Serial configuration problem of Cyclone II device using quatrus 9.1

I know this is an old thread, but I found a solution for this. I was getting bad RBF files using bitstream compression for my Stratix II part when I had told the main Quartus software to generate the RBF files in the settings checkbox. If I instead generated the RBF file using the commandline tool, the problem went away. Here's how to do it.

Make a file, call it "options.txt", put this one line in it

BITSTREAM_COMPRESSION=ON

Now run this commandline

quartus_cpf -c --option=options.txt Project.sof Project.rbf

This worked great. I've not tried making a POF file in this manner, but quartus_cpf allows you to do that, too. Just type "quartus_cpf -h" to get help on how to do it.

Hi,

I got the information (as part of my service request)

"For this current issue, the internal software team has been notified and they would work on it for the next version."

Thus it might be fixed in SP1 or at least in v10...

Carlhermann

Hi,

this option "Active Serial Mode CONF_DONE pin error checking is disabled" is exactly what you actively set when generating "manually" the pof as I described. Thus it seems this option was deactivated in v9.0 and has been (whatever reason) activated in v9.1 now...

Carlhermann

BTW.: I asked ALTERA if this deactivation might cause false or incomplete configurations due to noise, ... during configuration not to be detected, but this is not.

I found this issue didn't occure on ArriaGX devices, isn't it?

anyone can give out the issue devices list?

hi,

I mistaked it. My project can run well only with sof. The pof can only run well without the " Generate compressed bitstreams" checked.

I have exactly the same problem : EP2C20 project builds with V9.0sp2 and no problem configuring, builds with 9.1 and device doesn't configure.

I did notice that the assembler report file with 9.0sp2 has "Info: Active Serial Mode CONF_DONE pin error checking is disabled", but that's not there in the 9.1 rpt file.

So far, I haven't found what this means and if/why this mode became enabled in 9.1, or how to disable it.

It's a pretty glaring testing failure - mainstream devices just won't configure with the new version.....oh well, I guess that's the price we pay for the new "pastel shades" in the splash.

hi,

I use EP2C5Q208 and config device is EPCS4, and assembled with the " Generate compressed bitstreams" option checked. My project can work well!

Thanks - have a great holiday.

Cheers MS

Hi,

well - they should be aware of, as this already has been reported some posts ago in the forum and I also had a support request on this. We could hope, they'll fix it in SP1. As part of my service request, ALTERA gave me a workaround (if you need both, v9.1 and compressed *.pof):

* generate uncompressed bitstream

* start manually File => Convert Programming Files

* Select your's project *.sof and check "Compression" (select *.sof and Properties)

* check the “Disable AS mode CONF_DONE error check” option from the Bitstream Generation Advanced Option Utility (Advanced)

This generates a compressed file, that configures the CycloneII, but for me this would be too much manual work and I think I'd revert to v9.0 SP2 in case I would need a compressed file too (my Hardware EP2C8 and EPCS4 works fine w/o compression)

CU, CS