PCIscope

PCIscope is a software utility designed to provide visibility into PCI and PCIe devices within a computer system. It is used by developers, hardware testers, and system administrators to diagnose PCI-related issues and ensure proper device operation.

Core features include scanning PCI buses, enumerating devices with vendor and device IDs, reading and displaying PCI configuration space (including BAR mappings and capabilities), reporting PCIe link status such as speed and width, and highlighting power management features. Many implementations also support optional logging of interrupts, MSI/MSI-X configurations, and generation of exportable reports for auditing or debugging.

Platform support varies by implementation, with common builds available for Linux and Windows. On Linux, PCIscope typically interfaces with the PCI subsystem and may rely on libraries such as libpciaccess or pciutils to access configuration space. Windows versions use the operating system’s PCI configuration interfaces to retrieve device data. Cross-platform variants aim to provide a consistent user experience across environments.

Typical workflow involves running a scan of the PCI hierarchy, filtering results by vendor, class, or other criteria, inspecting the configuration space and capabilities of a selected device, reviewing link and power management settings, and exporting a report for documentation or troubleshooting purposes.

See also: PCI, PCI Express, PCI configuration space, PCIe topology.