WinX

About WinX

Working in coordination with Dr. Dennis Brylow a senior design project was set up to create a piece of software to allow the direct inclusion of Windows based computers in the development and testing of XINU operating systems. The goal is to create a front end program that has all the functionally of current shell based front end tied into a graphical user interface. The project codename, WinX, was installed at the beginning of the implementation phase; ultimately the software may be released under a different name for various legal reasons.

• Working Objective Statement
  • Design and implement a Windows program to allow Windows-based computers to participate directly in the MSCS Systems Lab for remote testing and execution of embedded operating system kernels by 28 April 2008 at a cost of $0.

• Current developers include:
  • Adam Koehler
  • Nicholas McMillan
  • Matthew Thomson
  • Christopher Swiderski

Phases of WinX

• Design
  • The design phase spanned the whole first academic semester starting in September 2007 and ending in December 2007.

• Implementation
  • The implementation stage will span the whole second academic semester starting in January 2008 and ending in late April 2008.

• Major Implemenation Phases
  • Internal: January - Alpha Stage (Completed)
  • Alpha: March 12, 2008 (Completed)
  • Beta: April 9, 2008 April 16, 2008 (Active)
  • Live: April 28, 2008

WinX Development

WinX implementation is an ongoing process and members of the software development team can access the subversion repository at http://xinu.mscs.mu.edu/svn/winx/ to view the current status of the software.

WinXINU Testing

The team has uploaded several files for external beta testing of WinXINU.

• Step 1: Copy the contents of WinXINU install folder from http://www.mscs.mu.edu/~nmcmilla/WinXINU-Installer/
• Step 2: Go into Cygwin Install Folder
  • 2a) Run Setup.exe
  • 2b) Select Install from Local - Folder is the only fold in Cygwin Install directory
  • 2c) Click ALL to set it to Uninstall at top of package selection
  • 2d) Click Devel to set it to Install in the package listings
• Step 3: Change the first line of the compiler/makeVars file to the location of the WinXINU cross compiler bin

  Example:
   MIPS_ROOT = "C:\Documents and Settings\nmcmilla\Desktop\winx\compiler\cross\bin"

• Step 4: Run WinXINU executable
• Step 5: Navigate to config tab, change location of cygwin\bin to location on local machine
• Step 6: Navigate to config tab, change location of compile directory where the Makefile is located for final image build

WinXINU Testing Feedback

  Use a structure similar to the following:
   *name
   **Error/Comment Title
   ***Description of error/comment

mschul

• Improve cygwin installation process.
  • (Didn't work very well on a computer that had already been setup.)

compile pane

• I should be able to click 'make' or 'make clean' whenever a damn well feel like.
  • and there should be a mechanism for making other targets as well.
• Implement 'Errors and Warnings' checkbox.

xinu-status

• Perhaps only query morbius at most once per second (disabling the 'update now' button for a second)

xinu interaction

• Connect to backend, select mips-console, program complains and goes on anyway. No good.
• Run 'testsuite' and compare output to linux version (ignoring the VT100 thing).
  • also typing a single \ should produce a single slash. Not typing \\ to produce
• Verify *ALL* control characters are not printed.
• Is there any way that hitting backspace won't jump to the top and back down?
• Something with 'mips-console' and xinu just going, seems...odd.
  • if the download fails it still keeps on a truckin'.
• Continue session doesn't continue session until a client side character is typed.
  • Also, I can backspace over previous characters after typing ctrl-space.
  • Perhaps, ctrl-space should also be the continue code (once will pause, twice will continue).
• Clear history in the interaction tabs (or even have a value to specify lines of scrollback).
• xsh$ clear (makes WinX go boom).
• 'Command request timed out' ... clearly it did not.

serial port 2

• Should have option to connect to same backend2 name as serial port 1 (if connected on 1).
• Clicking cancel in the select specific backend2 should not produce an error message.
• Connect to preferred when already connected produces no warnings.
• Connecting to backend2 hops to the top of the textbox.
• Is there any way that hitting backspace won't jump to the top and back down?
• Ctrl-space should work here too. And make sure continue session still works on this pane.

config

• New user profile should auto-set in config after creation.

GUI

• The color seems funky (tab color doesn't match background color).
• Needs icon.
• Needs About.
• Needs 'command descriptions'
• Possibly needs a quick start guide in the help menu.