uClinux - Ported to Motorola ColdFire MCF5407

SnapGear announces uClinux support for the Motorola ColdFire 5407 processor and development board.

Engineers within the SnapGear Integrated Products group have completed porting of the uClinux distribution which previously only contained support for the Motorola ColdFire 5307 processor. The port itself took a relatively short to complete due to the modular design of uClinux.

uClinux is popular with embedded developers for a variety of reasons. The distribution is based upon the core Linux kernel with only a few modifications to enable embedding which means that developers have confidence that they are using a known and stable API that has undergone significant refinement and testing. The small footprint of uClinux means that quite sophisticated Linux applications are able to run in embedded devices as small as the palm of your hand. MMU-less processors such as the Motorola ColdFire and DragonBall families are the forte of uClinux allowing small, inexpensive embedded devices to be built while retaining inherent real-time capabilities. Probably the most compelling reason for using uClinux is the ready availability of tools and applications for developers, with many standard Linux applications ready to run without modification.

A uClinux CD is now enclosed with the new Motorola ColdFire 5407 development boards, allowing developers to instantly bootstrap uClinux development environment. The CD includes a 5407 version of uClinux, complete with tools and applications.

SnapGear has taken a leadership role with uClinux and is forming part of SnapGear's strategy for MMU-less processor support.

uClinux is an open source product under the terms of the GNU PUBLIC LICENCE, and further information may be obtained from SnapGear's uClinux page

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