Chapter 3 - Programming (Configuring) an FPGA

Abstract

This chapter discusses the concept associated with programming field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs). Configuration files contain the information that will be uploaded into the FPGA in order to program it to perform a specific function. In the case of SRAM-based FPGAs, the configuration file contains a mixture of configuration data and configuration commands. When the configuration file is in the process of being loaded into the device, the information being transferred is referred to as the configuration bitstream. E2-based and FLASH-based devices are programmed in a similar manner to their SRAM-based cousins. By comparison, in the case of antifuse-based FPGAs, the configuration file predominantly contains only a representation of the configuration data that will be used to grow the antifuses. Unlike SRAM-based FPGAs, FLASH-based devices are nonvolatile. They retain their configuration when power is removed from the system, and they don't need to be reprogrammed when power is reapplied to the system (although they can be if required). Also, FLASH-based devices can be programmed in-system (on the circuit board) or outside the system by means of a device programmer.