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ZedBoard Linux and PL

Former Member

I have a ZedBoard and would like to run a free version of Linux on it to be able to access the PL created in VHDL. At this point I would be happy just to be able to access a simple multiplier that writes the results to a register or block RAM.

Would Linaro be a good linux distribution for this?

I am using Vivado 2014.4, and all of the examples I have come across seem to be several years old and use ISE. Are there any really good examples that use VHDL and 2014.4 Vivado?

Thank you in advance.

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  • 0

    Hi BitBanger,

      Regarding the choice of a Linux distribution, you don't indicate what your level of software expertise is.  If you are comfortable configuring and building a Linux kernel, and understand how to locate and apply software patches and how to install packages you may need for development, then you can select any Linux source that includes support for ZedBoard.  The Linaro kernel underlies the example ZedBoard design for Ubuntu, and also has drivers for the ADI chipset on the board for HDMI output and audio.  You will need to build up your development environment, but you can find instructions in the Ubuntu tutorial.   If you have less experience, it may be easier for you to begin with PetaLinux, which allows you to begin from a BSP for ZedBoard, and has encapsulated the build process for Linux in a small set of instructions.  Xilinx publishes a set of user guides for 2014.4 PetaLinux usage, and there are tutorials on Zedboard.org as well.  Again, depending on your software experience, you may want to write a driver for your custom peripheral using bare metal to start, both to test your IP and to provide a simpler path to driver writing without involving an OS.   Finally, the Zynq HW and SW tutorials provide basic instruction for implementing a PWM device, and should give you a good starting point for your development efforts.

    Ron

  • 0 in reply to Former Member

    Hi Ron,
    Thank you for your reply. I have been able to run my custom IP in SDK, but I was hoping to take advantage of Linux and its built-in utilities to make it easier to get the data (via ssh/scp) and back to my linux PC for processing the data.

    I found this YouTube video which does exactly what I want to do: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XtvVfjIm9Xw

    Unfortunately, when I perform "cat myadder.bit.bin > /dev/xdevcfg", I get the following error:
    "cat: write error: No space left on device".

    This is for a very simple adder IP with only 4 registers, so I can't imagine that there is no space left on the device.

    I'm trying this is on the demo Linux distribution that came with the ZedBoard, so I may try Linaro since I am very comfortable with linux and have rebuilt kernels in the past.

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  • 0 in reply to Former Member

    Hi Ron,
    Thank you for your reply. I have been able to run my custom IP in SDK, but I was hoping to take advantage of Linux and its built-in utilities to make it easier to get the data (via ssh/scp) and back to my linux PC for processing the data.

    I found this YouTube video which does exactly what I want to do: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XtvVfjIm9Xw

    Unfortunately, when I perform "cat myadder.bit.bin > /dev/xdevcfg", I get the following error:
    "cat: write error: No space left on device".

    This is for a very simple adder IP with only 4 registers, so I can't imagine that there is no space left on the device.

    I'm trying this is on the demo Linux distribution that came with the ZedBoard, so I may try Linaro since I am very comfortable with linux and have rebuilt kernels in the past.

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