NDK Support Package for EVMC6424

Version 1.92 (Revision History)

This software package contains NDK Support Package files for EVMC6424 platform.  It contains NDK required drivers, and examples.

NDK Support Package Overview

The TMS320C6000 NDK Support Package for EVMC6424 is a platform for development and demonstration of network enabled applications on the TMS320C6000 DSP family.  The NDK itself is delivered as a separate package which contains the platform independent libraries, source files, and drivers. The platform specific portion of the stack is delivered as a separate package per platform basis.

The NDK Support Package for EVMC6424 includes demonstration software showcasing C6424 DSP capabilities across a range of network enabled applications. In addition, the stack serves as a rapid prototype platform for the development of network and packet processing applications, or to add network connectivity to existing DSP applications for communications, configuration, and control.

Using the components provided in the NDK, developers can quickly move from development concepts to working implementations attached to the network.

System Requirements

To install the NDK Support Package, a desktop or laptop PC is needed with the following requirements:

Minimum

  • 1Ghz PentiumTM-compatible CPU
  • 600MB of free hard disk space
  • 1GB of RAM
  • Internet ExplorerTM (6.0 or later) or Netscape NavigatorTM (6.0 or later)
  • Local CD-ROM Drive

Recommended

  • 2Ghz PentiumTM-compatible CPU
  • 2GB of RAM
  • 16-bit color

Supported Operating Systems

  • WindowsTM 2000 Service Pack 1 or higher
  • WindowsTM XP

Required Hardware

The NDK Support Package is supported on the following platforms:

  • C6424 EVM

In addition to this hardware, a compatible emulator connection to CCS is required.

Required Software

  • Code Composer Studio Version 3.2 or higher
  • DSP/BIOS 5.31.06 or higher.
  • You may download the required GEL file from the Spectrum Digital’s Web Site, and add these gel files in your CCS configuration to initialize the boards, prior to running any example applications.
  • You need to download and install the BSL library for EVMC6424 platform from Spectrum Digital’s web site. The NDK CCS project files (*.pjt) expects BSL_EVMC6424_INSTALLDIR  environment variable to populated with the path where BSL is installed.
  • NDK V1.92

NDK Support Package Software Components

  • The TCP/IP Stack Platform Support Package libraries are built by using DSP/BIOS 5.31, and NDK 1.92 libraries and CodeGen Tool V6.0.8. It contains the following software components:
    • HAL libraries and source files for EVMC6424 platform (eth_c6424, userled_c6424).

 

  • Demonstration Software

o       “Hello World” network example which contains the minimum setup necessary for a networking application with DSP/BIOS. It can serve as a skeleton project, ready for the application programmer to start adding code.

    • Network client demonstration shows DHCP client, HTTP server, Telnet client, and multiple data servers for benchmarking.
    • Configuration demo illustrates how a "network appliance" can be installed and configured on the home network without using DHCP.
    • Additional demonstrations using both Ethernet and serial port demonstrate functionality like remote serial operation, serial connection to PC and serial to Ethernet routing.

Software Installation

Follow the steps below for NDK Support Package software installation:

  1. If not installed yet, install the Code Composer Studio (CCS) using the CCS CD. It must be installed before the NDK software.
  2. If not installed yet, install the NDK software using the Stack CD.
  3. Set environment variable NDK_INSTALL_DIR to the root folder of NDK package installation
  4. Copy the “ti.ndk.platforms.evmc6424.zip” under NDK_INSTALL_DIR\packages directory, and untar it.
  5. Ensure that the TI_DIR variable in $NDK_INSTALL_DIR\packages\ ti\ndk\DosRun_bios.bat points to the folder where CCS is installed.
  6. Set environment variable BSL_EVMC6424_INSTALLDIR to the folder where BSL is installed (eg. D:\CCStudio_v3.3\boards\evmc6424_v1).

After installation, all NDK Support Package related files are located under NDK_INSTALL_DIR\packages\ti\ndk directory, and organized in subdirectories. These subdirectories are fully described in the NDK Support Package for EVMC6424 User's Guide, but can be summarized as follows:

[\example]
The EXAMPLE directory contains sample source code for a variety of applications. Included here are demos that work on Ethernet and/or a serial port. These include initialization examples, HTTP and Telnet servers, configuration examples, and a Serial-PPP to Ethernet router.

 

[\example\network\<example_name>\evmc6424]
Examples using an Ethernet network.

 

 

 [\lib]

 

[\lib\hal\evmc6424]
This directory contains the NDK Support Package for EVMC6424 HAL library files.

 

 

[\src]
The SRC directory is the location of the source code to the individual stack components included with the TCP/IP Stack.

 

[\src\hal\evmc6424\eth_c6424]
This directory contains the C6424 EMAC ethernet driver source files.

 [\src\hal\evmc6424\userled_c6424]
This directory contains the EVMC6424 specific userled driver source files.

[\doc\evmc6424]
The DOC directory contains a copy of the NDK Support Package for EVMC6424  documents.

 

Important First Steps

The NDK Support Package for EVMC6424 User's Guide (Not available with EA Release) is the best first step in using the NDK Support Package software package. It contains all the necessary instructions for setting up and testing the hardware and software. The chapters include:

  • Installation and Test of the NDK
  • Example Applications
  • NDK Support Package for EVMC6424 Libraries

New users should familiarize themselves with the contents of the NDK User's Guide, test their hardware, and try out some of the example applications described within.

 

Additional Information

NDK Benchmarking for EVMC6424

Performance benchmarks are at the same time an objective and subjective measurement for performance. They are objective in the sense that the performance is measured using benchmark tools that yield reproducible results, but they are subjective in that there are so many variables involved that any one performance measurement is only a guideline to overall performance in a diverse set of operating environments.

The following factors can have a significant influence on performance:

  • Socket API: The NDK includes support for classical buffer based sockets (for transactions involving small payloads like Telnet), packet queue based sockets (non-copy), and enhancements to the sockets API to allow the application to directly receive non-copy TCP data. Performance varies depending on what features are used.

 

  • Socket Buffers: The socket buffer size affects the TCP send and receive window size, and determines how much data can be sent in one burst. This can have a dramatic effect on performance.

 

  • CPU(DSP) Speed: Given sufficient cache is present, the networking performance has an approximately linear relation to CPU speed.

 

  • CPU(DSP) Cache: The amount of CPU cache used can have a dramatic influence on overall performance.

 

  • Network Hardware: The design of the Ethernet hardware and how it interfaces to the DSP has a large impact on performance.

 

  • EMIF speed: For designs where the Ethernet interface is connected to the EMIF, the EMIF speed as well as the external decode logic has an additional affect on speed.

For detailed information, please see the benchmark results..