ac6-training, un département d'Ac6 SAS
EN
✓EnglishFrench
go-up

ac6 › ac6-training › PPC440 core implementation
Inquire
P2

PPC440 core implementation

This course covers the IBM Power 445 core

Objectives

  • A boot firmware that initializes the MMU has been developped to explain the boot sequence.
  • Internal debug facilities are described.
  • The course focusses on 440 low level programming, especially the PowerPC EABI.
  • Examples of exception handlers are provided.
  • A DFT has been developed to explain how to use mac instructions.
  • The Floating Point Unit operation is described.
  • The PLB ports as well as debug related signals are described to facilitate the hardware implementation.

  • This course has been delivered several times to engineers developing ASICs based on PPC440 and to engineers implementing Xilinx FPGAs containing PPC440 core(s).
Labs are compiled with Diab Data compiler and run under Lauterbach Trace32 debugger.
A more detailed course description is available on request at training@ac6-training.com
  • Experience of a 32 bit processor or DSP is mandatory.
  • Theoretical course
    • PDF material in English (printed for face-to-face); online over Teams.
    • Trainer assistance throughout.
  • Each session starts with a trainee check-in.
  • Any embedded systems engineer or technician with the above prerequisites.
  • Prerequisites are checked before the course starts, against the prerequisites published on this page.
  • Throughout the course, learning is assessed continuously: end-of-section quizzes and direct observation by the trainer.
  • At the end of the course, each participant receives a training completion certificate.

Course Outline

  • Internal architecture overview
  • Connection to peripheral IPs
  • Clocking
  • Programming model
  • Pipeline basics
  • 5-stage pipeline operation
  • Speculative execution, guarded memory
  • Cache basics
  • Data flow between external memory and caches
  • Cache programming interface
  • Process vs thread
  • Memory Management Unit
  • Translation Lookaside Buffer initialisation
  • Cache control and debugging features
  • Load / store buffer, speculative loads
  • Book E objectives
  • Branch instructions
  • Load / store instructions
  • Semaphore management with lwarx / stwcx. Instructions
  • Arithmetical and logical instructions
  • The PowerPC EABI
  • Cache related instructions
  • 16-bit mac instructions to develop fixed point DSP algorithms
  • Exception processing
  • Syndrome registers updating when an exception is taken
  • Core timers : PIT, FIT and WDT
  • Reset
  • JTAG emulator use
  • Real time trace when the PowerPC core executes cached instructions
  • Hardware vs software breakpoints
  • External connections
  • Clock and power management interface
  • CPU control interface
  • Reset interface
  • External interrupt controller interface
  • Instruction-side local bus interface
  • Data-side local bus interface
  • DCR interface
  • Connection to the native instruction pipeline
  • External coprocessor module
  • Software interface
  • Class of instruction
  • Developing a custom instruction set relying on an external coprocessor
  • Floating point simple and double precision instructions
Duration
3 days
Inquiry

This course can be scheduled upon request. Click the 'Inquire' button to contact us.

Pricing

Courses are quoted individually, with no list price. The price depends on the duration, the number of participants, the delivery mode and the technical resources provided.

For more information on our pricing, see more.

More

To book a training session or for more information, please contact us on info@ac6-training.com.

Registrations are accepted till one week before the start date for scheduled classes. For late registrations, please consult us.

You can also fill and send us the registration form

This course can be provided either remotely, in our Paris training center or worldwide on your premises.

Scheduled classes are confirmed as soon as there is two confirmed bookings. Bookings are accepted until 1 week before the course start.

Last update of course schedule: 27 June 2026

Booking one of our trainings is subject to our General Terms of Sales

On the same topic:

Yocto or Buildroot: how to choose for your embedded Linux project