The ConnectCore 8X is shipped without a default operating system loaded. Only U-Boot is flashed in the device. This step demonstrates how to install Digi Embedded Yocto in your ConnectCore 8X.
1. Establish a serial connection with your device
Open a serial connection with the device. You can use any serial terminal program such as Tera Term, Minicom, CoolTerm, or HyperTerminal.
PuTTY terminal program is not recommended due to an incompatibility with the USB/serial driver. |
Open a serial connection with the following settings:
Parameter | Value |
---|---|
Port |
Serial port where the device is connected |
Baud rate |
115200 |
Data bits |
8 |
Parity |
None |
Stop bits |
1 |
Flow control |
None |
2. Download the firmware
Download the firmware images from the following location:
-
ConnectCore 8X SBC Pro: https://ftp1.digi.com/support/digiembeddedyocto/3.0/r4/images/ccimx8x-sbc-pro-installer.zip
3. Program the firmware
There are multiple methods of programming the firmware to the target:
-
Use the Universal Update Utility (UUU) through a USB connection to your development PC.
-
Use a microSD card to install the firmware directly in the target.
-
Use USB mass storage to install the firmware directly in the target.
Program the firmware using UUU
These instructions assume that the target U-Boot version is v2019.04 or higher. For U-Boot v2018.03 or lower, you must pass the U-Boot filename as an argument depending on your ConnectCore 8X variant. See U-Boot files by variant: ~$ ./install_linux_fw_uuu.sh <u-boot-file> |
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Decompress the zip file in a directory of your choice.
-
Download the latest Universal Update Utility (UUU) tool, a software tool from NXP.
-
Place the uuu executable in a directory in your PATH, such as
/usr/bin
. -
Install
udev
rules to allow any user to run the uuu for accessing the USB port:~$ sudo sh -c "uuu -udev >> /etc/udev/rules.d/99-uuu.rules" ~$ sudo udevadm control --reload-rules
-
Connect a USB type-C cable to your development PC and the other end to the target USB type-C connector.
-
Reset the device by pressing the reset button on the board and immediately press any key in the serial terminal to stop the auto-boot process. The U-Boot bootloader prompt displays:
U-Boot dub-2020.04-r2.2 (Jan 18 2021 - 15:54:04 +0000) CPU: NXP i.MX8QXP RevB A35 at 1200 MHz at 25C DRAM: 2 GiB MCA: HW_VER=1 FW_VER=1.01 MMC: FSL_SDHC: 0, FSL_SDHC: 1 In: serial Out: serial Err: serial Model: Digi International ConnectCore 8X SBC Pro Board. ConnectCore 8X SOM variant 0x02: 2 GiB LPDDR4, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, MCA, Crypto-auth Board version 3, ID 135 Boot: MMC0 BuildInfo: - SCFW 56682d58, SECO-FW 0e4b9cee, IMX-MKIMAGE 8da5cd23, ATF c949a88 - U-Boot dub-2020.04-r2.2 flash target is MMC:0 Net: eth0: ethernet@5b040000 [PRIME], eth1: ethernet@5b050000 Fastboot: Normal Normal Boot Hit any key to stop autoboot: 0 {pu}
Information in the console log may vary. -
On the target, in U-Boot, execute the following command:
=> fastboot 1
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On your development PC, change to the directory where you extracted the ZIP file and execute the following command:
~$ cd <zip-folder> ~$ ./install_linux_fw_uuu.sh
-
Once the firmware is installed, the device boots automatically. The default username is root with no password.
Program the firmware using uSD card
-
Decompress the zip file.
-
Place the decompressed files in the root of a FAT-formatted microSD card and insert it in the microSD socket of the board.
-
Reset the device by pressing the reset button on the board and immediately press any key in the serial terminal to stop the auto-boot process. The U-Boot bootloader prompt displays:
U-Boot dub-2020.04-r2.2 (Jan 18 2021 - 15:54:04 +0000) CPU: NXP i.MX8QXP RevB A35 at 1200 MHz at 25C DRAM: 2 GiB MCA: HW_VER=1 FW_VER=1.01 MMC: FSL_SDHC: 0, FSL_SDHC: 1 In: serial Out: serial Err: serial Model: Digi International ConnectCore 8X SBC Pro Board. ConnectCore 8X SOM variant 0x02: 2 GiB LPDDR4, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, MCA, Crypto-auth Board version 3, ID 135 Boot: MMC0 BuildInfo: - SCFW 56682d58, SECO-FW 0e4b9cee, IMX-MKIMAGE 8da5cd23, ATF c949a88 - U-Boot dub-2020.04-r2.2 flash target is MMC:0 Net: eth0: ethernet@5b040000 [PRIME], eth1: ethernet@5b050000 Fastboot: Normal Normal Boot Hit any key to stop autoboot: 0 {pu}
Information in the console log may vary. -
Install the firmware into the internal eMMC, executing the following command:
=> run install_linux_fw_sd
-
Once the firmware is installed, the device boots automatically. The default username is root with no password.
During installation, error messages appear when the installation process attempts to override MAC addresses. These messages are expected.
## Resetting to default environment oldval: 00:40:9D:7D:17:9A defval: 00:04:f3:ff:ff:fa ## Error: Can't overwrite "ethaddr" himport_r: can't insert "ethaddr=00:04:f3:ff:ff:fa" into hash table oldval: 00:40:9D:7D:17:9B defval: 00:04:f3:ff:ff:fb ## Error: Can't overwrite "eth1addr" himport_r: can't insert "eth1addr=00:04:f3:ff:ff:fb" into hash table oldval: 00:40:9D:7D:17:9C defval: 00:04:f3:ff:ff:fc ## Error: Can't overwrite "wlanaddr" himport_r: can't insert "wlanaddr=00:04:f3:ff:ff:fc" into hash table oldval: 00:40:9D:7D:17:9D defval: 00:04:f3:ff:ff:fd ## Error: Can't overwrite "btaddr" himport_r: can't insert "btaddr=00:04:f3:ff:ff:fd" into hash table
Program the firmware using USB mass storage
Follow these steps to install Yocto in the device:
-
Decompress the zip file.
-
Place the decompressed files in the root of a FAT-formatted USB mass storage and insert it in the USB host connector of the board.
-
Reset the device by pressing the reset button on the board and immediately press any key in the serial terminal to stop the auto-boot process. The U-Boot bootloader prompt displays:
U-Boot dub-2020.04-r2.2 (Jan 18 2021 - 15:54:04 +0000) CPU: NXP i.MX8QXP RevB A35 at 1200 MHz at 25C DRAM: 2 GiB MCA: HW_VER=1 FW_VER=1.01 MMC: FSL_SDHC: 0, FSL_SDHC: 1 In: serial Out: serial Err: serial Model: Digi International ConnectCore 8X SBC Pro Board. ConnectCore 8X SOM variant 0x02: 2 GiB LPDDR4, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, MCA, Crypto-auth Board version 3, ID 135 Boot: MMC0 BuildInfo: - SCFW 56682d58, SECO-FW 0e4b9cee, IMX-MKIMAGE 8da5cd23, ATF c949a88 - U-Boot dub-2020.04-r2.2 flash target is MMC:0 Net: eth0: ethernet@5b040000 [PRIME], eth1: ethernet@5b050000 Fastboot: Normal Normal Boot Hit any key to stop autoboot: 0 {pu}
Information in the console log may vary. -
Install the firmware into the internal eMMC, executing the following command:
=> run install_linux_fw_usb
-
Once the firmware is installed, the device boots automatically. The default username is root with no password.
During installation, error messages appear when the installation process attempts to override MAC addresses. These messages are expected.
## Resetting to default environment oldval: 00:40:9D:7D:17:9A defval: 00:04:f3:ff:ff:fa ## Error: Can't overwrite "ethaddr" himport_r: can't insert "ethaddr=00:04:f3:ff:ff:fa" into hash table oldval: 00:40:9D:7D:17:9B defval: 00:04:f3:ff:ff:fb ## Error: Can't overwrite "eth1addr" himport_r: can't insert "eth1addr=00:04:f3:ff:ff:fb" into hash table oldval: 00:40:9D:7D:17:9C defval: 00:04:f3:ff:ff:fc ## Error: Can't overwrite "wlanaddr" himport_r: can't insert "wlanaddr=00:04:f3:ff:ff:fc" into hash table oldval: 00:40:9D:7D:17:9D defval: 00:04:f3:ff:ff:fd ## Error: Can't overwrite "btaddr" himport_r: can't insert "btaddr=00:04:f3:ff:ff:fd" into hash table