- Ethernet Blaster Communications Cable User Guide

Altera Corporation 1–1
December 2004
Chapter 1. About the
EthernetBlaster
Communications Cable
Introduction
The EthernetBlaster communications cable connects to a standard
Ethernet network port with an RJ-45 connector. This cable communicates
with client systems using the TCP/IP protocol and supports both static
and dynamic IP addressing. The EthernetBlaster communications cable
can be plugged into an existing 10/100 Base-T Ethernet network to
communicate with clients remotely or interfaced directly via a standard
10/100 Base-T Ethernet port using a crossover cable. Because design
changes are downloaded directly to the device, prototyping is easy and
you can accomplish multiple design iterations in quick succession.
Harnessing the power of an Ethernet network, multiple users can
remotely access Altera
®
devices, bringing a new level of productivity to
prototyping and debugging.
Supported Devices
You can use the EthernetBlaster communications cable to download
configuration data to the following Altera devices:
■ Stratix
®
series FPGAs
■ Cyclone
™
series FPGAs
■ MAX
®
series CPLDs
■ APEX
™
series FPGAs
■ ACEX
®
1K FPGAs
■ Mercury
™
FPGAs
■ FLEX
®
series FPGAs
■ Excalibur
™
FPGAs
You can perform in-system programming of the following devices:
■ Advanced configuration devices, including EPC2, EPC4, EPC8,
EPC16, and EPC1441 devices.
■ Serial configuration devices, including EPCS1, EPCS4, EPCS16, and
EPCS64 devices.
In addition, the EthernetBlaster communications cable supports target
systems using 5.0-V TTL, 3.3-V LVTTL/LVCMOS, and single-ended I/O
standards from 3.3 V down to 1.5 V.