Features of the Hardware Debugger

After creating and implementing a design, you can use the Hardware Debugger to download, verify, and debug.

• Downloading refers to the process of programming or configuring a device.
  
  
• Verification consists of reading the configuration data that was sent to the device and comparing it to the original bitstream to ensure that the design was correctly received by the device.
  
  
• Debugging consists of reading internal device states to verify that the design is functioning correctly.
  
  

When using the XChecker cable, the Hardware Debugger can probe and display the values of internal nodes of an FPGA device as listed in the “Probe Points in FPGA Devices” table.

Table 1_1 Probe Points in FPGA Devices

The following is a summary of the Hardware Debugger features.

• Configuration of one or more devices
  
  
• Verification of configuration data for single devices
  
  
• Debugging a single device in synchronous or asynchronous mode
  
  
• Generation of multiple graphical and textual waveforms for probe points
  
  
• Grouping of signals for waveform and textual analysis
  
  
• Saving of waveforms for later use
  
  
• Reuse of debug settings from one session to another
  
  
• Creation of macros (command scripts) by copying commands from the Console window into a macro window and saving them into macro files
  
  
• Examination of real-time digital values of the XChecker pins