What You Should Know About KEIL

Since we started working with microcontrollers, we have known about a software called KEIL.

When developing microcontrollers, we use C language or assembly language. We know that neither of these languages can be directly loaded into the microcontroller. Regardless of whether it executes or not, just the size of the code is enough to overwhelm the entire microcontroller.

Therefore, we need a software to compile C language or assembly language into executable binary code for the microcontroller, and it must be very small in size, sufficient to fit into the microcontroller’s memory.

The software from KEIL (now a company of ARM) happens to provide such functionality, and it has many advantages, such as easy project management, automatic loading of startup code, integration of editing, compiling, and simulation, and powerful debugging features, etc.

Thus, whether you are a beginner in microcontrollers or an experienced engineer, many people enjoy using this software. However, even if you are proficient with KEIL software, some concepts are still difficult to clarify, and we often confuse: KEIL, uVision, RealView, MDK, KEIL C51, what are the differences and connections between them?

Below we will provide a detailed analysis.

uVision

uVision is an integrated development environment (IDE) developed by KEIL, similar to Eclipse. It includes project management, source code editing, compilation settings, downloading, debugging, and simulation features.

uVision has four versions: uVision2, uVision3, uVision4, and uVision5, with the latest version being uVision5. It provides an environment that is easy for developers to operate but does not provide specific compilation and downloading functions; these need to be added by software developers.

uVision is common to KEIL’s development tools, such as MDK, PK51, PK166, DK251, etc.

RealView

RealView is a collection of development tools, abbreviated as RV, which includes products like RVD (RealView Debugger), RVI (RealView ICE), RVT (RealView Trace), RVDS (RealView Development Suite), and RVMDK (RealView Microcontroller Development Kit).

MDK

MDK (Microcontroller Development Kit), also known as KEIL MDK, RealView MDK, or KEIL For ARM, is now uniformly referred to as MDK-ARM by ARM.

MDK’s device database includes many manufacturers’ chips and is a tool specifically designed for microcontroller development, catering to the needs of engineers engaged in embedded software development based on MCU, supporting ARM7, ARM9, Cortex-M3/M1, Cortex-R0/R4, and other ARM microcontroller cores.

KEIL C51

KEIL C51, also known as PK51, is a development tool based on uVision IDE developed by KEIL, supporting most 51 core microcontrollers.

KEIL C166

KEIL C166, also known as PK166, is a development tool based on uVision IDE developed by KEIL, supporting most XC16x, C16x, and ST10 series microcontrollers.

KEIL C251

KEIL C251, also known as DK251, is a development tool based on uVision IDE developed by KEIL, supporting most microcontrollers based on the 251 core.

In summary, KEIL currently has four independent embedded software development tools: MDK, KEIL C51, KEIL C166, and KEIL C251. They are all products under the KEIL brand and are based on the uVision integrated development environment, with MDK being a part of the RealView series.

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