Chapter 1

@Numega

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SoftICE

 · 3 Jan 2019

 
CHAPTER 1 - Introduction 

     01.01 Product Description 
     01.02 Using This Manual 
     01.03 System Requirements 

01.01 Product Description 

     Soft-ICE is a software debugging tool that provides hardware-level 
     debugging capabilities to PCDOS and MSDOS debuggers. 

     Soft-ICE uses 80386 protected mode to run DOS in a virtual machine. 
     This gives Soft-ICE complete control of the DOS environment. Soft-ICE 
     uses 80386 protected mode features, such as paging, I/O privilege 
     level, and break point registers, to add hardware-level break points 
     your existing DOS debugger. 

     Soft-ICE was designed with three goals in mind: 

        * To utilize the 80386 virtual machine capability to debugging 
          features that are impossible or prohibitively slow with 
          software-only debuggers (e.g., real time hardware-level break 
          points, memory protection, breaking out of hung programs, etc.). 
        * To work with existing debuggers. We wanted to provide a tool that 
          worked with existing tools. We designed Soft-ICE in such a way 
          that you don't have to learn a new debugger to get powerful 
          hardware debugging capabilities. 
        * To be a user-friendly program with a window that pops up 
          instantly and does not get in the way. All of the Soft-ICE 
          commands were designed to fit in a small window so that 
          information on the screen behind Soft-ICE could still be viewed. 
          Dynamic on-line help assists users who only use Soft-ICE 
          occasionally. 

     The Soft-ICE program features: 

        * real time break points on memory reads / writes, port reads / writes, 
          memory ranges, and interrupts 
        * back trace history ranges 
        * symbolic and source level debugging 
        * an environment that works with existing debuggers 
        * full EMM 4.0 support 
        * backfilling to raise base memory past 640K for monochrome systems 
        * a window that can pop up at any time 
        * the ability to break out by keystroke even if interrupts are 
          disabled 
        * debugger code that is isolated by 80386 protected mode. This 
          prevents an errant program from modifying or destroying Soft-ICE; 
          even if DOS clobbered, Soft-ICE will still work 
        * the ability to configure Soft-ICE to use no memory in the lower 
          640K if the system has more than 640K 
        * user-friendly dynamic help 
        * the ability to be used as a stand-alone debugger. This ability is 
          useful if you are debugging loadable device drivers, interrupt 
          handlers, or boot sequences where traditional debuggers can't go, 
          if your debugger suffers from re-entrancy problems 
        * a soft boot capability that allows debugging with non-DOS 
          operating systems or self-booting programs 
        * a simple installation, with no DIP switches to set no I/O ports 
          taken up, and no memory address space conflicts 

     NOTE : Soft-ICE will work with real address mode programs only. It 
     will not work with programs that use 80286 or 80386 protected mode 
     instructions. 

01.02 Using This Manual 

     The Soft-ICE manual is divided into four main sections: 

        * Learning Soft-ICE (Section I) 
        * Commands (Section II) 
        * Support Features (Section lII) 
        * Advanced Topics (Section IV) 

     Soft-ICE can be used for most debugging problems after reading Section 
     I, Learning Soft-ICE, and a little experimentation. Soft-ICE's 
     user-friendly on-line help can be used to reference command 
     descriptions and syntax. 

     The Learning Soft-ICE section contains installation instructions, a 
     description of the user interface, and a tutorial. The tutorial is 
     designed to get you up and running quickly. 

     The Commands section describes all of the Soft-ICE commands. The 
     command descriptions are organized by functional group with an 
     alphabetic index for reference. 

     The Support Features section covers advanced loading options, symbolic 
     and source level debugging, and EMM 4.0 capability. 

     The Advanced Topics section covers topics such as using Soft-ICE with 
     DOS loadable drivers and using Soft-ICE with non-DOS operating 
     systems. 

     Throughout the manual, especially in the tutorial and the command 
     section, examples are given that require you to give data to Soft-ICE. 
     When the directions specify that you "press" a key, such as the key, 
     you should press the key labelled. When the directions tell you to 
     "enter" a phrase, such as WIN, you should type in the specified 
     letters, then press the ENTER key. 

01.03 System Requirements 

     Soft-ICE works with the IBM Series II Model 70 and 80, Compaq 80386 
     and 80386SX computers, AT compatible and 80386 co-processor cards. 
     Soft-ICE will only work with 80386 XT co-processors if they are AT 
     compatible. 

     Soft-ICE works best with extended memory, but works fine with 
     conventional memory systems. 

     Soft-ICE does not use DOS or ROM BIOS for its video output and 
     keystroke input. Therefore the video must be compatible with one of 
     the following: MDA, Hercules, CGA, EGA, or VGA. Soft-ICE also has 
     support for a two- monitor configuration, which can be very helpful 
     when debugging video- intensive programs.