Overview Soft cores are intellectual property products that can be programmed into the logic array of Xilinx FPGAs. Cores can often be customized for the specific application, providing a high level of flexibility. Sources of Soft Processor Cores Soft processor cores are available for purchase from several sources. Our AllianceCORE 3rd-party IP provider partners sell and support processor cores that have been specifically optimized for Xilinx devices. Xilinx has ongoing relationships with these companies, and provides access to tools and resources to assist them in the optimization process. Our partners stand behind their products, offering development tools and support to help you with your design. There are other companies that are not currently part of the AllianceCORE network that offer additional solutions, many of which have been tested in Xilinx devices. And finally, there is a growing supply of open source processor cores that come free of charge, but rely on an open source community of users as a means of updating, improving and supporting the core and associated development tools. At this time we are including products from these two classes of providers for informational purposes. Xilinx is not in a position to recommend one product over another, or to endorse any specific business model. It is the user's responsibility to work out licensing and indemnity issues directly with the supplier of the core. Types of Soft Processor Cores The Virtex FPGA family has proven to be the platform of choice for implementing soft processor cores. As a result, processor cores are available from many sources that support Xilinx devices. Some implement industry standard instruction sets while others offer ones that are unique and proprietary. Follow the links below for information on each processor type. All Processor Cores 2900 6502 8051 Java MIPS-like PIC Proprietary SPARC