{"id":390,"date":"2009-08-24T08:38:50","date_gmt":"2009-08-24T07:38:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.mentor.com\/colinwalls\/?p=390"},"modified":"2009-08-24T08:38:50","modified_gmt":"2009-08-24T07:38:50","slug":"multi-coremulti-os-terminology","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.stage.sw.siemens.com\/embedded-software\/2009\/08\/24\/multi-coremulti-os-terminology\/","title":{"rendered":"Multi-core\/multi-OS – terminology"},"content":{"rendered":"

Working for Mentor Graphics is interesting, but can have some challenges. One of the facets of the company that makes us unique is embedded software. There are a couple of other companies that Mentor would regard as key competitors, but they are both totally focussed on electronic hardware design – “electronic design automation” [EDA]. A very large part of Mentor has that orientation, but we are unique in having the Embedded Systems Division<\/a>. Of course, there are plenty of other embedded software companies, but they do not operate in the hardware design space.<\/p>\n

The logic behind an EDA firm being involved in software is clear: an electronic system of any significant level of complexity delivers functionality via a combination of hardware and software. As a company, understanding both domains gives us the chance to serve our customers better – to offer more complete solutions.<\/p>\n

Of course, we do all of this, but we run into communication problems …<\/p>\n

Although it is now more than 13 years since Mentor acquired the company that I worked for and, hence, started its investment in embedded software, I still find myself surrounded by people who speak a different language. They talk about “synthesis” and “netlists” and think that “IP” stands for “intellectual property” [whereas I think “Internet protocol”]. An operating system is something that runs on a desktop computer – an RTOS is not familiar. And when I talk about embedding Linux in a device, confused looks are the result.<\/p>\n

I recently ran into a new terminological challenge. This came about because there is increasing interest in multi-core systems: devices that incorporate multiple CPUs – either multiple chips or multiple processor cores on a single chip. Typically, the functionality of a device is spread across the CPUs so that one [or one group] performs the high speed, hard real time activities and another looks after functionality which in not time critical. An example might be a digital TV system, where one processor looks after the processing of the media stream and another looks after file management and the user interface.<\/p>\n

This kind of system architecture is interesting because the operating system requirements of the two parts of the system are different. The hard real time part needs a true RTOS [like our own Nucleus OS<\/a>]; the other part may be best served by Linux<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The question is: what do we call these two distinctly different parts of a multi-core system? My EDA colleagues make references to the “data plane” and the “control plane”, but these terms are not intuitive to me. Am I out of touch or is it a hardware\/software thing? I would appreciate any feedback either via a comment or by email<\/a>. Thanks in advance.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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