Linux professional services and consulting firm Embedded Alley (EA) says it can help device developers choose between available NAND flash devices and filesystems. The company has launched a consulting practice around modeling tools it created to predict flash memory longevity under specific Linux software… stacks.

(Click for larger view of EA's Application Modeling tool )

Embedded Alley says its consulting practice can help device developers evaluate whether their application can use less expensive MLC (multi-level cell) Flash, or whether SLC (single-level cell) devices would serve better. It does this by modeling device software behavior, simulating “years” of use in a matter of hours, the company claims.

Specifically, Embedded Alley says its tools can be model:

• System write behavior, including:
  • Application logs
  • Syslogd
  • Product updates (firmware, OS, applications)
  • Temporary space
  • Application specific data (video, audio, compress/uncompress data)
• System read behavior, including:
  • application logs
  • Syslogd
  • Product updates (firmware, OS, applications)
  • Temporary space
  • Application specific data (video, audio, compress/uncompress data)

According to Embedded Alley, the modeling tool assigns a “pass-fail” grade, based on product requirements programmed into the modeling tool. Device companies also have access to modeling statistics, which can reportedly help them to optimize system attributes to ensure that product design criteria will be satisfied by the final design.

A “pass-fail” summary graph generated by EmbeddedAlley's modeling tool
(Click to enlarge)

Matt Porter

Stated Dan Malek, Embedded Alley CTO, “From component selection to memory system design, from prototyping to production, Application Modeling lets OEMs meet product cost, life expectancy and performance requirements.”

Matt Porter, chief architect of the modeling tools, commented, “With Application Modeling, we are now able to optimize customer bills of materials and accurately predict product longevity.”

About Embedded Alley

EA offers a number of Linux consulting services, including working with customers to develop and maintain their software development kits (SDKs). The firm's Silicon Vendor Partner Program (SVPP) provides customized SDKs that vendors can freely distribute, and includes mainline kernel maintenance and regression testing. Known for its expertise in Linux kernel ports for the PowerPC architecture, EA has been busy acquiring other services firms in recent years. The company maintains development centers in Moscow and St Petersburg, Russia.

Availability

Embedded Alley's Application Modeling tools and flash memory consulting services are available now, says EA. More information on Embedded Alley Application Modeling may be found a here.

In addition, Porter will deliver a presentation on the technology at ELC Europe in the Netherlands on Nov. 6-7.

 
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