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Types of Boot Configurations:: Notes

The document discusses different aspects of boot configurations and processes for embedded systems. It covers: 1. The typical boot process involves a first stage bootloader loaded from ROM that initializes memory and loads a second stage bootloader, which offers more features like a shell. 2. Storage devices have evolved from ROM to flash chips as the norm. Software on these devices is responsible for bootstrapping the system. There are three main setups - solid state, disk, and network. 3. Open-source bootloaders like U-Boot, Barebox, and GRUB are recommended. U-Boot supports many hardware platforms while Barebox has a cleaner design. The document then discusses

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268 views

Types of Boot Configurations:: Notes

The document discusses different aspects of boot configurations and processes for embedded systems. It covers: 1. The typical boot process involves a first stage bootloader loaded from ROM that initializes memory and loads a second stage bootloader, which offers more features like a shell. 2. Storage devices have evolved from ROM to flash chips as the norm. Software on these devices is responsible for bootstrapping the system. There are three main setups - solid state, disk, and network. 3. Open-source bootloaders like U-Boot, Barebox, and GRUB are recommended. U-Boot supports many hardware platforms while Barebox has a cleaner design. The document then discusses

Uploaded by

Anonymous NRsxoL7E
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© © All Rights Reserved
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Types of boot configurations:

what is used by Elina?


Bootloader U-Boot?
Notes:
The boot process of most recent embedded processors is the following:
1. The processor executes code in ROM, to load a _rst-stage bootloader from NAND, SPI ash, serial
port or SD card
2. The _rst stage bootloader initializes the memory controller and a few other peripherals, and loads
a second stage bootloader. No interaction is possible with this _rst stage bootloader, and it is
typically provided by the CPU vendor.
3. The second stage bootloader o_ers more features: usually a shell, with commands. It allows to
manipulate the storage devices, the network, con_gure the boot process, etc. This bootloader is
typically generic and open-source.

Storage device Vs flash chips


Notes:
Sstorage device was a masked ROM, but flash chips are norms now a days.
Masked ROM's continue to be used when devices are produced in large quantities. (Ex:
consumer Gaming devices)
Software on storage device is responsible for bootstrapping the system.
There are three different setups used to bootstrap an embedded linux system:
- The solid state media setups
- The disk setups
- The network setup

BootLoader Principles:

OpenSource Bootloaders:
1. U-Boot is the de-facto standard in open-source bootloaders. Available on ARM, PowerPC, MIPS,
m68k, Microblaze, x86, NIOS, SuperH, Sparc. Huge hardware support available, large number of
features (networking, USB, SD, etc.)
http://www.denx.de/wiki/U-Boot
2. Barebox, a newer open-source bootloader, with a cleaner design than U-Boot, but less
hardware support for the moment.
http://www.barebox.org

3. GRUB, the standard for x86 PC.


http://www.gnu.org/software/grub/
Make sure your hardware comes with one of these well-known open-source bootloaders.

Kernel

VS

User Space

The Linux kernel runs in privileged mode. It can access and control the hardware. Its role is to
multiplex the available resources, and provide coherent and consistent interfaces to userspace.
Userspace is the set of applications and libraries that run on the system. They work in unprivileged
mode. They must go through the kernel to access the system resources, including the hardware. The
kernel provides isolation between applications.

Kernel Configuration

Files Systems
The Linux kernel supports a wide-range of _lesystem types:
ext2, ext3, ext4 are the default filesystem types for Linux. They are usable on block devices.
jffs2, ubifs are the filesystems usable on flash devices (NAND, NOR, SPI ashes). Note that
SD/MMC cards or USB keys are not flash devices, but block devices.
squashfs is a read-only highly-compressed filesystem, appropriate for all system files that
never change.
vfat, nfts, the Windows-world _lesystems, are also supported for compatibility
nfs, cifs are the two most important network filesystems supported

SomaShakhar Reddy
Contact Ediga YerriSwamy
Sree Gowtham Josyula
Harman
ATULKUMAR SINGH
Sr Software Engineer at KPIT
Pune Area, IndiaElectrical/Electronic Manufacturing

Toolchain

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