The original Actel database format for programming files used .def and .fus files - later this was replaced with .def and .afm - upgraded to only needing .afm - and recently programming can be done directly from either the .afm or the .adb files. Confusing? Well, the .afm files generated in the original .def + .afm format will not work stand-a-lone if that helps. Programming software will no longer support programming the .def and .fus file formats and they will have to be converted to a .afm format for a direct conversion (i.e., exact same fuses and not going through Designer).
Below are two application notes on Programming Database Compatibility and procedures for converting programming files. (Data courtesy of A. Jeong.)
Programming Database Compatibility
Using the appropriate method from the list below, you can still program an Actel FPGA with the .def and .fus files for the time being. However, the R1-1998 release of Actel's Designer Series Software is the last release that will support this programming option. All future releases will only support programming from the .afm file. Therefore, all .def and .fus files should be converted to the .afm format to insure future programming support (see Generating .afm Files From .def and .fus Files ).
Currently, you can program with the .def and .fus files using one of the following methods (depending on the software release that you are using):
Invoke the APS2 software and program in DOS as usual.
1. From the Start button, select Programs > Designer Series 3.0 > APS2.
2. In the resulting Open dialog box, set the List files of type field to Pre-Designer (*.def).
3. Program using the APS2 DOS interface as usual.
There are two methods you can use to program with only the .def and .fus files. Method 1 uses the Activator 2 (APS2) interface which is DOS based. Method 2 uses Actel's Windows environment.
1. From the Start button, select Programs > Designer Series 3.1.1 > Activator2.
2. In the Open dialog box, set the List files of type field to Pre-Designer (*.def).
3. Program using the APS2 interface as usual.
1. From the Start button, select Programs > Designer Series 3.1.1 > Windows Programming
2. Select File > Open
3. In the Open dialog box, set the List files of type field to Pre-Designer (*.def).
4. Program using the Windows Programming GUI as usual (that is, select Activate).In this case, the .afm file will be generated, but only internally. No <design>.afm file will reside in your design directory or be available for future programming. You will need to repeat this process to program another chip with the same .def and .fus files.
To support programming in the future, you will need to generate an .afm file using the method described in Generating .afm Files From .def and .fus Files .
1. From the Start button, select Programs > Designer R1-1998 > Windows Programming
2. Select File > Open
3. In the Open dialog box, set the List files of type field to Pre-Designer (*.def).
4. Program using the Windows Programming GUI as usual (that is, select Activate).In this case, the .afm file will be generated, but only internally. No <design>.afm file will reside in your design directory or be available for future programming.
You will need to repeat this process to program another chip with the same .def and .fus files.
To support programming in the future, you will need to generate an .afm file using the method described in Generating .afm Files From .def and .fus Files .
Since Actel's R1-1998 release of the Designer Series software is the last release that will support programming from the .def and .fus files, it is STRONGLY recommended that you convert all .def and .fus files to the .afm format. and archive them The .afm format meets the programming requirements of current and future programming software and hardware.
To convert your .def and .fus files, use the appropriate method from the list below, depending on the version of the Designer Series software that you have currently loaded.
1. Open a DOS shell and change to the design directory that contains the .def and .fus files to be converted.
2. At the command prompt, type:aps2 -gafm <design_name>
This will generate <design_name>.afm file. This will not alter the .def and .fus files.
In order to convert the .def and .fus files, the APS2 executable is required. However, Actel's R1-1998 software does not include the APS2 executable. Before you can begin the conversion, you need the APSDOS 3.1.1U1 CD from Actel. This CD comes with the R1-1998 APS-PC or APS-PC-UPD programming kits. If you do not have the CD, call Actel's Customer Service (1-408-739-1010) and request part number 3C59198RO.
Once you have the CD, follow the directions below to load the APS2 executable. Once you have the executable loaded, follow the remaining directions to generate the required .afm file.
Installing the APS2 Executable
1. Open a DOS window.
2. Create the directory where the APSDOS software will be installed (for example, apsdos).
3. Insert Actel's APSDOS 3.1.1U1 CD.
4. Change to the CD-ROM drive and type the following:apsdos -d <destination_drive>:<destination_directory>
For example: apsdos -d c:\apsdos.
The installation creates the following directories: Adm, Bin, Data and Doc
5. Edit your system files to set the variable ALSDIR to <destination_drive>:<destination_directory>
For example: set ALSDIR=c:\apsdos
6. Edit your system files to set the PATH to include <destination_drive>:<destination_directory>\bin .
7. Close the DOS window.
Since the installation of the APS2 executable included resetting your ALSDIR variable and the PATH, it is suggested that you convert all your .def and .fus files, one after the other, and then change the settings back to support R1-1998 (see After the Conversion below).
1. Open a DOS shell and change to the design directory that contains the .def and .fus files to be converted.
2. At the command prompt, type:aps2 -gafm <design_name>
This will generate <design_name>.afm file. This will not alter the .def and .fus files.
When you have completed generating all the .afm files, remember that you will need to reset the ALSDIR variable to the Actel installation directory (for example, C:\ACTEL) and make sure the the PATH still points to the Actel \bin directory (for example, C:\ACTEL\BIN.
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Last Revised: January 09, 2002
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