How to manage Hardware Targets in TimeStorm

This document will show How to manage Hardware Targets in TimeStorm. To manage Hardware Targets follow the below steps.

The Hardware Targets window enables you to:

  1. Add a target to the list of registered targets
  2. Edit the information for a registered target
  3. Delete a target from the list of registered targets
  4. Check connectivity from the host to a target

You can access the Hardware Targets window either by clicking the Hardware Targets toolbar button or by selecting Run –> Hardware Targets from the main menu, as shown in below.

Setting up a target requires information for the following three tabs:

  1. TAB 1: Download — How to download files to the target
  2. TAB 2: Execute — How to communicate to execute on the target
  3. TAB 3: Raw Log — How to test the connectivity between the host and the target

TAB 1: Download:

TimeStorm allows files to be downloaded to the target in a few different methods. You will be prompted to select one of the options below.

SCP – Files will be downloaded from the host to the target using SCP.

NFS – TimeStorm will copy the files locally in the target Root File System (RFS) mounted over NFS.

None – The host will be connected to the target, but no data will be downloaded. You can then do any needed downloading using the console.

SCP Settings:

The corresponding fields for the SCP options are as follows:

IP Address — Enter either the IP address or the hostname of the target. If you use a hostname, your network must include access to a Domain Name Server (DNS) lookup facility.

Port — Port number the FTP server or the SCP server is running on. The default port number is already entered.

User Name — Enter the user name for FTP or SCP login on the target, as appropriate.

Password — Enter a non-blank password for FTP or SCP login, as appropriate.

Destination Directory — Enter the path to which the files will be transferred on the target. In some cases, directories specified in this panel are appended to the user’s home directory on the target. Ensure the user name that you specified has read/write permissions to the destination directory.

Link to Execution — When this checkbox is selected, all of the information listed in the fields corresponding to the SCP option is automatically entered into the fields in the ‘Execute’ tab. Those fields are not editable in the ‘Execute’ tab when this checkbox is selected. This checkbox is selected by default. When this checkbox is deselected, you must manually enter the corresponding information in the fields in the ‘Execute’ tab.

NFS Settings:

The corresponding fields for the NFS option (shown in above figure) are as follows:

RFS Base Directory— Use the Browse button to select the location of the RFS on the host. This location is where the target’s root filesystem is mounted over NFS; for example, /home/user/timesys/boardname/rfs, where user is the current username and board-name is the name of the target board.

Destination Directory — Use the Browse button to select the location in the RFS to where the files will be downloaded. The directory must be within the RFS Base Directory location that was selected. Ensure that you have read/write permissions to the destination directory. After you have entered the required information in this tab, select the ‘Execute’ tab, and enter the appropriate information.

TAB 2: Execute:

Use the Execute tab to specify the communication method that TimeStorm uses between the host and the target.

Within this tab, you can select from the following communication methods between the host and the target:

SSH – Communication between the host and the target will occur when using a secure shell (SSH).

Serial – Communication between the host and the target will occur using the serial connection.

You must fill in all of the corresponding fields for the method that you choose. TimeStorm answers the login and password prompts presented by the SSH server on the target, based on the data that you enter in this tab.

SSH Settings

The corresponding field for the SSH options are as follows:

IP Address — Enter either the IP address or the hostname of the target. If you use a hostname, your network must include access to a DNS lookup facility.

The execution IP Address field is also used when connecting to gdbserver for TCP-based remote debugging. This field must be provided regardless of connection method to use TCP-based debugging.

Port — Port number the Telnet or SSH server is running on. The default port number is already entered.

Serial Settings

The corresponding fields for the Serial option are as follows:

Skip login — If you are connecting directly to the target’s bootloader, and thus will not get a login prompt, select this option. The rest of the common details will be grayed out.

Serial Port — Enter the host's serial port; for example, /dev/ttyS0. If you use this option, be sure that the user that you specified has the proper permissions to access the serial port.

Baud Rate— Use the drop-down list to select the appropriate baud rate for serial communication. The default rate is 9600 bps.

Common Settings for All Options

The common fields for all three options in the Execute tab are as follows:

User Name — Enter your user name for a Telnet, SSH, or serial login, as appropriate, on the target.

Password — Enter a non-blank password for the Telnet, SSH, or serial login, as appropriate, on the target. Note that the Timesys pre-built SDK does not set the root password in the RFS. You have to set the password for the root user after the target boots, and enter the password in this text field.

Working Directory — Enter the directory to which control will be transferred after TimeStorm logs in to the target. By default, this is the same path to which the data will be transferred on the target. This directory must already exist.

NOTE: If the ‘Link to Execution’ checkbox is selected in the Download tab, the information in the fields corresponding to the SCP option in the Download tab is automatically entered into the common fields and the IP Address field in the Execute tab. In this case, the fields are not editable as long as the ‘Link to Execution’ checkbox is selected in the Download tab.

TAB 3: Raw Log

After you register a target, you can check the connectivity to that target at any time. Each time you add a target or edit information for a target, Timesys recommends that you perform a connectivity check to verify that the host can communicate with the target. The target connectivity check does not occur automatically upon registering or applying changes to a target.

To verify connectivity to a target, select the target in the left panel of the ‘Targets’ window and click the ‘Check Link’ button. The Raw Log tab becomes active when the check starts.

If the host communicates successfully with the target, a ‘Target Check – Passed’ message is displayed in the ‘Raw Log’ tab of the’ Targets’ window.