Low Latency 100-Gbps Ethernet IP Core User Guide

ID 683160
Date 4/15/2021
Public
Document Table of Contents

4.1. Creating a Signal Tap Debug File to Match Your Design Hierarchy

For Intel® Arria® 10 and Intel® Cyclone® 10 GX devices, the Intel® Quartus® Prime software generates two files, build_stp.tcl and <ip_core_name>.xml. You can use these files to generate a Signal Tap file with probe points matching your design hierarchy.

The Intel® Quartus® Prime software stores these files in the <IP core directory>/synth/debug/stp/ directory.

Synthesize your design using the Intel® Quartus® Prime software.
  1. To open the Tcl console, click View > Utility Windows > Tcl Console.
  2. Type the following command in the Tcl console:
    source <IP core directory>/synth/debug/stp/build_stp.tcl
  3. To generate the STP file, type the following command:
    main -stp_file <output stp file name>.stp -xml_file <input xml_file name>.xml -mode build
  4. To add this Signal Tap file (.stp) to your project, select Project > Add/Remove Files in Project. Then, compile your design.
  5. To program the FPGA, click Tools > Programmer.
  6. To start the Signal Tap Logic Analyzer, click Quartus Prime > Tools > Signal Tap Logic Analyzer.
    The software generation script may not assign the Signal Tap acquisition clock in <output stp file name>.stp. Consequently, the Intel® Quartus® Prime software automatically creates a clock pin called auto_stp_external_clock. You may need to manually substitute the appropriate clock signal as the Signal Tap sampling clock for each STP instance.
  7. Recompile your design.
  8. To observe the state of your IP core, click Run Analysis.
    You may see signals or Signal Tap instances that are red, indicating they are not available in your design. In most cases, you can safely ignore these signals and instances. They are present because software generates wider buses and some instances that your design does not include.