doc: describe the ARM7 memory-read operating context

The ARM7TDMI memory read (cpu_read/cpu_halt/cpu_resume) works; document
when and how:
- tutorial: rewrite the "CPU targets" section from "structure only" to a
  working cpu_read walkthrough (dump LPC2103 flash to Intel HEX), state
  the operating envelope (power-on -> one halt -> dump; reads clobber
  r0..r14/PC, no context save/restore, so resume isn't clean and a
  re-halt in the same session can time out -> power-cycle), plus a
  troubleshooting row for the sys-speed timeout.
- CLAUDE.md: roadmap phase 7 + ARM-debug note now say the read works
  (flash dump validated), with context save/restore + arm_flash write as
  the remaining steps.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.7 <noreply@anthropic.com>
This commit is contained in:
2026-05-24 20:32:46 +02:00
parent 44cb9dfbae
commit 22feb66467
2 changed files with 63 additions and 14 deletions

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@@ -490,16 +490,55 @@ bs_explorer> program 0 design.svf # prog=svf -> plays the SVF
(`bscan_load_bitstream` + `flash_write`/`flash_verify`); `arm_flash`
routes to the ARM backend.
### CPU targets (ARM7/9) — structure only
### CPU targets (ARM7/9): reading memory over JTAG
The registry also describes **CPUs** (`kind: cpu`): an ARM debug
transport (`debug: embeddedice`), work-RAM and an on-chip flash region.
`target_list` shows them and `program` routes `prog: arm_flash` to the
ARM backend — but that backend (halt the core over JTAG, load a RAM
flasher, program internal flash) is **not implemented yet**. An Olimex
ARM-USB-OCD is an FT2232, so it opens with the existing FTDI driver via
the `arm-usb-ocd` probe profile. See the ARM-debug design note in
`CLAUDE.md`.
An Olimex ARM-USB-OCD is an FT2232, so it opens with the existing FTDI
driver via the `arm-usb-ocd` probe profile.
For an ARM7TDMI core (EmbeddedICE) three commands work today:
```
bs_explorer> jtag_open 0 arm-usb-ocd
bs_explorer> jtag_scan # IDCODE, e.g. 0x4F1F0F0F (LPC2103)
bs_explorer> cpu_read 0 0x0 0x8000 flash.hex hex # dump 32 KB flash to Intel HEX
bs_explorer> cpu_halt 0 # halt only (DBGACK)
bs_explorer> cpu_resume 0 # release from debug
```
`cpu_read <dev> <addr> <len> <file> <bin|hex>` halts the core, reads
memory by **instruction injection** (halt via EmbeddedICE, switch a
Thumb-state core to ARM, then a system-speed `LDMIA` reads real memory),
and writes the bytes as raw binary or Intel HEX. Omit `<file>` for a
console hex-dump. Validated by dumping an LPC2103's full 32 KB flash and
round-tripping the `.hex` through `objcopy` (all records/checksums valid,
correct ARM vector table). Debug-speed core-register read/write also
works (it is how the address is set up and the loaded words are read
back).
**Operating context — when it works, and the limits.** Reading is
reliable in this flow:
- **One halt per power-cycle.** The intended sequence is *power on the
board → `jtag_scan` → one `cpu_read` (which halts, reads, leaves the
core halted)*. A single `cpu_read` call dumps any length in one halt
(it reads in 14-register blocks internally), so dumping all of flash is
one command.
- **Reads clobber r0r14 and the PC**, and there is **no register
context save/restore yet**. So `cpu_resume` cannot cleanly continue the
original firmware, and a *second* `cpu_read` (or `cpu_halt`) in the
same session re-halts an already-halted, register-clobbered core, which
is messy and can time out (`sys-speed access timed out`). If that
happens, **power-cycle the board** and run one `cpu_read` again.
- ARM7TDMI only so far (the EmbeddedICE scan-chain debug). Cortex-M
(ADIv5/SWD) is a different transport.
The why-and-how of the cycle-exact JTAG timing this relies on is in the
ARM-debug design note in `CLAUDE.md`. The next step toward clean resume
and repeated reads is register **context save/restore**; the `arm_flash`
*write* backend (program internal flash via a RAM loader) builds on that
and is not implemented yet.
## Troubleshooting cheat sheet
@@ -515,6 +554,7 @@ the `arm-usb-ocd` probe profile. See the ARM-debug design note in
| Detected fine, then reads turn to garbage / `0x00000000` mid-session | Target board lost power — JTAG floats (the USB probe stays enumerated regardless). Re-power the board. |
| FT4232H FlashPro: `jtag_scan` finds 0 devices | JTAG is on channel A (index 0) and needs `ADBUS4` high-Z — open with the profile: `jtag_open 0 flashpro`. |
| `svf_play` mismatches only on the very first compare | FTDI link warm-up; `svf_play` handles it, but a bare `bscan_shift_dr` straight after `jtag_open` may need a `jtag_scan` first. |
| `cpu_read`: `sys-speed access timed out` | The core was re-halted in a degraded state (a previous `cpu_read`/`cpu_halt` left it halted with clobbered registers). Power-cycle the board, then run one `cpu_read`. |
## Where to go from here