[U-Boot] what are valid formats for initrd image downloaded and used by "bootm"

[U-Boot] what are valid formats for initrd image downloaded and used by "bootm"

[Robert P. J. Day]

  using yocto project to build artifacts to tftp down to a board for
"bootm" command -- what are the valid formats for the "initrd" object
that can be recognized by "bootm"? since YP can generate a *ton* of
different image types. thanks.

rday

-- 

========================================================================
Robert P. J. Day                                 Ottawa, Ontario, CANADA
                        http://crashcourse.ca

Twitter:                                       http://twitter.com/rpjday
LinkedIn:                               http://ca.linkedin.com/in/rpjday
========================================================================

[U-Boot] what are valid formats for initrd image downloaded and used by "bootm"

[Wolfgang Denk]

Dear Robert,

In message <alpine.LFD.2.20.1607080356390.9216@localhost.localdomain> you wrote:
> 
>   using yocto project to build artifacts to tftp down to a board for
> "bootm" command -- what are the valid formats for the "initrd" object
> that can be recognized by "bootm"? since YP can generate a *ton* of
> different image types. thanks.

"bootm" understands botht he (deprecated) legacy uImage format, plus
of course the (preferred) FIT images.

Best regards,

Wolfgang Denk

-- 
DENX Software Engineering GmbH,      Managing Director: Wolfgang Denk
HRB 165235 Munich, Office: Kirchenstr.5, D-82194 Groebenzell, Germany
Phone: (+49)-8142-66989-10 Fax: (+49)-8142-66989-80 Email: wd at denx.de
The only person who always got his work done by Friday
                                                 was Robinson Crusoe.

[U-Boot] what are valid formats for initrd image downloaded and used by "bootm"

[Robert P. J. Day]

On Fri, 8 Jul 2016, Wolfgang Denk wrote:

> Dear Robert,
>
> In message <alpine.LFD.2.20.1607080356390.9216@localhost.localdomain> you wrote:
> >
> >   using yocto project to build artifacts to tftp down to a board for
> > "bootm" command -- what are the valid formats for the "initrd" object
> > that can be recognized by "bootm"? since YP can generate a *ton* of
> > different image types. thanks.
>
> "bootm" understands botht he (deprecated) legacy uImage format, plus
> of course the (preferred) FIT images.

  ok, and one last (admittedly a bit off-topic) followup ...
openembedded supplies a class, image_types_uboot.bbclass, that can
generate a pile of u-boot related images:

IMAGE_TYPES += "ext2.u-boot ext2.gz.u-boot ext2.bz2.u-boot
   ext2.lzma.u-boot ext3.gz.u-boot ext4.gz.u-boot cpio.gz.u-boot"

if i want an immediately usable initrd i can download and pass off to
bootm, i'm assuming i can use any of those "u-boot" suffixed image
types, like, say, "cpio.gz.u-boot," which will generate a file with a
name like "blahblah...20160708082958.rootfs.cpio.gz.u-boot".

  so more an openembedded question, but am i correct in assuming that
any of those OE "u-boot" files are usable as initrds? thanks.

rday

-- 

========================================================================
Robert P. J. Day                                 Ottawa, Ontario, CANADA
                        http://crashcourse.ca

Twitter:                                       http://twitter.com/rpjday
LinkedIn:                               http://ca.linkedin.com/in/rpjday
========================================================================

[U-Boot] what are valid formats for initrd image downloaded and used by "bootm"

[Wolfgang Denk]

Dear Robert,

In message <alpine.LFD.2.20.1607080453210.5437@localhost.localdomain> you wrote:
> 
>   ok, and one last (admittedly a bit off-topic) followup ...
> openembedded supplies a class, image_types_uboot.bbclass, that can
> generate a pile of u-boot related images:
> 
> IMAGE_TYPES += "ext2.u-boot ext2.gz.u-boot ext2.bz2.u-boot
>    ext2.lzma.u-boot ext3.gz.u-boot ext4.gz.u-boot cpio.gz.u-boot"
> 
> if i want an immediately usable initrd i can download and pass off to
> bootm, i'm assuming i can use any of those "u-boot" suffixed image
> types, like, say, "cpio.gz.u-boot," which will generate a file with a
> name like "blahblah...20160708082958.rootfs.cpio.gz.u-boot".

What is your assumption based on?  Just on the suffix ".u-boot"?

>   so more an openembedded question, but am i correct in assuming that
> any of those OE "u-boot" files are usable as initrds? thanks.

You need to look into the actual recipes to be sure what the ".u-boot"
means, and how these images are built.

"openembedded-core/meta/classes/image_types_uboot.bbclass" defines
something like this:

oe_mkimage () {
    mkimage -A ${UBOOT_ARCH} -O linux -T ramdisk -C $2 -n ${IMAGE_NAME} \
        -d ${DEPLOY_DIR_IMAGE}/$1 ${DEPLOY_DIR_IMAGE}/$1.u-boot
    if [ x$3 = x"clean" ]; then
        rm $1
    fi  
} 

This would indeed mean that ".u-boot" is, from U-Boot's point of
view, a ramdisk image wrapped with the legacy image header, and as
such usable with "bootm".

Best regards,

Wolfgang Denk

-- 
DENX Software Engineering GmbH,      Managing Director: Wolfgang Denk
HRB 165235 Munich, Office: Kirchenstr.5, D-82194 Groebenzell, Germany
Phone: (+49)-8142-66989-10 Fax: (+49)-8142-66989-80 Email: wd at denx.de
Save yourself!  Reboot in 5 seconds!

[U-Boot] what are valid formats for initrd image downloaded and used by "bootm"

[Robert P. J. Day]

On Fri, 8 Jul 2016, Wolfgang Denk wrote:

> Dear Robert,
>
> In message <alpine.LFD.2.20.1607080453210.5437@localhost.localdomain> you wrote:
> >
> >   ok, and one last (admittedly a bit off-topic) followup ...
> > openembedded supplies a class, image_types_uboot.bbclass, that can
> > generate a pile of u-boot related images:
> >
> > IMAGE_TYPES += "ext2.u-boot ext2.gz.u-boot ext2.bz2.u-boot
> >    ext2.lzma.u-boot ext3.gz.u-boot ext4.gz.u-boot cpio.gz.u-boot"
> >
> > if i want an immediately usable initrd i can download and pass off to
> > bootm, i'm assuming i can use any of those "u-boot" suffixed image
> > types, like, say, "cpio.gz.u-boot," which will generate a file with a
> > name like "blahblah...20160708082958.rootfs.cpio.gz.u-boot".
>
> What is your assumption based on?  Just on the suffix ".u-boot"?
>
> >   so more an openembedded question, but am i correct in assuming that
> > any of those OE "u-boot" files are usable as initrds? thanks.
>
> You need to look into the actual recipes to be sure what the ".u-boot"
> means, and how these images are built.
>
> "openembedded-core/meta/classes/image_types_uboot.bbclass" defines
> something like this:
>
> oe_mkimage () {
>     mkimage -A ${UBOOT_ARCH} -O linux -T ramdisk -C $2 -n ${IMAGE_NAME} \
>         -d ${DEPLOY_DIR_IMAGE}/$1 ${DEPLOY_DIR_IMAGE}/$1.u-boot
>     if [ x$3 = x"clean" ]; then
>         rm $1
>     fi
> }
>
> This would indeed mean that ".u-boot" is, from U-Boot's point of
> view, a ramdisk image wrapped with the legacy image header, and as
> such usable with "bootm".

  yup, i just went through most of the above, and built a
*cpio.gz.u-boot format ramdisk, and it works just fine, so i'm happy.
onward ...

rday

[U-Boot] what are valid formats for initrd image downloaded and used by "bootm"

[Wolfgang Denk]

Dear Robert,

In message <alpine.LFD.2.20.1607080739350.7066@localhost.localdomain> you wrote:
> 
>   yup, i just went through most of the above, and built a
> *cpio.gz.u-boot format ramdisk, and it works just fine, so i'm happy.
> onward ...

For now this is OK, but you might consider switching to FIT images
instead.  These may look more complicated initially, but they are also
much more flexible and allow for things like signed / encrypted images
and such...

Best regards,

Wolfgang Denk

-- 
DENX Software Engineering GmbH,      Managing Director: Wolfgang Denk
HRB 165235 Munich, Office: Kirchenstr.5, D-82194 Groebenzell, Germany
Phone: (+49)-8142-66989-10 Fax: (+49)-8142-66989-80 Email: wd at denx.de
Life. Don't talk to me about life.      - Marvin the Paranoid Android

[U-Boot] what are valid formats for initrd image downloaded and used by "bootm"

[Robert P. J. Day]

On Fri, 8 Jul 2016, Wolfgang Denk wrote:

> Dear Robert,
>
> In message <alpine.LFD.2.20.1607080739350.7066@localhost.localdomain> you wrote:
> >
> >   yup, i just went through most of the above, and built a
> > *cpio.gz.u-boot format ramdisk, and it works just fine, so i'm happy.
> > onward ...
>
> For now this is OK, but you might consider switching to FIT images
> instead.  These may look more complicated initially, but they are also
> much more flexible and allow for things like signed / encrypted images
> and such...

  already on my list ... in my copious free time. :-(

rday

-- 

========================================================================
Robert P. J. Day                                 Ottawa, Ontario, CANADA
                        http://crashcourse.ca

Twitter:                                       http://twitter.com/rpjday
LinkedIn:                               http://ca.linkedin.com/in/rpjday
========================================================================