I just received the Altera USB Blaster, used to program the Cyclone IV FPGA.

What it’s for:

• JTAG interface between the PC and Intel/Altera FPGA or CPLD (Cyclone, MAX, etc.)

• Programming of configuration files (.sof, .pof, .jic) via Quartus

• Hardware debugging access (SignalTap, JTAG UART, boundary-scan)

• Low-level memory read/write and diagnostic operations

The real tests will begin soon. I’ll post a log once the first successful programming sequence is done.