When you create software for the Altera® SoCs, you will be able to use familiar ARM® system tools and the standard development process.
100 Percent Ecosystem Compatible
At the heart of the Altera SoCs are the dual-core ARM CortexTM-A9 MPCoreTM processors, which are well supported by the embedded software industry. Altera and its ecosystem partners provide a wide range of choices to meet your development needs.
SoC Embedded Design Suite
The Altera SoC Embedded Design Suite (EDS) contains development tools, utility programs, run-time software, and application examples to enable embedded development on the Altera SoC hardware platform. You can use the Altera SoC EDS to develop firmware and application software. For FPGA-adaptive debugging, the Altera SoC EDS includes an exclusive offering of the ARM Development Studio 5 (DS-5™) Altera Edition Toolkit.
FPGA-Adaptive Debugging
Altera SoC devices give you the flexibility to create custom field-programmable SoC variants by implementing user-defined peripherals and hardware accelerators in the FPGA fabric. The ARM DS-5 Altera Edition Toolkit dynamically adapts your custom configurations of the FPGA within the SoC to seamlessly extend embedded debugging capabilities across the CPU-FPGA boundary. The toolkit delivers an unprecedented level of debugging visibility and control that leads to substantial productivity gains.
Operating System Support
Whether you're creating a new application or contemplating reusing legacy code, operating system support is key. Altera and its operating systems and board support package partners are poised to provide operating systems, board support packages, and development tools to ease your development process. Please visit the ARM Connected Community center for a complete list of operating systems that support the ARM Cortex-A9 processor. Please visit our Embedded Alliance page to see a list of operating system partners who can provide board support packages and additional software and services.
Virtual Target for Software Development – Today
The Altera SoC Virtual Target is a fast functional simulation of an ARM Cortex-A9 MPCore embedded processor system included in Altera’s SoC devices. It runs on a PC, and is binary and register-compatible with the SoC hard processor system (HPS) and board level components. The Virtual Target enables the development of device-specific, production software before your hardware is complete and will run unmodified on your final product.
The Altera SoC Virtual Target offers the best of both worlds – compatibility with the hardware it simulates, and more visibility, control, and productivity for software development. You can get started with embedded software development today with the Virtual Target.
Learn more about the Virtual Target through the following:
- Virtual Target video
- Virtual Target press release
- Virtual Target product page
- Contact your local Altera sales representative to get an evaluation of the SoC FPGA Virtual Target
