Electronic – Micro-Controller copy

You have two separate issues:

1. Building the code for the external RAM address range.

   This is actually very easy. All you have to do is make a linker file that contains only the address ranges you want the code to occupy. Note that you not only need to reserve a particular program memory address range for these external apps, but also some RAM space. This RAM space, like the program memory addresses, needs to be fixed and known. Simply make only those fixed and known address ranges available for use in the linker file. Don't forget to make them NOT available in the base code linker file.

   After the base code loads a new app into external memory, it has to know how to execute it. The easiest thing is probably to have execution start at the first external RAM location. This means your code will need one CODE section at that absolute start address. This contains a GOTO to the right label in the rest of the code, which will all be relocatable.

2. Linking apps to library routines in the base code.

   There is no immediately simple way to do this with the existing Microchip tools, but it's not that bad either.

   A much bigger issue is how you want to deal with base code changes. The simplistic strategy is to build your base code, run a program over the resulting map file to harvest global addresses, then have it write a import file with EQU statements for all the globally defined symbols. This import file would then be included in all app code. There is nothing to link, since the app source code essentially contains the fixed address references to the base code entry points.

   That is easy to do and will work, but consider what happens when you change the base code. Even a minor bug fix could cause all the addresses to move around, and then all existing app code would be no good and have to be rebuilt. If you never plan to provide base code updates without updating all apps, then maybe you can get away with this, but I think it is a bad idea.

   A better way is to have a defined interface area at a chosen fixed known address in the base code. There would be one GOTO for every subroutine that app code can call. These GOTOs would be placed at fixed known addresses, and the external apps would only call to those locations, which would then jump to wherever the subroutine actually ended up in that build of the base code. This costs 2 program memory words per exported subroutine and two extra cycles at run time, but I think is well worth it.

   To do this right you need to automate the process of generating the GOTOs and the resulting export file that external apps will import to get the subroutine (actually GOTO redirector) addresses. You might be able to do with with some clever usage of MPASM macros, but if I were doing this I would definitely use my preprocessor since it can write to a external file at preprocessing time. You can write a preprocessor macro so that each redirector can be defined by a single line of source code. The macro does all the nasty stuff under the hood, which is to generate the GOTO, the external reference to the actual target routine, and add the appropriate line to the export file with the known constant address of that routine, all with appropriate names. Perhaps the macro just makes a bunch of preprocessor variables with regular names (kindof like a run-time expandable array), and then the export file is written once after all the macro calls. One of the many things my preprocessor can do that MPASM macros can't is to do string manipulation to build new symbol names from other names.

   My preprocessor and a bunch of other related stuff is available for free at www.embedinc.com/pic/dload.htm.

A1. MPLAB will set the debug bit as necessary. Note that in MPLAB there is a Debugger menu as well as a Programmer menu. Which one you use determines how it sets up the PIC. A PIC programmed from Debug may not run if the ICD3 is removed. To run without the ICD3, program it from the Programmer menu.

A2. The ICD3 does not provide power to your device, so you need to apply power externally. LVP doesn't usually have to be connected. There have been a few parts that needed this line held disabled in order to be recognized, but I haven't seen that in a long time. MCLR will operate properly from the debugger, but you will need at least a pull up resistor there when you attempt to run without the ICD3 connected.

A3. The PIC should be recognized by the ICD3 as soon as it's been selected as your Debugger. A message appears in the output window as to whether it sees it or not. Note that if you are using the internal oscillator (thereby not having to add an external crystal), your program should specify that the internal oscillator is to be used. Otherwise, you may be able to program the PIC, but it won't respond afterward. You don't "lose" the part, but you do have to fix the error and program it again.

A4. You can do all those things you described from inside MPLAB. I hesitate to use the word "simple", as you have to get everything set just right (example: choose the right chip from "Configure") before it works. After the "hello world" exercise it becomes easy (not counting writing the software, of course).