In this fourth part of the Introduction to Vitis tutorial, you will compile and run the vector-add example using each of three build targets supported in the Vitis flow as described below. The overall flow is described in Embedded Processor Application Acceleration Flow, and includes the image flow diagram shown below. From the image you can see the G++ cross-compiler for building the host application for the Arm processor, and the use of the Vitis compiler (v++) for building the Xilinx device binary (xclbin). These are the steps you will be working through in this lab.
Software Emulation - The kernel code is compiled to run on an emulation environment (QEMU) version of the embedded processor. The software emulation target allows quick iterative algorithm refinement through fast build-and-run loops. This target is useful for identifying syntax errors, performing source-level debugging of the kernel code running together with application, and verifying the behavior of the system. Refer to Software Emulation for more information.
Hardware Emulation - The kernel code is compiled into a hardware model (RTL), which is run in the Vivado logic simulator. The host application runs on an emulation environment (QEMU) version of the embedded processor. This build-and-run loop takes longer but provides a detailed, cycle-accurate view of kernel activity. This target is useful for testing the functionality of the logic that will go in the FPGA and getting initial performance estimates. Refer to Hardware Emulation for more information.
Hardware - The kernel code is compiled into a hardware model (RTL) and then implemented on the FPGA, resulting in a binary that will run on the actual FPGA. In the Embedded Processor platform, the host application, xclbin, and required support files are written to an SD card (for instance) and then used to boot and configure the system. Refer to Running the Application Hardware Build for more information.