NXP Semiconductors UM11673 User manual

NXP Semiconductors UM11673
MCU-Link Pro
UM11673 All information prov ided in this document is subject to legal disclaimers. © NXP B.V. 2021. All rights reserved.
User manual Rev. 1.2 — 26 June 2023 1 of 18
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Keywords
MCU-Link Pro, MCU-Link, MCU-LINK-PRO
Abstract
MCU-Link Pro user manual
M CU-LinkProUM11673
UM11673
MCU-Link Pro standalone debug probe
Rev. 1.2 — June 26, 2023
User manual

NXP Semiconductors UM11673
MCU-Link Pro
UM11673 All information prov ided in this document is subject to legal disclaimers. © NXP B.V. 2021. All rights reserved.
User manual Rev. 1.2 — 26 June 2023 2 of 18
Revision history
MCU-Link Pro
Rev
Date
Description
1.0
20210831
First release.
1.1
20230410
Update for secondary VCOM and new supporting software.
1.2
20230623
Additional information added aboutUART level shifters.Update to FreeMASTER
compatibility.
Contact information
For more inf ormation, please visit: http://www.nxp.com
For sales of fice addresses, please send an email to: mailto:[e-mail]

NXP Semiconductors UM11673
MCU-Link Pro
UM11673 All information prov ided in this document is subject to legal disclaimers. © NXP B.V. 2021. All rights reserved.
User manual Rev. 1.2 — 26 June 2023 3 of 18
UM11673 All information provided in this document i s subject to legal di sclaimers. © NXP B.V. 2021. All rights reserved.

NXP Semiconductors UM11673
MCU-Link Pro
UM11673 All information prov ided in this document is subject to legal disclaimers. © NXP B.V. 2021. All rights reserved.
User manual Rev. 1.2 — 26 June 2023 4 of 18
1. Introduction
Jointly developed by NXP and Embedded Artists, MCU-Link Pro is a powerful and cost
ef f ective debug probe that can be used seamlessly with MCUXpresso IDE, and is also
compatible with 3rd party IDEs that support CMSIS-DAP protocol. MCU-Link Pro
includes many f eatures to f acilitate embedded sof tware development, f rom basic debug
to prof iling, energy consumption analysis, and support of peripheral and host emulation
via USB b ridging f unctions. MCU-Link Pro is one of a range of debug solutions based on
the MCU-Link architecture, which includes a very low cost base model and
implementations built into NXP evaluation boards. MCU-Link solutions are based on the
powerf ul, low p ower LPC55S69 microcontroller and all versions run the same f irmware
f rom NXP. The MCU-Link Pro can be programmed with a special version of f irmware to
implement a version of SEGGER’s popular J-Link debug probe.
Figure 1 MCU-Link Pro overview and connections
The MCU-Link Pro includes f o llowing f eatures:
• CMSIS-DAP firmware to support all NXP Arm®Cortex®-M based MCUs with SWD
debug interf aces
• SEGGER J-Link f irmware option
• High speed USB host interf ace
• Dual USB to target UART bridges (VCOM)
• Simultaneous target supply and current measurement

NXP Semiconductors UM11673
MCU-Link Pro
UM11673 All information prov ided in this document is subject to legal disclaimers. © NXP B.V. 2021. All rights reserved.
User manual Rev. 1.2 — 26 June 2023 5 of 18
• SWO prof iling and I/O f eatures
• CMSIS-SWO support
• USB SPI and I2C bridges for programming/provisioning and host-based application
development
• Option to power target system at up to 350mA (at 1.8V or 3.3V)
• Analog signal trace input
• On-board, user-programmable LPC804 f or peripheral emulation
• Multiple status LEDs f or diagnosis of issues
• Target reset button

NXP Semiconductors UM11673
MCU-Link Pro
UM11673 All information prov ided in this document is subject to legal disclaimers. © NXP B.V. 2021. All rights reserved.
User manual Rev. 1.2 — 26 June 2023 6 of 18
2. Board layout and Settings
The connectors and jumpers on the MCU-Link Pro are shown in Figure 1and
descriptions of these are shown in Table 1.
Table 1 Indicators, jumpers, buttons and connectors
Circuit ref
Description
Default
LED1-7
Status LEDs
n/a
J1
Host USB connector
n/a
J2
Multi-probe sync (reserved for future use)
n/a
J3
LPC55S69 SWD connector (for developmentof custom debug probe
code only)
n/a
J4
Firmware update jumper (ISP)
Open
J5
Target voltage selection (when powering target)
Open: 3.3V
Closed:1.8V
Open
J6
Insert to power target from MCU-Link Pro
Open
J7
SWD connector for connection to target system
n/a
J9
Energy measurement connector
n/a
J10
VDDIO selection for LPC804
3.3V (1-2)
J11
SWD connector for LPC804
n/a
J12
Connector for LPC804 peripherals
n/a
J13
SWD disable jumper (install to disable)
Open
J14
VCOM disable jumper (install to disable)
Open
J15
USBSIO (I2C/SPI USB bridge) disable jumper (install to disable)
Open
J16/17/18
Energy measurementrange configuration
High (350mA) range (pos 1-2)
J19
MCU-Link digital connector (for VCOM, bridge and analog trace signals)
n/a
J26
Secondary UART connection to LPC55S69
n/a
SW1
Target reset button
n/a
3. Installation and firmware options
MCU-Link Pro debug probes are factory programmed with NXP’s CMSIS-DAP protocol
based f irmware, which also supports all other f eatures supported in hardware. A custo m
version of J-Link f irmware to make MCU-Link Pro compatible with J-Link LITE is also
available but note that this f irmware is limited to supporting debug (including SWO) and
VCOM f eatures.

NXP Semiconductors UM11673
MCU-Link Pro
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User manual Rev. 1.2 — 26 June 2023 7 of 18
3.1 Host driver and utility installation
A step-by-step installation guide f or MCU-Link Pro is provided at the board web page on
nxp.com (https://www.nxp.com/demoboard/MCU-LINK-PRO.) The rest of this section
explains the same steps as can be f ound on that page.
MCU-Link Pro is now also supported by the Linkserver utility (https://nxp.com/linkserver),
and running the Linkserver installer will also install all the required drivers and f irmware
update utilities mentioned in the remainder of this section. It Is recommended that this
installer is used unless you are using an MCUXpresso IDE version of 11.6.1 or older.
Please check the MCUXpresso IDE compatibility (see Table 2) before updating the
MCU-Link f irmware.
MCU-Link debug probes are supported on Windows 10, MacOS X and Ubuntu Linux
platforms. MCU-Link probes use standard OS drivers but the installation program f or
Wind ows includes inf o rmation f iles to provide user f riendly device names. If you do not
want to use the Linkserver installer package you may install these inf ormatio n f iles and
the f irmware MCU-Link update utility, by going to the Design Resources section of the
board web page and selecting “Development sof tware” f rom the SOFTWARE sectio n.
Installation packages f or each host OS will be shown. Download the package f or your
host OS install (Linux or MacOS) or run the installer (Windows). Af ter setting up the OS
drivers, your host computer will be ready to use with MCU-Link Pro. It is usually
advisable to update to the latest version of the f irmware as this may have changed since
your MCU-Link Pro was manuf actured but first check Table 2to confirm compatibility
with the MCUXpresso IDE version you are using. See the next section f or the step s to
perf orm a f irmware upd ate.
3.2 Updating MCU-Link Pro firmware
To update the MCU-Link’s f irmware it must be powered up in (USB) ISP mode. To do
this insert jumper J4 then connect MCU-Link Pro to your host computer using a micro B
USB cable connected to J1. The red STATUS LED (LED3) should light and stay on (f or
f urther inf ormation on LED status inf o rmation ref er to Section 4.7. The board will
enumerate on the host computer as a HID class device. Navigate to the MCU-
LINK_installer_Vx_xxx directory (where Vx_xxx indicates the version number, e.g.
V3.108), then f ollow the installation instructions in the readme.txt to f ind and run the
f irmware update utilities f o r CMSIS-DAP or J-Link versions. Af ter updating the f irmware
using one of these scripts, unplug the board f rom the host computer, remove J4 and
then reconnect the board.
NOTE: From version V3.xxx onwards, the MCU-Link firmware uses WinUSB
instead of HID for higher performance, but this is not compatible with earlier
version of MCUXpresso IDE. CMSIS-SWO support will also be introduced from
V3.117, enabling SWO-related features in non-NXP IDEs, but also requiring an
updated IDE. Please check the table below for compatibility between version of
MCU-Link firmware and MCUXpresso IDE. The last V2.xxx firmware release (2.263)
is available at https://nxp.com/mcu-link for developers using older IDE versions.

NXP Semiconductors UM11673
MCU-Link Pro
UM11673 All information prov ided in this document is subject to legal disclaimers. © NXP B.V. 2021. All rights reserved.
User manual Rev. 1.2 — 26 June 2023 8 of 18
Table 2 Firmware features and MCUXpresso IDE compatibility
MCU-Link f irmware version
USB
driver
type
CMSIS-
SWO
support
FreeMASTER support
via …
MCUXpresso IDE
versions supported
SWD / JTAG
USB
bridge
V1.xxx and V2.xxx
HID
No
Yes
Yes
MCUXpresso 11.3
onwards
V3.xxx up to and including
V3.108
WinUSB
No
FreeMASTER
V3.2.2 or later
Yes
MCUXpresso 11.7.0 or
later REQUIRED
V3.117 and onwards
WinUSB
Yes
FreeMASTER
V3.2.2 or later
Yes
MCUXpresso 11.7.1 or
later REQUIRED
Af ter p rog ramming the MCU-Link Pro with the CMSIS-DAP f irmware three USB HID
devices (f or the SPI/I2C USB bridges, trace and power ports) will enumerate, plus two
virtual com ports, and a WinUSB device called MCU-Link Pro CMSIS-DAP. If v2.xxx or
older f irmware is being used then the CMSIS-DAP device will appear as a HID device.
The red status LED will repeatedly fade f rom on to of f and back on again (“breathing”),
while the green USB status LED will stay on constantly. For more inf ormation on the
status LEDs when using CMSIS-DAP f irmware please see Section 4.7.
If the J-Link f irmware is programmed then only a J-Link device and single VCOM port will
enumerate. Note that the J-Link f irmware uses the VCOM LED to indicate status. The
LED will illuminate after boot up then blink to indicate debug activity.
If a more recent f irmware version than that programmed into your MCU-Link is available,
MCUXpresso IDE (f rom version 11.3 onwards) will alert you to this when you use the
probe in a debug session; take careful note of the version of f irmware you install to
ensure it is compatible with the IDE version you are using. If you are using another IDE
with the MCU-Link Pro it is advisable to update the f irmware to ensure the latest version
of f irmware is installed.
If J-Link firmware has been installed, the SEGGER device drivers will be able to perf orm
subsequent f irmware updates as these are released without the need to use the NXP
supplied f irmware update scripts and without having to install the ISP mode jumper. Note
that if the CMSIS-DAP f irmware is installed later then this update capability will be lost
until the J-Link f irmware is installed again using the NXP firmware update scripts.
3.3 Setup for use with development tools
The MCU-Link debug probe can be used with IDEs supported within the MCUXpresso
ecosystem (MCUXpresso IDE, IAR Embedded Workbench, Keil MDK, MCUXpresso for
Visual Studio Code (f rom July 2023)); f or more inf ormation on getting started with these
IDEs please visit the Getting Started section of the MCU-Link Pro page on nxp.com.

NXP Semiconductors UM11673
MCU-Link Pro
UM11673 All information prov ided in this document is subject to legal disclaimers. © NXP B.V. 2021. All rights reserved.
User manual Rev. 1.2 — 26 June 2023 9 of 18
3.3.1 Use with MCUXpresso IDE
MCUXpresso IDE will recognize any type of MCU-Link probe, either with CMSIS-DAP or
J-Link f irmware, and will show the prob e types and uniq ue identif iers of all prob es it f inds
in the probe discovery dialog when starting a debug session. This dialog will also show
the f irmware version, and will show a warning if the f irmware is not the latest version.
See Section 3.2 for information on how to update the f irmware. MCUXpresso IDE 11.3
or later must be used when using MCU-Link Pro, and version 11.4.1 or later is required
to use the Energy Measurement f eatures.
3.3.2 Use with other IDEs
MCU-Link Pro should be recognized as a CMSIS-DAP or J-Link probe by other IDEs
(depending on the f irmware that is programmed), and should be usable with standard
settings f or that probe type. Follo w IDE vendor instructions f or setup and use of CMSIS-
DAP and J-Link probe types.

NXP Semiconductors UM11673
MCU-Link Pro
UM11673 All information prov ided in this document is subject to legal disclaimers. © NXP B.V. 2021. All rights reserved.
User manual Rev. 1.2 — 26 June 2023 10 of 18
4. Feature descriptions
This section describes the various f eatures of MCU-Link Pro. The USB bridging, VCOM
port, power measurement and analog trace features all utilize the Digital I/O Connector
(J19), f or which an accompanying cable is provided with the MCU-Link Pro. The table
below shows the connections for J19. All the signal pins on J19 have ESD protection.
SPI, I2C and triggering digital signals used can be in the range 1.2V to 5.5V; if no target
VDD IO ref erence is used then the circuit will def ault to 3.3V. Note the Analog trace input
should be kept in the 0 to 3.3V range to avoid damage to the voltage f ollower circuitry on
MCU-Link Pro.
Table 3 Digital I/O Connector (J19)
Cable color
J19 pin
Signal
Feature
Black
1
GND
Brown
2
SPI SSEL
USB-SPI bridge
Red
3
SPI MOSI
Orange
4
SPI CLK
Yellow
5
SPI MISO
Green
6
I2C SDA
USB-I2C bridge
Blue
7
I2C SCL
Violet
8
UART IN (Target TXD)
VCOM
Gray
9
UART OUT (Target RXD)
White
10
SYNC trigger (for future use)
Black
11
GND
Brown
12
Analog trace input
Analog trace
Red
13
Energy Measurementtrigger
Energy measurement
Orange
14
Target VDD IO Reference voltage
4.1 Target SWD/SWO interface
MCU-Link Pro provides support for SWD-based target debug, including f eatures enabled
by SWO. The MCU-Link Pro board includes f ootprints f or both 10 (J7) and 20 pin (J8)
Cortex debug connectors, with the 10-pin connector installed. MCU-Link Pro comes with
cables f or 10-pin to 10-pin and 10-pin to 20-pin target connections.
Level shif ters are provided between the LPC55S69 MCU-Link Probe processor and the
target to enable target processors running at between 1.2V and 5V to be debugged. A
reference voltage tracking circuit is used to detect the target voltage at the SWD