Book Image

The Complete Edition - Software Engineering for Real-Time Systems

By : Jim Cooling
Book Image

The Complete Edition - Software Engineering for Real-Time Systems

By: Jim Cooling

Overview of this book

From air traffic control systems to network multimedia systems, real-time systems are everywhere. The correctness of the real-time system depends on the physical instant and the logical results of the computations. This book provides an elaborate introduction to software engineering for real-time systems, including a range of activities and methods required to produce a great real-time system. The book kicks off by describing real-time systems, their applications, and their impact on software design. You will learn the concepts of software and program design, as well as the different types of programming, software errors, and software life cycles, and how a multitasking structure benefits a system design. Moving ahead, you will learn why diagrams and diagramming plays a critical role in the software development process. You will practice documenting code-related work using Unified Modeling Language (UML), and analyze and test source code in both host and target systems to understand why performance is a key design-driver in applications. Next, you will develop a design strategy to overcome critical and fault-tolerant systems, and learn the importance of documentation in system design. By the end of this book, you will have sound knowledge and skills for developing real-time embedded systems.
Table of Contents (16 chapters)
Preface
15
Glossary of terms

11.4 Software Debugging on the Host

11.4.1 Host System Debugging – a Broad Overview

The main components of a modern host-based IDE are fourfold, as in Figure 11.21:

  • GUI
  • Development toolchain (the set of programming tools: editor, compiler, linker, locator, and disassembler)
  • Debugger
  • Emulator or simulator of chips and/or boards:

Figure 11.21: General-purpose host-based IDE

The GUI is a key part of the environment, enabling the user to access all the IDE features of the development toolchain, debugger, and emulator or simulator. Debuggers may be included within the toolchain (the usual practice with commercial tools), though, in some cases, they come as an add-on piece. Modern debuggers are quite powerful, having comprehensive control and monitoring of the software during debug sessions. Breakpoint settings can be extended well beyond the basic methods shown earlier. Conditional breakpoints can be incorporated, triggered by:

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