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At EMAC, we use Linux in off-the-shelf products, custom applications, and major projects. EMAC has been offering our Linux distribution for the embedded systems market since 1998, and has been thoroughly tested and tuned in various customer and internal applications. The EMAC OE Linux distribution with the Linux 2.6 kernel is fully supported, and for use with virtually all of EMAC's Single Board Computers (SBCs).

Linux is an open source operating system kernel. The project was originally started by Linus Torvalds and now has a very large community of developers and users all around the world. Linux is used in an extremely wide variety of devices such as industrial embedded systems, appliances, cell phones, desktop systems, and mainframe servers. Unix-like operating systems utilizing the Linux kernel are loosely referred to as Linux systems. Most Linux systems are a combination of the Linux kernel, GNU Utilities (http://www.gnu.org) , and other software libraries and Open Source projects. These systems are also referred to as GNU/Linux.

OpenEmbedded is a build framework for embedded Linux that allows complete Linux systems to be compiled from source. OpenEmbedded is designed to work on any Linux distribution and has support for compiling systems for many different architectures. EMAC customizes OpenEmbedded by adding support for EMAC hardware, patching software, and controlling the configuration of the operating system to create EMAC OE Linux.

The following features of EMAC OE make it well suited for use in embedded systems:

• EMAC OE is built completely from source, allowing control over exactly which software packages are included, which versions and patches are used, and how they are installed on the system.
• EMAC OE systems are designed to avoid writing to the root filesystem under normal operation. Volatile files such as log files and dynamic settings are stored on a temporary RAM filesystem. The root flash is mounted readonly by default on most systems. This allows for protection of flash memory and corruption prevention from power failure.
• EMAC OE utilizes robust journaling filesystems such as ext3 on Compact Flash disks and JFFS2 on raw flash devices. This adds to the performance of the systems and increases flash life on flash that does not have hardware wear-leveling.
• The Linux kernels developed for EMAC products are configured to only include support for commonly needed hardware and a select set of necessary features. This improves system performance and boot time by reducing resource usage.

When you purchase an EMAC SBC with EMAC OE Linux, the board comes ready to boot, and all of the drivers have been setup for any standard peripherals that you may have purchased from EMAC. This allows you to focus on your application, instead of on time consuming configuration and testing. And if you do encounter problems, you can talk to someone experienced with Linux, and familiar with our distribution.

When Optional Linux Packages are required, we assess a build fee for these optional packages once per build configuration per order. Multiple identical SBCs with the same build on a single order are only charged one time. If the customer intends on purchasing the build on a ongoing basis, an image of the build can be archived under a unique part number (see Customized Builds) and ordered again and again with no additional build charges. Please contact us at info@emacinc.com for information on available packages.

EMAC provides free installation and one-year of operating system technical support for EMAC OE with the purchase of single board computers with suitable media. No operating system support will be given for EMAC OE without verification of purchase of SBC, media, and installation at the time of purchase.

Eclipse IDE

EMAC provides a custom distribution of Eclipse 3.6, an Open Source Integrated Development Environment (IDE) that can be used to develop software for many different languages. Plugins are available that add functionality to Eclipse, such as SVN, support for additional languages, and team collaboration. See the Eclipse Project Site for more information.

EMAC recommends that customers install the most recent stable version from the company's FTP website. The EMAC Eclipse 3.6 distribution includes all of the plug-ins recommended for developing software using the EMAC OE SDK:

• C/C++ Development Tools (CDT) and features
• Remote Systems Explorer / Target Management / Device Software Development Platform (RSE/TM/DSDP)
• SVN, Git, and CVS support
• Mylyn plugin with Trac support
• Linux development tools with Man Page viewer
• ShellEd shell script editor
• Web Developer Tools
• PHP Development Tools
• Eclox Doxygen support plugin
• Other plugins and features
• For a screen shot of EMAC's Linux Eclipse based Development Environment click here.

If you are new to Linux or just want to hit the ground running EMAC can provide you with a Linux Development Computer (LDC). This high performance, small footprint, desktop PC is loaded with Linux, the IDE/SDK and distribution sources so you can start developing right out of the box.

Customized Builds

EMAC can configure all manner of custom Linux software packages. We are constantly adding additional support for new and different devices, including custom hardware. Our Linux packages are tested and pre-configured to provide functionality and utilities, quickly and easily. If you require any additional software packages, custom kernel or application development support, contact sales for a quote.

As we update our Linux builds and packages, there may be compatibility issues with older projects and newer kernel drivers or module versions. In order to provide for the most complete compatibility between equipment and software, we offer a Custom Build Subscription Service.

Once a custom distribution has been created for you, that distribution can be given a unique part number and kept as a disk image on our server. Subsequent purchases of that part number are guaranteed to contain software identical to the original and the image can be installed on subsequent orders for FREE! As a value-added service, we can even incorporate your application and utilities and combine them on the disk image, saving you time and effort. If you require an updated build, you would only pay once for the normal build fees and the image could then replace the previous version on our server.

EMAC Custom Solutions

Besides Single Board Computers, EMAC can provide custom Linux solutions with:

• Custom Linux Kernel development
• Real-Time Linux Extensions
• Data Acquisition Modules
• Custom Application Programming
• Custom Hardware Modification and Design

From small device drivers to fully custom turnkey systems, EMAC is your Linux SBC Partner. Let us help you get your application/project off the ground!

Available Standard Builds

Home | Embedded Linux | Real Time Linux
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