TI Sitara 57XX - Combining Debian FS Image from BeagleBoard-X-15 with Kernel/Boot from TI SDK

Hi,

I apologize if this has already been posted somewhere else… We’re making a custom board based on the TI 5718 chip and currently have TI SDK kernel and FS net booting on the TI 572X EVM from an Ubuntu VM.

We’re new to Linux.

When discussing whether to whole-heatedly embrace the TI SDK (+ Yocto/Arago) vs Debian with a number of different folks, one very knowledgeable guy I had to fortune of speaking with suggested we try a hybrid approach:
Use the Debian FS image, from the BeagleBoard-X-15, and the kernel, boot loader, and device tree from the TI SDK for the 572X EVM.

I’m wondering if anyone has tried loading the TI SDK kernel, but with the Debian FS image for the BeagleBoard X-15…

If so, what has your experience been?

Is the process as simple as telling U-boot to load the SDK kernel image, and then the TI SDK kernel to load the Debian FS image instead of the stock FS image which comes with the TI SDK?

If this is plausible, what else would we need to worry about?

Thanks a lot in advance!!

Jeff

It's easy, just:

Copy modules to:

/lib/modules/`uname -r`/

Copy device tree binaries to:

/boot/dtbs/`uname -r`/*.dtb

copy vmlinuz/zimage to:

/boot/vmlinuz-`uname -r`

in /boot/uEnv.txt

set:
uname_r=`uname -r`

if you want to specify a specific device tree binary to load:

set:

dtb=my-device-tree.dtb

Regards,

Thanks Robert!!

I take it the various forms of the FS images for the X-15 are under the link at the bottom??

https://rcn-ee.com/rootfs/2016-11-10/

Thanks again!

Hi all,

First and foremost, is this the correct forum for newbies to ask follow up questions?

I followed the procedure below (if I understood everything correctly), but ended up getting a kernel panic (please see below) with the SD Card boot.

The lib modules, dtb files, and kernel image from the TI SDK (version am57xx-evm-03.02.00.05) were copied from the TI SDK folders (…/targetNFS). Please note, I have net booted my 57xxEVM several times, and then replaced the /lib files on the SD Card, X15 image. I’m not sure if I need a pristine copy…

Also I tried separately booting off of the zImage and vmlinux images from ti-sdk… both resulting in a K-panic.

Also, I tried booting the stock SD card image of the beagleboard-x15 on my 57xxEVM to a login prompt, and login, but with some issues (pru-related errors during kernel boot and fsck error). Incidentally, it loaded the same dtb as gets loaded by the 57xxevm (without needing to specify this in uEnv.txt!??).

I'd start here:

https://github.com/RobertCNelson/ti-linux-kernel-dev/blob/ti-linux-4.4.y/patches/defconfig#L5558-L5564

ps, that ti's sdk doesn't use systemd (the next version with v4.9.x
will), so double check the systemd required config's...

Regards,

Thanks!!

While figuring out where/how to drop this defconfig in the TI SDK’s directory structure, and have it override existing kernel configuration settings, I’m thinking of trying something in “parallel.”

Since the stock BeagleBoard-X15 SD card image booted Debian on my 57XX EVM (but with some pru/remoteproc errors), I’m wondering if I can still use the 572X EVM with the BeagleBoard-X15 SDK image (kernel and all), to move forward with installing Mono/.Net with RS232/serial port (over USB) + Ethernet access. I don’t know whether the USB ports on the EVM are 2.0 or 3.0, but if they’re < 3.0, then they should work, right?

Thanks again!!

Jeff

Thanks!!

While figuring out where/how to drop this defconfig in the TI SDK's
directory structure, and have it override existing kernel configuration
settings, I'm thinking of trying something in "parallel."

Since the stock BeagleBoard-X15 SD card image booted Debian on my 57XX EVM
(but with some pru/remoteproc errors),

The error is because you haven't built "your own" custom pru firmware
and copied it to /lib/firmware/

I'm wondering if I can still use the
572X EVM with the BeagleBoard-X15 SDK image (kernel and all), to move
forward with installing Mono/.Net with RS232/serial port (over USB) +
Ethernet access. I don't know whether the USB ports on the EVM are 2.0 or
3.0, but if they're < 3.0, then they should work, right?

the 572xevm is a fork of the x15 design.

Regards,

FYI,

Thanks again!!

It was pretty straight forward to get mono and .net applications up and running (but haven’t tried serial ports over USB yet) the other day on 572x EVM with the stock BeagleBoard-X15 image… Now slogging through manipulating all the DT stuff for when the custom hardware with the 5718 comes along. Also got to re-build the kernel per your Kconfig…

One question … Is there anything special we need to worry about when deploying the BeagleBoard-X15 image (or Debian/TI SDK kernel image) to the AM5718 vs. the AM5728, since the former has only one A15 core and the BeagleBoard-X15 has the AM5728 chip?