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Altera_Forum's avatar
Altera_Forum
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16 years ago

Problem rebuilding source with new Quartus II

Hello,

I recently inherited a project board which has a Stratix II EP2S30F672 FPGA which is booted from an EPC4QC100.

Project originally compiled under quartus vers 7. Now when the project is compiled under quartus vers 9 it compiles without error but will no longer run on target board. I am using the original project files.

I am using an Altera USB Blaster pod for programming.

I was able to download the .POF file from an old working board from its EPC device. I can program that file into a new board and it works so I know the hardware is good. That file is the same size as a new .POF file I build but they have different data.

I found that the unused pins now default to GND outputs (reading other forum entries) and I fixed that. Are there other things that which changed in the compiler configuration which would affect my design? Any ideas? I am new to FPGA design and there is a lot to absorb. Thanks.

11 Replies

  • Altera_Forum's avatar
    Altera_Forum
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    16 years ago

    Well my first guess was the unused pins thing but you've already checked that. Is there some Altera IP core in your design that might have been upgraded? Does the image do anything at all when you run it?

    Jake
  • Altera_Forum's avatar
    Altera_Forum
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    16 years ago

    Oh another thing you should check is the remote update vs. local update setting for the project.

    Jake
  • Altera_Forum's avatar
    Altera_Forum
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    16 years ago

    Check everything in the "Device and Pin Options" to make sure it matches the old project.

    Jake
  • Altera_Forum's avatar
    Altera_Forum
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    16 years ago

    Hi, thanks for the quick response.

    I dont think anything is running because the main clock divider does not appear to be working. It uses an ALTPLL component. I dont see any of the divided clocks being output on pins.

    I'm not sure I understand what the remote vs local update is exactly. I'll have to check that.

    One thing I'm a bit unsure about is the use of configuration data compression. There seems to be two different places to set it and the discription of the use is a bit confusing. I know I have to use it because with it turned off the data will not fit in the configuration flash device.

    I am actually using the old project file so I would assume the settings are the same as the original project. If they werent not sure how I would know.

    Is there any way to look at the .pof file I downloaded from the working board and tell what any settings were based on that?
  • Altera_Forum's avatar
    Altera_Forum
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    16 years ago

    The configuration scheme is - passive serial

    The configuration mode is - STANDARD (vs, LOCAL or REMOTE)

    EPC4 is the slected configuration device.

    Generate compressed bitstreams is selected.
  • Altera_Forum's avatar
    Altera_Forum
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    16 years ago

    Did you simply open the project in 9.0 version.? What you could have done is that archive the project while in V.7 and then open it in v.9.0. This will help in restoring all the settings/configurations of the original one. if it is still possible, try to do it.

  • Altera_Forum's avatar
    Altera_Forum
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    16 years ago

    There may be an archive file. I will try to open that.

    I can write the .SOF directly to the FPGA but I will have to change my setup a bit to test that since it is non-volatile. I will try it today.

    Can someone explain the bitstream compression settings to me?

    There is one in the programmer and two under the device settings it seems.

    The Altera explanation seems a bit confusing about which to use. Apparently you dont want to save compressed data AND have the EPC4QC100 set for compression or you end up with doubled compression?

    Thanks
  • Altera_Forum's avatar
    Altera_Forum
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    16 years ago

    I tried directly programming the FPGA with the .sof file. It did not appear to run.

    The project was never originally archived so I can not import an archived version.

    I'm still not sure the compression functions are being used correctly.
  • Altera_Forum's avatar
    Altera_Forum
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    16 years ago

    You should install Quartus 7.x and see if you can generate a working design. There is 7.0, 7.1 and 7.2, plus the various service packs. Check the original design's .qsf file and it should say what the last version of quartus used was.

    Might also want to post your qsf file here.