reads = 0 writes = 0 ioctls = 0
LSI0_CTL = 00800000 LSI1_CTL = 00800000
LSI0_BS = C0000000 LSI1_BS = 00000000
LSI0_BD = C0010000 LSI1_BD = 00000000
LSI0_TO = 40009000 LSI1_TO = 00000000
LSI2_CTL = 00800000 LSI3_CTL = 00800000
LSI2_BS = 00000000 LSI3_BS = 00000000
LSI2_BD = 00000000 LSI3_BD = 00000000
LSI2_TO = 00000000 LSI3_TO = 00000000
image_va0 = 00000000 image_va1 = 00000000
image_va2 = 00000000 image_va3 = 00000000
Driver Program Status:
DMACTL 0 = 00000000 DMACTL 1 = 00000000
DMACTL 2 = 00000000 DMACTL 3 = 00000000
OkToWrite 0 = 0 OkToWrite 1 = 0
OkToWrite 2 = 0 OkToWrite 3 = 0
Mode 0 = 0 Mode 1 = 0
Mode 2 = 0 Mode 3 = 0
If not, something went wrong.
2.5. Difficulties
The Universe driver does a good job of finding the Universe chip on a
PCI bus, but differences in board design may prevent this. We tested
all our routines on a Xycom XVME-655, Dynatem DPC and SBS VP7. There
is little reason why this should not work on any other Intel board
with a PCI bus and the Universe PCI-VME bridge chip. If you encounter
problems, please let us know at the The VMELinux Project Bug Reporter
<http://bugs.vmelinux.org/>
3. How to talk to the VMEbus with the VMEUtils and the VMEShell Pack
ages
3.1. What is the VMEUtils program
This program can be run as is. Once started, you will see a command
prompt. Type ? And you will see a list of commands. While useful, I
think you will find the VMEShell scripts a better way to go. They do
use this program to speak with the kernel driver so it is necessary to
have this program available in the current PATH.
The source code for "vmeutils" is also instruction on how to speak
directly to the kernel driver. For those of you who wish to create
programs that directly speak with the driver, these source files are
good examples.
3.2. What are the VMEShell Scripts
The VMEShell programs are unix shell scripts. They offer the operator
a simple way to access the data on a VMEbus. Using these commands
creates temporary files in the user's working directory which store
information on the last access you did. This is nice because it will
be possible to log off the machine, log back in and proceed from where
you left off without having to re-enter VMEbus information again.
Plus, these files are stored in the current working directory, so you
can have different VME access configuration just by setting up
different directories for each VME board of interest.
Assuming you placed the shell programs and the "vmeutils" program in
the /usr/local/bin directory, you should be able to log in as a
regular user and run them. What follows assumes exactly this.
3.3. The "vmemap" command.
Login as a regular user and create a directory to experiment with.
Once in this directory type:
vmemap
You should get a help screen like this...
Usage: map address count space size type
where address is VME Address to set Universe image to
Space = 0 CR/CSR Space = 1 A16
Space = 2 A24 Space = 3 A32
Size = 1 8 bit Size = 2 16 bit
Size = 3 32 bit Size = 4 64 bit
Type = 0 USR/DATA Type = 1 USR/PRG
Type = 2 SUP/DATA Type = 3 SUP/PRG
This is where you tell VMELinux how you want to access the VMEbus. We
assume you already know about the VMEbus' many modes of operation, but
here is a short list to help you.
· address is the actual VMEbus address you wish to see. This should
be set to the lower most value of the address range of interest.
· count is the number of bytes you consider a valid range to view.
This is the number of bytes starting at the address specified
above.
· space is the addressing space (mode). For those of you who do not
know what we are talking about here, the VMEbus has four
overlapping address spaces that can be called independent of each
other. A16 is a 64 Kilobyte space. A24 is a 16 Megabyte space.
A32 is a 4 Gigabyte space. There is an A64 space defined the VME
specification, but the Universe does not support it.
· Size refers to the maximum data width allowed for the VME board you
are accessing. Some VMEbus board only handle 8 bit data paths.
Others transfer 32 bits (four bytes) at a time. Some can handle a
special VME block mode which can move 64 bits per transaction. The
Universe can handle all these modes allowing you to mix inexpensive
serial port boards with hugh memory arrays.
· Type is the type of VME transaction performed. Some VME boards
make a distinction between "User" access (USR) and "Supervisor"
access (SUP). Also, some boards allow access to two "pages" of
memory: Program (PRG) and Data. The Universe supports all modes.
Typing...
vmemap 0x8000 0x100 1 2 0
sets up the VMELinux driver to access an A16 board at base address
8000 Hex with a range of 100H bytes with 16 bit data width and
USR/DATA mode.
You will find two new files in your current directory.
· fa.vme
· map.vme
fa.vme stores a "fixed adder" value that will be added to all
subsequent accesses with the programs below.
map.vme store the parameters above so you do not have to enter them
every time.
All the following shell utilities read values from these two files to
performs VME accesses.
3.4. Read Byte, Word or Long
Syntax:
· vmerb -options address size
· vmerw -options address size
· vmerl -options address size
3.5. Write Byte, Word or Long
Syntax:
· vmewb -options address value
· vmeww -options address value
· vmewl -options address value
3.6. Read the VMEbus to a file
Syntax:
· vmerf -options address size filename
3.7. Write a file to the VMEbus
Syntax:
· vmewf -options address filename
3.8. Parameters
There are several parameters used with these commands: address, size
and filename.
· address - The actual hexadecimal VMEbus address you wish to read.
If the map command is set to access A16 VME address space, the
address should be 0xABCD. If the space is A24 then use 0xABCDEF.
For A32 space use 0xABCDEFGH.
· size - The number of bytes to read. This value is always the
number of bytes regardless of the data word size read. For
example, if you want to read 16 bytes of information and use vmerl,
the display will show 16 bytes displayed as 4 long words.
· filename - The name of the file to send "read" VMEbus data to or
"write" VMEbus data from.
· value - a hex value written as "0xXXXX."
3.9. Options
Available options are defined with a single dash with the any
combination of the following:
· q - Hides details on the access to the vmeutils program (default)
· Q - Shows details on the access to the vmeutils program
· p - Single access PCI addressing mode (opposite of d) (default)
· d - DMA access PCI addressing mode (opposite of p) (very fast
access to the VMEbus)
· 0, 1, 2, or 3 - Which Universe chip "Image" to use (defaults to 0)
· b - binary mode off (default)
· B - binary mode on
· v - turn off verbose parameter printing (default)
· V - turn on verbose parameter printing to see how the driver is
begin used
3.10. A Note about DMA mode.
VMELinux offers access to all the features of the Universe Chip.
Especially useful is access to the DMA engine on the chip. With this
feature the Universe chip transfers data on the PCI bus by becoming a
PCI master. This is nice, but the real benefit comes from the VMEbus
accesses. Even if the VMEbus interface is not using block mode
transfers, the Universe chip can complete VMEbus transfers under 400
nanoseconds sustained. This is the direct result of the Universe
taking complete control of both the PCI bus and the VMEbus. Thus, it
is possible to access non block mode VMEbus peripherals much faster
than older technologies.
4. How to talk to the Tundra Universe PCI-VME bridge using the
devices drivers.
4.1. The device drivers used with VMELinux
· /dev/vme_ctl
· /dev/vme_m0
· /dev/vme_m1
· /dev/vme_m2
· /dev/vme_m3
· /dev/vme_m4
· /dev/vme_m5
· /dev/vme_m6
· /dev/vme_m7
4.2. VMEMaster Device Drivers
/dev/vme_m* are drivers used to access the VMEbus as a bus master.
The Universe chip offers the programmer eight VMEMaster windows to the
VMEbus. These windows are called Images. The details of the
registers within these windows is beyond the scope of this Howto.
Please refer to the Universe documentation for details. Tundra
Universe <http://www.tundra.com/>
Version 1.1 of our tools only supported the first four images. This
is because we originally designed this to work with the original
Universe device. When the Universe II became available, Tundra did
not update their documentation. Thanks to reports from other Universe
users we are now aware of the new images, have found and downloaded
the latest Universe manual from Tundra and have added these images to
the 1.3.0 release.
4.3. VMESlave Device Drivers
The Universe chip offers the programmer four (eight for the
UniverseII) VMESlave windows to the VMEbus. These windows are called
Images. The details of the registers within these windows is beyond
the scope of this Howto. Please refer to the Universe documentation
for details. Tundra Universe <http://www.tundra.com/>
We originally intended to support the Universe's slave mode. We never
had a need for this thus our efforts concentrated solely on using the
Universe as a VME master only. So for 1.3.0 and the near future, we
will not support the eight slave images.
I'll repeat this for clarity. Slave VME modes are not yet supported
by our VMELinux Universe Kernel driver.
4.4. Direct Control of the Universe Registers
/dev/vme_ctl allows read and write access to the Universe registers.
For experienced users, this device allows direct access to the
Universe chip's internal registers. Explanation of these registers
and what they do is beyond the scope of this howto. Please consult the
Universe documentation available from Tundra Universe
<http://www.tundra.com/Tundra/unidex.html>
4.5. read()
n = read(vme_handle,buf,len);
Where:
· vme_handle = The value returned by "open,"
· buf = pointer to data block,
· len = number of bytes to read from the VMEbus.
4.6. write()
write(vme_handle,buf,len);
Where:
· vme_handle = The value returned by "open,"
· buf = pointer to data block,
· len = number of bytes to write to the VMEbus.
4.7. lseek()
lseek(vme_handle,vme_pnt,Seek_Type);
Where:
· vme_handle = The value returned by "open,"
· vme_pnt = The actual VME address to access,
· Seek_Type = SEEK_SET or SEEK_CUR
4.8. ioctl()
ioctl(vme_handle, command, argument);
Where:
· vme_handle = The value returned by "open,"
· command = IOCTL_SET_CTL or IOCTL_SET_MODE or IOCTL_SET_BS or
IOCTL_SET_BD or IOCTL_SET_TO
· argument to be sent
And:
· IOCTL_SET_CTL = Sets the image CTL register to argument. Argument
must be 32 bits.
· IOCTL_SET_MODE = "MODE_DMA" or "MODE_PROGRAMMED" - Sets the mode by
which the Universe chips communicates to the PCI bus (Not VME Block
Mode)
· IOCTL_SET_BS = Sets the image BS register to arguments. NOTE: The
BD register must already be set prior to making this call.
· IOCTL_SET_BD = Sets the image BD register to argument.
· IOCTL_SET_TO = Set the image TO register to argument.
4.9. open() and close()
Here is where you open and close the four VMELinux Master or Slave
devices plus the Control device. Slave images are not yet supported.
· vme_handle = open("//dev//vme_m0",O_RDWR,0);
· uni_handle = open("//dev//vme_ctl",O_RDWR,0);
· close(vme_handle);
· close(uni_handle);
5. Advantages of the VMEbus, Linux and VMELinux
5.1. Pin and socket connectors
The VMEbus standard uses pin and socket connectors. This is superior
to edge connections in that the connection is not exposed to humidity
and other environmental conditions. It is a more expensive way of
doing things, but offers longer times before failure.
5.2. Eurocard assembly
A VME board is either a 3U (160 x 100 mm) or a 6U size (160 x 233.35
mm). These sizes correspond to the Eurocard standard for board modules
and card cages. Eurocard is a popular format used by many different
busses including CompactPCI. This popularity makes the materials
needed for cage assembly inexpensive and easy to obtain.
5.3. Linux is Low Cost
The nature of Linux is in its user supported and freely available
format. The number of people using Linux is growing. The number of
people contributing to the continued development of the Linux software
base is growing. It is unfair to state that Linux is a good value
because it is available for little to no charge. Linux is a good value
because it works.
5.4. Linux is Stable
There are those who say that Linux us an unstable operating system. It
is true that the new Linux kernels in development are experimental and
should not be relied on for critical applications. However, stable
versions of the Linux OS are always available and provide very robust
operation. VMELinux is always based on the stable versions of the
kernel source; Today's stable kernels are the 2.0.X and 2.2.x series.
We have received reports that the latest 2.4.x kernels appear to be
solid. I would say the future is plenty bright for Linux.
5.5. Linux is Dynamic
Because so many people are developing Linux, you do not have to wait
long for improvements, fixes or new features to become part of the
Linux distribution.
6. Current and planned Board Support
While the VMELinux driver should work with any PCI based design, the
following boards have actually run our software.
6.1. Xycom XVME655 Pentium VMEbus Board
· This XyCom board is compatible with the standard VMELinux kernel
driver package from VMELinux Project <http://www.vmelinux.org/>
· A prepared kernel will be available soon. It will be based on the
newest version of the Linux kernel and will include appropriate
drivers for the on board NE2100 Ethernet interface. Check the
website for details.
6.2. XyCom XVME656 Pentium VMEBus Board
· This XyCom board is compatible with the standard VMELinux kernel
driver package from VMELinux Project <http://www.vmelinux.org/>
· A prepared kernel will be available soon. It will be based on the
newest version of the Linux kernel and will include appropriate
drivers for the on board AHA2940/AIC7000 SCSI and 82558 Intel
EtherExpress Ethernet peripherals. Check the website for details.
6.3. Dynatem DPC1-0367
· This board is compatible with the standard VMELinux kernel driver
package from VMELinux Project <http://www.vmelinux.org/>
· A prepared kernel will be available soon. It will be based on the
newest version of the Linux kernel and will include appropriate
drivers for the on board SCSI and Tulip Ethernet peripherals.
Check the website for details.
6.4. SBS/Or Computer VP7
· This board is compatible with the standard VMELinux kernel driver
package from VMELinux Project <http://www.vmelinux.org/>
· A prepared kernel will be available soon. It will be based on the
newest version of the Linux kernel and will include appropriate
drivers for PCNET Ethernet peripheral. Check the website for
details.
· The VP7 has a nice feature which performs the BOOTP protocol
without need of a bootrom or similar modification. However, you
must ask SBS for an updated BIOS with this modification.
6.5. DY4 179, A Power PC board
· An independent engineer finds this board is compatible with the
standard VMELinux kernel driver package from VMELinux Project
<http://www.vmelinux.org/>
6.6. Planned Board Support
If you do not see VMELinux support for your board let us know. Maybe
the manufacture will lend us a board for development.
7. Other "Linux on VME" Projects
This HOWTO emphasizes the efforts of just one particular way of
accessing the VMEbus from a Linux system; Our way requires the Tundra
Universe PCI/VME bridge device which will not work with many VME
processor boards. Fortunately, there are several other efforts out
there in various stages of development which provide the VME system
integrator with options.
Since it is our desire to make this HOWTO reflect the efforts of the
entire community of VME folks, we will be adding coverage of the other
projects in future versions of this document. For the moment, we are
simply going to list the other efforts in this section. Please refer
to the latest documentation at The VMELinux Project
<http://www.vmelinux.org/> for up to date information.
7.1. Project List
· Linux for 680x0 based VME boards. Currently there are ports for
Motorola boards (MVME147, MVME162, MVME166, MVME167, MVME172,
MVME177), BVM boards (BVME4000 and BVME6000), and the Tadpole
TP34V. Web Site <http://www.sleepie.demon.co.uk/linuxvme/>.
Latest activity September 1, 2000.
· The "other" Tundra Universe driver - Linux driver for the Tundra
Semiconductor Universe PCI/VME bridge. Also known as the Hannappe
driver. Web Site <http://lisa2.physik.uni-
bonn.de/~hannappe/software/universe_doc/universe.html>.
· Gabriel Paubert has been busy with yet another Tundra Universe
driver. FTP Site <ftp://vlab1.iram.es/pub/linux-vme/>. His
emphasis is having a driver that will allow writing kernel modules
for specific devices in the VME cage. Emphasis includes interrupt
handling and queuing DMA transfers.
· Synergy has a port for their PowerPC boards at Synergy
<http://www.synergymicro.com/Software/Linux.html>.
· VMIC supports the 2.2.x and 2.4.x kernels for their boards. Linux
on VMIC VME CPUs
<http://www.vmic.com/products/embeddedpc/products/hw_sbc_linux.html>.
7.2. Major Device Numbers
There has been some confusion about the major device number to assign
VME bus devices. Originally, the VMELinux Universe driver used 70.
This quickly came into conflict with the "SpellCaster Protocol" as the
number became assigned by the Linux folks. I requested and received a
device number of 221 for VME devices. In a perfect world, all Linux
VME design efforts would have a common interface to their driver
through this device. I doubt we will ever see unity on this
particular aspect, however, I think we can all at least agree to use
this number for our devices.
Up to version 1.2.0 The VMELinux driver supports the following
devices:
· /dev/m0 c 221 0
· /dev/m1 c 221 1
· /dev/m2 c 221 2
· /dev/m3 c 221 3
· /dev/s0 c 221 4
· /dev/s1 c 221 5
· /dev/s2 c 221 6
· /dev/s3 c 221 7
· /dev/ctl c 221 8
As of version 1.3.0 The VMELinux driver drops support for the slave
images (it never did support them) and substitutes the four additional
master images offered by the Universe II:
· /dev/m0 c 221 0
· /dev/m1 c 221 1
· /dev/m2 c 221 2
· /dev/m3 c 221 3
· /dev/m4 c 221 4
· /dev/m5 c 221 5
· /dev/m6 c 221 6
· /dev/m7 c 221 7
· /dev/ctl c 221 8
The good folks responsible for organizing Linux devices suggest the
following device organization:
· /dev/bus/vme/m0 c 221 0
· /dev/bus/vme/m1 c 221 1
· /dev/bus/vme/m2 c 221 2
· /dev/bus/vme/m3 c 221 3
· /dev/bus/vme/s0 c 221 4
· /dev/bus/vme/s1 c 221 5
· /dev/bus/vme/s2 c 221 6
· /dev/bus/vme/s3 c 221 7
· /dev/bus/vme/ctl c 221 8
This was established from our 1.2.0 and earlier collections and makes
sense for the Universe I device. For the Universe II and the many
other completely different ways to the VMEbus, it makes no sense at
all. I may ask the Linux folks to further breakdown the device tree
like this:
· /dev/bus/vme/ca91c142/m0..m3,s0..s4,ctl for the original Tundra
Universe
· /dev/bus/vme/ca91c042/m0..m7,s0..s7,ctl for the Tundra Universe II
· /dev/bus/vme/motorola/680x0/whatever for the Motorola boards
· etc.
All this is nice I suppose, but we like our devices to be /dev/vme* so
our make file creates them in /dev. So far, the term "VME" has
remained a unique identifier so conflicts with other devices should
not occur; However, we should all remain watchful. So long as we all
agree to use the major number of 221, all should be just fine. How we
define the minor numbers does not need to be (and really cannot be)
the same as other Linux-VME projects. However, this should not result
in any conflicts in a particular installation. After all, one Linux
VME system is not going to have more than one way to access the
VMEbus.
Refer to the kernel.org web site
<http://www.kernel.org/pub/linux/docs/device-list/devices.txt> for
more details on this and every other assigned Linux device major
number.
8. Conclusion
VMELinux and the other Linux on VME efforts offer the user a low cost
way to implement a VMEbus system quickly, reliably and with all the
advantages of a unix environment. We are using VMELinux in our
projects. Our task list includes:
· Porting to other brands of Intel VMEbus boards,
· Porting of VMELinux to other processors that use the Universe chip,
· Creation of various slave board drivers for use by all VMELinux
users,
· A study of running the VMELinux kernel driver module as a RT-Linux
task.
This document outlines the steps you need to install the VMELinux
Kernel Driver into the example Xycom XVME-655 Pentium VME board. It
is our hope that others will attempt installation of VMELinux into
other boards and let us know their success.
This method of code development works best when the users tell us of
their successes and describe the equipment used. Please, please drop
a note to the VMELinux Mail List
<http://lists.va.net/mailman/listinfo/vmelinux-users> and share your
experience with others.
Send bug reports and feature requrests to the VMELinux Project Bug
Tracker <http://bugs.vmelinux.org/>. If you have a question or an
update to this document send email to John <mailto:jhuggins@va.net>.
9. FAQ
9.1. The Shell utilities return a bunch of stars (*) when I access a
board I know is there. What gives?
Check to be sure the /dev/vme... files have their permissions set to
666. If not, the shell utilities will return a * in place of data to
indicate an error condition similar to a VME bus error.
9.2. The Shell utilities still return a bunch of stars (*) when I
access a board I know is there. Now what?
It is possible the ca91c042 Linux kernel module has been compromised.
Get root access and type "lsmod" to review the loaded modules. Do you
see the ca91c042? If yes, try removing it and reinstalling it with
"rmmod ca91c042" and then "insmod /path/to/the/ca91c042.o" to get
things up again. If it is not there check to see if you are loading
the module when you boot the machine, etc.
9.3. The Shell utilities still return a bunch of stars (*) when I
access a board I know is there. HELP?
Time to get a VMetro board into the VME cage and see if any accesses
are occurring. Also look at the /proc/ca91c042 file to see if the
read and write counters are incrementing.
9.4. How does VMELinux handle interrupts?
The driver does handle interrupts, but if you compile your interrupt
handler program as a Linux loadable module, that program can handle
the interrupts directly. Examples of this will be available soon. It
is important to note that user level program can be made to handle
interrupts, but it is a much better idea to have your interrupt
handlers as part of the Linux kernel via loadable modules. Yes, you
can totally hose the kernel if you do something wrong, but that is the
trade off between safety and performance.
9.5. I have RedHat 5.1 and can't get VMELinux programs to compile.
RedHat 5.1 includes a new compiler. If you manually edit the Makefile
in each directory to call up the new egcs compiler, things should
compile. We fully intend to support RedHat 5.1 installations, but for
now I suggest using 5.0 or Slackware.
9.6. I have RedHat 6.x so I assume the above issue is fixed. Right?
Maybe. RedHat threw us, and many other kernel module driver writers,
a curve ball with the move to the egcs compiler. Thankfully, the two
compiler camps, GCC and egcs, have united their efforts. All this
incompatibility should just go away. For the moment, however,
VMELinux will only be tested with GCC 2.95.x so that is what we
suggest you use for a compiler. If you type "gcc --version" at your
prompt and get an "egcs..." back then we cannot say it will work for
you.
9.7. When will your ca91c042 Tundra Universe driver support the 2.4
kernels?
Now. Download the latest tar ball from the download directory at the
main site. 2.4 support was added in version vmelinux-1.2.0.
9.8. Hey! The Universe II has eight master and eight slave images.
You support four each. Why?
We have been at this a long time and initially created these tools for
the original Universe I which according to the documentation has four
images each. When boards arrived with the Universe II, we searched
the Tundra web site in vain for new documentation. We were told by
the board manufacturers the II works just like the original; Thus, we
only worried about the original four images. Just recently some good
folks pointed out our omission. We finally found the correct
documentation on the web site and support the extra images as of the
1.3.0 development release.
More news! The latest CVS snapshots of the ca91c042.c and ca91c042.h
files will notice which Universe version is in your system and act
accordingly.
Please note, we have not yet found any good reason to spend time
developing support for the eight (or four) slave images. The current
tools only support the master images and this has proven adequate for
every need we have come across. If you think slave support is a good
thing, let us know.
The folks at VMIC have a kernel driver they say does support the slave
images and is available under a BSD style license. The announcment
may be found in our mail list archive mail list archive
<http://lists.va.net/pipermail/vmelinux-
devel/2002-January/000000.html> and the correct link to there web site
is here
<http://www.vmic.com/products/embeddedpc/products/hw_sbc_linux.html>.
9.9. How can we contribute to your VME-LINUX working group?
All programming efforts thus far have been accomplished by Michael
Wyrick. My role has been to coordinate the VMELinux Project and help
define and test the resulting programs.
We have successfully placed the working code into a CVS system and are
using it to track code changes. Right now only Mike and myself have
write access to this. If you are seriously interested in VMELinux
development and you know your way around Linux kernel programming,
please join us by joining the developers mailing list and creating an
account on our bug tracking system located here
<http://bugs.vmelinux.org/>.
If you cannot develop code, please consider keeping us informed about
any bugs you see or features we should add. You can send mail to the
user or developer mail lists, but contributing your comments to the
bug tracking system is much more useful. Just visit VMELinux Project
Bug Tracking System <http://bugs.vmelinux.org/>, create an account,
submit your report and we will address it as soon as we can.
