Guided Hardware Setup

You can use the Hardware Setup add-on to configure your target Xilinx hardware board for the hardware-software co-design workflow. To set up the board, you load the MathWorks^® firmware image onto an SD card, then use the Hardware Setup Add-On to configure the board, establish an Ethernet connection to the hardware, and set the hardware connections.

Prerequisites

Before starting the hardware setup, install the HDL Coder™ Support Package for Xilinx^® FPGA and SoC Devices. See Download and Install HDL Coder Support Package for Xilinx FPGA and SoC Devices.

Open the Hardware Setup Add-On

Start the Hardware Setup add-on by opening the Add-On Manager. Select Add-Ons > Manage Add-Ons.

To launch the add-on, in the Add-On Manager, point to required support package and click the Settings button, .

Hardware Setup Workflow

To configure your SD card and hardware board, follow the instructions in each step of the Hardware Setup add-on.

 Host Machine Checklist

Because the software runs operating system commands to configure the network card, you may require administrator privileges to complete the hardware setup. To continue the setup process, provide your user permission when the User Account Control window opens. You can also start MATLAB^® using Run as administrator. In Linux^® machines, provide the user administrator password when required.

This step also checks available Gigabit Ethernet connection, SD card reader, and writable SD card. Click Next to proceed.

 Select Hardware Board

Choose your hardware from the list. The page displays your selected hardware. For more information on the supported hardware, see Supported EDA Tools and Hardware. Click Next.

 Configure Network Card on Host Computer

1. Select the network interface card (NIC) that you want to connect with the hardware. If you have already configured the NIC, select Skip this step if your network card is already configured for communicating with the hardware. If you do not see your NIC, click Refresh.

   The list displays the connected network interface cards detected on your computer. The menu options note each NIC as (In Use) or (Available). When the NIC is connected to a device and has an assigned IP, the installer marks the NIC as (In Use).

   • If all the NICs listed are in use, free up a NIC for use with the hardware, and then click Refresh.

   • If the NIC list is empty, it is possible that the VMWare software, if present, is interfering with NIC detection. To get an accurate list of NICs on your computer, remove the VMWare. Alternatively, check if the missing NIC is disabled in the control panel. If it is disabled, enable it.

2. Optionally, specify an IP address for your board. Click Next. The software configures the NIC.

 Select Drive Containing SD Card

In the next step, the Hardware Setup add-on writes a firmware image to the SD card. This firmware image is included with the support package. The image includes the embedded software and the FPGA programming file for using the hardware as an I/O peripheral.

This step selects the location of the SD drive that contains the card. Before downloading the firmware image to the card, unlock the SD card. Keep the card unlocked while the card is in the card reader of the target board.

Insert a 4 GB or larger SD memory card into the memory card reader on the host computer. The card must be formatted with the FAT32 format. Select the appropriate drive from the list. Click Next.

If your SD card already has an appropriate MathWorks Linux image to configure the hardware, you can skip this step by selecting Skip this step if your SD card is already configured with appropriate MathWorks Linux Image for hardware check box. When you select this check box, the Hardware Setup add-on skips the Write Firmware step and proceeds to the Set Jumper and Switch Setting for Boards step.

 Write Firmware to SD Card

To copy the programming file from the host computer to the SD card, click Write. Any existing data on the memory card is erased during this process. When the write is complete, click Next.

 Set Jumper Switches for Hardware Board

Configure the jumpers switches on the selected hardware board so that you can use it as a peripheral device. The jumper settings are different for each board. This step guides you to use appropriate setting for development boards so that the board starts up from the SD card. When you set the jumper switch settings, make sure that the board is off.

For example, use these settings for the SW6 switch on the ZCU102 board.

SW6 Switch Positions on ZCU102

Switch	1	2	3	4
Switch Position	Up	Down	Down	Down

To know the jumper settings for the other supported boards, see Board-Specific Setup Information.

 Connect the Hardware Board

Follow the instructions to connect the target hardware. Wait until the LEDs indicate the readiness of the hardware. Then, wait an additional 20 seconds for the board to boot its operating system and set up communication with the host machine. The LEDs display a green, steady light when the board is ready. If the LEDs do not light up after one minute, press the reset switch and restart the board. Click Next. The software verifies the hardware connection.

 Verify Connection to Xilinx Zynq Hardware

Click the Verify button and then click Next. After you verify the connection, you see a message that the hardware setup is complete.

For RFSoC devices, see Check Connectivity of Xilinx RFSoC Boards.

 Launch Example

When the Hardware Setup completes, you can open the examples to get familiar with the product and its features. Click Open Example button to launch example in MATLAB which shows how to use Hardware Software Co-design workflow to deploy a bitstream into the hardware.

Related Topics

• Supported EDA Tools and Hardware
• Board-Specific Setup Information
• Download and Install HDL Coder Support Package for Xilinx FPGA and SoC Devices
• Check Connectivity of Xilinx RFSoC Boards