Altera USB-Blaster II Download Cable User Guide
USB-Blaster II Download Cable User
Guide
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UG-01150
2015.12.11
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TOC-2
Contents
Setting Up the USB-Blaster II Download Cable.................................................1-1
USB-Blaster II Download Cable Specifications..................................................2-1
Supported Devices and Systems.................................................................................................................1-1
Power Source Requirements.......................................................................................................................1-1
Software Requirements and Support.........................................................................................................1-2
Installing the Download Cable for Configuration or Programming....................................................1-2
Installing the USB-Blaster II Driver on Windows 7/8 Systems.............................................................1-3
Installing the USB-Blaster II Driver on Linux Systems..........................................................................1-4
Installing the USB-Blaster II Driver on Windows XP Systems.............................................................1-5
Setting Up the USB-Blaster II Hardware with the Quartus Prime Software.......................................1-5
Voltage Requirements.................................................................................................................................2-1
Cable-to-Board Connection.......................................................................................................................2-2
USB-Blaster II Plug Connection................................................................................................................2-2
10-Pin Female Plug Signal Names and Programming Modes...............................................................2-3
Circuit Board Header Connection.............................................................................................................2-4
Operating Conditions..................................................................................................................................2-5
JTAG Timing Constraints and Waveforms............................................................................................. 2-7
Changing the TCK Frequency................................................................................................................... 2-8
Additional Information......................................................................................A-1
Document Revision History......................................................................................................................A-1
Certification Statements.............................................................................................................................A-2
RoHS Compliance...........................................................................................................................A-2
USB 2.0 Certification......................................................................................................................A-2
CE EMI Conformity Caution........................................................................................................A-2
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2015.12.11
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101 Innovation Drive, San Jose, CA 95134
Setting Up the USB-Blaster II Download Cable
1
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The USB-Blaster™ II download cable interfaces a USB port on a host computer to an Altera® FPGA
mounted on a printed circuit board. The download cable sends data from the PC to a standard 10-pin
header connected to the FPGA. You can use the download cable for the following:
• Iteratively download configuration data to a system during prototyping
• Program data into the system during production
• Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) key and fuse programming
Supported Devices and Systems
You can use the USB-Blaster II download cable to download configuration data to the following Altera
devices:
• Stratix® series FPGAs
• Cyclone® series FPGAs
• MAX® series CPLDs
• Arria® series FPGAs
You can perform in-system programming of the following devices:
• EPC4, EPC8, and EPC16 enhanced configuration devices
• EPCS1, EPCS4, EPCS16, EPCS64, and EPCS/Q128, EPCQ256, EPCQ-L and EPCQ512 serial configu‐
ration devices
The download cable supports target systems using the following:
• 5.0-V TTL, 3.3-V LVTTL/LVCMOS
• Single-ended I/O standards from 1.5 V to 3.3 V
Power Source Requirements
• 5.0 V from the USB cable
• Between 1.5 V and 5.0 V from the target circuit board
©
2015 Altera Corporation. All rights reserved. ALTERA, ARRIA, CYCLONE, ENPIRION, MAX, MEGACORE, NIOS, QUARTUS and STRATIX words and logos are
trademarks of Altera Corporation and registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and in other countries. All other words and logos identified as
trademarks or service marks are the property of their respective holders as described at www.altera.com/common/legal.html. Altera warrants performance
of its semiconductor products to current specifications in accordance with Altera's standard warranty, but reserves the right to make changes to any
products and services at any time without notice. Altera assumes no responsibility or liability arising out of the application or use of any information,
product, or service described herein except as expressly agreed to in writing by Altera. Altera customers are advised to obtain the latest version of device
specifications before relying on any published information and before placing orders for products or services.
ISO
9001:2008
Registered
1-2
Software Requirements and Support
Software Requirements and Support
• Windows 7/8 (32-bit and 64-bit)
• Windows XP (32-bit and 64-bit)
• Windows Server 2008 R2 (64-bit)
• Linux platforms such as Red Hat Enterprise 5
Use the Quartus® Prime software version 14.0 or later to configure your device.
Note: Quartus Prime software version 13.1 supports most of the download cable’s capabilities. If you use
this version, install the latest patch for full compatibility.
The download cable also supports the following tools:
• Quartus Prime Programmer (and stand-alone version)
• Quartus Prime SignalTap® II Logic Analyzer (and stand-alone version)
• JTAG and debug tools supported by the JTAG Server. For example:
• System Console
• Nios II debugger
• ARM DS-5 debugger
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Installing the Download Cable for Configuration or Programming
1. Disconnect the power cable from the circuit board.
2. Connect the download cable to the USB port on your computer and to the USB-Blaster II port.
3. Connect the download cable to the 10-pin header on the device board.
4. Reconnect the power cable to reapply power to the circuit board.
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Installing the USB-Blaster II Driver on Windows 7/8 Systems
Figure 1-1: The USB-Blaster II Download Cable
1-3
Note: For plug and header dimensions, pin names, and operating conditions, see Chapter 2, USB-Blaster
II Download Cable Specifications.
Related Information
USB-Blaster II Download Cable Specifications on page 2-1
Installing the USB-Blaster II Driver on Windows 7/8 Systems
You must have system administration (administrator) privileges to install the USB-Blaster II download
cable drivers.
The download cable drivers are included in the Quartus Prime software installation. Before you begin the
installation, verify that the USB-Blaster II driver is located in your directory: \<Quartus Prime system
directory>\drivers\usb-blaster-ii.
1. Connect the download cable to your computer’s USB port.
When plugged in for the first time, a message appears stating Device driver software was not success‐
fully installed.
2. From the Windows Device Manager, locate Other devices and right-click the top USB-BlasterII.
Setting Up the USB-Blaster II Download Cable
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Installing the USB-Blaster II Driver on Linux Systems
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You need to install drivers for each interface: one for the JTAG interface and one for the System
Console interface.
3. On the right-click menu, click Update Driver Software. The Update Driver Software - USB BlasterII
dialog appears.
4. Click Browse my computer for driver software to continue.
5. Click Browse… and browse to the location of the driver on your system: \<Quartus Prime system
directory>\drivers\usb-blaster-ii. Click OK.
6. Click Next to install the driver.
7. Click Install when asked if you want to install.
You should now have a JTAG cable showing in the Device Manager.
8. Now, install the driver for the other interface. Go back to step 2 and repeat the process for the other
USB-BlasterII device.
When you are finished, you will have added Altera USB-Blast II (JTAG interface) under JTAG cables.
Installing the USB-Blaster II Driver on Linux Systems
For Linux, the USB-Blaster II download cable supports Red Hat Enterprise 5 and above.
To access the download cable, the Quartus Prime software uses the built-in Red Hat USB drivers, the USB
file system (usbfs). By default, root is the only user allowed to use usbfs. You must have system adminis‐
tration (root) privileges to configure the USB-Blaster II download cable drivers.
1. Create a file named /etc/udev/rules.d/51-usbblaster.rules and add the following lines to it. (The .rules file
may already exist if you have installed an earlier USB-Blaster version.)
# USB-Blaster II
BUS=="usb", SYSFS{idVendor}=="09fb", SYSFS{idProduct}=="6010", MODE="0666"
BUS=="usb", SYSFS{idVendor}=="09fb", SYSFS{idProduct}=="6810", MODE="0666"
Caution:
2. Complete your installation by setting up the programming hardware in the Quartus Prime software.
Go to the “Setting Up the USB-Blaster II Hardware with the Quartus Prime Software” section on the
following page.
For more information about USB-Blaster II driver installation, refer to the Cable and Adapter Drivers
Information page.
Related Information
• Setting Up the USB-Blaster II Hardware with the Quartus Prime Software on page 1-5
• Cable and Adapter Drivers Information
There should be only three lines in this file, one starting with a comment and two starting
with BUS. Do not add extra line breaks to the .rules file.
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