NIOSII Custom Board

[Altera_Forum]

I get the following error from NIOSII IDE when I try to download a program. 

 there are no nios ii cpus with debug modules available which match the values specified. please check that your pld is correctly configured, downloading a new sof file if necessary.  I have setup my hardware so that a CycloneII device and a MAX device are in a JTAG chain. Could this be the problem? Maybe NIOSII IDE cannot find my NIOS II processor because the MAX device is in the chain?  Any help you could supply would be GREATLY appreciated!  Thanks again, Brandon

[Altera_Forum]

I have the same problem - have you found the solution, Brandon ?

[Altera_Forum]

Isn't there a paramter in the flash programmer that allows you to specify what device on the chain to target? If it's hitting the PLD first, instead of the Cyclone, I can imagine this being a problem. If you can download an image successfully, it would seem to eliminate a hardware issue... more of a software problem.

[Altera_Forum]

I know what was the problem on my board. I am driving nCE signal from MAXII chip, so when this chip was not programmed correctly CYCLONE did not get the code from the bitstream. Quartus Programmer did not record the error of any kind, but the Cyclone did not get the code, so the Nios II debugger was not able to find the CPU inside for the same reason. 

 I have modified MAXII design to temporarly ground the signal going to the nCE of CYCLONE II and everything works fine, except I need to program this chain twice:  CYCLONE II is first on the list, so I need to make one pass to program MAX CPLD, then on the second pass to program finally CYCLONE. I have to fix it on the target board - lucky it is only a prototype.