Open-TL866 is open-source firmware for the TL866-series of chip programmers. This firmware replaces the proprietary firmware for programming EPROMs, MCUs, GALs, etc. Caution: This is alpha software. Use at your own risk.
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The XC8 compiler from Microchip is used to compile our C code. Currently version 1.x is required. Download it from Microchip's site and install it. When activating, select the Free version.
Note: If you are installing to a 64-bit Ubuntu distribution, you must first get the 32-bit libc that isn't installed by default:
sudo apt-get install libc6:i386. Then you can run Microchip's installer. -
CMake is needed to generate the build configuration. On Linux you should install it from your distribution's package manager (e.g.
sudo apt-get install cmake). For Windows, an installer is available from the CMake website. -
Certain dependencies are managed as git submodules. Install them with
git submodule update --init.
cdto thefirmwaredirectory.- Generate the build configuration by running
cmake . - Build the project by running
make - Flashable images are in
dist/tl866-*.hex
The build configuration is maintained with CMake in CMakeLists.txt.
Calling cmake . interprets the CMake configuration and produces a set
of makefiles in the source tree. If you prefer an out-of-source build,
just call cmake from the directory where you want the build output and
pass it the path to the firmware directory.
There are multiple variants of the firmware with different
functionality, which are currently called "modes". Each mode produces a
separate firmware image under firmware/dist. Each mode has a
corresponding target in the makefiles, so you can build just one mode
with e.g. make tl866-bitbang. The currently implemented modes are:
tl866-bitbangtl866-at89
On Linux systems, the udev rules file contrib/96-opentl866.rules
should be copied into /etc/udev/rules.d/. Doing so will allow non-root
users who are members of the plugdev group to access the devices. Once
the rules file is installed udev needs to be reloaded. On modern Linux
systems that use systemd that can be done by running:
sudo systemctl restart systemd-udevd
The Python client library provides a command-line client for the stock bootloader which can be used to flash any firmware to the TL866. To install the CLI tool, run:
cd py && python3 setup.py install
And then TLDR: otl866 self update firmware/dist/tl866-epromv.hex
If that doesn't work, read on.
The first step in flashing any firmware is to get the TL866 to reboot into its bootloader. How exactly you need to go about that depends on which firmware your TL866 is currently running.
If your TL866 is running an older version of the stock firmware the update tool can request a reset into the bootloader without any help. If you have version 03.2.85 or newer of the stock firmware there's currently a bug that prevents that from working, so you'll need to use the hardware method below.
If your TL866 is running the open firmware the update tool can trigger
a reset into the bootloader: otl866 self update firmware/dist/tl866-epromv.hex
On Windows or if you multiple serial ports you may need to add
--reset-tty(ex: --reset-tty COM6 on Windows)
If you flashed the open firmware onto the TL866 using a separate ICSP programmer the bootloader has been erased from your TL866. Do not reprogram a TL866's firmware using the ICSP connector on the same TL866. In order to use the update tool you'll need to flash the stock firmware via ICSP to restore the bootloader. You can find ICSP-ready images of the stock firmware in Radioman's repository.
If you're having trouble resetting to the bootloader from within the firmware currently installed on your TL866, you can force it to boot into the bootloader by shorting pin RC1 of the microcontroller to Vcc while you plug it in to the USB. The easiest points to short with a piece of jumper wire are from pin 2 of J1 (the ICSP header) or the tab of the adjacent voltage regulator to the side of R26 nearest J1.
If you find yourself using this method frequently it can be worthwhile to solder a mini tactile switch between R26 and the side of R2 nearest the edge of the board. That side of R2 is also Vcc and is much closer to R26 than the voltage regulator is.
To flash the open firmware, open a command prompt and navigate to the
folder where you built the firmware. Call the update tool, passing it
the path to the Intel Hex file. If your TL866 is already running the
stock firmware you'll also need the --reset-tty option (see above).
tl866 self update --reset-tty COM6 dist/default/production/firmware.production.hex
The update tool can also flash the stock firmware. To do so you'll need
the update.dat file from the official software. If you installed it
with the default settings that should be at C:\MiniPro\update.dat.
You'll need to pass the --stock option to tell the updater that you
want to flash the stock firmware, and you'll also need to use the
--reset-tty option if your TL866 is running the open firmware.
tl866 self update --reset-tty COM6 --stock C:\MiniPro\update.dat
The TL866 with the open firmware will identify itself as a serial port (USB CDC). A Python library is provided which makes it easy to drive the bitbang mode.