PCIe on Stratix IV

10.0 is quite old, and SOPC builder has been superseded by QSYS.

Can you try a more recent version of Quartus and use Qsys?

Nial.

Hey,

I would prefer to work with the latest version, but unfortunately till that is available i want to find if theres some way to work with the available tools.

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I would prefer to work with the latest version, but unfortunately till that is available i want to find if theres some way to work with the available tools.

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If you are running Quartus 10.0, and compiling for the DE4, then you must already have a subscription license. In that case, just install the newer version of Quartus.

I did some tests on the Qsys stuff in this thread:

http://www.alteraforum.com/forum/showthread.php?t=35678

Using the 11-series of tools. I haven't tried using PCIe with 12.x or 13.x, but the PDF describes the sequence used to create the IP cores, so it should be sufficient for you to create an example for the DE4.

Cheers,

Dave

Thanks Dave for the reply.

Newer version of the Quartus(12.0) is installed now and I am able to build the PCIe system. But I am not able to communicate with the board. I am working on a linux machine, and lspci command shows no track of the altera board being connected. I noticed in your pdf that sometimes wthout the reconfiguration reset logic, the device would never negotiate with a X4 width. The design currently under test is without reconfiguration reset logic and withX4 width. Would this be a problem?

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Newer version of the Quartus(12.0) is installed now and I am able to build the PCIe system.

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OK. I think that 13.x has better support for PCIe now ... but I have not looked at that version yet.

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But I am not able to communicate with the board. I am working on a linux machine, and lspci command shows no track of the altera board being connected. I noticed in your pdf that sometimes wthout the reconfiguration reset logic, the device would never negotiate with a X4 width. The design currently under test is without reconfiguration reset logic and withX4 width. Would this be a problem?

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Download one of the original example designs that comes with the kit. If that design shows up ok, then you know that your problem is related to your current design.

Cheers,

Dave

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I had a more obvious problem there which i didnt identify when posting this. The problem is that the system needs to be rebooted for the PCI system to be enumerated and when its done, the the FPGA is also restarted, which makes it lose its bit stream, hence not detected. Could you suggest any solution which would not require a separate power supply to the board. I am currently trying to keep the program in its CFI flash and configure it upon restart.

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The procedure depends on whether you use one machine or two.

A.) Using one machine, boot and use Quartus to configure the board, then restart the machine.

A restart causes the machine to reboot and re-enumerate the PCIe bus, and hopefully causes it to find the DE4.

B.) Using two machines, power-on the machine with the DE4 board plugged in and hit ESC or DEL to enter the BIOS. Use your other machine running Quartus to configure the DE4. Then allow the machine with the DE4 to boot.

Personally I prefer method B.

Cheers,

Dave

Thanks Dave, thats really helpful.

Unfortunately it will be some time till another machine is available, so I need to try and flash the board with the bit stream. Have you tried with flashing the board and configuring it from Flash.There are quite a few ways which have been given in the Board User manual but I didnt find them clear and generic. Would you have any pointers on where to start.

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Unfortunately it will be some time till another machine is available

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That is ok, method (A) should work fine. You could at least try it :)

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so I need to try and flash the board with the bit stream.

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This should also work fine. The only caveat is that the DE4 must configure within whatever time it takes for your PC's BIOS to start enumerating the PCIe bus, i.e., within 100ms.

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ave you tried with flashing the board and configuring it from Flash.There are quite a few ways which have been given in the Board User manual but I didnt find them clear and generic. Would you have any pointers on where to start.

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I'd start with the user manual. If you get stuck, let me know, and I'll look at the user manual, I have it downloaded, but don't have time to look at it right now.

Cheers,

Dave

Thanks Dave. I keep trying with the method A but to no success. I followed the DE4 Getting started manual, but the tools are giving a problem. Could you please look into it if you have the time and suggest a possible direction. I understand the catch of configuration time vs the BIOS start time, but am willing to try it.

The weirdest thing with method A is the fpga undergoes a hard reset when , it is programmed with a PCIe system and PC is rebooted, thus losing its configuration. This does not happen when a non PCIe system is programmed on the fpga.