diff --git a/CMakeLists.txt b/CMakeLists.txt
index 36690e1ad..a0eb5b977 100644
--- a/CMakeLists.txt
+++ b/CMakeLists.txt
@@ -324,18 +324,22 @@ set(GNSSSDR_PROTOBUF_MIN_VERSION "3.0.0")
 # Versions to download and build (but not installed) if not found
 ################################################################################
 set(GNSSSDR_GFLAGS_LOCAL_VERSION "2.2.2")
-set(GNSSSDR_GLOG_LOCAL_VERSION "0.4.0")
+set(GNSSSDR_GLOG_LOCAL_VERSION "0.5.0")
 set(GNSSSDR_ARMADILLO_LOCAL_VERSION "10.4.x")
 set(GNSSSDR_GTEST_LOCAL_VERSION "1.10.x")
-set(GNSSSDR_GTEST_LOCAL_VERSION_POST_CMAKE_3_19 "23ef29555ef4789f555f1ba8c51b4c52975f0907")  # Used with CMake >= 3.19
+set(GNSSSDR_GTEST_LOCAL_VERSION_POST_CMAKE_3_19 "f5e592d8ee5ffb1d9af5be7f715ce3576b8bf9c4")  # Used with CMake >= 3.19
 set(GNSSSDR_GNSS_SIM_LOCAL_VERSION "master")
 set(GNSSSDR_GPSTK_LOCAL_VERSION "8.0.0")
 set(GNSSSDR_MATIO_LOCAL_VERSION "1.5.21")
 set(GNSSSDR_PUGIXML_LOCAL_VERSION "1.11.4")
-set(GNSSSDR_PROTOCOLBUFFERS_LOCAL_VERSION "3.15.8")
+set(GNSSSDR_PROTOCOLBUFFERS_LOCAL_VERSION "3.16.0")
 set(GNSSSDR_BENCHMARK_LOCAL_VERSION "1.5.3")
 set(GNSSSDR_MATHJAX_EXTERNAL_VERSION "2.7.7")
 
+if(CMAKE_VERSION VERSION_LESS "3.3")
+    set(GNSSSDR_GLOG_LOCAL_VERSION "0.4.0")    # Fix for Debian 8
+endif()
+
 if(CMAKE_VERSION VERSION_LESS "3.0.2")
     set(GNSSSDR_GFLAGS_LOCAL_VERSION "2.2.1")  # Fix for CentOS 7
     set(GNSSSDR_GLOG_LOCAL_VERSION "0.3.4")    # Fix for Ubuntu 14.04
@@ -549,7 +553,7 @@ set_package_properties(GOOGLETEST PROPERTIES
 )
 if(NOT GOOGLETEST_FOUND)
     set_package_properties(GOOGLETEST PROPERTIES
-        PURPOSE "Googletest v${GNSSSDR_GTEST_LOCAL_VERSION} will be downloaded and built when doing '${CMAKE_MAKE_PROGRAM_PRETTY_NAME}'."
+        PURPOSE "Googletest v${GNSSSDR_GTEST_LOCAL_VERSION} will be downloaded, built, and statically linked when doing '${CMAKE_MAKE_PROGRAM_PRETTY_NAME}'."
     )
 endif()
 
@@ -1306,7 +1310,7 @@ if(NOT GFLAGS_FOUND)
     else()
         message(STATUS " The gflags library has not been found.")
     endif()
-    message(STATUS " gflags v${GNSSSDR_GFLAGS_LOCAL_VERSION} will be downloaded and built automatically")
+    message(STATUS " gflags v${GNSSSDR_GFLAGS_LOCAL_VERSION} will be downloaded, built, and statically linked automatically")
     message(STATUS " when doing '${CMAKE_MAKE_PROGRAM_PRETTY_NAME}'.")
     set(GFLAGS_BUILD_COMMAND ${CMAKE_COMMAND}
         "--build" "${CMAKE_BINARY_DIR}/gflags-${GNSSSDR_GFLAGS_LOCAL_VERSION}"
@@ -1418,9 +1422,9 @@ if(NOT GFLAGS_FOUND)
         target_link_libraries(Gflags::gflags INTERFACE shlwapi.lib)
     endif()
 
-    set(LOCAL_GFLAGS TRUE CACHE STRING "GFlags downloaded and built automatically" FORCE)
+    set(LOCAL_GFLAGS TRUE CACHE STRING "GFlags downloaded, built, and statically linked automatically" FORCE)
     set_package_properties(GFLAGS PROPERTIES
-        PURPOSE "Gflags v${GNSSSDR_GFLAGS_LOCAL_VERSION} will be downloaded and built when doing '${CMAKE_MAKE_PROGRAM_PRETTY_NAME}'."
+        PURPOSE "Gflags v${GNSSSDR_GFLAGS_LOCAL_VERSION} and Glog v${GNSSSDR_GLOG_LOCAL_VERSION} will be downloaded, built, and statically linked when doing '${CMAKE_MAKE_PROGRAM_PRETTY_NAME}'."
     )
     if(CMAKE_VERSION VERSION_LESS 3.2)
         set_property(TARGET Gflags::gflags APPEND PROPERTY
@@ -1446,7 +1450,7 @@ if(NOT GLOG_FOUND OR ${LOCAL_GFLAGS})
     if(NOT GFLAGS_FOUND)
         message(STATUS " or it is likely not linked to gflags.")
     endif()
-    message(STATUS " glog v${GNSSSDR_GLOG_LOCAL_VERSION} will be downloaded and built automatically")
+    message(STATUS " glog v${GNSSSDR_GLOG_LOCAL_VERSION} will be downloaded, built, and statically linked automatically")
     message(STATUS " when doing '${CMAKE_MAKE_PROGRAM_PRETTY_NAME}'.")
     if(NOT ${LOCAL_GFLAGS})
         add_library(gflags-${GNSSSDR_GFLAGS_LOCAL_VERSION} UNKNOWN IMPORTED)
@@ -1469,7 +1473,7 @@ if(NOT GLOG_FOUND OR ${LOCAL_GFLAGS})
         set(GLOG_TOOLCHAIN_FILE -DCMAKE_TOOLCHAIN_FILE=${CMAKE_TOOLCHAIN_FILE})
     endif()
 
-    if(CMAKE_VERSION VERSION_LESS 3.2)
+    if(CMAKE_VERSION VERSION_LESS 3.3)
         if(CMAKE_VERSION VERSION_LESS 3.0)
             set(GLOG_MAKE_PROGRAM ${CMAKE_MAKE_PROGRAM})
             set(GFLAGS_LIBRARIES_TO_LINK ${GFlags_LIBS})
@@ -1578,7 +1582,7 @@ ${CMAKE_BINARY_DIR}/thirdparty/glog/glog-${GNSSSDR_GLOG_LOCAL_VERSION}/configure
                 ${CMAKE_BINARY_DIR}/thirdparty/glog/glog-${GNSSSDR_GLOG_LOCAL_VERSION}/src
                 ${CMAKE_BINARY_DIR}/glog-${GNSSSDR_GLOG_LOCAL_VERSION}/src
             )
-        else()  # CMake > 3.0 but < 3.2
+        else()  # CMake > 3.0 but < 3.3
             ExternalProject_Add(glog-${GNSSSDR_GLOG_LOCAL_VERSION}
                 DEPENDS ${TARGET_GFLAGS}
                 PREFIX ${CMAKE_BINARY_DIR}/glog-${GNSSSDR_GLOG_LOCAL_VERSION}
@@ -1602,7 +1606,7 @@ ${CMAKE_BINARY_DIR}/thirdparty/glog/glog-${GNSSSDR_GLOG_LOCAL_VERSION}/configure
                 ${GFlags_INCLUDE_DIRS}
             )
         endif()
-    else()  # CMake > 3.2
+    else()  # CMake > 3.3
         set(GLOG_BUILD_BYPRODUCTS
             ${CMAKE_BINARY_DIR}/glog-${GNSSSDR_GLOG_LOCAL_VERSION}/${CMAKE_FIND_LIBRARY_PREFIXES}glog${CMAKE_STATIC_LIBRARY_SUFFIX}
         )
@@ -1623,10 +1627,11 @@ ${CMAKE_BINARY_DIR}/thirdparty/glog/glog-${GNSSSDR_GLOG_LOCAL_VERSION}/configure
             SOURCE_DIR ${CMAKE_BINARY_DIR}/thirdparty/glog/glog-${GNSSSDR_GLOG_LOCAL_VERSION}
             BINARY_DIR ${CMAKE_BINARY_DIR}/glog-${GNSSSDR_GLOG_LOCAL_VERSION}
             CMAKE_ARGS -DCMAKE_CXX_COMPILER=${CMAKE_CXX_COMPILER}
-                -DCMAKE_C_COMPILER=${CMAKE_C_COMPILER}
                 -DCMAKE_PREFIX_PATH=${GFLAGS_PREFIX_PATH}
                 ${GLOG_TOOLCHAIN_FILE}
                 -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=$<$<CONFIG:Debug>:Debug>$<$<CONFIG:Release>:Release>$<$<CONFIG:RelWithDebInfo>:RelWithDebInfo>$<$<CONFIG:MinSizeRel>:MinSizeRel>$<$<CONFIG:NoOptWithASM>:Debug>$<$<CONFIG:Coverage>:Debug>$<$<CONFIG:O2WithASM>:RelWithDebInfo>$<$<CONFIG:O3WithASM>:RelWithDebInfo>$<$<CONFIG:ASAN>:Debug>
+                -DBUILD_SHARED_LIBS=OFF
+                -DBUILD_TESTING=OFF
             BUILD_COMMAND "${GLOG_MAKE_PROGRAM} ${PARALLEL_BUILD}"
             BUILD_BYPRODUCTS ${GLOG_BUILD_BYPRODUCTS}
             UPDATE_COMMAND ""
@@ -1685,10 +1690,10 @@ ${CMAKE_BINARY_DIR}/thirdparty/glog/glog-${GNSSSDR_GLOG_LOCAL_VERSION}/configure
         endif()
     endif()
 
-    set(LOCAL_GLOG TRUE CACHE STRING "Glog downloaded and built automatically" FORCE)
+    set(LOCAL_GLOG TRUE CACHE STRING "Glog downloaded, built, and statically linked automatically" FORCE)
 
     set_package_properties(GLOG PROPERTIES
-        PURPOSE "Glog v${GNSSSDR_GLOG_LOCAL_VERSION} will be downloaded and built when doing 'make'."
+        PURPOSE "Glog v${GNSSSDR_GLOG_LOCAL_VERSION} will be downloaded, built, and statically linked when doing '${CMAKE_MAKE_PROGRAM_PRETTY_NAME}'."
     )
 endif()
 
@@ -1814,7 +1819,7 @@ else()
 endif()
 
 if(NOT ARMADILLO_FOUND OR ENABLE_OWN_ARMADILLO)
-    message(STATUS " Armadillo ${GNSSSDR_ARMADILLO_LOCAL_VERSION} will be downloaded and built automatically")
+    message(STATUS " Armadillo ${GNSSSDR_ARMADILLO_LOCAL_VERSION} will be downloaded, built, and statically linked automatically")
     message(STATUS " when doing '${CMAKE_MAKE_PROGRAM_PRETTY_NAME}'.")
     set(armadillo_BRANCH ${GNSSSDR_ARMADILLO_LOCAL_VERSION})
     set(armadillo_RELEASE ${armadillo_BRANCH})
@@ -1909,7 +1914,7 @@ if(NOT ARMADILLO_FOUND OR ENABLE_OWN_ARMADILLO)
         set(GFORTRAN "")
     endif()
     set(ARMADILLO_STATIC_LIBRARY ${binary_dir}/${CMAKE_FIND_LIBRARY_PREFIXES}armadillo${CMAKE_STATIC_LIBRARY_SUFFIX})
-    set(LOCAL_ARMADILLO TRUE CACHE STRING "Armadillo downloaded and built automatically" FORCE)
+    set(LOCAL_ARMADILLO TRUE CACHE STRING "Armadillo downloaded, built, and statically linked automatically" FORCE)
     set(ARMADILLO_VERSION_STRING ${armadillo_RELEASE})
     file(MAKE_DIRECTORY ${CMAKE_BINARY_DIR}/thirdparty/armadillo/armadillo-${armadillo_RELEASE}/include)
     add_library(Armadillo::armadillo STATIC IMPORTED)
@@ -1941,7 +1946,7 @@ if(NOT ARMADILLO_FOUND OR ENABLE_OWN_ARMADILLO)
     endif()
     set_package_properties(Armadillo PROPERTIES
         DESCRIPTION "C++ library for linear algebra and scientific computing"
-        PURPOSE "Armadillo ${GNSSSDR_ARMADILLO_LOCAL_VERSION} will be downloaded and built when doing '${CMAKE_MAKE_PROGRAM_PRETTY_NAME}'."
+        PURPOSE "Armadillo ${GNSSSDR_ARMADILLO_LOCAL_VERSION} will be downloaded, built, and statically linked when doing '${CMAKE_MAKE_PROGRAM_PRETTY_NAME}'."
     )
 endif()
 
@@ -2053,7 +2058,7 @@ if(NOT MATIO_FOUND OR MATIO_VERSION_STRING VERSION_LESS ${GNSSSDR_MATIO_MIN_VERS
     if(MATIO_FOUND)
         message(STATUS " Matio installed version (${MATIO_VERSION_STRING}) is too old (>= ${GNSSSDR_MATIO_MIN_VERSION} is required).")
     endif()
-    message(STATUS " Matio v${GNSSSDR_MATIO_LOCAL_VERSION} will be downloaded and built automatically")
+    message(STATUS " Matio v${GNSSSDR_MATIO_LOCAL_VERSION} will be downloaded, built, and statically linked automatically")
     message(STATUS " when doing '${CMAKE_MAKE_PROGRAM_PRETTY_NAME}'.")
     find_package(ZLIB)
     set_package_properties(ZLIB PROPERTIES
@@ -2222,7 +2227,7 @@ if(NOT MATIO_FOUND OR MATIO_VERSION_STRING VERSION_LESS ${GNSSSDR_MATIO_MIN_VERS
         message(FATAL_ERROR "*** The zlib library is required to build gnss-sdr")
     endif()
     set_package_properties(MATIO PROPERTIES
-        PURPOSE "Matio v${GNSSSDR_MATIO_LOCAL_VERSION} will be downloaded and built when doing '${CMAKE_MAKE_PROGRAM_PRETTY_NAME}'."
+        PURPOSE "Matio v${GNSSSDR_MATIO_LOCAL_VERSION} will be downloaded, built, and statically linked when doing '${CMAKE_MAKE_PROGRAM_PRETTY_NAME}'."
     )
 endif()
 
@@ -2237,7 +2242,7 @@ set_package_properties(PUGIXML PROPERTIES
     TYPE REQUIRED
 )
 if(NOT PUGIXML_FOUND)
-    message(STATUS " PugiXML v${GNSSSDR_PUGIXML_LOCAL_VERSION} will be downloaded and built when doing '${CMAKE_MAKE_PROGRAM_PRETTY_NAME}'.")
+    message(STATUS " PugiXML v${GNSSSDR_PUGIXML_LOCAL_VERSION} will be downloaded, built, and statically linked when doing '${CMAKE_MAKE_PROGRAM_PRETTY_NAME}'.")
     set(PUGIXML_COMPILER -DCMAKE_CXX_COMPILER=${CMAKE_CXX_COMPILER})
     set(PUGIXML_CMAKE_FLAGS "")
     if(DEFINED ENV{OECORE_TARGET_SYSROOT})
@@ -2326,7 +2331,7 @@ if(NOT PUGIXML_FOUND)
     endif()
 
     set_package_properties(PUGIXML PROPERTIES
-        PURPOSE "PugiXML v${GNSSSDR_PUGIXML_LOCAL_VERSION} will be downloaded and built when doing '${CMAKE_MAKE_PROGRAM_PRETTY_NAME}'."
+        PURPOSE "PugiXML v${GNSSSDR_PUGIXML_LOCAL_VERSION} will be downloaded, built, and statically linked when doing '${CMAKE_MAKE_PROGRAM_PRETTY_NAME}'."
     )
 endif()
 
@@ -2580,7 +2585,7 @@ if((NOT Protobuf_FOUND) OR (NOT Protobuf_PROTOC_EXECUTABLE) OR (${Protobuf_VERSI
         endif()
     endif()
     set_package_properties(Protobuf PROPERTIES
-        PURPOSE "Protocol Buffers v${GNSSSDR_PROTOCOLBUFFERS_LOCAL_VERSION} will be downloaded and built when doing '${CMAKE_MAKE_PROGRAM_PRETTY_NAME}'."
+        PURPOSE "Protocol Buffers v${GNSSSDR_PROTOCOLBUFFERS_LOCAL_VERSION} will be downloaded, built, and statically linked when doing '${CMAKE_MAKE_PROGRAM_PRETTY_NAME}'."
     )
 endif()
 if(${Protobuf_VERSION} VERSION_EQUAL "0.0.0")
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 4c858f4a6..eac9d2e42 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -322,11 +322,11 @@ $ sudo ldconfig
 #### Install [Glog](https://github.com/google/glog "Glog's Homepage"), a library that implements application-level logging:
 
 ```
-$ wget https://github.com/google/glog/archive/v0.4.0.tar.gz
-$ tar xvfz v0.4.0.tar.gz
-$ cd glog-0.4.0
-$ ./autogen.sh
-$ ./configure
+$ wget https://github.com/google/glog/archive/v0.5.0.tar.gz
+$ tar xvfz v0.5.0.tar.gz
+$ cd glog-0.5.0
+$ mkdir build && cd build
+$ cmake ..
 $ make
 $ sudo make install
 $ sudo ldconfig
@@ -395,9 +395,9 @@ $ sudo apt-get install autoconf automake libtool curl make g++ unzip
 and then:
 
 ```
-$ wget https://github.com/protocolbuffers/protobuf/releases/download/v3.15.8/protobuf-cpp-3.15.8.tar.gz
-$ tar xvfz protobuf-cpp-3.15.8.tar.gz
-$ cd protobuf-3.15.8
+$ wget https://github.com/protocolbuffers/protobuf/releases/download/v3.16.0/protobuf-cpp-3.16.0.tar.gz
+$ tar xvfz protobuf-cpp-3.16.0.tar.gz
+$ cd protobuf-3.16.0
 $ ./autogen.sh
 $ ./configure
 $ make
diff --git a/src/algorithms/acquisition/adapters/galileo_e1_pcps_ambiguous_acquisition_fpga.cc b/src/algorithms/acquisition/adapters/galileo_e1_pcps_ambiguous_acquisition_fpga.cc
index 30c096a63..59ebe3309 100644
--- a/src/algorithms/acquisition/adapters/galileo_e1_pcps_ambiguous_acquisition_fpga.cc
+++ b/src/algorithms/acquisition/adapters/galileo_e1_pcps_ambiguous_acquisition_fpga.cc
@@ -189,8 +189,8 @@ GalileoE1PcpsAmbiguousAcquisitionFpga::GalileoE1PcpsAmbiguousAcquisitionFpga(
 
 void GalileoE1PcpsAmbiguousAcquisitionFpga::stop_acquisition()
 {
-    // this command causes the SW to reset the HW.
-    acquisition_fpga_->reset_acquisition();
+    // stop the acquisition and the other FPGA modules.
+    acquisition_fpga_->stop_acquisition();
 }
 
 
diff --git a/src/algorithms/acquisition/adapters/galileo_e5a_pcps_acquisition_fpga.cc b/src/algorithms/acquisition/adapters/galileo_e5a_pcps_acquisition_fpga.cc
index 62461494f..ca26fba62 100644
--- a/src/algorithms/acquisition/adapters/galileo_e5a_pcps_acquisition_fpga.cc
+++ b/src/algorithms/acquisition/adapters/galileo_e5a_pcps_acquisition_fpga.cc
@@ -192,8 +192,8 @@ GalileoE5aPcpsAcquisitionFpga::GalileoE5aPcpsAcquisitionFpga(
 
 void GalileoE5aPcpsAcquisitionFpga::stop_acquisition()
 {
-    // this command causes the SW to reset the HW.
-    acquisition_fpga_->reset_acquisition();
+    // stop the acquisition and the other FPGA modules.
+    acquisition_fpga_->stop_acquisition();
 }
 
 
diff --git a/src/algorithms/acquisition/adapters/gps_l1_ca_pcps_acquisition_fpga.cc b/src/algorithms/acquisition/adapters/gps_l1_ca_pcps_acquisition_fpga.cc
index 8117920c7..5362f78bc 100644
--- a/src/algorithms/acquisition/adapters/gps_l1_ca_pcps_acquisition_fpga.cc
+++ b/src/algorithms/acquisition/adapters/gps_l1_ca_pcps_acquisition_fpga.cc
@@ -168,8 +168,8 @@ GpsL1CaPcpsAcquisitionFpga::GpsL1CaPcpsAcquisitionFpga(
 
 void GpsL1CaPcpsAcquisitionFpga::stop_acquisition()
 {
-    // this command causes the SW to reset the HW.
-    acquisition_fpga_->reset_acquisition();
+    // stop the acquisition and the other FPGA modules.
+    acquisition_fpga_->stop_acquisition();
 }
 
 
diff --git a/src/algorithms/acquisition/adapters/gps_l2_m_pcps_acquisition_fpga.cc b/src/algorithms/acquisition/adapters/gps_l2_m_pcps_acquisition_fpga.cc
index 464959a74..b3d0d117d 100644
--- a/src/algorithms/acquisition/adapters/gps_l2_m_pcps_acquisition_fpga.cc
+++ b/src/algorithms/acquisition/adapters/gps_l2_m_pcps_acquisition_fpga.cc
@@ -158,6 +158,8 @@ GpsL2MPcpsAcquisitionFpga::GpsL2MPcpsAcquisitionFpga(
 
 void GpsL2MPcpsAcquisitionFpga::stop_acquisition()
 {
+    // stop the acquisition and the other FPGA modules.
+    acquisition_fpga_->stop_acquisition();
 }
 
 
diff --git a/src/algorithms/acquisition/adapters/gps_l5i_pcps_acquisition_fpga.cc b/src/algorithms/acquisition/adapters/gps_l5i_pcps_acquisition_fpga.cc
index e287a8fd1..fe9a7a605 100644
--- a/src/algorithms/acquisition/adapters/gps_l5i_pcps_acquisition_fpga.cc
+++ b/src/algorithms/acquisition/adapters/gps_l5i_pcps_acquisition_fpga.cc
@@ -170,8 +170,8 @@ GpsL5iPcpsAcquisitionFpga::GpsL5iPcpsAcquisitionFpga(
 
 void GpsL5iPcpsAcquisitionFpga::stop_acquisition()
 {
-    // this command causes the SW to reset the HW.
-    acquisition_fpga_->reset_acquisition();
+    // stop the acquisition and the other FPGA modules.
+    acquisition_fpga_->stop_acquisition();
 }
 
 
diff --git a/src/algorithms/acquisition/gnuradio_blocks/pcps_acquisition_fpga.cc b/src/algorithms/acquisition/gnuradio_blocks/pcps_acquisition_fpga.cc
index 07629d80e..e1f8949e1 100644
--- a/src/algorithms/acquisition/gnuradio_blocks/pcps_acquisition_fpga.cc
+++ b/src/algorithms/acquisition/gnuradio_blocks/pcps_acquisition_fpga.cc
@@ -301,3 +301,11 @@ void pcps_acquisition_fpga::reset_acquisition()
     d_acquisition_fpga->reset_acquisition();
     d_acquisition_fpga->close_device();
 }
+
+void pcps_acquisition_fpga::stop_acquisition()
+{
+    // this function stops the acquisition and the other FPGA Modules.
+    d_acquisition_fpga->open_device();
+    d_acquisition_fpga->stop_acquisition();
+    d_acquisition_fpga->close_device();
+}
diff --git a/src/algorithms/acquisition/gnuradio_blocks/pcps_acquisition_fpga.h b/src/algorithms/acquisition/gnuradio_blocks/pcps_acquisition_fpga.h
index aeebc27c9..3b3e534ee 100644
--- a/src/algorithms/acquisition/gnuradio_blocks/pcps_acquisition_fpga.h
+++ b/src/algorithms/acquisition/gnuradio_blocks/pcps_acquisition_fpga.h
@@ -189,6 +189,11 @@ public:
      */
     void reset_acquisition();
 
+    /*!
+     * \brief stop the acquisition and the other FPGA modules.
+     */
+    void stop_acquisition();
+
 private:
     friend pcps_acquisition_fpga_sptr pcps_make_acquisition_fpga(pcpsconf_fpga_t conf_);
     explicit pcps_acquisition_fpga(pcpsconf_fpga_t conf_);
diff --git a/src/algorithms/acquisition/libs/fpga_acquisition.cc b/src/algorithms/acquisition/libs/fpga_acquisition.cc
index ab1439567..e198b32aa 100644
--- a/src/algorithms/acquisition/libs/fpga_acquisition.cc
+++ b/src/algorithms/acquisition/libs/fpga_acquisition.cc
@@ -240,11 +240,15 @@ void Fpga_Acquisition::close_device()
 
 void Fpga_Acquisition::reset_acquisition()
 {
-    // printf("============ resetting the hw now from the acquisition ===============");
-    d_map_base[8] = RESET_ACQUISITION;  // writing a 2 to d_map_base[8] resets the acquisition. This causes a reset of all
+    d_map_base[8] = RESET_ACQUISITION;  // setting bit 2 of d_map_base[8] resets the acquisition. This causes a reset of all
                                         // the FPGA HW modules including the multicorrelators
 }
 
+void Fpga_Acquisition::stop_acquisition()
+{
+    d_map_base[8] = STOP_ACQUISITION;  // setting bit 3 of d_map_base[8] stops the acquisition module. This stops all
+                                       // the FPGA HW modules including the multicorrelators
+}
 
 // this function is only used for the unit tests
 void Fpga_Acquisition::read_fpga_total_scale_factor(uint32_t *total_scale_factor, uint32_t *fw_scale_factor)
diff --git a/src/algorithms/acquisition/libs/fpga_acquisition.h b/src/algorithms/acquisition/libs/fpga_acquisition.h
index 7b5453f0c..d9d2b31ba 100644
--- a/src/algorithms/acquisition/libs/fpga_acquisition.h
+++ b/src/algorithms/acquisition/libs/fpga_acquisition.h
@@ -105,6 +105,11 @@ public:
      */
     void reset_acquisition();
 
+    /*!
+     * \brief stop the acquisition and the FPGA modules.
+     */
+    void stop_acquisition();
+
     /*!
      * \brief Read the scaling factor that has been used by the FFT-IFFT
      */
@@ -138,8 +143,9 @@ public:
 private:
     // FPGA register parameters
     static const uint32_t PAGE_SIZE_DEFAULT = 0x10000;            // default page size for the multicorrelator memory map
-    static const uint32_t RESET_ACQUISITION = 2;                  // command to reset the multicorrelator
-    static const uint32_t LAUNCH_ACQUISITION = 1;                 // command to launch the multicorrelator
+    static const uint32_t LAUNCH_ACQUISITION = 1;                 // command to launch the acquisition process
+    static const uint32_t RESET_ACQUISITION = 2;                  // command to reset the acquisition and the FPGA Modules
+    static const uint32_t STOP_ACQUISITION = 4;                   // command to stop the acquisition and the FPGA modules
     static const uint32_t TEST_REG_SANITY_CHECK = 0x55AA;         // value to check the presence of the test register (to detect the hw)
     static const uint32_t LOCAL_CODE_CLEAR_MEM = 0x10000000;      // command to clear the internal memory of the multicorrelator
     static const uint32_t MEM_LOCAL_CODE_WR_ENABLE = 0x0C000000;  // command to enable the ENA and WR pins of the internal memory of the multicorrelator