POWERLINK

[andrea.miclausig]

Hello everyone! As I said in the presentation topic, I'm new to the forum and to the world of Raspberry in general, while I have some experience with Ubuntu.

So, basically what I need is a way to verify that the POWERLINK protocol is working as it should without losing packages. To do that, I'd like to use two Raspberry Pi and if necessary a computer.

So, my idea would be to configure two Raspberry Pi 3 as in the guide on ethernet-powerlink.org and if necessary a PC with something like Wireshark to check for package losses.

My main questions are: can this be done without using a PC? Can the Master of the POWERLINK network also do a check on lost packages and eventually notify the user? If yes, any ideas on how can I do it? Also, as far as I can see the site only supports Pi2. Anyone with experience on the Pi3?

Any help is appreciated. Thank you.

[fruitoftheloom]

Hello everyone! As I said in the presentation topic, I'm new to the forum and to the world of Raspberry in general, while I have some experience with Ubuntu.

So, basically what I need is a way to verify that the POWERLINK protocol is working as it should without losing packages. To do that, I'd like to use two Raspberry Pi and if necessary a computer.

So, my idea would be to configure two Raspberry Pi 3 as in the guide on ethernet-powerlink.org and if necessary a PC with something like Wireshark to check for package losses.

My main questions are: can this be done without using a PC? Can the Master of the POWERLINK network also do a check on lost packages and eventually notify the user? If yes, any ideas on how can I do it? Also, as far as I can see the site only supports Pi2. Anyone with experience on the Pi3?

Any help is appreciated. Thank you.

If this is the Website you are referring to ??

https://www.ethernet-powerlink.org/raspberrypi2

[andrea.miclausig]

Yes. While the documentation is quite good, as far as I've read on the internet that doesn't work with Pi 3, which is the only model we have.

[fruitoftheloom]

Yes. While the documentation is quite good, as far as I've read on the internet that doesn't work with Pi 3, which is the only model we have.

Have you actually tried the instructions using Raspbian Jessie or Stretch as the Operating System ?

[andrea.miclausig]

Yes. While the documentation is quite good, as far as I've read on the internet that doesn't work with Pi 3, which is the only model we have.

Have you actually tried the instructions using Raspbian Jessie or Stretch as the Operating System ?

Forgive me, but I couldn't find the passages you are referring to. I have looked at all the setup process and then googled if this could fit the Pi 3. All the answer I've found say that it is not working.

[fruitoftheloom]

Yes. While the documentation is quite good, as far as I've read on the internet that doesn't work with Pi 3, which is the only model we have.

Have you actually tried the instructions using Raspbian Jessie or Stretch as the Operating System ?

Forgive me, but I couldn't find the passages you are referring to. I have looked at all the setup process and then googled if this could fit the Pi 3. All the answer I've found say that it is not working.

I was asking if you had attempted to undertake getting PowerLink running on a different Operating System, after all the ethos of Raspberry Pi is learning...


The "Ubuntu / Linaro" Operating System available from the website I linked requires updated Kernel /Firmware to run on the RPi 3B.

[andrea.miclausig]

Have you actually tried the instructions using Raspbian Jessie or Stretch as the Operating System ?

Forgive me, but I couldn't find the passages you are referring to. I have looked at all the setup process and then googled if this could fit the Pi 3. All the answer I've found say that it is not working.

I was asking if you had attempted to undertake getting PowerLink running on a different Operating System, after all the ethos of Raspberry Pi is learning...

No, I haven't. As mentioned, I'm very much a beginner with Raspberry and coding in general. While I know how to Use Ubuntu, I'm not familiar with all other configurations needed. That's why I'm here asking for help.

[B.Goode]

Some non-technical suggestions:


Ask the developer/maintainer for an RPi3-compatible version.


Buy a $35 RPi2 to run the released version.


Or, my preferred option: be prepared to do some learning and try the released version on your RPi 3 and modify/adapt it as necessary until it works.

[andrea.miclausig]

Some non-technical suggestions:


Ask the developer/maintainer for an RPi3-compatible version.


Buy a $35 RPi2 to run the released version.


Or, my preferred option: be prepared to do some learning and try the released version on your RPi 3 and modify/adapt it as necessary until it works.

Already tried the first step: no release available. Step 2 is not an option. Step 3, as much as I hate to say it, is the only thing I can do. I'm going to discuss with my boss because it'll be very, VERY time consuming.

Thanks for your help anyway.

[fruitoftheloom]

Some non-technical suggestions:


Ask the developer/maintainer for an RPi3-compatible version.


Buy a $35 RPi2 to run the released version.


Or, my preferred option: be prepared to do some learning and try the released version on your RPi 3 and modify/adapt it as necessary until it works.

Already tried the first step: no release available. Step 2 is not an option. Step 3, as much as I hate to say it, is the only thing I can do. I'm going to discuss with my boss because it'll be very, VERY time consuming.

Thanks for your help anyway.

You need to break this down.....


1) afaiaa an operating system, dependencies, wiringpi etcetera can all be installed without using the website linked software.


2) Download and Install of OpenPowerlink:

https://sourceforge.net/projects/openpo ... pberryPi2/


3) configuration of OpenPowerlink....

[Heater]

Given that you are new to the Pi and coding in general, how have you come to the conclusion that you need POWERLINK ?

POWERLINK is all about "real time" messaging over ethernet. I don't see how someone new to programming can even know if they need a real-time communications system. Or use it properly. Never mind get it installed and running.

I have to ask, what is it you actually need to do? What is the problem you are trying to solve? If you have "real time" requirements, what kind of time scales and deadlines are we talking about? The Rasbian operating system is not any kind of "real-time" operating system never mind the protocols one might use over ethernet.

Quite likely what you need to do can be done with regular network communications. Over ethernet or whatever.

If not we have much deeper things to talk about.

[andrea.miclausig]

Thing is I don't actually need anything, apart from proving that it can work with the "cable" we made. Basically, only a master and a slave communicating with this protocol to verify that it works fine.

[drgeoff]

The quality of those instructions is dubious given that after booting the RPi you are supposed to select something. Then you plug in the keyboard and mouse. Then you connect the display.

I quote:
----------------------
Power on the Pi and it should boot into an intro screen showing two logins. Select the user ‘linaro’ and enter the password ‘linaro’ and you should be greeted with the desktop
Next, plug in your USB keyboard and Mouse into the USB slots on the Raspberry Pi
Make sure that your monitor or TV is turned on, and that you have selected the right input (e.g. HDMI 1, DVI, etc)
Then connect your HDMI cable from your Raspberry Pi to your monitor or TV
-----------------------

[Heater]

Oh boy. This is not even something to install on Raspbian. It's a whole other Linaro operating system. Might be best to ask the Linaro guys how to deal with it.

If you just want to test your cabling then why not just use regular networking? It's all ethernet after all.

[andrea.miclausig]

I know it's all Ethernet, but the requirements are different and I need to be able to tell the client that the specific protocol is fine, not just the Ethernet.

Anyway, I'm going to try and install it on a VM in order to deal with the major problems (missing packages and similar) not a desktop, then I'm going to replicate the setup on the Raspberry... If I can get around the setup.

[fruitoftheloom]

I know it's all Ethernet, but the requirements are different and I need to be able to tell the client that the specific protocol is fine, not just the Ethernet.

Anyway, I'm going to try and install it on a VM in order to deal with the major problems (missing packages and similar) not a desktop, then I'm going to replicate the setup on the Raspberry... If I can get around the setup.

The only VM which can emulate the RPi Architecture is QEMU:

https://www.qemu.org

[andrea.miclausig]

I know it's all Ethernet, but the requirements are different and I need to be able to tell the client that the specific protocol is fine, not just the Ethernet.

Anyway, I'm going to try and install it on a VM in order to deal with the major problems (missing packages and similar) not a desktop, then I'm going to replicate the setup on the Raspberry... If I can get around the setup.

The only VM which can emulate the RPi Architecture is QEMU:

https://www.qemu.org

Sorry, but what about this?

https://www.raspberrypi.org/downloads/r ... i-desktop/

[B.Goode]

I know it's all Ethernet, but the requirements are different and I need to be able to tell the client that the specific protocol is fine, not just the Ethernet.

Anyway, I'm going to try and install it on a VM in order to deal with the major problems (missing packages and similar) not a desktop, then I'm going to replicate the setup on the Raspberry... If I can get around the setup.

The only VM which can emulate the RPi Architecture is QEMU:

https://www.qemu.org

Sorry, but what about this?

https://www.raspberrypi.org/downloads/r ... i-desktop/

Your initial question was "can this be done without using a PC?"

The Operating System you have linked to here is explicitly for 'PC' (or Mac) hardware...

So I suppose the answer is that you can use this without a PC if you have access to a Mac that you can use instead!

[fruitoftheloom]

I know it's all Ethernet, but the requirements are different and I need to be able to tell the client that the specific protocol is fine, not just the Ethernet.

Anyway, I'm going to try and install it on a VM in order to deal with the major problems (missing packages and similar) not a desktop, then I'm going to replicate the setup on the Raspberry... If I can get around the setup.

The only VM which can emulate the RPi Architecture is QEMU:

https://www.qemu.org

Sorry, but what about this?

https://www.raspberrypi.org/downloads/r ... i-desktop/

That is for x86 CPU Architecture

The RPi is ARM CPU Architecture

[Heater]

That is not an emulator. "Debian with Raspberry Pi Desktop" is what it says it is, a Debian x86 operating system for the PC with a desktop from Raspbian.

The whole idea of testing a real-time ethernet system through a virtual machine makes no sense to me.

Firstly there is no way the OS, running in a VM, is real-time anymore.

Secondly the OS in the VM will be using a network interface that is virtualized by the VM host. Far away from real-time.

[andrea.miclausig]

My idea is, and please correct if I'm wrong, to use the desktop versione to "get to know" what I'm talking about, and then once that's done I'm gonna move to the Raspberry. I'm gonna do this because it's easier for my work flow to work on a desktop and then move to a Raspberry.

Edit: I know the concept of real time goes to hell, but to me it looks like a more practical way to setup everything and learn how to configure.

[Heater]

Sounds reasonable. It's an approach I have used many times in the past. Play and learn on the PC, then get down to the target.

I'm not so sure how this works out with low level stuff like POWERLINK though.

Surely in order to create real-time ethernet it uses some special ethernet drivers and perhaps even a real-time enabled Linux kernel. None of which is available in a VM.

I could be very wrong. I have never looked into POWERLINK. Though I do have some experience of real-time Linux for embedded systems. It just feels that way

[andrea.miclausig]

Looks like the easiest way to me, so I'm gonna try. Of course, if you have any suggestions please, PLEASE share them!