How-To: Command Line Tools for Timing Receiver (including SCU)

Introduction

A set of command line tools is deployed and available on Front-End Computers (FECs). Typically, these tools might be helpful for diagnosis, configuration and commissioning, when the FEC is not being used for dry-runs or production of beam. Some of these tools might also be used for production, when required features are not not yet included in the upper layers of the control system stack. This overview is not complete but highlights only most commonly used tools.

Tools

The tables below give an overview on the various tools. Use TOOLNAME -h to get command line help for all tools. Some tools have a dedicated how-to (click on name of tool).

Tool	What	Purpose	Audience	Remark
eb-console	White Rabbit PTP, networking	commissioning and diagnosis of White Rabbit and network	timing expert	White Rabbit Console via Etherbone
eb-ls	list Wishbone devices	basic test and diagnosis	user	THE "hello world" for a timing receiver
eb-write	write data to a Wishbone device	you need to know what you are doing	expert
eb-read	read data from a Wishbone device	you need to know what you are doing	expert
eb-info	display info on gateware and firmware	diagnoisis	user
eb-flash	write new gateware image to flash chip	maintenance	admin
eb-time	display White Rabbit time and status	diagnosis	user	try 'eb-mon' instead
eb-mon	display various data, mainly on White Rabbit	diagnosis	user	supports 1-wire temperature sensors too
eb-fwload	uploads firmware a LM32 Soft-CPUs	development	expert
eb-reset	resets FPGA and loads new image from flash	maintenance, fix issues with stalled OS on SCU	expert

Table: Tools based on Etherbone. Click on the name of the tool for more info.

Tool	What	Purpose	Audience	Remark
saft-clk-gen	generate clock at digital output	test and operation	user
saft-ctl	display TR and ECA status, do simple things	basic test and diagnosis	user, admin	THE "hello world" for saftlib, event snooping
saft-dm	provides a local data master	generate events and schedules with nanosecond precision	user	useful,
				if the central Data Master is not available
				for "rapid prototyping" of schedules
				for local tests and equipment integration
saft-ecpu-ctl	configure ECA for embedded CPU		controls expert
saft-io-ctl	configure outputs and ECA for outputs	test and operation	user
saft-pps-gen	generate a PPS on every output	debugging and diagnosis	timing expert
saft-lcd	live display of Beam Production Chains	debugging and diagnosis	user	this is experimental

Table: Tools based on saftlib. Click on the name of the tool for more info.

-- DietrichBeck - 25 Feb 2024