The TRACE32 ICD and TRACE32 PowerTools debuggers of Lauterbach, a microprocessor development tools manufacturer, now support NEC VR series processors. These 64-bit RISC microprocessors are mainly found in high-end multimedia applications, but are also used in handheld devices. Currently only NEC VR55XX processors are supported; however, other processor types will soon be available to meet demand.

Lauterbach’s TRACE32 ICD and PowerDebug modules, which can be connected to the host computer over USB or Ethernet, allow fast access to all internal chip units, such as on-chip hardware breakpoints, peripheral equipment, registers, EEPROM, and flash memory, over the processor’s N-WIRE/JTAG interface. An unlimited number of software breakpoints in the RAM and flash memories, debugging at HLL and assembler levels, programming, and support of the most commonly used C and C++ compilers are standard features.

TRACE32 PowerTrace makes use of the processor’s trace function to record program flow and data in real time. The trace memory has a depth of 128 MFrames and a maximum recording speed of 200 MHz. Each recording is given a time stamp with a resolution of 20 ns. Together with performance analysis, statistic functions, a timing diagram of trace data, and RTOS statistics, a context tracking system capable of reconstructing the content of local variables is also included.