Editing Embedded system (section)

===Tools===
As with other software, embedded system designers use [[compiler]]s, [[Assembly language|assemblers]], and [[debugger]]s to develop embedded system software. However, they may also use more specific tools:
* In circuit debuggers or emulators (see [[#Debugging|next section]]).
* Utilities to add a checksum or [[Cyclic redundancy check|CRC]] to a program, so the embedded system can check if the program is valid.
* For systems using [[digital signal processing]], developers may use a [[computational notebook]] to simulate the mathematics.
* System-level modeling and simulation tools help designers to construct simulation models of a system with hardware components such as processors, [[memories]], [[Direct memory access|DMA]], [[Interface (computing)|interface]]s, buses and software behavior flow as a state diagram or flow diagram using configurable library blocks. Simulation is conducted to select the right components by performing power vs. performance trade-offs, reliability analysis and bottleneck analysis. Typical reports that help a designer to make architecture decisions include application latency, device throughput, device utilization, power consumption of the full system as well as device-level power consumption.
* A model-based development tool creates and simulates graphical data flow and UML state chart diagrams of components like digital filters, motor controllers, communication protocol decoding and multi-rate tasks.
* Custom compilers and linkers may be used to optimize specialized hardware.
* An embedded system may have its own special language or design tool, or add enhancements to an existing language such as [[Forth (programming language)|Forth]] or [[BASIC Stamp|Basic]].
* Another alternative is to add a RTOS or [[embedded operating system]]
* Modeling and code generating [[UML tool|tools]] often based on [[UML state machine|state machines]]

Software tools can come from several sources:
* Software companies that specialize in the embedded market
* Ported from the [[GNU]] software development tools
* Sometimes, development tools for a personal computer can be used if the embedded processor is a close relative to a common PC processor

Embedded software often requires a variety of development tools, including programming languages such as [[C++]], [[Rust (programming language)|Rust]], or [[Python (programming language)|Python]], and frameworks like [[Qt (software)|Qt]] for graphical interfaces. These tools enable developers to create efficient, scalable, and feature-rich applications tailored to the specific requirements of embedded systems. The choice of tools is driven by factors such as real-time performance, integration with hardware, or energy efficiency.

As the complexity of embedded systems grows, higher-level tools and operating systems are migrating into machinery where it makes sense. For example, [[cellphone]]s, [[personal digital assistant]]s and other consumer computers often need significant software that is purchased or provided by a person other than the manufacturer of the electronics. In these systems, an open programming environment such as [[Linux]], [[NetBSD]], [[FreeBSD]], [[OSGi]] or [[Embedded Java]] is required so that the third-party software provider can sell to a large market.