Which Linux Driver Supports Altera FPGA Generic Serial Flash Interface (GSFI) IP Core?

[WGQ]

Hello,

I am working with an Altera (Intel) FPGA design that uses the Generic Serial Flash Interface (GSFI) IP core to connect to an external SPI NOR Flash device. I am looking for the appropriate Linux driver to support this interface.

I have checked the Linux 5.4 kernel source:

- In drivers/mtd/spi-nor/, I only found drivers for Intel PCH SPI controllers, but nothing specific for the Altera/Intel GSFI IP core.
- In drivers/spi/, there is an altera_spi driver, but it appears to be a generic SPI controller driver, not specifically for SPI NOR flash access.

My questions:
1. Is there an official or recommended Linux driver for the Altera/Intel FPGA Generic Serial Flash Interface (GSFI) IP core?
2. If so, where can I find it, or which kernel version includes it?
3. If not, is there any guidance or reference for adapting an existing driver (such as altera_spi or a generic SPI-mem driver) to support GSFI for SPI NOR flash access?

Any documentation, example device tree bindings, or reference designs would also be greatly appreciated.

Thank you!

[JingyangTeh_Altera]

Hi

For accessing the flash connected to the GSFI IP. There is no linux driver for the GSFI IP.

You could use the mmap function to map the flash through the H2F Bridge.

Regards

Jingyang, Teh

[JingyangTeh_Altera]

Hi

Do you have a follow up question on this?

Regards

Jingyang, Teh

[WGQ]

Hi Jingyang,

Thank you for your reply.

After further discussion and evaluation, we have decided that a dedicated Linux driver for the GSFI IP is not necessary for our application.
Instead, we will coordinate with the FPGA side to implement the SPI flash read/write logic. On the CPU side, we will use memory-mapped access (via the PCIE) to directly read from and write to the flash. This approach allows us to access the flash as a memory region without the need for a specific driver.

Thank you again for your support and clarification.

Best regards

[JingyangTeh_Altera]

Hi

I’m glad that your question has been addressed, I now transition this thread to community support. If you have a new question, Please login to ‘https://supporttickets.intel.com/s/?language=en_US’, view details of the desire request, and post a feed/response within the next 15 days to allow me to continue to support you. After 15 days, this thread will be transitioned to community support. The community users will be able to help you on your follow-up questions.

Regards

Jingyang, Teh