Re: Using XML in GDB?

[Daniel Jacobowitz <drow@false.org>]

On Thu, Jan 26, 2006 at 05:31:23PM +0000, Andrew STUBBS wrote:
> You have skipped memory maps.  Is there no plan to make an automatic 
> 'mem' command? I would prefer that the memory maps were honoured by a 
> little more of GDB - attempts to access bad addresses can crash the 
> target, but that's a separate project.

There's no plan for this, certainly; but the bits I'm implementing
would allow you to convey this information from target (or stub)
to GDB, and if someone else was motivated to make GDB do this...
well, that could be very nice indeed.

> It lists all the IP blocks on an SoC, but more importantly the location, 
> format (down to bit level in some cases) and content of all the memory 
> mapped registers in the device. It also describes the memory regions in 
> the various memory interface devices.
> 
> Even if it isn't of direct interest to the debugger, it may be of 
> interest to the user and worth presenting.
> 
> This is why I suggest that you don't go out of your way to be 
> incompatible. I'm not sure what it takes to be compatible, but since 
> it's all XML, it might be enough to just not clash with any of its tags, 
> or conversely use the same names where they happen to be the same format.

The XML bits I'm proposing would definitely have a simpler and
GDB-local definition.  That doesn't stop us from supporting the SPIRIT
schemas later on, as an alternative.

> >I'm not going to pursue this for now because of IP issues; the terms on
> >the SPIRIT documents make me leery of using them for an open source
> >program, at least without talking to a lawyer about it first.
> 
> Really? I would have thought they would be OK (the point of SPIRIT is 
> that everybody uses it), but IANAL and anyway I haven't read the terms.

For instance, it has explicit "may contain patented IP and we disclaim
all liability if you use it" language.  You also need to be a corporate
member to get access to some bits of it, I think - but I didn't spend
much time poking around at it.

-- 
Daniel Jacobowitz
CodeSourcery