New Products Offer Serial RapidIO and PCI Express Protocol Analysis

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--FuturePlus Systems today introduced the FS4405, FS4415, and FS4416, low-cost PCI Express (PCIe®) and Serial RapidIO® protocol analysis tools for use with Tektronix TLA 7000 logic analyzers. They will be used by embedded systems designers involved in the development of computers and peripherals incorporating the PCIe and Serial RapidIO architectures.

The FS4405 allows non-intrusive probing of PCIe buses at a data rate of 2.5 Gb/s, and the FS4415 can probe a Serial RapidIO bus at 3.125 Gb/s. The FS4416 combines user-selectable PCIe and Serial RapidIO analysis capabilities in a single product. The new products will be demonstrated at the PCI-SIG Developers Conference, May 21 and 22, in San Jose, California.

The three products are the first designed by FuturePlus Systems for serial bus support using the Tektronix logic analysis platform.

"FuturePlus Systems has more than 15 years of protocol-aware bus analysis tool experience," said Ross Nelson, Director of Marketing, Tektronix Logic Analyzer Product Line. "As serial buses increase in speed and complexity, reliable and easy to use validation tools are critical to digital designers. We welcome the opportunity to complement the TLA family with the new FuturePlus serial bus support products, enabling embedded designers to reduce product development time."

FS4405 Feature Highlights

• 8b/10b data acquisition at 2.5 Gb/s
• Simultaneous bi-directional monitoring on X1, X2, X4 and x8 links.
• Provides 3 24-byte packet header recognizers (on any combination of bits) in each direction to enable complex logic analyzer triggering
• Industry-leading packet-aware data filtering (Store Qualification) minimizes the need for large expensive trace buffers
• Integral USB port for probe control from a PC

FS4415 Feature Highlights

• 8b/10b data acquisition at 3.125, 2.5 or 1.25 Gb/s
• X1 lane and X4 lane modes
• Supports debug of physical, transport and logical layers (messaging, I/O and streaming)
• Provides 3 24-byte packet header recognizers (on any combination of bits) in each direction to enable complex logic analyzer triggering
• Industry-leading packet-aware data filtering (Store Qualification) minimizes the need for large expensive trace buffers
• Integral USB port for probe control from a PC

Four Software Components Simplify Analysis, Speed Setup:

• The new products include software that decodes and displays bus data as detailed bus protocol.
• Setup files are also provided to facilitate quick logic-analyzer setup.
• Transaction Viewer software presents bus transactions in a graphical, horizontal-bar view that allows users to drill down to see transaction details.
• Probe Manager Software executing on a Windows-based logic analyzer or PC controls probe over a USB interface, in real time.

FuturePlus Systems offers a broad selection of optional connectorless, flying lead and interposer cable-adapters to accommodate a variety of requirements for connecting the protocol preprocessors to the target system under test.

U.S. Pricing and Availability

Protocol Preprocessors -- delivery is four weeks ARO.

FS4405 PCI Express protocol preprocessor, $15,000, less cables
FS4415 Serial RapidIO protocol preprocessor, $25,000, less cables
FS4416 Serial RapidIO plus PCI Express protocol preprocessor, $35,000, less cables

About FuturePlus Systems

FuturePlus Systems Corporation is a privately held manufacturer of bus protocol analysis tools for the computer industry. FuturePlus Systems has authorized resellers in Canada, China, India, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, and most European countries. More information about FuturePlus Systems Corporation may be found on the internet at www.futureplus.com.

About Tektronix

Tektronix is a leading supplier of test, measurement, and monitoring products, solutions and services for the communications, computer, and semiconductor industries - as well as military/aerospace, consumer electronics, education and a broad range of other industries worldwide. With 60 years of experience, Tektronix enables its customers to design, build, deploy, and manage next-generation global communications networks, advanced and pervasive technologies. Headquartered in Beaverton, Oregon, Tektronix has operations in 19 countries worldwide. Tektronix' Web address is www.tektronix.com.