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Win32 simulator using Visual Studio (free version)

Richard Barry

March 11, 2010 21:26

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The Win32 FreeRTOS simulator was kindly provided by Dushara Jayasinghe. I have used it with Visual Studio 2008 Express Edition (which can be downloaded for free) under WinXP and found it to be a very valuable tool.

See the page on the main FreeRTOS site for more information.  The files are attached to this post.

[EDIT Richard Barry] NOTE: FreeRTOS V6.1.1 and later includes two official Win32 simulator ports and demo projects.  One that targets the (free) Visual Studio Express 2010, and another that targets the (also free) MingW (GCC) compiler and Eclipse IDE.[/EDIT] 

/attachments/token/iyn818tg7jjehoi

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7 comments

• 0
  
  Cesar Pablo Verdes May 03, 2010 00:23

  I think that in the portmacro.h file of the WIN32 simulator the following line:

  #if(USE_16_BIT_TICKS == 1 )

  had to be changed to:

  #if( configUSE_16_BIT_TICKS == 1 )

  
  

  I'm using the WIN32 simulator for study and understand FreeRTOS. I wanted to experiment with a small portTickType in order to generate a TickCount overflow and I've found that this line is diferent (and possible wrong) compared with other ports.

  In the same portmacro.h file I suggest to modify the following line:
  #define portMS_TO_TICKS(ms) ( ( portTickType ) (1000*(ms) + (15625)/2)/15625 )

  for this one:
  #define portMS_TO_TICKS(ms) ( ( portTickType ) ((1000*(ms) + (15625)/2)/15625) )

  adding this couple of parenthesis.

  Without the parenthesis and if the portTickType is defined as unsigned portSHORT an overflow occurs within the portMS_TO_TICKS macro with values of ms greater than 57.

  I think that the WIN32 simulator is a great tool for the FreeRTOS study and algorithm tests.

• 0
  
  Cesar Pablo Verdes May 03, 2010 00:25

  In order to compile a corutine test application in the WIN32 simulator I had to add the following definition in the portmacro.h file:

  #define portNOP()

  And I had to change the Project -> Properties -> Configuration Properties -> C/C++ -> General -> Debug Information Format to "Program Database (/Zi)" in order to avoid the "error C2051: case expression not constant" error because of the wrong preprocessing of __LINE__.
  This problem is explained at http://connect.microsoft.com/VisualStudio/feedback/details/375836/-line-not-seen-as-compile-time-constant.

• 0
  
  Joao Rosas September 17, 2010 09:32

  Hi,

  I'm newbie using freeRTOS. I could not find a couting semaphore in the simulator. I've used the code below and wonder whether it is ok. I would appreciate any suggestions. :-)

   

  xSemaphoreHandle xSemaphoreCreateCounting( unsigned portBASE_TYPE uxMaxCount, unsigned portBASE_TYPE uxInitialCount )
  {
      xSemaphoreHandle __xSemaphore = xQueueCreate( ( unsigned portCHAR ) uxMaxCount, semSEMAPHORE_QUEUE_ITEM_LENGTH );    
      if( __xSemaphore  != NULL )    {
          int i=0;
          for(; i<uxInitialCount;i++)
              xSemaphoreGive( __xSemaphore);        
      }
      return(__xSemaphore);
  }
  
  

• 0
  
  Richard Barry September 17, 2010 09:44

  > I could not find a couting semaphore in the simulator.

   

  It looks like the simulator is using an old 4.x version of FreeRTOS which did not support counting semaphores.  Unless the source has been modified in any way it *might* be possible to drop in the FreeRTOS 6.x code.

   

  Regards.

• 0
  
  Syed October 09, 2010 01:04

  Hi Richard,

                    I am new to FreeRTOS and want to use the simulator. Is it possible to get the simulator to FreeRTOS 6.x.

              Regards,

              Syed

   

   

• 0
  
  Richard Barry December 08, 2010 20:21

  There is a new an official Windows simulator that is included in the main FreeRTOS download.

• 0
  
  Alfredo Rainho Neves September 19, 2011 17:34

  HI,

  Actually windows can generate clock ticks of 1000 or more with no problems. Windows does have special counters that can be used

  to generate these high tick clocks. For those interrested attached is my version of the "prvSimulatedPeripheralTimer" routine which creates

  the clock ticks. Just substitute the current one in port.c and start ticking away.

  In my PC the reported max frequency is of about 2mhz!!!

   

   I have not tested this on single core computers, but on twin core one core is

  used at 100% and the other is left free which gives the system good response.

   

  Regards, Alfredo