Simulate Input through USB or Ethernet

[Altera_Forum]

Hello, 

 I am a student working on my CS degree. My group was given a project to start a design on a web-based FPGA laboratory, so that students could visit a website, upload their vhdl code and see the code running on the FPGA board.  To get further on this project, i'll need to somehow develop a software solution to manipulate inputs. For instance, simulating flipping SW0 through either USB or ethernet.  Could anybody point me in the right direction for this?  Thank you

[Altera_Forum]

Why not through the JTAG interface? 

Using a SOPC system (I don't even think you need a NIOS processor) and the system console tools (http://www.altera.com/literature/ug/ug_system_console.pdf), you can control SOPC builder components from the PC using TCL scripts. Add PIO components to your SOPC system and you can directly read/write the values from the PC. It may seem overkill at first, but compared to a USB/Ethernet or even serial interface, you don't need to design your own communication protocol, and this solution is easy to scale.

[Altera_Forum]

My understanding of your project is: You (will) have an embedded system# 1 that is connected to your network and runs a web server. You (will) have an embedded system# 2 that consists of an FPGA, maybe some memory, maybe some interfaces.# 1 can download the configuration data into# 2 and afterwards can stimulate several inputs of# 2. Is this correct?

[Altera_Forum]

--- Quote Start ---  My understanding of your project is: You (will) have an embedded system# 1 that is connected to your network and runs a web server. You (will) have an embedded system# 2 that consists of an FPGA, maybe some memory, maybe some interfaces.# 1 can download the configuration data into# 2 and afterwards can stimulate several inputs of# 2. Is this correct?  --- Quote End ---    Yes, that is exactly right, Harald. Unfortunately I'm not having any luck using the system console tools...i try running the system-console command in the NIOS CLI, but it tells me that command does not exist.

[Altera_Forum]

What version of Quartus and NIOS IDE do you have? The system console tools only exist since Quartus 8.0