Quick Setup

To get started quickly, you can use our automated installation scripts to quickly and easily install and setup EPICS and EtherCAT on your Debian 12 computer.

If you are having problems with parts of the installation or the setup, you can take a look at our manual Step-By-Step documentation, where we list each step that we took to manually install EPICS and EtherCAT.

Note

Ensure you have administrative privileges before starting the setup process.

Prerequisites

  • Debian 12 installed on your computer

  • Basic knowledge of Linux command line

  • Internet connection

Automated Setup

First, we need to download the shell scripts that we will use for our quick setup. These can be found on our GitHub page under github.com/vera-univie/Automated-Setup. From there, download or clone the repository to the location on your computer where you would like your /EPICS and/or /EtherCAT folder to be located. Then rename the folder from ‘Automated-Setup’ to ‘EPICS’.

This folder contains a /scripts folder, in which you will find all the shell scripts for this quick setup. Furthermore, this /EPICS folder will be the location where all your EPICS-related things will be installed in the process of this setup.

Folder structure:

.../EPICS
    -> /scripts/
    -> Build_Kernel.txt
    -> ReadMe.md
    -> StepByStep_EPICS_EtherCAT.txt

EtherCAT Master Setup

Note

EtherCAT Master is a separate tool to EPICS, and we just so happen to be using them together. You can of course also install EPICS without EtherCAT Master and still use all of its functionalities and use it with other devices. If you do not want install EtherCAT Master, you can completely skip this step.

Important

Before installing the EtherCAT Master, make sure that you have an appropriate kernel running on your computer. You can follow our kernel setup guide to get the same kernel as ours. Note that this can take multiple hours to install.

To get started, open up a terminal window, and cd into .../EPICS/scripts/

Make sure that you have the necessary permissions to execute the scripts in this folder:

$ sudo chmod u+x .

This script will create and install the EtherCAT Master into a folder named /EtherLAB, which will be on the same level as your /EPICS folder.

Folder structure after EtherCAT Master setup:

.../EPICS
.../EtherLAB
    -> /ethercat-master-etherlab/

Execute the setup file:

$ sudo ./ethercat_setup.sh

A list of your /usr/src/ folder will appear, and you will be prompted on whether or not it contains linux-source-6.1. If not, you can choose a different source path, or continue without one. (This is where the kernel comes into play)

Once it is finished with installing and compiling, it will display your possible Ethernet ports. Choose one, which shall be your designated EtherCAT port, by typing the ID of that port.

Confirm the right port has been chosen by checking the serial and logical name.

If you need to change the designated EtherCAT port, then you can simply run the setup script again, go through the same steps, and choose a different port. Since it will have already installed and compiled EtherCAT, it should only take a moment until the script arrives at the point where you can choose the port.

EPICS Base Setup

To set up EPICS base, follow these steps:

  1. Open a terminal window and cd into .../EPICS/scripts/.

  2. Ensure you have the necessary permissions to execute the script:

$ sudo chmod u+x epics-base_setup.sh

  1. Run the setup script:

$ sudo ./epics-base_setup.sh

  1. You will be prompted to enter the username for which EPICS base should be installed. Enter the username and press Enter.

  2. The script will clone the EPICS base repository, install necessary libraries, and compile EPICS base into .../EPICS/epics-base.

  3. The script will append the necessary environment variables to the user’s .bashrc file.

  4. Once the installation is complete, you will be prompted to restart your computer. Enter ‘y’ to restart immediately or ‘n’ to restart later.

After restarting, EPICS base should be installed and ready to use.

EPICS Support Modules Setup

To set up the necessary EPICS support modules, follow these steps:

  1. Open a terminal window and cd into .../EPICS/scripts/.

  2. Ensure you have the necessary permissions to execute the script:

$ sudo chmod u+x epics-support_setup.sh

  1. Run the setup script:

$ sudo ./epics-support_setup.sh

  1. You will be prompted to enter the username for which EPICS support should be installed. Enter the username and press Enter.

  2. You will be asked whether you want to install the newest versions of the support modules or a stable version from the GitHub repository. Enter ‘y’ for the newest versions or ‘n’ for the stable version. Installing the stable version is recommended, since this is the version it has been tested with.

  3. The script will clone the necessary repositories, install required libraries, and compile the support modules into .../EPICS/support.

  4. Once the installation is complete, the support modules should be ready to use.

After completing these steps, your EPICS support modules should be installed and ready for use.

Automated EtherCAT Setup with EPICS

To automate the installation and setup of EtherCAT functionality with EPICS, follow these steps:

  1. Open a terminal window and cd into .../EPICS/scripts/.

  2. Ensure you have the necessary permissions to execute the script:

$ sudo chmod u+x epics-ethercat_setup.sh

  1. Run the setup script:

$ sudo ./epics-ethercat_setup.sh

  1. You will be prompted to enter your EtherLAB directory (e.g. .../EtherLAB/ethercat-master-etherlab/). Enter the path and press Enter.

  2. The script will clone the necessary repositories, install required libraries, and compile the EtherCAT modules into .../EPICS/ethercat.

  3. The script will also configure the necessary paths and environment variables.

After completing these steps, your EtherCAT functionality with EPICS should be installed and ready for use.