KDS V 1.1.1 - Remote Communication Error

[samsaprunoff]

Good day All,

I am curious if anyone else is getting the following KDS error when connecting to a target (K60) via PE's Multilink Universal?  It is really frustrating and annoying, as there is little information given...

     Error in final launch sequence

     Failed to execute MI command:

     -target-select remote 127.0.0.1:7224

     Error message from debugger back end:

     Remote communication error.  Target disconnected.: No error.

     Remote communication error.  Target disconnected.: No error.

I have read the  GDB debugging doc and have verified that there are not multiple GDB debugging processes occurring, but yet I still get this error frequently.  Interestingly if I use other tools to access the target all is fine... and so I know the Target, the multilink, and the interface are fine... it is GDB, KDS, or the combination thereof.

I have to say... I really miss CW classic... as I am finding that CW 10.x and KDS are quite problematic and a real issue when trying to do project work...

Cheers,

Sam

[tivadar]

Hello!

I have the same problem too. I use KDS 1.1.1 on Ubuntu 12.04 32 bit. I have the latest P&E plugin (1.1.7) and KSDK.

Until this version of the plugin, there were the same problem as samsaprunoff described in his original post. After the update the KDS simply does not find the my TWR-K70F120M board.

With lsusb I can see the device in Linux. What could be the problem?

By,

Tivadar

[samsaprunoff]

Good day Tivadar,

From my recent experience it looks as if your plugin has some issues and so PE will have to update the plugin... That being said, PE responded quite promptly with an update and so hopefully they will do the same for your issue.

Cheers,

Sam

[BlackNight]

I get that message if I try for example to debug twice the same application on the board, without terminating the existing debug configuration.

USB drivers for sure are always a pain, but your custom board might be just so specific that it might work in one environment, and not in another.

CodeWarrior is using a different way (DLL) than Kinetis Design Studio (using GDB). So the timing might be enough different that it works for you in one case, but not in another.

I have a collection of debugging failure points and tips. I plan to write an article with debugging tips on MCU on Eclipse | Everything on Eclipse, Microcontrollers and Software tonight if time permits.

Erich

[samsaprunoff]

Good day Erich,

Thank you for your post!

Indeed, I found your debug error issue as well... and I think I also read about it in one of your blogs.

Overall I believe that my particular issue is related to the PEmicro plugin... as once I de-installed everything and then reinstalled KDS based upon my previous snapshot I went back to where I last was... still problematic, but at least working a bit.  It is unfortunate that there is not a way to uninstall a plugin and use a previous version... Perhaps there is, but I was unable to find out how to do this.  In my case I would have reverted back to the previous Plugin version and then I would not have had the frantic experience of trying to stabilize my development platform.

As a bit of a follow up e-mailed PEMicro (for support) about this issue and the possibility that their latest plugin had issues and after a week I have heard no response at all... this is not good...

Thanks again for your post and continued efforts with helping us learn KDS, etc!

Cheers,

Sam

[Zahar · Accepted solution]

Hi Sam,

Thank you for bringing this issue to our attention and sorry you are having difficulties working under KDS 1.1.1 and CW10.6.

I propose to concentrate on getting you up and running under KDS 1.1.1 first and then switch over to looking at CW10.6 IDE, just so we do not get these two use cases confused.

With P&E plugin 1.1.6 we allow user to specify a path to location of his GDB server by going to Debug Configurations -> Debugger -> GDB Server Settings -> Executable

In some instances, this path gets corrupted, which is when P&E plugin looses ability to detect hardware interfaces and/or device selection. If you are observing this behavior, as a workaround, please follow these steps:

1. Create new P&E debug configuration by going to Debug Configuration menu and right click to create New configuration under GDB Pemicro Interface Debugging.

2. Go to Debug Configurations -> Debugger -> GDB Server Settings -> Executable and Browse to point to a valid GDB server path within your KDS 1.1.1 layout. You will most likely be able to find the latest P&E plugin installed at the following location: C:\Freescale\KDS_1.1.1\eclipse\plugins\com.pemicro.debug.gdbjtag.pne_1.1.6.xxx\win32\pegdbserver_console.exe

3. Once this is done, you will be able to select corresponding Kinetis device and your Multilink interface under Debug Configurations -> Debug configuration tab of your project.

Please let me know if you are able to resolve the issues you are seeing with P&E plugin 1.1.6 following instructions above.

On a different note, we released updated P&E plugin 1.1.7 which removes a requirement to have a user point to a valid GDB server within project debug configuration. You can install the latest P&E plugin by going to Help -> Install New Software -> and pointing the update wizard to the following P&E update site: http://www.pemicro.com/eclipse/updates

Please let me know if this resolves your KDS issues you reported. Who are you working within P&E's technical support on this issue. I want to connect up to ensure that we are on the same page on this issue.

Best Regards,
Zahar

P&E

[samsaprunoff]

Good day Zahar,

My apologies for my delayed response!

Thank you for your response and the information!  I will try the new plug in and I will report back.

As for PE's Tech support, I have not spoken with anyone, as I simply posted by request for assistance with the forum... I understood that this was what one was to do.  If I am mistaken, please let me know.

Cheers,

Sam

[zaharr_]

Hi Sam,

I look forward to your feedback on trying a new plugin. At the same time, following the steps outlined above should allow you to get 1.1.6 plugin to work as well.

If you have any future questions specific to P&E products, please feel free to submit a support request on our website:

http://www.pemicro.com/support/index.cfm

This way you will be working with a designated P&E applications engineer who will definitely try his best to help you get your setup up and running.

Best Regards,
Zahar

P&E

[samsaprunoff]

Good day Zahar,

This is an update that I did what you suggested and upgraded to 1.1.7 and all appears to be working correctly.  The only issue I am seeing is that one must ensure to remove any terminated debugging sessions otherwise the plugin will fail to load.

Thanks again for letting me know about the updated 1.1.7 plugin version.

Cheers,

Sam

[samsaprunoff]

Good day All,

And it goes from bad to worse...  I found a few postings online that stated that the PE Micro GDB driver had issues and so the solution was to check the plugin version and install the latest one.  Well I did that and now the latest PE Micro Plugin I downloaded today (2014-10-25) ... version 1.1.6.201409261701 ... has some serious issues with KDS debugging, as now the KDS Debug Configuration is completely unable to "see" my connected USB Multilink in the "ports" list as well as being unable to select the device in the "device Name" list.

My PEMicro device is clearly visible and working correctly within Windows Device Manager and so the problem is squarely with this latest plugin...  I posted this on the PEMicro support site and so this is a warning to others to not update the plugin unless you are prepared for the consequences.

As I said... boy do I miss the classic CW days....

Cheers,

Sam

[samsaprunoff]

Good day All,

So... I spent more time on this today...  Firstly, I wanted to confirm that my target board and Universal Multilink (UM) where working OK and so I tried using the same setup with my licensed CW 10.x versions... Sadly, none of them cannot seem to connect to my target.  However, within the CW10.x the debugger setup it can "see" my UM on my USB port... it just simply cannot connect to my target.  I then checked the continuity of the 20-pin ribbon cable and all was fine here.  I examined it under an inspection scope and again no issues could be seen.  I then created a bare-board project under CW 10.x and I had the same issue.  I tried on a few other different boards (same processor) and the same issue was occurring.  So, my next step was to install CW 10.6 on a different computer and try it.  I did this and verified that the UM USB Drivers were the same ... and they were...  With this new computer and I can connect and debug my targets fine... now I have confirmed that the target(s) and the UM are working fine.

I now go back to my work computer and unistall both KDS and CW 10.6 and reboot the computer.  I re-install CW 10.6 and try again to connect to my target...  Sadly, as before, I cannot connect to my target board.  I try other CW 10 versions (10.2, 10.5) and the same result... my main work computer cannot seem to connect using the PeMicro UM... this is not good.

Now I reinstall KDS (1.1.1) that I downloaded on Oct 10, 2014.  Once completed I created a bare board project and try again to connect to my target.  I noticed immediately that KDS can now "see" my connected UM on my USB port and it fails the first time to connect.  I reset the target and try again and I could now connect to my target.  That being said, this is where I was before where I would get "remote connection errors"... however, at least I can connect to my target periodically.  Upon review of the console the PEMicro Plugin is the following:

CMD>CM C:\Program Files (x86)\Freescale\KDS_1.1.1\eclipse\plugins\com.pemicro.debug.gdbjtag.pne_1.1.2.201408071632\win32\gdi\P&E\k60dn512z_pflash_pipeline.arp

So... it would appear that the 1.1.6.201409261701 version is a problem for my system... I will certainly not update this plugin unless PE instructs me accordingly.  However, I am at a loss as to why the 1.1.6... update knackered my CW 10.x debugging...

Anyway, this is enough nonsense for the weekend...  Hopefully someone here or PE can direct me accordingly.

Cheers,

Sam

[trytohelp]

Hi Sam,

To resume you're using:

    CW for MCU V10.6 + KDS V1.1.1 + USBMultilink Universal for K60 board

Is it a TWR board ?

    which one ?

What is the Windows OS used (32/64 bit) ?

At the end you can download and debug the application  using KDS and MCU.

If I'm missing something let me know.

Have a great day,
Pascal Irrle

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[samsaprunoff]

Good day Pascal,

In regards to your questions:

     Is it a TWR board ?   which one ?

I am using a custom K60 board, but it is very similar to the the TWR-K60N512

     What is the Windows OS used (32/64 bit) ?

I am using Win 7-64 Bit Pro

Sadly,  my comments have blurred your understanding...  To Recap:

1. I started a K60 Project using KDS 1.1.1. ... I am using KDS, as I felt it is necessary to use this tool, as Freescale is Abandoning CW (which I have a fully paid professional version) for use with Kinetis devices.

2. Upon using KDS I found that I was getting regular communication failures with the PEMicro Universal Multilink (UM).  This was annoying and frustrating, as it limits or halts the speed of my development.

3. After looking online, etc I found references to comments stating the UM's GDB plugin is old and has had issues and so the recommendation was to update the Plugin.

4. I updated the plugin and the result was a complete knackering of KDS and Debugging... and secondarily with my CW versions.

My follow-up posts were status updates of what I did to try and regain debugging support either through KDS or CW so that I could at least make some project progress...  The result was that I had to uninstall, reinstall, and update my UM firmware in order to regain some form of a development/debugging platform.  Where I am at today?  Well, it would appear that my CW 10.6 is working... although 1 out of every 4-5 connects it fails to connect.  As for KDS... I am still getting periodic connection failures like when I first started... however I was warning others to not update the Plugin until Pemicro could review my issue to see if it is something with my system or a bug within their plugin.

The result is that I have a "sort of"/periodic working KDS debugging platform and what appears to be a working 10.6 platform. I could certainly continue my project on 10.6 but because it is being abandoned for Kinetis devices means that at some point I will need to port, retest, etc my project to KDS.  For now I suspect that I will write more core code in CW 10.6 so that I can test/debug these modules and hopefully the issue I am having with KDS and UM will get sorted by the time I need to bolt up all of my core modules.

Do I currently need any immediate assistance?  No, as I have worked around the issues to a point where I can at least get some project work done.

Do I require any assistance?  Yes, but this would be related to having a more consistent KDS debugging environment (i.e. minimal connection failures).  It would seem that the KDS UM Plugin is the most likely suspect/cause and so an updated plugin, etc would be most desirable.

Have a great day yourself!

Cheers,

Sam