From: "Alex Sherstuk" Newsgroups: comp.arch.fpga Subject: Q: XILINX binary .bit file header - ? Lines: 23 X-Newsreader: Microsoft Outlook Express 6.00.2600.0000 X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V6.00.2600.0000 Message-ID: Date: Sat, 17 Nov 2001 22:43:01 GMT NNTP-Posting-Host: 24.252.96.77 X-Complaints-To: abuse@home.net X-Trace: news2 1006036981 24.252.96.77 (Sat, 17 Nov 2001 14:43:01 PST) NNTP-Posting-Date: Sat, 17 Nov 2001 14:43:01 PST Organization: Excite@Home - The Leader in Broadband http://home.com/faster Path: chonsp.franklin.ch!pfaff.ethz.ch!news-zh.switch.ch!news.mailgate.org!newsfeed.media.kyoto-u.ac.jp!newshub2.rdc1.sfba.home.com!news.home.com!news2.POSTED!not-for-mail Xref: chonsp.franklin.ch comp.arch.fpga:11651 Dear colleagues, I am trying to use XILINX .bit-file as an input for a self-made FPGA configuration load program. The question is: - What is contained in the header of the .bit-file, before actual configuration data? - How to skip the header? Yes, I know, that I can use ASCII .rbt file as an input for my program (and actually do that). But .rbt files are very large, compared to .bit files. It is very unconvenient to distribute several megabytes of firmware codes ... Of course, I can invent my own binary format, derived from .rbt-files. But why to do that, if there is a standard .bit-file? Thanks, Alex Sherstuk ###### Message-ID: <3BF6F86E.6B726B2@ieee.org> From: Lasse Langwadt Christensen X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.7 [en-gb] (Win98; U) X-Accept-Language: en MIME-Version: 1.0 Newsgroups: comp.arch.fpga Subject: Re: Q: XILINX binary .bit file header - ? References: Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Lines: 30 NNTP-Posting-Host: 64.154.14.204 X-Complaints-To: abuse@prodigy.net X-Trace: newssvr17.news.prodigy.com 1006041123 ST000 64.154.14.204 (Sat, 17 Nov 2001 18:52:03 EST) NNTP-Posting-Date: Sat, 17 Nov 2001 18:52:03 EST Organization: Prodigy Internet http://www.prodigy.com X-UserInfo1: OHRQ@I[ABK^[@LH]^ROZOTPARBZZTB\MV@B@LWQHBATBTSUBYFWEAE[YJLYPIWKHTFCMZKVMB^[Z^DOBRVVMOSPFHNSYXVDIE@X\BUC@GTSX@DL^GKFFHQCCE\G[JJBMYDYIJCZM@AY]GNGPJD]YNNW\GSX^GSCKHA[]@CCB\[@LATPD\L@J\\PF]VR[QPJN Date: Sat, 17 Nov 2001 23:52:03 GMT Path: chonsp.franklin.ch!pfaff.ethz.ch!news-zh.switch.ch!news.mailgate.org!skynet.be!skynet.be!newscon05.news.prodigy.com!newsmst01.news.prodigy.com!prodigy.com!postmaster.news.prodigy.com!newssvr17.news.prodigy.com.POSTED!not-for-mail Xref: chonsp.franklin.ch comp.arch.fpga:11649 Alex Sherstuk wrote: > > Dear colleagues, > > I am trying to use XILINX .bit-file as an input for a self-made FPGA > configuration load program. > > The question is: > - What is contained in the header of the .bit-file, before actual > configuration data? > - How to skip the header? > > Yes, I know, that I can use ASCII .rbt file as an input for my program (and > actually do that). > But .rbt files are very large, compared to .bit files. It is very > unconvenient to distribute several megabytes of firmware codes ... > > Of course, I can invent my own binary format, derived from .rbt-files. But > why to do that, if there is a standard .bit-file? > > Thanks, > Alex Sherstuk looking at the rbt and the bit files it looks like the firste 72 bytes of the .bit file is header the rest of it looks the same as the .rbt file -Lasse -- Lasse Langwadt Christensen, -- A Dane in Phoenix, Arizona ###### From: Philip Freidin Newsgroups: comp.arch.fpga Subject: Re: Q: XILINX binary .bit file header - ? Organization: Fliptronics Reply-To: philip@fliptronics.com Message-ID: References: X-Newsreader: Forte Agent 1.8/32.548 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Lines: 33 NNTP-Posting-Host: 216.103.85.188 X-Complaints-To: abuse@prodigy.net X-Trace: newssvr13.news.prodigy.com 1006046547 ST000 216.103.85.188 (Sat, 17 Nov 2001 20:22:27 EST) NNTP-Posting-Date: Sat, 17 Nov 2001 20:22:27 EST X-UserInfo1: SCSGG]WD\BR[C_TX@BCD^VX@WB]^PCPDLXUNNHLIWIWTEPIB_NVUAH_[BL[\IRKIANGGJBFNJF_DOLSCENSY^U@FRFUEXR@KFXYDBPWBCDQJA@X_DCBHXR[C@\EOKCJLED_SZ@RMWYXYWE_P@\\GOIW^@SYFFSWHFIXMADO@^[ADPRPETLBJ]RDGENSKQQZN Date: Sun, 18 Nov 2001 01:22:27 GMT Path: chonsp.franklin.ch!pfaff.ethz.ch!news-zh.switch.ch!news.mailgate.org!news-spur1.maxwell.syr.edu!news.maxwell.syr.edu!cpk-news-hub1.bbnplanet.com!news.gtei.net!newscon02.news.prodigy.com!newsmst01.news.prodigy.com!prodigy.com!postmaster.news.prodigy.com!newssvr13.news.prodigy.com.POSTED!not-for-mail Xref: chonsp.franklin.ch comp.arch.fpga:11650 The answer is in the FAQ: http://www.fpga-faq.com/FAQ_Pages/0026_Tell_me_about_bit_files.htm Philip On Sat, 17 Nov 2001 22:43:01 GMT, "Alex Sherstuk" wrote: >Dear colleagues, > > I am trying to use XILINX .bit-file as an input for a self-made FPGA >configuration load program. > >The question is: >- What is contained in the header of the .bit-file, before actual >configuration data? >- How to skip the header? > >Yes, I know, that I can use ASCII .rbt file as an input for my program (and >actually do that). >But .rbt files are very large, compared to .bit files. It is very >unconvenient to distribute several megabytes of firmware codes ... > >Of course, I can invent my own binary format, derived from .rbt-files. But >why to do that, if there is a standard .bit-file? > >Thanks, > Alex Sherstuk > > Philip Freidin Fliptronics ###### From: khtsoi@cse.cuhk.edu.hk Newsgroups: comp.arch.fpga Subject: Re: Q: XILINX binary .bit file header - ? Date: 18 Nov 2001 01:33:16 GMT Organization: solar34.cs.cuhk.hk Lines: 13 Message-ID: <9t734s$pki$1@eng-ser1.erg.cuhk.edu.hk> References: NNTP-Posting-Host: fraser.cse.cuhk.edu.hk X-Trace: eng-ser1.erg.cuhk.edu.hk 1006047196 26258 137.189.90.232 (18 Nov 2001 01:33:16 GMT) X-Complaints-To: abuse@erg.cuhk.edu.hk NNTP-Posting-Date: 18 Nov 2001 01:33:16 GMT User-Agent: tin/1.4.1-19991201 ("Polish") (UNIX) (SunOS/5.8 (sun4u)) Path: chonsp.franklin.ch!pfaff.ethz.ch!news-zh.switch.ch!news.mailgate.org!news-spur1.maxwell.syr.edu!news.maxwell.syr.edu!newsfeed.dacom.co.kr!news-xfer.nuri.net!news.hk.linkage.net!news.netfront.net!newsgate.cuhk.edu.hk!news.cuhk.edu.hk!news.erg.cuhk.edu.hk!not-for-mail Xref: chonsp.franklin.ch comp.arch.fpga:11643 I have written a program on Linux to download the bit file to XCV100E through the Xilinx Parallel Cabel III. You may be intreset in that. http://www.cse.cuhk.edu.hk/~khtsoi/project/Xilinux/index.htm May people in this news group help me to build that. But it's now using raw inb(), outb() and must be setuid as root. If you (or anyone) can modify it to have nicer security, please let me know. Thanks! ---- Brittle