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VSC8211
User Guide
VSC8211 Evaluation Board
December 2013
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VSC8211 Evaluation Board
Contents
1 Revision History ............................................................................................................................. 1
1.1 Revision 1.0 ........................................................................................................................................ 1
2 Introduction ................................................................................................................................... 2
3 General Description ....................................................................................................................... 3
3.1 Hardware Features ............................................................................................................................. 3
3.1.1 Power Connections ................................................................................................................................. 3
3.1.2 Copper Port RJ45 Connections ................................................................................................................ 3
3.1.3 SGMII MAC Interface via SMA ................................................................................................................. 3
3.1.4 GMII, RGMII, MII, TBI and RTBI MAC Interface ....................................................................................... 3
3.1.5 Fiber Transceiver Interface (SFP Cage) .................................................................................................... 3
3.1.6 Switches .................................................................................................................................................. 3
3.1.7 Taitien 25 MHz Crystal ............................................................................................................................ 3
3.1.8 External REFCLK Option ........................................................................................................................... 4
3.1.9 Silabs Microcontroller ............................................................................................................................. 4
3.1.10 EEPROM Option .................................................................................................................................... 4
3.1.11 CMODE Pins (Pin-Strap mode) .............................................................................................................. 4
3.1.12 LED Interface ......................................................................................................................................... 4
3.1.13 CLOCKOUT SMA ..................................................................................................................................... 4
3.2 Software Requirements ...................................................................................................................... 5
4 Quick Start ..................................................................................................................................... 6
4.1 Board Configuration ........................................................................................................................... 6
4.1.1 Power Up ................................................................................................................................................. 6
4.1.2 Clock Reset .............................................................................................................................................. 6
4.2 GUI and Driver Installation ................................................................................................................. 6
4.3 Using the GUI ...................................................................................................................................... 7
4.4 Test Cases ........................................................................................................................................... 8
4.4.1 CAT5 to SGMII with Clause 37 AutoNeg Enabled .................................................................................... 8
4.4.2 CAT5 to RGMII ......................................................................................................................................... 8
4.5 Useful Registers .................................................................................................................................. 9
4.5.1 Ethernet Packet Generator ..................................................................................................................... 9
4.5.2 Far-End Loopback .................................................................................................................................... 9
4.5.3 Near-End Loopback ................................................................................................................................. 9
5 Additional Information ................................................................................................................ 10
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1 Revision History
The revision history describes the changes that were implemented in this document. The changes are
listed by revision, starting with the most current publication.
1.1 Revision 1.0
Revision 1.0 was published in December 2013. This was the first publication of the document.
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2 Introduction
The VSC8211 device is a low-power, gigabit Ethernet transceiver suited for media converters and
Ethernet switches with virtually any serial or parallel MAC interface. The VSC8211 device also includes
Vitesse’s VeriPHY cable diagnostics feature.
This document describes the operation of the VSC8211 Evaluation Board (VSC8211EV). The Quick Start
section describes how to install and run the graphical user interface (GUI) to fully control the evaluation
board.
Figure 1 • VSC8211EV
The following reference documents provide additional information about the operation of the VSC8211
evaluation board.
VSC8211 Datasheet ( )https://www.vitesse.com/products/download.php?fid=118&number=VSC8211
VSC8211 Evaluation Board GUI (https://www.vitesse.com/products/download.php?
)fid=5157&number=VSC8211
VSC8211 Evaluation Board Schematics (https://www.vitesse.com/products/product.php?
)number=VSC8211
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3 General Description
The VSC8211EV provides users a way to evaluate the VSC8211 device in multiple configurations. One RJ45 connector is provided for the copper media interface. The MAC interface is accessible via SMA
connectors. An SFP cage is available for serial configurations, and headers are available for the parallel
interface.
The VSC8211’s internal registers are accessed via the MDIO bus from an external microcontroller driven
by an external PC via USB. The accompanying GUI enables the user to read and write the device
registers. Alternatively, the VSC8211EV has the capability to configure the VSC8211 through an EEPROM
or Rabbit microcontroller (not provided).
The evaluation board has the option to use VSC8211’s internal on-chip oscillator by connecting a 25
MHz crystal to XTAL1 and XTAL2 or an external reference clock signal through the REFCLK SMA (J12).
3.1 Hardware Features
3.1.1 Power Connections
For convenience, the evaluation board runs off a single 5 VDC power supply. On board DC-DC convertors
create the 3.3 VDC rail for the board and optional 1.2 VDC rail. Power is supplied to the upper right
corner of the board. Power can be applied either to the 5.5 × 2.1 mm barrel connector (J24) or the
banana receptacles (J25 and J26). J27 is an optional monitor point for the 1.2 V rail. When powered by a
bench-top supply, the board may draw up to 3 A maximum, module included.
3.1.2 Copper Port RJ45 Connections
The RJ45 copper media PHY port (J1) uses a generic RJ45 jack with a discrete Pulse H5008 magnetic
transformer.
3.1.3 SGMII MAC Interface via SMA
The serial MAC interface is available through SMA connectors (J2, J4, J3, and J6), including the optional
SCLK (on J5 and J7).
3.1.4 GMII, RGMII, MII, TBI and RTBI MAC Interface
The parallel MAC interfaces are available through pin headers on J16 and J28.
3.1.5 Fiber Transceiver Interface (SFP Cage)
The Fiber transceiver differential pair used in the SGMII to SerDes PHY operating mode is supported
with the standard SFP cage (U5).
3.1.6 Switches
Switch SW1 allows the user to select the mode of the EECLK/PLLMODE pin. In the on position a logic
high voltage (pull-up resistor) configures the device for a 125 MHz reference clock while a logic-low
voltage (pull-down resistor) selects a 25 MHz reference clock option. This is a momentary ON switch
which requires the user to hold it in the on position for 3 seconds during board power up or device
reset.
3.1.7 Taitien 25 MHz Crystal
The evaluation board is shipped configured to use the VSC8211’s internal on-chip oscillator. The jumper
on J13 should be installed in the XTAL (left) position, and the jumper on J8 should be installed in the PLL
enable or VCC (right) position.
Note: Review the required action for SW1 mentioned above.
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3.1.8 External REFCLK Option
The user may choose to provide an external PHY REFCLK via the SMA connector (J12). The user must
configure the device by installing a jumper on J8 in the PLL disable or ground (left) position and installing
a jumper on J13 in the SMA (right) position.
3.1.9 Silabs Microcontroller
A Silabs F340 microcontroller is included to facilitate a software interface to the registers on the
VSC8211 through a USB port.
To communicate to the EEPROM or to use a Rabbit microcontroller rather than the Silabs F340, install
jumpers on J23 and J14 accordingly.
Note: A silk-screen error exists on the PCB for J23 such that the MDIO and MDC signals are swapped
with the SDA and SCL signals respectively for the F340 and
Rabbit signals. See the figure below for clarity of the default configuration.
Figure 2 • MDIO/MDC Jumpers on J23 to SiLabs F340 pins
3.1.10 EEPROM Option
The user may choose to configure the VSC8211 via an EEPROM load. In order to program the EEPROM
properly, pull-up or pull-down resistors must be configured for either R6 – R8 or R24 – R26. Please refer
to Section 19 of the datasheet regarding to EEPROM programming requirement.
3.1.11 CMODE Pins (Pin-Strap mode)
On the upper right of the board, there is an option to change the CMODE pin pull-up or pull-down
resistors, R9 - R17 and R27-R34. Please refer to Section 18 of the datasheet for the detail on how to
program the desired operating condition parameters through the CMODE configuration bits and how to
choose the value of each CMODE pull-up or
pull-down resistor.
3.1.12 LED Interface
LED1 to LED5 are available on the lower left of the board. Please refer to Section 14 of the datasheet for
details regarding how to configure the LEDs.
3.1.13 CLOCKOUT SMA
The user should observe a 125 MHz output clock through this SMA if the internal PHY PLL is operating
properly.
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3.2 Software Requirements
The VSC8211 GUI can be loaded on to any PC or laptop that complies with the following requirements:
The PC must run a recent version of MS-Windows. According to the Microsoft website, the following
operating systems can run .NET based applications:
Windows 2000
Windows XP
Windows Vista
Windows-7
Note: The GUI may be slower when run on Windows 2000 operating system.
Hardware requirements must be considered when deploying/installing .NET applications. The
minimum hardware requirement for a system running a .NET application is a Pentium 90MHz with
32 MB of RAM. For best performance, a newer system is recommended along with a minimum of 1
GB of RAM.
If the .NET Framework 2.0 is not already installed, it may be obtained from the following link:
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=22
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4 Quick Start
This section shows the quick start for the VSC8211.
4.1 Board Configuration
Prior to powering the board, ensure that the jumpers and switches are in the following positions.
Table 1 • Switch and Jumper Configuration
Switch/Jumper Position
J23 (MDC) Jumper installed connecting DUT MDC to F340 SCL
: This is due to a layout error on the PCB. ReferNOTE
to Section 2.1.9 for additional details.
J23 (MDIO) Jumper installed connecting DUT MDIO to F340 SDA
: This is due to a layout error on the PCB. ReferNOTE
to Section 2.1.9 for additional details.
J15 (TRSTB) Jumper installed connecting to GND. This is not
required when R35 is installed.
J13 (XTAL1/REFCLK) Jumper installed connecting center pin to XTAL.
J8 (PLL ENABLE/DISABLE Jumper installed connecting center pin to PLL ENABLE.
SW1 Hold in the left position during power-up and reset.
4.1.1 Power Up
Provide 5 VDC to the board by plugging in the power cable (included in the kit) to J24. Two green LEDs
should illuminate: D12 on the left side of the board indicating 3.3 VDC present, and D14 indicating 1.2
VDC present.
4.1.2 Clock Reset
Power must be applied and the clock (either 25 MHz or 125 MHz) must be active at the correct
frequency for the prescribed period of time in the datasheet before the RESETB pin is released.
PLLMODE and OSCDISB pins are sampled during the device power-up or on assertion of RESETB pin.
The board will be shipped configured for use of the 25 MHz crystal thus OSCDISB must be pulled up and
PLLMODE must be pulled down during power-up or assertion of RESETB by setting J8 to the PLL enable
position and holding SW-1 in the 25 MHz position upon power-up.
4.2 GUI and Driver Installation
Download the VSC8211EV GUI from Microsemi's website onto a PC that has a USB port. Install the GUI
by launching the setup.exe file. Once installed, connect the USB cable between the USB port of the PC
and the USB connector (J20) on the evaluation board. Ensure the MDIO and MDC jumpers are properly
placed from DUT to F340 on J23 to establish the connection between the VSC8211’s SMI pins and the
SiLab F340.
USB communication is assisted by the Silabs USBXpress® drive. If not present on the PC, the user will
need to download the USBXpress development kit from the . Follow the installation Silicon Labs website
directions after downloading the development kit.
To ensure the USBXpress driver is installed and properly recognizing the evaluation board, go to control
panel and click on System>Hardware>Device Manager, and inspect the Universal Serial Bus controllers
listed to see if “USBXpress Device” appears. The figure below shows a connected USBXpress Device.
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Figure 3 • USBXpress as Seen From the Device Manager Window
4.3 Using the GUI
Launch the GUI either by clicking on the desktop shortcut or clicking on the “Start>Programs>Vitesse
Semiconductor Corp - VSC8211_Evaluation_System” icons. The initial window will detect the attached
USB devices automatically. The figure below shows a typical EVB Connection window.
Figure 4 • Connection Window
The EVB serial number should appear. If not, click on “Scan For USB Devices.” Select that EVB serial
number then click “Launch GUI”. The Register List window will appear as shown in the figure below.
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Figure 5 • Register List Window
Be sure the device is up and running by reading MII Register 0. It should read back 0 × 1040. Reading
back “0000” or “FFFF” (all 0’s or all 1’s) indicates a problem.
To read or write the extended MII registers, click on the "ExtMII" tab.
An initialization script may be used to configure multiple VSC8211 registers. The initialization script is
simply a text file which contains a list of registers to be written. Select the device item on the top pulldown menu area and click on the"Load-All-Registers" option. A pop-up window will appear. Navigate to
and select the desired script to be loaded.
As per Section 31.1 of the datasheet, there are a number of internal registers that must be changed
from their default value during device initialization. Use this method to initialize the device by loading
“vsc8211_workaround33_1.txt” included in the GUI package under the Script/ directory.GUI Setup.
4.4 Test Cases
4.4.1 CAT5 to SGMII with Clause 37 AutoNeg Enabled
After power-up or reset, VSC8211 as configured on the evaluation board will operate according to CAT5
to SGMII with Clause 37 Auto Negotiation enabled. The 1G Ethernet received at the RJ-45 port is routed
through the VSC8211 and looped back via SGMII through SMA cables.
Set up the copper Ethernet traffic source (e.g., IXIA or Smartbits)
Connect an Ethernet cable to an RJ-45.
Loopback SGMII RXDOUT to TXDIN via SMA cables.
Monitor the link-up bit in MII Register 1, bit 2 (MII 1.2), read twice to update.
Traffic should now be flowing.
4.4.2 CAT5 to RGMII
Set up the copper Ethernet traffic source (e.g., IXIA or Smartbit) and connect a CAT5e cable to the RJ-
45.
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Loopback SGMII RXDOUT to TXDIN via SMA cables.
Write 0 × 1824 to MII Register 23 (Port 0, PHY Control #1). This also sets the internal RGMII TXC
skew to 2.0 ns for this board.
Write 0 × 9040 to MII Register 0 (Port 0, SW Reset for PHY Control setting to take effect).
Monitor the link-up bit in MII Register 1, bit 2 (MII 1.2), read twice to update. Traffic should now be
flowing.
4.5 Useful Registers
4.5.1 Ethernet Packet Generator
ExtMII 29E is the Ethernet Packet Generator register. Refer to datasheet for configuration options.
A bad-CRC counter is in ExtMII 23.7:0. This counter will be saturate at 0xFF and is cleared when read.
4.5.2 Far-End Loopback
When MII Register 23 bit 3 is set to 1, it forces incoming data from a link partner on the media side to be
re-transmitted back to the link partner on the media interface.
4.5.3 Near-End Loopback
When MII Register 0 bit 14 is set to 1, the transmit data (TDP/TDN) on the MAC side is looped back onto
the receive data (RDP/RDN pins) to the MAC.
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5 Additional Information
For any additional information or questions regarding the devices mentioned in this document, contact
your local sales representative.
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Microsemi Headquarters
One Enterprise, Aliso Viejo,
CA 92656 USA
Within the USA: +1 (800) 713-4113
Outside the USA: +1 (949) 380-6100
Sales: +1 (949) 380-6136
Fax: +1 (949) 215-4996
Email: sales.support@microsemi.com
www.microsemi.com
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Microsemi makes no warranty, representation, or guarantee regarding the information contained herein or the suitability of its products and s ervices
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