How to Use the IDE to Create, Customize, and Build a Platform
You can use the Platform Builder integrated development environment (IDE) to create, customize, and build a platform that you can download to a target device. The target device can be the Emulator, or a Windows CE .NET PC-based hardware development platform (CEPC), which is an x86-based desktop computer that runs Windows CE–based applications and device drivers.
If your target device is the Emulator, the Emulator does not require additional hardware because it runs on the development workstation.
Hardware and Software Assumptions
- Your CEPC has a mouse or other input device.
- Your CEPC has an NE2000-compatible Ethernet card. For information on additional configuration if the CEPC Ethernet card has a DMA-compatible Ethernet controller, see article Q317432 at this Microsoft Web site.
- Your CEPC has 32 MB RAM for a typical release OS image.
- Your CEPC has 64 MB RAM for debug OS images. Debug OS images can be larger, and may require more memory in order to run.
For more information about how to set up CEPC hardware, see How to Set Up a CEPC.
To track your progress in the following table, select the check box next to each step.
| Step | Topic | |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Create a platform for a board support package (BSP) of your choice, using the New Platform Wizard. | Creating a Platform | |
| 2. Select a debug OS image or a release OS image as the active configuration for your platform.
Many tasks are dependent on the configuration that you select. For example, you may want to configure a platform setting for a specific active configuration only. For information about Windows CE OS images, see OS Image Types. |
Selecting a Debug or Release OS Image | |
| 3. Customize your platform settings. For example, you may want to enable KITL support in your platform for debugging purposes.
For information about the platform settings that you can configure, see Platform Settings. |
Modifying Platform Settings | |
| 4. Ensure that your platform allocates sufficient RAM to your OS image by checking the final OS image size estimate, which is visible in the status bar of the IDE.
If your final OS image size is estimated to be at least 32 MB, enable a larger OS image size. |
Enabling an OS Image Size Larger Than 32 MB | |
| 5. Customize your platform. For example, you may want to add a feature from the Catalog to your platform. For information on how to perform a desired customization, select the relevant topic.
For more information about customizations you can make, see Additions to a Platform. For information about creating a device driver, see How to Create a Device Driver. |
Adding an Existing Project to a Platform
Adding a Feature from the Catalog |
|
| 6. Build your platform. Performing this step adds to your OS image any changes that you may have made since the last build. | Building a Platform | |
7. Set up and configure a connection to a target device for downloading your OS image.
|
Configuring a Connection for Downloading and Debugging | |
| 8. Download your OS image to your target device. | Downloading an OS Image to a Target Device | |
| 9. Verify that you have successfully downloaded your OS image to your target device. If you have successfully downloaded the OS image, the OS boots, and then appears on the screen of the target device. | Not applicable |
See Also
Platform Development How-to Topics | How to Connect to a Device for Debugging | How to Create an SDK for a Custom Platform | How to Check the Dependencies of a Feature | Tutorial: Using Platform Builder with the Emulator | Tutorial: Using Platform Builder with a CEPC | Build Phases
Last updated on Friday, October 08, 2004
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