Enabling the Promise of Multicore Technology
Multicore technology is the next transformative technology for the Device Software Optimization (DSO) industry. Wind River VxWorks platforms are enhanced with new symmetric multiprocessing (SMP) capabilities within the operating system, network stack, and development tools to provide the easiest path to realize the benefits of multicore technology.
VxWorks 6.6 SMP is an optional component to all the VxWorks 6.6–based platforms, with support for the latest market-leading multicore silicon.
With VxWorks SMP, developers can do the following:
- Deliver higher-performance multicore-powered products with reduced risk and development investment
- Speed time-to-market by using commercially available and supported run-time platforms and developer tools with support for multiprocessing
- Increase productivity by using the same environment and process available for uniprocessor (UP) development by using the SMP extension to existing development tools
- Enable a flexible design approach using Wind River's expertise and broad technology support for multiprocessing
VxWorks SMP is packaged as a complete VxWorks platform comprising the run-time and middleware, Wind River's market-leading tool suite, and support for leading multicore processors—all geared to run and debug in an SMP environment.
Run-Time Features
VxWorks SMP allows a single instance of the operating system to use multiple processors in a single system. It maintains the same key real-time operating system (RTOS) characteristics of performance, small footprint, high reliability, and determinism as the UP configuration of VxWorks.
VxWorks SMP introduces the following key features:
- Supports all VxWorks 6.6–based platforms
- Wind River General Purpose Platform 3.6
- Wind River Platform for Automotive Devices 3.6
- Wind River Platform for Consumer Devices 3.6
- Wind River Platform for Industrial Devices 3.6
- Wind River Platform for Network Equipment 3.6
- Multitasking: True concurrent execution of tasks and interrupts
- Concurrent task scheduling: A priority-based preemptive scheduler that manages the concurrent execution of tasks and automatic load balancing on different CPUs
- Mutual exclusion: Specialized mechanisms for precise synchronization between tasks and interrupts received simultaneously on different CPUs
- CPU affinity: Provides the ability to assign specific tasks or interrupts to a specific CPU
- Binary and API compatibility: Allows applications that use APIs defined for SMP to have binary compatibility with a VxWorks UP configuration
- VxWorks SMP simulation capability: Allows development of SMP applications to begin without physical hardware. SMP simulators are provided with all standard UP VxWorks installations as an introduction to the SMP product.
