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TERRA Modula-2 Standard ROM-Tools
for Real Mode
(Revision February
20, 1998)
The TERRA Modula-2 ROM-Tools extend the standard Logitech
Modula-2 version 3 system to a powerful set of development
tools for programming embedded applications.
Logitech Modula-2 is a widely used, well-known development
system for programming 80x86/88 based microcomputers which
includes one of the best Modula-2 compilers available
today. Because of its Systems programming facilities,
Modula-2 is an ideal language for the development of stand
alone programs for ROM-based target systems. The standard
Logitech Modula-2 compiler can generate ROM-able code,
however, additional tools are required to create and test
programs for ROM- based 80x86/88 target systems.
The TERRA Modula-2 ROM-Tools include the additional utilities
which are needed for creating and testing ROM-able standalone
programs. The ROM-Tools allow to cross-develop Modula-2
programs on an IBM PC or compatible host computer for
80x86/88 based target systems with (programmable) read-only
memory. The ROM-Tools also include test facilities, which
use a serial line between the host and the target system
for downloading and testing of Modula-2 programs.
Features
The TERRA Modula-2 Standard
ROM-Tools for Real Mode
· allow to locate code and data of Modula-2 programs
at specific (absolute) memory addresses
· support the standard Intel 8086 hexadecimal object
format (H86), which can be used with most PROM-programmers
· allow for application programs with up to 1 Mb
of code and data
· include a Target Monitor and a Target Run-Time
Support adaptable to the hardware configuration of the
target system
· offer downloading facilities from the host to
the target system for easy testing
· provide automatic uploading of a memory dump
for high-level debugging of run-time errors
· offer interactive, dynamic, high-level cross-debugging
· do not require any terminal or disk for the target
system
Typical System Configuration
The development system consists
of an IBM PC or compatible host computer and an 80x86/88
based target system. The host computer and the target
system are linked together through a serial line.
The host computer used to develop application programs
for the target system is, for instance, a personal computer
with a terminal and a harddisk. lt must contain a serial
port, through which it can be linked to the target System.
The compiler and the other utility programs of the Logitech
Modula-2 system run on the host computer in the MS-DOS
environment. The target system is typically a single-board
computer. Its main components are an 80x86 or 80x88 processor
and some (EP)ROM and RAM chips. In addition, there may
be some application dependent peripherals. The target
system must contain at least one serial port, which will
be used for communication with the host.
During the development and test phase, some or all (EP)ROM
chips of the target system may be replaced with RAM. Modula-2
programs developed on the host are downloaded into the
target system through a serial line. Only the final version
of a program is burned into (EP)ROM chips which will reside
in the target system.
System Requirements
Host System
· IBM PC or compatible System
· a minimum of 300 K RAM (512 K or more recommended)
· one serial port (RS232) for communication with
the target computer
· DOS 2.0 or higher
· Logitech Modula-2 Release 3.40 for MS-DOS
Target System
· any 80x86/88 based computer
· one serial port (RS232) for communication with
the host computer
ROM-Tools Components
Target Monitor (TMON)
The TMON resides in the target
system. lt initializes and starts the Modula-2 program.
During the test phase, it also provides the interface
to the host system for downloading and debugging. lt communicates
with the host system by means of a serial line. The TMON
is an assembler program written in Microsoft Macro Assembler
and is provided in source form. Because its code is hardware
dependent, it must be adapted to a given target system.
In particular, it depends in the memory layout and on
the interrupt system of the target computer.
The TMON is burned into (EP)ROM and, in general, resides
in the target system even during the test phase. However,
it might also be downloaded from the host by the firmware
of the target system. The user must supply his own tools
for debugging the installation of the Target Monitor.
Target Run-Time Support (TRTS)
The TRTS is a slightly modified
version of the regular Modula-2 Run-Time Support (RTS).
In particular, it has been modified in order to comply
with the requirements of standalone target systems where
all program code resides in (EP)ROM. The TRTS is an assembler
program written in Microsoft Macro Assembler and is provided
in source form. Because some of its code depends an the
interrupt hardware of the target computer, it must be
adapted to a given target system.
The Absolute Locator (XLOC)
The XLOC utility runs on the
host computer and allows to locate linked Modula-2 programs
at absolute memory addresses. The code and the data of
any module may be placed at specific memory addresses.
XLOC takes as input the EXE file containing the code of
the linked program and produces an output file containing
the code of the program in Intel 8086 hexadecimal object
format (H86). The contents of this file may either be
downloaded to the target system by means of the XRUN utility,
or it can be used to put the code into (EP)ROM.
In addition, XLOC supports the organization of a program
into a hierarchy of sub-program layers, similar to the
sub-program and overlay concept supported by the Logitech
Modula-2 Linker. The code of such a program may be put
into (EP)ROM step by step, when testing has been completed
for a layer. Lower level layers may already reside in
(EP)ROM, while the code of higher level layers may be
downloaded for debugging.
XRUN Utility
The XRUN utility runs on the
host computer and is used during the test phase only.
lt allows to download Modula-2 programs in Intel 8086
hexadecimal object format (H86) from the host to the target
system. XRUN uses a serial line between the host and the
target system to communicate with the Target Monitor that
resides in the target computer. XRUN also allows to execute
or restart a program that has been downloaded. If a runtime
error occurs, XRUN optionally uploads the memory contents
and produces a memory dump file which can be analysed
with the standard Logitech Modula-2 symbolic Post-Mortem
Debugger (PMD). The user interacts with the XRUN utility
from the terminal on the host computer.
Cross Run-Time Debugger (XRTD)
The TERRA Modula-2 Cross Run-Time
Debugger is a powerful, high-level debugging tool. lt
runs on an IBM PC or compatible host computer and offers
dynamic cross-debugging of 80x86/88 standalone programs
at source code level. Before using the XRTD, the Modula-2
program to debug must be downloaded to the target system
by means of the XRUN utility.
The XRTD provides the features of the standard Logitech
Modula-2 Run-Time Debugger. In particular it is possible
to dynamically monitor the execution of a program in the
target system by setting breakpoints, executing in single-step
mode, inspecting and modifying data, etc.
Additional functions of the XRTD allow the user to terminate
and restart a program that has been downloaded. lt is
also possible to quit the debugger without terminating
the program in the target computer. The debugger may then
be reconnected later, in order to check whether the program
running in the target computer has come across a breakpoint
or run-time error.
Library
Many of the library modules
provided with the standard, PC resident Logitech Modula-2
system may also be used in a target system. Only the modules
that are based on features of the MS-DOS operating system
or some PC-specific hardware cannot be used without modification
of their source.
A detailed list of the compatibility of the standard library
modules with the ROM-Tools is contained in the manual.
In addition, the ROM-Tools include a special implementation
of the standard "Storage" module for managing
dynamic memory allocation in an operating system independent
manner. Also included is a library module that allows
to organize the program into a hierarchy of program layers.
Real-Time Applications in ROM
The TERRA Modula-2 Real-Time
Kernel can be used with the Standard ROM-Tools. As for
the standard library, adaptations to the specific target
system may be necessary for some of its modules.
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TERRA Modula-2 Protected Mode
ROM-Tools
(Revision February
20, 1998)
The TERRA Standard (real mode) ROM-Tools only provide
support for the so called "real (address) mode"
of the 80x86/88 processor, in which the accessible address
space is limited to a total of 1 Mb of memory. For larger
application programs, the TERRA Modula-2 Protected Mode
ROM-Tools allow to overcome this limitation.
The Protected Mode ROM-Tools are an extension of the Standard
real mode ROM-Tools. They require an 80286, 80386, or
more advanced compatible processor in the target system
and will make use of its so called "protected (address)
mode". The Protected Mode ROM-Tools support the creation
of ROM-able protected mode programs with Logitech Modula-2
version 3.
The additional features supported by the Protected Mode
ROM-Tools are:
· The target Monitor and the application program
run in the so-called "protected mode" of the
80286, 80386, or more advanced processor
· Handling of protected mode specific exceptions
· Code and data may occupy up to 16 Mb of physical
memory
Apart from a few details, developing Modula-2 application
programs with the Protected Mode ROM-Tools is very similar
to using the Standard ROM-Tools. Special protected mode
versions of the Standard ROM-Tools utility programs are
included with the Protected Mode ROM-Tools.
The standard Intel 8086 hexadecimal object format H86
only provides support for (absolute) addresses up to 1
Mb. Therefore, an extended H86 format called H26 is used
by the Protected Mode ROM-Tools. The absolute locator
XLOC generates output files according to the H26 format
when locating for protected mode. This format is also
accepted by the XRUN utility for downloading. Also included
is a converter utility H26TOMEX, which allows to transform
files with ROM-able code from the H26 format to the Motorola
EXORmacs format.
The protected mode ROM-Tools do not fully support the
use of all protected mode processor features. Some compromises
have been taken for the sake of simplicity, and of similarity
to the Standard real mode ROM- Tools. The main purpose
of using the protected mode is to support addressing of
more than 1 Mb of physical memory.
The general concept applied and its restrictions may be
summarized as follows:
· All segments are addressed via the Global Descriptor
Table (GDT, supported by the processor hardware). No support
is provided for using local descriptor tables (LDT).
· All segments must reside in directly addressable
physical memory. In the case of the 80286 physical memory
is limited by the processor to 16 Mb.
· The size of a segment is limited to 64 Kb also
when working with an 80386 or more advanced processor.
Because the GDT may contain up to 8192 entries, the total
address space is limited to 8192 * 64 Kb = 512 Mb. Note,
however, that the current version of the Protected Mode
ROM-Tools does not really support physical addresses longer
than 24 bits, i.e. larger than 16 Mb.
· There is no support for the 32-bit mode of the
80386 or more advanced processors. In fact, this would
primarily need to be supported by the compiler. (All Logitech
Modula-2 compilers are 16-bit compilers.)
· Privilege levels are not really used. After switching
to protected mode, the target system always runs at privilege
level zero (most privileged level). In this respect, no
distinction is made between the target monitor and the
Modula-2 application program.
· The Target Monitor and the application program
share the same GDT. Entry number one of the GDT describes
the GDT itself as a writeable data segment. Therefore,
the GDT may even be modified by the application program,
although this is not recommended.
· In the sense of the tasks scheme supported by
the protected mode instruction set of the processor there
is only one single task running all the time. Modula-2
processes are implemented (TRANSFER, IOTRANSFER, etc.)
basically in the same way as for the standard Logitech
Modula-2 system. This means, that a context switch between
Modula-2 processes will neither cause a task switch in
the sense of the protected mode, nor in any way make use
of the corresponding features of the processor.
· Interrupt vectors must be installed by means
of the Interrupt Descriptor Table (IDT, supported by the
processor hardware). The Modula-2 IOTRANSFER routine is
implemented in this way.
· The protected mode exceptions are handled by
the Target Monitor. The "regular" exceptions
(e.g. division by zero), which may also occur in real
mode, are handled by the Modula-2 (Target) Run-Time Support.
· The segments of the Modula-2 application program
may be located anywhere in physical memory. Only the segments
of the Target Monitor must reside in the first megabyte
of memory.
· Programs that are larger than a total of 1 Mb
code and data must be split into several (sub-) program
layers, such that each layer is smaller than one megabyte.
The layer concept provided by module "Layers"
is very similar to the overlay concept supported by the
Logitech Modula-2 version 3 system.
For details on the general protected mode concepts and
features of the 80286, 80386, or more advanced processors
(e.g. the GDT or IDT), please refer to the corresponding
INTEL manuals, like for instance the "80386 Programmer's
Reference Manual".
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Licenses and Support
(Revision February
20, 1998)
Licence / Site Licence
The standard licence allows
to use of these products on a single CPU. This means editing,
compiling, linking, locating and testing on one and the
same host computer. Licences for using the products on
additional CPUs of the same site are available at reduced
prices. Educational and non-profit research institutions
are allowed special discounts.
Programs developed with these products are not subject
to any licences from TERRA and may be distributed with
no fee, even if they include (parts of) the software (libraries)
in object form.
Support
The technical assistance with
regard to software problem reports is included in the
standard licence for a short initial period. Assistance
is available by email, fax, phone or regular mail. After
the initial period support is available based on an hourly
or daily rate. Support may be requested with minimal order
formalities and the customer will be billed after his
problem has been resolved.
The philosophy of TERRA Datentechnik is based an the satisfaction
of the customer, so as to make its best to provide an
efficient and professional support.
Note
The Logitech Modula-2 ROM-Tools
and the Logitech Modula-2 Real-Time Kernel are well-known
tools for industrial Modula-2 applications.
In 1989 TERRA Datentechnik took over the maintenance and
distribution of those products from Logitech. They have
been marketed as the TERRA Modula-2 product line since.
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