TheSheevaPlug is a "plug computer" designed to allow standard computing features in as small a space as possible. It was a small embedded Linux ARM computer without a display which can be considered an early predecessor to the subsequentRaspberry Pi.
As one of the first such computers on the market, the device has a 1.2 GHzMarvell Kirkwood 6281ARM-compatible CPU, a.k.a. Feroceon. It is sold withUbuntu Linux version9.04 pre-installed.[1] A software development kit for the platform is also available.
The following commercial products are known to be based on the SheevaPlug platform:
BarracudaDrive is a free Cloud Server for the SheevaPlug.[2]
CTERA CloudPlug by CTERA Networks, a plug computer providingremote backup service at local disk speeds and overlays a file sharing service.[3][4][5]
TonidoPlug from CodeLathe, a SheevaPlug-based device that runsTonido home server andNAS software, and allows users to access, share and sync files and media.[6]
Pogoplug by Cloud Engines, a device that lets users access their files at home over theInternet without leaving a PC on.[7][8][9][10]
Seagate FreeAgent DockStar and Black Armor 110/220 NAS, both a variant of the Pogoplug.
GuruPlug, a SheevaPlug with additional connectivity options.
The PylonPlug by Equelex. A one interfaceOpenWrt device that when used in conjunction with a VLAN (IEEE 802.1Q) capablenetwork switch, can be used as a Multi-WAN networkrouter. Its operating system is OpenWrt Linux[11]
The sipJack from pbxnsip is a Sheeva kit-based plug computer and providesVoice over IP services andPBX features.
The WeatherHub2 byAmbient Weather, a server that collects data from aweather station and uploads data to Web pages or other Internet services.[12]
The GeNiJack by NETCOR. An endpoint for end-to-end network performance assessment.[13]
BACnet Gateway by Kara Systems, aM-Bus,Modbus andOneWire gateway which represents a BACNet Device[14]
Mark Gillespie has created scripts to build and install Debian Lenny and Squeeze onto either the internalNAND orSD card[19]
An ARM port ofFedora exists that can be installed on the SheevaPlug.[20]
Raúl Porcel has managed to runGentoo on the plug and published an instruction on how to do so.[21]
Stuart Winter has a workingSlackware port.[22] This is the official port of Slackware version 13.1 to ARM. Slackware for ARM now officially supports SheevaPlug.[23]
A version with aneSATA port for connecting aserial ATA hard disk is also available and sometimes referred to asSheevaPlug+. Revision 1.3 of the SheevaPlug can be extended by one ESATA port, but soldering is required and will void the warranty.[37]
Marvell offers a development kit to assist in the development of software for the platform. The kit includes the GCC cross-compiler for ARM. The device includes a mini USB connector wired to an FTDI FT2232 chip which provides the developer's computer with access to two ports, aJTAG port connected to the internal JTAG bus, and anRS-232 port connected to the Kirkwood processor's serial port through which the bootstrap and kernel console can be accessed. This debug console can be accessed from any computer with support for the FTDI bus translator (FreeBSD, Linux, Mac OS X, Windows).[38]
