Welcome and Device Tabs

Welcome

Simplicity Studio® 5 (SSv5) opens to a Welcome page.

To return to the Welcome page at any time, click Welcome on the tool bar.

On the Welcome Page you can

Select a Target Device

SSv5’s purpose is to provide a development environment directed toward a specific target device. Therefore, one of the first things to do is to define that target device. Once a target device is selected, a tabbed interface to features specific to that device is available, starting on the Overview tab . The device can be a physical piece of hardware, or a virtual part.

Physical If you have one or more devices physically connected, either on a development kit or on customer hardware with a supported debug adapter, they are displayed in the Debug Adapters view, where you can get started simply by clicking a device to selected it.

They are also displayed in the Get Started area’s Connected Devices drop down. Clicking a device to select it, then click Start .

Virtual If you do not have a physical device, but would like to explore some of SSv5’s functions, or get started with developing for a part you will receive later, select a virtual device either in the My Products view or in the Get Started area.

In the My Products view, start typing a product name and select the product of interest.

Under Get Started, click All Products . Use the checkboxes to limit the search list to kits, boards, or parts. Click in the search products field and start typing. When you see the target, select it and click Start . The next time you return to the Welcome page, that device will be shown in the My Products view.

Start a New Project

You can start a new project from the Welcome page, but you must immediately select a target device. See Start a Project for more information.

Learn and Support

Expand the Learn and Support section for access to a variety of resources related to developing for a Silicon Labs target.

Overview tab

Once you have selected a target device, the Launcher perspective editor area changes to the OVERVIEW tab specific to that part. For a physically-connected device you have general device information , as well as details about the hardware components, and recommended quick start guides from compatible protocol SDKs. Each hardware component is pictured in a card and has a View Documents drop down where you can see related hardware documentation.

SSv5 displays similar information for virtual devices (selected in the My Products view) and devices connected to a supported debug adapter (for example, SEGGER J-Link or a Wireless Starter Kit mainboard in debug OUT mode). The settings in the General Information card vary depending on the target device.

General Device Information

Configure Connection

Device Connection shows how the device is connected to SSv5. Click Configure to explore or modify connection parameters. If your device firmware is not up to date, you will be invited to update it.

If you are targeting an EFR32-based Silicon Labs kit, you will almost certainly also see the following question:

The CTUNE value is used to tune the external crystal capacitors to hit the exact frequency they are intended to hit. Because this varies from board to board, in production Silicon Labs measures it during board tests and programs a unique CTUNE value for each board into the EEPROM. Each SDK also has a default CTUNE value programmed in a manufacturing token. This message asks if you want to overwrite the default CTUNE value with the one found in the EEPROM. Because the EEPROM value is more accurate, Silicon Labs recommends you click Yes . The default CTUNE value will also work, but could under some circumstances, such as temperature extremes, bring the radio frequency out of spec.

Debug Mode

The Debug Mode controls the interface to the wireless starter kit mainboard onboard debugger. Changing Debug Mode opens the Adapter Configuration tab of the J-Link Configuration tool. The debug modes are:

See your kit's User’s Guide for more information on the debug modes available.

Adapter Firmware

This shows the firmware version running on the debug controller of your Silicon Labs development kit and whether or not an update is available. Silicon Labs strongly recommends that you update adapter firmware to the current version. The Changelog shows the firmware release notes. When you update adapter firmware SSv5 will ask you to confirm before proceeding. When firmware is up to date the interface says Latest .

Preferred SDK

Some developers may have more than one GSDK version installed. The preferred SDK shows the currently selected SDK. Click Manage SDKs to see other options.

Example Projects Tab

The EXAMPLE PROJECTS tab shows a list of projects with full descriptions displayed. Use the checkboxes to filter the list. Click CREATE on any project to create it. This is equivalent to creating a project from the OVERVIEW tab, except that the project is already selected.

Documentation Tab

The DOCUMENTATION tab shows all documentation compatible with the selected part. Use the checkboxes or text filter field to find a resource of interest. The technology filter corresponding to your development environment will show you most software documents relevant to that environment.

Demos Tab

The DEMOS tab shows a list of demos compatible with the selected part. A demo is a prebuilt image that can be loaded into a compatible device and used to show and test application functionality. Every demo comes with an associated example file. See the Quick Start Guide for your SDK for more information about the demos provided.

Compatible Tools Tab

The COMPATIBLE TOOLS tab shows the tools compatible with the selected product. The Tools button on the toolbar shows all tools unfiltered.