XilinxVirtualCable

Description: Xilinx Virtual Cable (XVC) is a TCP/IP-based protocol that acts like a JTAG cable and provides a means to access and debug your FPGA or SoC design without using a physical cable.

This capability helps facilitate hardware debug for designs that:

  • Have the FPGA in a hard-to-access location, where a "lab-PC" is not close by
  • Do not have direct access to the FPGA pins – e.g. the JTAG pins are only accessible via a local processor interface
  • Need to efficiently debug Xilinx FGPA or SoC systems deployed in the field to save on costly or impractical travel and reduce the time it takes to debug a remotely located system.

Key Features & Benefits

  • Ability to debug a system over an internal network, or even the internet.
  • Debug via Vivado Logic Analyzer IDE exactly as if directly connected to design via standard JTAG or parallel cable
  • Zynq®-7000 demonstration with Application Note and Reference Designs available in XAPP1251 - Xilinx Virtual Cable Running on Zynq-7000 Using the PetaLinux Tools
  • Extensible to allow for safe, secure connections

For more information on the XVC protocol see