AMD FTDI JTAG Programmer

With Vivado 2022.2 AMD allows customer to program FTDI devices with AMD License, so that most FTDI chips can be used as JTAG programmer with AMD Tools(Vivado/Vitis/Petalinux).

AMD Documentation how you program FTDI chip:

• https://docs.amd.com/r/en-US/ug908-vivado-programming-debugging/Programming-FTDI-Devices-for-Vivado-Hardware-Manager-Support

Trenz Electronic uses currently AMD/Digilent License and Digilent Tool to program Trenz Boards with built-in Programmer and Trenz TE0790 Programmer to get it compatible with AMD Tools.

Trenz Electronic start to switch to freely available AMD License solution for our own programmer and carrier with FTDI solution.  This page will collect application notes and issues to get AMD FTDI License running on different Trenz Boards.  Changed Licenses are listed on chapter TrenzProductNotes.

FTDI Support and PIN Connection

AMD supports currently following FTDI (Vivado 2025.2):

• FT232H
• FT2232H
• FT4232H

HW Pin connection:

• ADBUS0 TCK
• ADBUS1 TDI
• ADBUS2 TDO
• ADBUS3 TMS
• ADBUS4 VCCO_TAG_ON   → need Input to be set high or floating*, to enable JTAG
• ADBUS6 FTDI_PROG_B       → optional output

Notes:

• Other FTDI Bus are default configured as UART (see AMD Documentation). Reconfiguration of these Buses via FT_PROG couldn't be confirmed(see chapter FTDI Tool Usage)
• Floating ADBUS4 Pin.

  Regarding DS_FT2232H (Version 2.9)  chapter 5 table 5.3  input high switching threshold is min. 2V and according chapter 3.1.2 and AN_184 (Version 3.3)  chapter 4.1 table 4.2 ADBUS4 belong to tri-stated input with internal appr. 75kOhm pullup to VCC. 
  After AMD EEPROM configuration, floating ADBUS4 Pin is measured with appr. 2.5V which enable JTAG signals to be usable with Vivado tools.

Identification of AMD / Trenz License

Programmer is shown as  Xilinx programmer followed by 12 digit serial number and port character.
Trenz Serial Trenz FTDI serial number consists of the prefix 'TE' followed by the Trenz serial number of the used programmer device with leading zeros.

Related Link for TE0790 Programmer: TE0790 Identification

Tool Limitations

Trenz programmers with AMD/Trenz license key can be used from Vivado 2017.1 onwards.  Changes to the other FTDI port interface configuration are currently still not possible, it behaves like AMD / Digilent license.

Tested/ Supported AMD Tool Version:

FTDI Tool Usage:

AMD documentation offers possibility to overwrite unused FTDI Ports with FTDI EEPROM Tools. This could not be confirmed with  Vivado 2023.2 tool version. The programmer is no longer visible in Vivado as soon as the EEPROM is read back with FT_PROG and programmed with the same configuration. It therefore behaves like the AMD/Digilent solution.

Trenz Product Notes: