2 Getting Started

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2.1 Requirements

Overview

The following sections describe the requirements to run Flash Center. Be sure the device driver has been installed before plugging in a Total Phase device. Refer to the device’s datasheet for additional information regarding the driver and compatibility.

Windows

The Flash Center software is compatible with Windows 2000 (SP4 or later), Windows XP (SP2 or later, 32-bit only), and Windows Vista (32-bit and 64-bit). The software will run on 64-bit systems as a 32-bit application. Legacy 16-bit Windows 95/98/ME operating systems are not supported.

Linux

The Flash Center software has been designed for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 and 5 with integrated USB support. Kernel 2.6 is required. The software will run on 64-bit systems as a 32-bit application, provided that 32-bit system libraries are available.

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2.2 Installing the Flash Center Software

The Flash Center software is a self-contained application. Installing the software is as easy as unpacking the archive containing the software package. To install the Flash Center:

1. Download the latest version of the software from the Total Phase website.

2. Unzip the zip archive to your desired location.

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2.3 Launching the Flash Center

Linux

1. Go to the installation directory where the software package was unzipped.

2. Run >./Flash-GUI

Windows

1. Go to the folder where the software package was extracted.

2. Double-click on “Flash-GUI.exe”

After launching the Flash Center, you will see the screen in Figure 1.

Figure 1: Initial Screen
After first launching the Flash Center, the software needs to be connected to at least one Cheetah or Aardvark adapter.

To program a memory device, the Flash Center software must be connected to at least one Cheetah or Aardvark adapter. When an adapter is connected to the software, it will be unavailable for use by another process until the adapter is disconnected within the Flash Center or the application is terminated.

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2.4 Add Adapters

To connect to adapters to be used for programming, select File | Add Devices from the menu, or click the “Add Devices” button.

Figure 2: Add Adapters Dialog
Displays a list of available adapters, their version information, and serial numbers.

The Add Devices dialog (cf. Figure 2) has a list of available adapters and their version information.

List of Available Adapters

In the Add Devices window, there is a list of all the available Aardvark and Cheetah adapters that are connected to the computer. If no adapters appear in the list, then there are no available units connected to your computer.

Please note that adapters that are in use by other applications are listed as “IN USE.” They are no longer available for use by this current instance of Flash Center. Adapters to which the Flash Center are already connected will be marked as “IN USE” as well.

The list of adapters provides the following information:

Port: The port that the adapter occupies. The port number is a zero based number. For more information about USB port assignments, please consult the appropriate sections of the Aardvark I2C/SPI and Cheetah SPI Host Adapter datasheets. Note that if there are both Cheetah and Aardvark adapters connected to your computer, the Aardvark adapters will be listed first, with port numbers starting at zero, then the Cheetah adapters will be listed, with port numbers again starting at zero.

Firmware Version (FW) & Hardware Version (HW): The version numbers of the adapter. For more information about version numbers, please consult the Aardvark and Cheetah Adapter datasheets.

Serial Number: The unique serial number of the adapter. This serial number is unique across both Aardvark and Cheetah adapters.

Refresh List

To see an updated list of adapters attached to the computer, simply click on the “Refresh” button to rescan the USB bus.

Opening Adapters

Select one or more devices from the list, using the Shift or Control keys to select multiple adapters. Then click “Add” to connect to the desired adapter(s). You can also double-click on an entry in the list to open a single adapter.

After connecting to one or more adapters, the status bar text at the bottom will change from “Disconnected” to “Connected”. The connected adapters will appear in the Adapter list, as seen in Figure 3.

Figure 3: Connected Adapters Panel
After adapters are connected, they appear in the connected adapters panel.

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2.5 Disconnecting Adapters

Adapters can be disconnected from the current application. To remove a single adapter, click the red “X” next to the adapter in the Adapters panel. To remove all adapters, click the “Remove All” button.

After an adapter is disconnected, it becomes available for use with other applications.

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2.6 Selecting Memory Devices

Figure 4: Select Target Device
Choosing a device type and manufacturer first will simplify the selection of the part number.

Select a memory device by clicking the “Target” toolbar button in the upper left corner, selecting File | Choose Target from the menu, or pressing the shortcut sequence Ctrl+T. The target selection dialog will appear, as shown in Figure 4.

Only one type of device can be chosen for all of the connected adapters. The application can parallel program to the same memory device type if there are multiple adapters connected and enabled.

Adding a Memory Device to the Parts List

If your device is not listed you can add the part to the list by creating an XML file with the device parameters and load the file by clicking the “Load Part File…” button. A dialog will then be displayed requesting the location of the file to be loaded.

See Section 4 for more information on creating XML description files for custom memory parts.

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2.7 Exiting the Application

To exit the application, go to the menu item:

File | Quit

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2.8 Starting Over

It is possible to clear the currently selected memory device and all programming adapters without restarting the application. The shortcut is the menu item:

File | New