System Requirements

Software

Requirements to run USB-SD-Mux properly:

  • a Linux system with kernel 4.* or higher

  • git

  • Python3

  • Support for the Python3 Module venv
    This is part of the python3 package on most distributions.
    On Debian, however, the package python3-venv is needed.

Note

The control software currently uses low-level Linux APIs and does not support Microsoft Windows.

Optional requirements to gain best experience:

udev:

can be used to address multiple USB-SD-Muxes on a single host using their serial number and access them without root-privileges.

Hardware

USB-Connection

To connect an USB-SD-Mux Classic a USB-A to USB-B Micro cable should be used. To connect an USB-SD-Mux FAST a USB-A to USB-C cable or a USB-C to USB-C cable should be used. The cables used should have a maximum length of 1.8m.

Important

Make sure the cable is not longer than 1.8 m. Using longer cables may result in problems with EMI.

Micro SD-Card

You may use any micro SD card that suits your embedded device. The USB-SD-Mux supports SD-Cards with 1.8 V and 3.3 V.

The SD card reader, which is integrated in the USB-SD-Mux supports SD, SDHC, SDXC and compatible cards.

The USB-SD-Mux Classic and USB-SD-Mux FAST variants differ in the amount of load and disturbances they add to the SD-Card data lines. The USB-SD-Mux Classic is an older design that puts more restrictions on the maximum achievable data rates, while the USB-SD-Mux FAST is able to achieve higher speeds.

The USB-SD-Mux Classic supports most slow and medium speed cards in most DUTs, while the USB-SD-Mux FAST should work with all cards and DUTs communicating at up to UHS-I speeds.

Faster transfer modes would require additional electrical connections between the DUT and card, that are not present on the USB-SD-Mux. Communication between the DUT and card should automatically fall back to UHS-I speeds.

Note

If you encounter issues when using the USB-SD-Mux Classic in a specific combination of DUT and card you should try using a slower micro SD card or an USB-SD-Mux FAST.

Device-under-Test Connection

Insert the USB-SD-Mux directly into your Device under Test (DUT).