How to get a gdb server running?

[Altera_Forum]

What's the simplest way to get a gdb server running using a USB Blaster for the target connection to a NIOS2 target? 

 I'd vastly prefer Linux, since that's where I'm doing my development, but would reluctantly tolerate running the gdb server under Windows if that's required.  I already have a development system set up, and I have zero interest in using Eclipse or acquiring and installing Quartus. I just need to run the gdb server for a few days to get my bootloader up and running.  I presume the gdb server is closed-source, so I'll need a gdb-server exectuable and probably a device driver for the USBBlaster?  Thanks.

[Altera_Forum]

Unfortunately, you're going to have to get Quartus II, or, at a minimum the Quartus II programmer.... All of the JTAG stuff (including the GDB server shipped with the Nios II EDS) use the code in QII. 

 You could take a look at the last section in the Flash Programmer User's Guide about "stand alone" installation, as the flash programmer has the same, basic requirements as the GDB server.  Here's a quick look at what the gdb-server-wrapped executable requires on Linux:  ldd `which nios2-gdb-server-wrapped`        linux-gate.so.1 =>  (0xffffe000)        libdl.so.2 => /lib32/libdl.so.2 (0xf7f38000)        libjtag_client.so => not found        libstdc++.so.5 => /emul/linux/x86/usr/lib/libstdc++.so.5 (0xf7e85000)        libm.so.6 => /lib32/libm.so.6 (0xf7e60000)        libgcc_s.so.1 => /lib32/libgcc_s.so.1 (0xf7e55000)        libc.so.6 => /lib32/libc.so.6 (0xf7d2f000)        libpthread.so.0 => /lib32/libpthread.so.0 (0xf7d18000)        /lib/ld-linux.so.2 (0xf7f8e000)  The "libjtag_client.so" is what's provided by (at least) the stand alone QII programmer. As to what's available freely (on Linux), I don't know....  Cheers and good luck!  - slacker

[Altera_Forum]

--- Quote Start ---  originally posted by slacker@Oct 28 2006, 05:53 PM unfortunately, you&#39;re going to have to get quartus ii, or, at a minimum the quartus ii programmer....  all of the jtag stuff (including the gdb server shipped with the nios ii eds) use the code in qii.  --- Quote End ---  I guess one of my colleagues was right the other day when he said that Altera sure goes to a lot of effort to make it difficult and expensive to use their parts. <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div>  --- Quote Start ---  You could take a look at the last section in the Flash Programmer User&#39;s Guide about "stand alone" installation, as the flash programmer has the same, basic requirements as the GDB server.[/b]  --- Quote End ---  Thanks. I&#39;ll take a look at it.

[Altera_Forum]

--- Quote Start ---  originally posted by grante@Oct 28 2006, 03:22 PM i guess one of my colleagues was right the other day when he said that altera sure goes to a lot of effort to make it difficult and expensive to use their parts.  --- Quote End ---    Coming from the ASIC world, originally, I think it&#39;s super-cheap. Besides which, the trend (for both Altera and Xilinx) is to provide as much of their dev. tools for free as is possible. Or, are you referring to a cost other than dollars/cents?  Cheers,  - slacker

[Altera_Forum]

--- Quote Start ---  originally posted by slacker@Oct 29 2006, 01:52 AM coming from the asic world, originally, i think it&#39;s super-cheap.  besides which, the trend (for both altera and xilinx) is to provide as much of their dev. tools for free as is possible.  or, are you referring to a cost other than dollars/cents?  --- Quote End ---   Coming from the embedded software development world, Quartus is amazingly difficult to use, expensive, buggy, and an all-around PITA.  For example, there&#39;s one place in the eCos tools that Altera supplies where the IDE calls a bash shell script that calls a config utility that calls a CDL script that calls a bash shell script to dynamically generage a Perl script which calls a Java program which reads a bunch of template files which generates a CDL script which reads a config file to generate a .h file.  That&#39;s quite simply insane.  Expecting people to buy/install Quartus so they can write and test software using open source tools and open source RTOSes is deluded. The icing on the cake is that once you have Quartus installed it&#39;s very frgile and makes building software several orders of magnitude _more_difficult_. On top of that, everybody I know has had endless problems with the Quartus tools, and wanted nothing more than to ditch Quartus and its "IDE" and use the same development methods they use for other CPUs.  Altera is nuts if they think they&#39;re doing themselves or their customers a favor by dictating to software developments that they have to buy Quartus and use some broken, overly complicated IDE that wastes huge amounts of development time.  I work on eCos, uC/OS-II, and Linux stuff using Gnu tools for a half-dozen different platforms. I&#39;m not going to abandon all my tools and skills and switch to that awful Quartus IDE just for one platform.