Question about process of XP embedded development

  • Thread starter Thread starter Chris
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Chris

Lets say that I am building a kiosk-type program in .net. It is going
to work with a barcode scanner and barcode label printer.

Do I understand it correctly that I could load up XP Embedded on a
system that hse video out, USB, and keyboard/mouse PS2 ports, and run
my .net application on this machine... correct?

In this instance how would the development process differ from writing
an app that would run on XP Embedded vs XP Pro on a laptop? What
extra work is required of the developer?

I havn't done any real embedded development (as if you can't tell) so
I am trying to get a grasp on some of these areas that I am not so
sure of.

Thanks if you can give me some advice.
 
Hello, Chris!
In this instance how would the development process differ from writing
an app that would run on XP Embedded vs XP Pro on a laptop? What
extra work is required of the developer?
Click to expand...
From an application point of view - there is no difference. You write
and debug your app in XPProf and it works in XPe (well, in theory, but
in practice this could get some more troubles).
The complex problem - you must harden the XPe itself, that nobody can
let say browsing internet from your kiosk. Or call Services applet... Or
just shutdown machine... You have to protect your XPe from a sudden
shutdown, from a lock up (as probably nobody can reset it) and so on...
 
Thanks for replying!

This application isn't going to truly be a kiosk (I should have
described clearer), more of like a terminal for store employees that
will basically run 1 application. Security for it isn't going to be a
giant concern. Basically, instead of having a laptop sitting on a
counter running this app, we are thinking about doing it with a
dedicated embedded device.

For someone that has never done it before, would creating an
XPEmbedded image with unnecessary services removed (but not necessary
100% hardened) be a very difficult task?

Is the XP image loaded into flash memory on the device?

Is installing the drivers and installing the OS on the device a real
pain, or is it pretty simple?

Thanks a million!

Chris
 
Chris said:
Thanks for replying!

This application isn't going to truly be a kiosk (I should have
described clearer), more of like a terminal for store employees that
will basically run 1 application. Security for it isn't going to be a
giant concern. Basically, instead of having a laptop sitting on a
counter running this app, we are thinking about doing it with a
dedicated embedded device.

For someone that has never done it before, would creating an
XPEmbedded image with unnecessary services removed (but not necessary
100% hardened) be a very difficult task?
Click to expand...
It isn't a difficult task. However, you need to think of it as not adding
unnecessary services -vs- removing them. You start with nothing and build
up. The tools help automate much of the process.
Is the XP image loaded into flash memory on the device?
Click to expand...
No. It's typically on some type of storage device (hard drive, compact
flash). You can remote boot the OS (pull image from a server).
Is installing the drivers and installing the OS on the device a real
pain, or is it pretty simple?
Click to expand...
Installing drivers: Can be a pain, usually isn't though. Most embedded
devices have the drivers loaded from the start though. In general, you
don't want the end user to modify your image as that would add testing
variables. Installnig the OS is simply copying the image you create.
 
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