You must create a build specification before you can compile the FPGA VI into an FPGA application. LabVIEW uses the build options you set to generate the HDL and bitfile from the block diagram.

Right-click a build specification under an FPGA target in the Project Explorer window and select from the following options. The options available for a build specification vary depending on your specific FPGA target.

• Build—Generates intermediate files only if the FPGA VI or build specification changed since the last time you compiled the VI. Then this command compiles the VI.
• Rebuild—Generates intermediate files regardless of whether the FPGA VI or build specification changed, and then compiles the VI.
• Estimate Resource Usage—Uses Xilinx tools to estimate FPGA resource usages without compiling. If the generated code signature is not current, this command first generates intermediate files and then estimates resource usage. The availability of this option depends on your specific FPGA target.
• Check Signature—Determines whether the bitfile is current. If the bitfile does not exist, the command checks the generated code signature.
• Generate Intermediate Files—Generates intermediate files without compiling the VI. Generating intermediate files catches certain code generations errors.
• Display Compilation Results—Displays the Compilation Status window. You must build the build specification once to display the Compilation Status window.

Specifying a Default Build Specification

The default build specification is the build specification that the Run button uses to compile and run an FPGA application. If you click the Run button without first making a build specification, LabVIEW automatically creates and specifies a default build specification for the corresponding VI.

To specify the default build specification, place a checkmark in the Set as default build specification checkbox on the Source Files page of the Compilation Properties dialog box.