Difference between revisions of "BeagleBoardUbuntu"

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m (Maverick 10.10: add note about network (oem-config in lucid sets this up so it's not needed their))
(Method 3: Manual Install (no automatic scripts))
 
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[[Category:Development Boards]]
 
[[Category:Development Boards]]
 
[[Category: BeagleBoard]]
 
[[Category: BeagleBoard]]
This page is about running a (ARM EABI) [http://www.ubuntu.com/ Ubuntu] distribution at [[BeagleBoard]]. BeagleBoard will boot the (ARM EABI) Ubuntu distribution from [[BeagleBoard#MMC.2FSD_boot|SD card]].
+
''(For BeagleBoardAngstrom, click [[BeagleBoardAngstrom|here]].)''
 +
''(Should [[Beagleboard:Ubuntu On BeagleBone Black]] be merged into this page?)''
  
Note: for the best experience, make sure you have an LCD attached to the HDMI port, 2GB/4GB/8GB SD card, and a known good usb2.0 hub with mouse and keyboard.
+
This page is about running a Linux distribution (ARM [https://wiki.debian.org/ArmEabiPort EABI]) [http://www.ubuntu.com/ Ubuntu] on the [[BeagleBoard]]. BeagleBoard will boot the (ARM EABI) Ubuntu distribution from the [[BeagleBoard#MMC.2FSD_boot|SD card]]. Since much of this page is generic, it has also been extended to help support devices such as the [[PandaBoard]] and [[BeagleBone]].
 +
 
 +
* For the best experience, make sure you have an LCD/HDMI monitor attached to the BeagleBoard's HDMI port, 2 GB/4 GB/8 GB SD card, and a known good USB 2.0 hub with mouse and keyboard.
  
 
= Help =
 
= Help =
Line 12: Line 15:
  
 
*Kernel related help:
 
*Kernel related help:
** [http://groups.google.com/group/beagleboard Email Beagleboard user group] *Recommended method
+
** [https://groups.google.com/group/beagleboard Email Beagleboard user group] *Recommended method
** ''#beagle'': Beagle irc on freenode, accessible also by [http://beagleboard.org/discuss web interface] ([http://www.beagleboard.org/irclogs/index.php logs])
+
** ''#beagle'': Beagle IRC on Freenode, accessible also by [http://beagleboard.org/discuss web interface] ([http://www.beagleboard.org/irclogs/index.php logs])
** [https://launchpad.net/~beagleboard-kernel Launchpad Project "Beagleboard Kernel"]
+
** Kernel Trees
*** [https://code.launchpad.net/~beagleboard-kernel/+junk/2.6-stable Stable Kernel 2.6.35 src]
+
*** [https://github.com/RobertCNelson/armv7-multiplatform/ v4.17.x kernel branch]
*** [https://code.launchpad.net/~beagleboard-kernel/+junk/2.6.36-devel Development Kernel src]
+
*** [https://github.com/RobertCNelson/linux-dev Development Kernel source code]
** [http://elinux.org/BeagleBoardUbuntuKernel Kernel Testing Results]
 
  
 
*Ubuntu related help:
 
*Ubuntu related help:
** ''#ubuntu-arm'': Ubuntu's arm irc on freenode ([http://irclogs.ubuntu.com/ logs] -> year -> month -> day -> #ubuntu-arm.html)
+
** ''#ubuntu-arm'': Ubuntu's ARM IRC on Freenode ([http://irclogs.ubuntu.com/ logs] -> year -> month -> day -> #ubuntu-arm.html)
  
*When asking for help, please provide some debugging information:
+
*When requesting help, please provide some debugging information:
 
** U-Boot Version installed on board
 
** U-Boot Version installed on board
 
** Kernel Version: uname -a
 
** Kernel Version: uname -a
Line 30: Line 32:
 
= Required Beagle Software =  
 
= Required Beagle Software =  
  
X-loader/MLO (1.4.4ss) & U-Boot (2010.03) (Zippy1 & Zippy2 Support)
+
Mainline U-Boot:
* All Bx, C2/3/4 Boards are required to upgrade to atleast these MLO and U-Boot versions.
+
* All older BeagleBoard (classic) Ax, Bx, Cx and Dx boards are required to upgrade to at least these U-Boot versions
* XM Boards have no NAND, so u-boot.bin is always required on the first partition
+
* XM Boards have no NAND, so MLO/u-boot.img is always required on the first partition
 
* Directions: [http://elinux.org/BeagleBoardUbuntu#Upgrade_X-loader_and_U-boot Upgrade X-loader and U-Boot]
 
* Directions: [http://elinux.org/BeagleBoardUbuntu#Upgrade_X-loader_and_U-boot Upgrade X-loader and U-Boot]
  
=Pre-Installed Image=
+
= Omap Serial Changes =
  
== Maverick 10.10 ==
+
boot.scr/boot.cmd changes:
  
Just follow https://wiki.ubuntu.com/ARM/OMAPMaverickInstall and make sure you're using a SD card >= 4GB.
+
With 2.6.35:
 +
console=ttyS2,115200n8
  
=Demo Image=
+
With 2.6.36/37+:
 +
console=ttyO2,115200n8
  
== Maverick 10.10 ==
+
Serial console login: /etc/init/ttyO2.conf
 
+
start on stopped rc RUNLEVEL=[2345]
Default user: ubuntu pass: temppwd
+
stop on runlevel [!2345]
 +
 +
respawn
 +
exec /sbin/getty 115200 ttyO2
  
Get prebuilt image:
+
= Method 1: Download a Complete Pre-Configured Image =
  
wget http://rcn-ee.net/deb/rootfs/maverick/ubuntu-10.10-minimal-armel.tar.7z
+
== Demo Image ==
mirrors (will take some time to update):
 
wget http://ynezz.ibawizard.net/beagleboard/maverick/ubuntu-10.10-minimal-armel.tar.7z
 
wget http://vivaphp.net/beagle/maverick/ubuntu-10.10-minimal-armel.tar.7z
 
  
Verify Image with:  
+
* '''Advanced Users only''': BeagleBoard xM: Kernel source, used in these demo images: https://github.com/RobertCNelson/armv7-multiplatform
md5sum ubuntu-10.10-minimal-armel.tar.7z
+
  git clone https://github.com/RobertCNelson/armv7-multiplatform.git
  md5sum: c971848131c568a5f45add5373c06258 ubuntu-10.10-minimal-armel.tar.7z
+
cd armv7-multiplatform
 
+
  git checkout origin/v5.4.x -b tmp
Unpack Image:
+
  ./build_kernel.sh
*7za from: sudo apt-get install p7zip-full
+
* '''Advanced Users only''': BeagleBone/BeagleBone Black/PocketBeagle: Kernel v4.19.x source, used in these demo images: https://github.com/RobertCNelson/ti-linux-kernel-dev/tree/ti-linux-4.19.y
 
+
  git clone https://github.com/RobertCNelson/ti-linux-kernel-dev.git
  7za x ubuntu-10.10-minimal-armel.tar.7z
+
  cd ti-linux-kernel-dev
  tar xf ubuntu-10.10-minimal-armel.tar
+
git checkout origin/ti-linux-4.19.y -b tmp
cd ubuntu-10.10-minimal-armel
+
./build_kernel.sh
 
 
Install Image:
 
 
 
Quick Install script for Beagle Bx, C2/C3/C4, xM A
 
  ./setup_sdcard.sh --mmc /dev/sdX --uboot beagle
 
 
 
*Additional Options
 
** --rootfs <ext4 default>
 
** --swap_file <swap file size in MB's>
 
** --addon <pico>
 
 
 
Problems?
 
  What you should see on first boot: http://pastebin.com/fXwm4cJx
 
 
 
For a full gui install run this on your beagle (make sure network is setup):
 
setup network: "sudo ifconfig -a" and "sudo dhclient usb1 or eth0"
 
  sudo aptitude install xfce4 gdm xubuntu-gdm-theme xubuntu-artwork xserver-xorg-video-omap3
 
  
Advanced: Build Image:
+
=== Ubuntu (18.04.4) ===
  
fixup.sh: http://rcn-ee.homeip.net:81/dl/updates/omap-image-builder/tools/fixup.sh
+
Default username/password:
 +
*username: ubuntu
 +
*password: temppwd
  
Built with rootstock trunk (ARM native mode, run directly on beagleboard):
+
Image Updated:
sudo ./rootstock --fqdn omap --imagesize 2G --dist maverick --serial ttyS2 \
+
*2020-03-12
--login ubuntu --password temppwd \
+
** BeagleBoard xM: v5.4.24-armv7-x20 kernel
--seed aptitude,btrfs-tools,i2c-tools,nano,pastebinit,uboot-envtools,uboot-mkimage,usbutils,wget,wireless-tools,wpasupplicant \
+
** All BeagleBone Variants and PocketBeagle: v4.19.94-ti-r36 kernel
--script fixup.sh --components "main universe multiverse" \
+
** BeagleBoard-X15 (and BeagleBone AI): v4.19.94-ti-r36 kernel
--kernel-image http://rcn-ee.net/deb/maverick/v2.6.35.6-l5/linux-image-2.6.35.6-l5_1.0maverick_armel.deb
+
*2019-04-10
 +
** BeagleBoard xM: v4.19.31-armv7-x31 kernel
 +
** All BeagleBone Variants and PocketBeagle: v4.14.108-ti-r104 kernel
 +
** BeagleBoard-X15: v4.14.108-ti-r104 kernel
 +
*2018-12-10
 +
** BeagleBoard xM: v4.19.8-armv7-x11 kernel
 +
** All BeagleBone Variants and PocketBeagle: v4.14.79-ti-r84 kernel
 +
** BeagleBoard-X15: v4.14.79-ti-r84 kernel
  
== Lucid 10.04.1 ==
+
Services Active:
 +
Note: Depending on your internal network these may work out of the box
 +
Apache, Port 80: http://arm.local/ (Bone: via usb) (Windows/Linux) http://192.168.7.2, (Mac/Linux) http://192.168.6.2
 +
SSH, Port 22: ssh ubuntu@arm.local (Bone: via usb) (Windows/Linux) ubuntu@192.168.7.2, (Mac/Linux) ubuntu@192.168.6.2
 +
Getty, Serial Port
  
 
Default user: ubuntu pass: temppwd
 
Default user: ubuntu pass: temppwd
  
 
Get prebuilt image:
 
Get prebuilt image:
 +
wget https://rcn-ee.com/rootfs/2020-03-12/elinux/ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12.tar.xz
  
  wget http://rcn-ee.net/deb/rootfs/lucid/ubuntu-10.04.1-r1-minimal-armel.tar.7z
+
Verify Image with:
  mirrors (updating):
+
  sha256sum ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12.tar.xz
  wget http://ynezz.ibawizard.net/beagleboard/lucid/ubuntu-10.04.1-r1-minimal-armel.tar.7z
+
  abe086f9132dfe8e8b9df8d14da225e0ce89a082abc92515de8a2ac63fc54ae2 ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12.tar.xz
  
Verify Image with:  
+
Unpack Image:
  md5sum ubuntu-10.04.1-r1-minimal-armel.tar.7z
+
  tar xf ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12.tar.xz
  md5sum 37fb8921bf1c1f1b206936725c9586c2  ubuntu-10.04.1-r1-minimal-armel.tar.7z
+
  cd ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12
  
Unpack Image:
+
If you don't know the location of your SD card:
*7za from: sudo apt-get install p7zip-full
+
sudo ./setup_sdcard.sh --probe-mmc
  
7za x ubuntu-10.04.1-r1-minimal-armel.tar.7z
+
You should see something like:
tar xf ubuntu-10.04.1-r1-minimal-armel.tar
 
cd ubuntu-10.04.1-r1-minimal-armel
 
  
Install Image:
+
Are you sure? I don't see [/dev/idontknow], here is what I do see...
 +
 +
fdisk -l:
 +
Disk /dev/sda: 500.1 GB, 500107862016 bytes '''<- x86 Root Drive'''
 +
Disk /dev/sdd: 3957 MB, 3957325824 bytes '''<- MMC/SD card'''
 +
 +
lsblk:
 +
NAME  MAJ:MIN RM  SIZE RO TYPE MOUNTPOINT
 +
sda      8:0    0 465.8G  0 disk
 +
├─sda1  8:1    0 446.9G  0 part /  '''<- x86 Root Partition'''
 +
├─sda2  8:2    0    1K  0 part
 +
└─sda5  8:5    0  18.9G  0 part [SWAP]
 +
sdd      8:48  1  3.7G  0 disk
 +
├─sdd1  8:49  1    64M  0 part
 +
└─sdd2  8:50  1  3.6G  0 part
  
Quick Install script for Beagle Bx, C2/C3/C4, xM A
+
* In this example, we can see via mount, '''/dev/sda1''' is the x86 rootfs, therefore '''/dev/sdd''' is the other drive in the system, which is the MMC/SD card that was inserted and should be used by ./setup_sdcard.sh...
./setup_sdcard.sh --mmc /dev/sdX --uboot beagle --swap_file 50  (YOU need atleast 50Mb for oem-config to NOT Opps)
 
  
For Serial Port Users add: (to use default user/pass ubuntu/temppwd)
+
Install Image:
--use-default-user
 
  
*Additional Options
+
Quick install script for [board]
** --rootfs <ext4 default>
+
sudo ./setup_sdcard.sh --mmc /dev/sdX --dtb board
** --swap_file <swap file size in MB's>
 
** --addon <pico>
 
  
Problems?:
+
board options:
What you should see on First Boot (oem-config on dvi): http://pastebin.com/1msm6a4h
+
*BeagleBoard Ax/Bx/Cx/Dx          - omap3-beagle
 +
*BeagleBoard xM                  - omap3-beagle-xm
 +
*All BeagleBone Variants          - beaglebone
 +
*OMAP5432 uEVM                    - omap5-uevm
 +
*BeagleBoard-X15 (BeagleBone AI)  - am57xx-beagle-x15
  
For a full gui install:  
+
So for the BeagleBoard xM:
  sudo aptitude install xfce4 gdm xubuntu-gdm-theme xubuntu-artwork xserver-xorg-video-omap3
+
  sudo ./setup_sdcard.sh --mmc /dev/sdX --dtb omap3-beagle-xm
  
 
Advanced: Build Image:
 
Advanced: Build Image:
  
fixup.sh: http://rcn-ee.homeip.net:81/dl/updates/omap-image-builder/tools/fixup.sh
+
git clone https://github.com/RobertCNelson/omap-image-builder.git
 +
cd omap-image-builder
 +
git checkout v2020.03 -b tmp
  
Built with rootstock trunk (ARM native mode, run directly on beagleboard):
+
Stable:
sudo ./rootstock --fqdn omap --imagesize 2G --dist lucid --serial ttyS2 \
 
--login ubuntu --password temppwd \
 
--seed aptitude,btrfs-tools,i2c-tools,nano,pastebinit,uboot-envtools,uboot-mkimage,usbutils,wget,wireless-tools,wpasupplicant \
 
--script fixup.sh --components "main universe multiverse" \
 
--kernel-image http://rcn-ee.net/deb/lucid/v2.6.35.6-l5/linux-image-2.6.35.6-l5_1.0lucid_armel.deb
 
  
== Maverick 10.10 Xfce4 ==
+
./RootStock-NG.sh -c rcn-ee_console_ubuntu_bionic_armhf
  
BROKEN: Currently building/uploading new image.
+
== Flasher ==
  
= NetInstall Method =
+
=== eMMC: All BeagleBone Variants with eMMC ===
  
NOTE: Lucid's NetInstall will not work with the new XM model..
+
This image can be written to a 2GB (or larger) microSD card, via 'dd' on Linux or on Windows/Mac/Linux: https://etcher.io  First press and hold the boot select button (next to the microSD card), then apply power. On boot-up the board should indicate it has started the flashing procedure visually via a Cylon Sweep pattern shown on the 4 LED's next to the Ethernet jack. Progress is reported on both the serial debug and HDMI connectors, once completed all 4 LED's should be full ON. Simply remove power, remove the microSD card and Ubuntu will now boot directly from eMMC.
  
The NetInstall Method, allows you to install Ubuntu directly onto your Beagle by pre-populating a boot image that will perform the complete install.
+
Script for reference: (this is the script that writes to the eMMC)
 +
https://github.com/RobertCNelson/boot-scripts/blob/master/tools/eMMC/init-eMMC-flasher-v3.sh
  
Note: The boot arg's are stored in boot.scr which will be copied to the first partition.
+
This script will only take about 5-6 Minutes after power on.
  
Recommended:
+
Notes:
* 2GB+ SD card
+
* If only two LED's stay lit and nothing happens, the board has crashed due to lack of power. Retry with a 5Volt DC power supply connected.
* USB Ethernet/Wifi
+
* If the 4 LED's blink a constant pattern, the eMMC write has failed. First REMOVE ALL capes, then retry again.
  
Discover SD/MMC Partition
+
User: ubuntu
sudo fdisk -l
+
pass: temppwd
  
Download NetInstall Omap script
+
Image Updated:
git clone git://github.com/RobertCNelson/netinstall-omap.git
+
*2020-03-12
cd netinstall-omap
+
** All BeagleBone Variants with eMMC: v4.19.94-ti-r36 kernel
./mk_mmc.sh --mmc /dev/sdX --distro lucid --firmware
+
*2019-04-10
 +
** All BeagleBone Variants with eMMC: v4.14.108-ti-r104 kernel
 +
*2018-12-10
 +
** All BeagleBone Variants with eMMC: v4.14.79-ti-r84 kernel
  
*Options:
+
Get prebuilt image:
**--distro : lucid
+
wget https://rcn-ee.com/rootfs/2020-03-12/flasher/bone-eMMC-flasher-ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12-2gb.img.xz
**--firmware : install firmware for WiFi devices
 
**--serial-mode : force NetInstall to use Serial Port
 
  
Note: The default boot options work for most people, but if you'd like to tweak boot settings, edit these before running the script.
+
Verify Image with:
   
+
  sha256sum bone-eMMC-flasher-ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12-2gb*
NetInstall boot Settings:
+
  2bc7f92df84dbd89c1cdd790ec794926a5d6b0f0b891143085d77141170518e2 bone-eMMC-flasher-ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12-2gb.img.xz
gedit ./netinstall-omap/scripts/dvi.cmd
 
gedit ./netinstall-omap/scripts/serial.cmd
 
 
  Normal Boot Settings:
 
  gedit ./netinstall-omap/scripts/dvi-normal-lucid.cmd
 
gedit ./netinstall-omap/scripts/serial-normal-lucid.cmd
 
  
Place SD card into Beagle and Boot
+
Windows/Mac/Linux gui
 +
http://etcher.io
  
Troubshooting: If boot fails..
+
Linux: (dd)
*Hold the user button down to force booting from MMC
+
xzcat bone-eMMC-flasher-ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12-2gb.img.xz | sudo dd of=/dev/sdX
*Upgrade X-loader and U-boot [http://elinux.org/BeagleBoardUbuntu#Upgrade_X-loader_and_U-boot Upgrade X-loader and U-Boot]
 
*Clear U-boot's Environment Variables in nand:
 
nand erase 260000 20000
 
  
NetInstall assumptions:
+
=== eMMC: BeagleBoard-X15 and BeagleBone AI ===
Continue with out Kernel Modules <yes>
 
Partition <Guided - use the largest continuous free space>
 
  
= RootStock: Build an Ubuntu root file system =
+
This image can be written to a 2GB (or larger) microSD card, via 'dd' on Linux or on Windows/Mac/Linux: https://etcher.io  First press and hold the boot select button (next to the microSD card), then apply power. On boot-up the board should indicate it has started the flashing procedure visually via a Cylon Sweep pattern shown on the 4 LED's next to the Ethernet jack. Progress is reported on both the serial debug and HDMI connectors, once completed all 4 LED's should be full ON.  Simply remove power, remove the microSD card and Ubuntu will now boot directly from eMMC.
  
== Ubuntu Version's ==
+
Script for reference: (this is the script that writes to the eMMC)
This guide only covers the latest Ubuntu stable (lucid) release and notes for the testing (lucid+1) dists. Notes for older release's can be found here:
+
  https://github.com/RobertCNelson/boot-scripts/blob/master/tools/eMMC/init-eMMC-flasher-v3.sh
  
* Karmic, aka Ubuntu 9.10, is the old-stable version  (armv6 optimized)
+
This script will only take about 5-6 Minutes after power on.
** http://elinux.org/BeagleBoardUbuntuKarmic
 
* Lucid, aka Ubuntu 10.04 is the stable version (armv7 optimized)
 
** TODO: http://elinux.org/BeagleBoardUbuntuLucid
 
* Maverick, aka Ubuntu 10.10 is the development version. Currently listed here as 'testing'. (armv7 optimized)
 
** TODO: http://elinux.org/BeagleBoardUbuntuMaverick
 
  
== Install RootStock ==
+
Notes:
 +
* If only two LED's stay lit and nothing happens, the board has crashed due to lack of power. Retry with a 5Volt DC power supply connected.
 +
* If the 4 LED's blink a constant pattern, the eMMC write has failed. First REMOVE ALL capes, then retry again.
  
This is based off Ubuntu's RootStock Project; [https://launchpad.net/project-rootstock RootStock] script.
+
User: ubuntu
 +
pass: temppwd
  
Lucid (10.04) (use rootstock trunk)
+
Image Updated:
sudo apt-get install rootstock (to install rootstock's dependices)
+
*2020-03-12
bzr branch lp:project-rootstock
+
** BeagleBoard-X15 (and BeagleBone AI): v4.19.94-ti-r36 kernel
cd project-rootstock
+
*2019-04-10
 +
** BeagleBoard-X15 (and BeagleBone AI): v4.14.108-ti-r104 kernel
 +
*2018-12-10
 +
** BeagleBoard-X15 (and BeagleBone AI): v4.14.79-ti-r84 kernel
  
Maverick (10.10 beta)
+
Get prebuilt image:
  sudo apt-get install rootstock
+
  wget https://rcn-ee.com/rootfs/2020-03-12/flasher/am57xx-eMMC-flasher-ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12-2gb.img.xz
  
== RootStock ==
+
Verify Image with:
 +
sha256sum am57xx-eMMC-flasher-ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12-2gb*
 +
0c359f2b5e9d27d167f55877d3abfea0af2fe721463136f354dfd5d72be8a541  am57xx-eMMC-flasher-ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12-2gb.img.xz
  
=== RootStock: Useful seed Packages ===
+
Windows/Mac/Linux gui
 +
http://etcher.io
  
Useful Packages:
+
Linux: (dd)
  linux-firmware,wireless-tools :wifi adapters..
+
  xzcat am57xx-eMMC-flasher-ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12-2gb.img.xz | sudo dd of=/dev/sdX
ntpdate :sync real time clock from network
 
  
GUI's (broken bug: FIXME)
+
== raw microSD img ==
xfce4:  xfce4,gdm,xubuntu-gdm-theme,xubuntu-artwork
 
  
=== RootStock: Running ===
+
=== BeagleBoard xM ===
  
Rootstock Command line:
+
This image can be written to a 2GB (or larger) microSD card, via 'dd' on Linux or on Windows/Mac/Linux: https://etcher.io
sudo ./rootstock --fqdn <hostname> --login <rootuser> --password <rootuserpasswd> --imagesize <qemu image size> \
 
--seed <packages> --dist <jaunty/karmic/lucid> --serial <ttySx>  --kernel-image <http>
 
  
Basic Lucid (10.04) Beagleboard minimal image:
+
User: ubuntu
sudo ./rootstock --fqdn beagleboard --login ubuntu --password temppwd --imagesize 2G \
+
pass: temppwd
--seed wget,nano,linux-firmware,wireless-tools,usbutils --dist lucid --serial ttyS2 \
 
--components "main universe multiverse" \
 
--kernel-image http://rcn-ee.net/deb/lucid/v2.6.33.4-l3/linux-image-2.6.33.4-l3_1.0lucid_armel.deb
 
  
Upon Completion, you should have:
+
Auto partition resize:
  armel-rootfs-<date>.tgz -> Root file System, dump to ext2/3 partition of SD card
+
  cd /opt/scripts/tools
  vmlinuz-2.6.<version>    -> Boot Image, use mkimage to create uImage and dump to the first fat16 partition of SD card
+
  git pull
  initrd.img-2.6.<version> -> Boot initramfs, use mkimage to create uInitrd and dump to the first fat16 partition of SD card
+
  ./grow_partition.sh
 +
  sudo reboot
  
== Partition SD Card ==
+
Image Updated:
You will need a 1GB SD card or greater.
+
*2020-03-12
Standard Console System : ~286MB
+
** BeagleBoard xM: v5.4.24-armv7-x20 kernel
+ Desktop environment (lxde,gdm) : ~479MB
+
*2019-04-10
 +
** BeagleBoard xM: v4.19.31-armv7-x31 kernel
 +
*2018-12-10
 +
** BeagleBoard xM: v4.19.8-armv7-x11 kernel
  
Starting with an empty SD card and using gparted, create:
+
Get prebuilt image:
  50 MiB Primary Partition, fat16/fat32
+
  wget https://rcn-ee.com/rootfs/2020-03-12/microsd/bbxm-ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12-2gb.img.xz
Rest as ext2/ext3/ext4/btrfs
 
  
Gparted Example: http://nishanthmenon.blogspot.com/2008/08/how-to-boot-beagle.html
+
Verify Image with:
 +
sha256sum bbxm-ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12-2gb*
 +
a3d8780a69ceca6c5462c80c5a061dbba7df91d9111e08e718ecf55420302b91  bbxm-ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12-2gb.img.xz
  
For Reference:
+
Windows/Mac/Linux gui
Disk /dev/sdd: 2038 MB, 2038431744 bytes
+
  http://etcher.io
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 247 cylinders
 
Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 = 8225280 bytes
 
  Disk identifier: 0x0008e471
 
 
    Device Boot      Start        End      Blocks  Id  System
 
/dev/sdd1              1          6      48163+  6  FAT16
 
/dev/sdd2              7        247    1935832+  83  Linux
 
  
== Copy Root File System to SD Card ==
+
Linux: (dd)
 +
xzcat bbxm-ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12-2gb.img.xz | sudo dd of=/dev/sdX
  
Mount your SD card's larger root file system partition (assuming /dev/sdX2) and 'untar' the rootfs into it.
+
=== All BeagleBone Variants and PocketBeagle===
  
mkdir -p ./tmp
+
This image can be written to a 2GB (or larger) microSD card, via 'dd' on Linux or on Windows/Mac/Linux: https://etcher.io
sudo mount /dev/sdX2 ./tmp
 
sudo tar xfp armel-rootfs-*.tgz -C ./tmp
 
sudo umount ./tmp
 
  
== Boot Partition ==
+
User: ubuntu
 +
pass: temppwd
  
Requirements:
+
Auto partition resize:
 +
cd /opt/scripts/tools
 +
git pull
 +
./grow_partition.sh
 +
sudo reboot
  
sudo apt-get install uboot-mkimage
+
Image Updated:
 +
*2020-03-12
 +
** All BeagleBone Variants and PocketBeagle: v4.19.94-ti-r36 kernel
 +
*2019-04-10
 +
** All BeagleBone Variants and PocketBeagle: v4.14.108-ti-r104 kernel
 +
*2018-12-10
 +
** All BeagleBone Variants and PocketBeagle: v4.14.79-ti-r84 kernel
  
=== U-Boot uImage ===
+
Get prebuilt image:
 +
wget https://rcn-ee.com/rootfs/2020-03-12/microsd/bone-ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12-2gb.img.xz
  
U-Boot needs a compatible kernel image to bootTo do this, we are using mkimage from (uboot-mkimage) to create an image from the vmlinuz kernel file.  
+
Verify Image with:
 +
sha256sum bone-ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12-2gb*
 +
4c41976f1f574a4786002482167fe6443d8c9f1bced86a174459ffeba1f5b780 bone-ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12-2gb.img.xz
  
  mkimage -A arm -O linux -T kernel -C none -a 0x80008000 -e 0x80008000 -n "Linux" -d ./vmlinuz-* ./uImage
+
Windows/Mac/Linux gui
 +
  http://etcher.io
  
=== U-Boot uInitrd ===
+
Linux: (dd)
 +
xzcat bone-ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12-2gb.img.xz | sudo dd of=/dev/sdX
  
This step is Optional, but it helps with the lucid and Lucid++ experience.
+
=== BeagleBoard-X15 and BeagleBone AI===
  
mkimage -A arm -O linux -T ramdisk -C none -a 0 -e 0 -n initramfs -d ./initrd.img-* ./uInitrd
+
This image can be written to a 2GB (or larger) microSD card, via 'dd' on Linux or on Windows/Mac/Linux: https://etcher.io
  
=== U-Boot Boot Scripts ===
+
User: ubuntu
The version of U-Boot installed or recommended to install uses boot scripts by default.  This allows users to easily switch between multiple SD cards with different OS's with different parameters installed.  Ubuntu/Debian requires a slight modification to the bootargs line vs. Angstrom, 'ro' vs 'rw'.
+
pass: temppwd
  
  fixrtc: (only uInitrd) Resets RTC based on last mount
+
Auto partition resize:
  buddy=${buddy}: (both) Kernel Zippy1/2 Support
+
cd /opt/scripts/tools
  mpurate=${mpurate}: (recommended core clock)
+
  git pull
 +
  ./grow_partition.sh
 +
  sudo reboot
  
create ubuntu.cmd
+
Image Updated:
setenv bootcmd 'mmc init; fatload mmc 0:1 0x80300000 uImage; bootm 0x80300000'
+
*2020-03-12
setenv bootargs console=tty0 console=ttyS2,115200n8 root=/dev/mmcblk0p2 rootwait ro vram=12M omapfb.mode=dvi:1280x720MR-16@60 buddy=${buddy} mpurate=${mpurate}
+
** BeagleBoard-X15 (and BeagleBone AI): v4.19.94-ti-r36 kernel
boot
+
*2019-04-10
 +
** BeagleBoard-X15 (and BeagleBone AI): v4.14.108-ti-r104 kernel
 +
*2018-12-10
 +
** BeagleBoard-X15 (and BeagleBone AI): v4.14.79-ti-r84 kernel
  
With optional uInitrd:
+
Get prebuilt image:
create ubuntu.cmd:
+
  wget https://rcn-ee.com/rootfs/2020-03-12/microsd/am57xx-ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12-2gb.img.xz
  setenv bootcmd 'mmc init; fatload mmc 0:1 0x80300000 uImage; fatload mmc 0:1 0x81600000 uInitrd; bootm 0x80300000 0x81600000'
 
setenv bootargs console=tty0 console=ttyS2,115200n8 root=/dev/mmcblk0p2 rootwait ro vram=12M omapfb.mode=dvi:1280x720MR-16@60 fixrtc buddy=${buddy} mpurate=${mpurate}
 
boot
 
 
 
Use mkimage create to actual *.scr file for U-Boot:
 
  
  mkimage -A arm -O linux -T script -C none -a 0 -e 0 -n "Ubuntu 10.04" -d ./ubuntu.cmd ./ubuntu.scr
+
Verify Image with:
 +
  sha256sum am57xx-ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12-2gb*
 +
cd253167b43186c14c02e9e85ede006cd51336d5f8beae5b96765f494c24bd91  am57xx-ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12-2gb.img.xz
  
=== Copy to Boot Partition ===
+
Windows/Mac/Linux gui
 +
http://etcher.io
  
Mount your SD card fat16/fat32 partition (assuming /dev/sdX1) and copy the uImage, boot.scr, and optional uInitrd to the first partition.
+
Linux: (dd)
 +
xzcat am57xx-ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12-2gb.img.xz | sudo dd of=/dev/sdX
  
mkdir -p ./tmp
+
= Method 2: Manual Install (no automatic scripts)=
sudo mount /dev/sdX1 ./tmp
 
sudo cp ./uImage ./tmp/uImage
 
sudo cp ./uInitrd ./tmp/uInitrd
 
 
Beagle:
 
sudo cp ./ubuntu.scr ./tmp/boot.scr
 
 
IGEPv2:
 
sudo cp ./ubuntu.scr ./tmp/boot.ini
 
 
sudo umount ./tmp
 
  
== Ubuntu Bugs & Tweaks ==
+
Note, this section used to have a lot of details, but maintenance of the two wiki's became a pain, so for now on we will just link to my other pages:
  
===Enable Network Access===
+
== Beagle/Beagle xM ==
 +
http://eewiki.net/display/linuxonarm/BeagleBoard
  
Modify /etc/network/interfaces
+
== BeagleBone ==
auto eth0
+
http://eewiki.net/display/linuxonarm/BeagleBone
iface eth0 inet dhcp
 
  
Manual: From the Command line
+
== BeagleBone Black ==
  sudo ifconfig -a
+
  http://eewiki.net/display/linuxonarm/BeagleBone+Black
sudo dhclient ethX (or wlanX/etc..)
 
  
Additional Network Setup Information can be found [[BeagleBoardUbuntuNetwork|HERE]]
+
== Panda/Panda ES ==
 +
http://eewiki.net/display/linuxonarm/PandaBoard
  
 
= Advanced =
 
= Advanced =
Line 352: Line 356:
 
==Install Latest Kernel Image==
 
==Install Latest Kernel Image==
  
===Script File===
+
General apt syntax for searching and installing a specific kernel:
Note: this subsection is basically obsolete every time it's modified...
+
sudo apt-get update
 +
sudo apt-cache search linux-image | grep <branch>
 +
sudo apt-get install linux-image-<specific version>
 +
sudo reboot
  
Latest Stable is : https://code.launchpad.net/~beagleboard-kernel/+junk/2.6-stable
+
Latest kernel script
 +
cd /opt/scripts/tools/
 +
git pull
 +
sudo ./update_kernel.sh <OPTIONS>
  
But for example: http://rcn-ee.net/deb/lucid/v2.6.34.1-l2/
+
== 3.8.x ==
   
+
This is the first beagleboard.org long term kernel tree with capemanager support, it's been the default install for Debian Wheezy
wget http://rcn-ee.net/deb/lucid/v2.6.34.1-l2/install-me.sh
+
  beagleboard.org patchset: https://github.com/beagleboard/linux/tree/3.8
/bin/bash install-me.sh
 
  
Reboot with your new uImage
+
3.8.x BeagleBone/BeagleBone Black FULL Cape Support
 +
--bone-channel --stable
  
== Upgrade X-loader and U-boot ==
+
3.8.x BeagleBone/BeagleBone Black FULL Cape Support + Xenomai
 +
--bone-xenomai-channel --stable
  
Compatible with Bx,C2/3/4
+
== 4.9.x-ti ==
 +
beagleboard.org patchset: https://github.com/beagleboard/linux/tree/4.9
 +
Based on: http://git.ti.com/gitweb/?p=ti-linux-kernel/ti-linux-kernel.git;a=shortlog;h=refs/heads/ti-linux-4.9.y
  
Requires MMC card..
+
4.9.x-ti BeagleBone/BeagleBone Black/BeagleBoard-X15
 +
--ti-channel --lts-4_9
  
  git://github.com/RobertCNelson/flash-omap.git
+
  4.9.x-ti BeagleBone/BeagleBone Black/BeagleBoard-X15 + RT
  cd flash-omap
+
  --ti-rt-channel --lts-4_9
./mk_mmc.sh --mmc /dev/sdX (i.e. use /dev/sdc - the entire device, not a partition)
 
  
  1: Place MMC card in Beagle
+
  4.9.x-ti BeagleBone/BeagleBone Black/BeagleBoard-X15 + Xenomai
2: Push/Hold User Button Down
+
  --ti-xenomai-channel --lts-4_9
  3: Apply Power
 
4: After U-boot loads, Let Off User Button
 
5: Wait for Flashing to end
 
6: Power down, remove/edit boot.scr from MMC card
 
  
Example 4G card:
+
== 4.14.x-ti ==
 +
beagleboard.org patchset: https://github.com/beagleboard/linux/tree/4.14
 +
Based on: http://git.ti.com/gitweb/?p=ti-linux-kernel/ti-linux-kernel.git;a=shortlog;h=refs/heads/ti-linux-4.14.y
  
  sudo fdisk -l
+
  4.14.x-ti BeagleBone/BeagleBone Black/BeagleBoard-X15
 +
--ti-channel --lts-4_14
  
  Disk '''/dev/sde''': 3957 MB, 3957325824 bytes
+
  4.14.x-ti BeagleBone/BeagleBone Black/BeagleBoard-X15 + RT
  255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 481 cylinders
+
  --ti-rt-channel --lts-4_14
Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 = 8225280 bytes
 
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
 
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
 
Disk identifier: 0x00080e99
 
 
    Device Boot      Start        End      Blocks  Id  System
 
'''/dev/sde'''1  *          1          9      72261    e  W95 FAT16 (LBA)
 
  
./mk_mmc.sh --mmc /dev/sde
+
== Mainline (4.9.x lts) ==
  
Worst case, depending on what's actually in NAND, you might still have to stop and do this:
+
4.9.x BeagleBone/BeagleBone Black
 +
--bone-kernel --lts-4_9
  
  nand erase 260000 20000
+
  4.9.x BeagleBone/BeagleBone Black + RT
  reset
+
  --bone-rt-kernel --lts-4_9
  
===Manual Run===
+
== Mainline (4.14.x lts) ==
mmc init
 
fatload mmc 0:1 0x80200000 MLO
 
nand unlock
 
nand ecc hw
 
nandecc hw
 
nand erase 0 80000
 
nand write 0x80200000 0 20000
 
nand write 0x80200000 20000 20000
 
nand write 0x80200000 40000 20000
 
nand write 0x80200000 60000 20000
 
 
fatload mmc 0:1 0x80300000 u-boot.bin
 
nand unlock
 
nand ecc sw
 
nandecc sw
 
nand erase 80000 160000
 
nand write 0x80300000 80000 160000
 
nand erase 260000 20000
 
reset
 
  
== SGX Video Acceleration ==
+
4.14.x BeagleBone/BeagleBone Black
 +
--bone-kernel --lts-4_14
  
Requirements: 2.6-stable from launchpad or 2.6.35.3-x1+ deb's from rcn-ee.net. (the Demo Images hosted on rcn-ee.net meet this requirement)
+
4.14.x BeagleBone/BeagleBone Black + RT
  https://code.launchpad.net/~beagleboard-kernel/+junk/2.6-stable
+
--bone-rt-kernel --lts-4_14
  
Note: ''An older version of these instructions was adapted for the IGEPv2 platform - if you are following this tutorial and have an IGEPv2, consider using http://wiki.jmaustin.org/wiki/IgepSGXUbuntu instead''
+
Reboot with your new Kernel Image.
  
=== SDK unPackage Script ===
+
== Xorg Drivers ==
  
Download the latest version of the "create_sgx_package.sh" script
+
Script:
  wget http://rcn-ee.homeip.net:81/dl/updates/2.6-stable/create_sgx_package.sh
+
  cd /opt/scripts/tools/
 +
git pull
  
Make script executable
+
BeagleBoard/PandaBoard:
  chmod a+x ./create_sgx_package.sh
+
cd /opt/scripts/tools/graphics/
 +
  ./ti-omapdrm.sh
  
Run script
+
BeagleBone/BeagleBone Black:
  ./create_sgx_package.sh
+
cd /opt/scripts/tools/graphics/
 +
  ./ti-tilcdc.sh
  
After Successfully running:
+
== SGX Drivers ==
  
:~/temp$ ls
+
=== SGX BeagleBone/BeagleBone Black ===
create_sgx_package.sh
 
GFX_4_00_00_01_libs.tar.gz                      : -> Copy to Beagle (System Libs)
 
GFX_Linux_SDK.tar.gz                            : -> Copy to Beagle (DEMO's)
 
Graphics_SDK_setuplinux_4_00_00_01.bin
 
SDK
 
SDK_BIN
 
  
=== Beagle: GFX_*_libs.tar.gz ===
+
Note, these are FBDEV only, no xorg/x11/etc...
  
tar xf GFX_4_00_00_01_libs.tar.gz  (extracts install-SGX.sh and run-SGX.sh)
+
Install the "4.1.x" lts/bone kernel:
./install-SGX.sh (copies necessary SGX libs and startup script)
+
http://elinux.org/BeagleBoardUbuntu#Mainline_.28lts.29
./run-SGX.sh (force run the new init script, or you can just reboot...)
 
  
On Successful install:
+
Build SGX userspace for 4.1.x (must be done on an x86, due to the TI 5.01.01.02 blob extractor)
  Stopping PVR
+
git clone https://github.com/RobertCNelson/bb-kernel.git
  Starting PVR
+
  cd bb-kernel/
  Starting SGX fixup for ES2.x (or ES3.x) (or ES5.x xM)
+
  git checkout origin/am33x-v4.1 -b tmp-sgx
 +
  ./sgx_create_package.sh
  
Reboot for good measure (Maverick's Alpha-1 needs this....)
+
Copy ./deploy/GFX_5.01.01.02.tar.gz to BeagleBone/BeagleBone Black and install
 +
sudo tar xfv GFX_5.01.01.02.tar.gz -C /
 +
cd /opt/gfxinstall/
 +
sudo ./sgx-install.sh
 
  sudo reboot
 
  sudo reboot
  
=== Beagle: GFX_Linux_SDK.tar.gz ===
+
Verify omaplfb & pvrsrvkm loaded
 +
debian@arm:~$ lsmod | grep omaplfb
 +
omaplfb                12065  0
 +
pvrsrvkm              178782  1 omaplfb
  
tar xf GFX_Linux_SDK.tar.gz
+
== Xorg Drivers ==
cd GFX_Linux_SDK
 
tar xf OGLES.tar.gz
 
  
=== Test SGX with a DEMO ===
+
Script:
 +
cd /opt/scripts/tools/
 +
git pull
  
  cd OGLES/SDKPackage/Binaries/CommonX11/Demos/ChameleonMan
+
BeagleBoard/PandaBoard:
  ./OGLESChameleonMan
+
  cd /opt/scripts/tools/graphics/
 +
  ./ti-omapdrm.sh
  
=== Trouble Shooting ===
+
BeagleBone/BeagleBone Black:
 +
cd /opt/scripts/tools/graphics/
 +
./ti-tilcdc.sh
  
sudo rm /etc/powervr-esrev
+
= Swapfile =
sudo depmod -a omaplfb
 
sudo /etc/init.d/pvr restart
 
  
== DSP ==
+
== Using a File for Swap Instead of a Partition ==
  
This is still a major work in progress...
+
On the Beagleboard you should expect to require a swap file given the limitation of how little RAM is available (between 256&nbsp;MB and 512&nbsp;MB). Some system programs like apt-get will only run properly when some swap space is present (due to 256&nbsp;MB not being enough RAM).
  
Here is one approach: [http://www.elinux.org/BeagleBoard_Ubuntu_%26_DSP_From_Sources BeagleBoard Ubuntu & DSP From Sources]
+
Some images (such as those from Linaro.org) do not come with a swap partition or any swap space allocated.
  
== Xorg omapfb Drivers ==
+
Under Linux, swap space can be either a dedicated partition or a swap file. Both can be mounted as swap which the OS can access.
  
By default Ubuntu will try to use the FBDEV video driver, however for the beagleboard we can take advantage of a more software optimized driver (still not using the sgx video hardware) using the NEON extensions of the Cortex-A8 core.
+
=== Creating a Swapfile ===
  
cat /var/log/Xorg.0.log | grep FBDEV
+
The following commands will create a 1 GB file, limit access only to root, format it as swap and then make it available to the OS:
(II) FBDEV: driver for framebuffer: fbdev
 
(II) FBDEV(0): using default device
 
(II) FBDEV(0): Creating default Display subsection in Screen section
 
(==) FBDEV(0): Depth 16, (==) framebuffer bpp 16
 
(==) FBDEV(0): RGB weight 565
 
  
Login into Ubuntu and open a new terminal, xorg has to be running..
+
sudo mkdir -p /var/cache/swap/ 
 +
sudo dd if=/dev/zero of=/var/cache/swap/swapfile bs=1M count=1024
 +
sudo chmod 0600 /var/cache/swap/swapfile
 +
sudo mkswap /var/cache/swap/swapfile
 +
sudo swapon /var/cache/swap/swapfile
  
xvinfo -display :0.0
+
To tell the OS to load this swapfile on each start up, edit the /etc/fstab file to include the following additional line:
X-Video Extension version 2.2
 
screen #0
 
  no adaptors present
 
  
=== Drivers ===
+
/var/cache/swap/swapfile    none    swap    sw    0  0
  
Note: These are built with neon optimizations: http://git.debian.org/?p=collab-maint/xf86-video-omapfb.git;a=blob;f=debian/rules;h=c2f0d5391c96c5abb60b1e691ad86bb27e0c17d8;hb=HEAD  (line 48/49)
+
To verify that the swapfile is accessilble as swap to the OS, run "top" or "htop" at a console.
  
Lucid:
+
= Ubuntu Software =
sudo apt-get install xserver-xorg-video-omap3
 
  
To verify it was correctly installed, reboot and:
+
== Wi-Fi Networking (command line) ==
  
cat /var/log/Xorg.0.log | grep omapfb
+
=== /etc/network/interfaces ===
(II) LoadModule: "omapfb"
 
(II) Loading /usr/lib/xorg/modules/drivers//omapfb_drv.so
 
(II) Module omapfb: vendor="X.Org Foundation"
 
(II) omapfb: Driver for OMAP framebuffer (omapfb) and external LCD controllers:
 
(WW) Error opening /sys/devices/platform/omapfb/ctrl/name: No such file or directory
 
(II) omapfb(0): VideoRAM: 1800KiB (SDRAM)
 
(II) omapfb(0): Creating default Display subsection in Screen section
 
(**) omapfb(0): Depth 16, (--) framebuffer bpp 16
 
(==) omapfb(0): RGB weight 565
 
(==) omapfb(0): Default visual is TrueColor
 
(--) omapfb(0): Virtual size is 1280x720 (pitch 1280)
 
(**) omapfb(0):  Built-in mode "current"
 
(==) omapfb(0): DPI set to (96, 96)
 
(II) omapfb(0): DPMS enabled
 
(II) omapfb(0): Video plane capabilities:
 
(II) omapfb(0): Video plane supports the following image formats:
 
(II) omapfb(0): XVideo extension initialized
 
  
Login into Ubuntu and open a new terminal, xorg has to be running..
+
It is relatively easy to configure a Wi-Fi card from the command line.
  
xvinfo -display :0.0
+
You will need to edit the /etc/network/interfaces file. There are several guides available via Google.
X-Video Extension version 2.2
 
screen #0
 
  Adaptor #0: "OMAP XV adaptor"
 
    number of ports: 1
 
    port base: 56
 
    operations supported: PutImage
 
    supported visuals:
 
      depth 16, visualID 0x21
 
    number of attributes: 1
 
    etc..
 
  
== S-Video ==
+
This is a particularly useful guide https://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=202834
S-video is tested to be working on 2.6.35-rc5-dl9. S-video output can be enabled using bootargs at uboot as mentioned below.
 
  
=== NTSC ===
+
A sample /etc/network/interfaces file for a WPA2 encrypted access point is:
  
    omapfb.mode='''tv:ntsc'''
+
auto lo
    omapdss.def_disp='''tv'''
+
iface lo inet loopback
 +
auto wlan0
 +
iface wlan0 inet dhcp
 +
wpa-driver wext
 +
wpa-ssid <NAME OF AP>
 +
wpa-ap-scan 1
 +
wpa-proto RSN
 +
wpa-pairwise CCMP
 +
wpa-group CCMP
 +
wpa-key-mgmt WPA-PSK
 +
wpa-psk <INSERT KEY XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX>
  
Bootargs that has been validated.
+
Your Wi-Fi card will automatically load these settings upon startup and initialize wireless network access.
  
    setenv bootargs 'console=tty0 console=ttyS2,115200n8 root=/dev/mmcblk0p2 rootwait ro vram=12M omapfb.mode=tv:ntsc omapdss.def_disp=tv
+
== Lightweight window managers ==
    fixrtc buddy=unknown'
 
  
Note that the NTSC resolution is 640x480. However the edge bands around the TV screen differ from TV to TV. Output of '''fbset''' shown below, which does not seem right.  
+
If you intend to use Ubuntu on the BeagleBoard you can install JWM or IceWM to improve performance.
  
    mode "720x482-30"
+
JWM in particular uses little RAM. On a BeagleBoard with 256&nbsp;MB, using JWM will leave about 60&nbsp;MB free in which to run applications.
        # D: 13.500 MHz, H: 15.734 kHz, V: 29.970 Hz
 
        geometry 720 482 720 482 32
 
        timings 74074 16 58 6 31 64 6
 
        rgba 8/16,8/8,8/0,0/0
 
    endmode
 
 
 
=== PAL ===
 
 
 
I do not have PAL tv, most likely changing above to omapfb.mode='''tv:pal''' should work. Someone with access to PAL tv please check and update.
 
 
 
== Building Kernel ==
 
 
 
https://launchpad.net/~beagleboard-kernel
 
 
 
Register on launchpad.net, install bzr
 
sudo apt-get install bzr
 
 
 
Download SRC
 
bzr branch lp:~beagleboard-kernel/+junk/2.6-stable
 
 
 
Build Kernel
 
./build_kernel.sh
 
 
 
Optional Building Deb File
 
./build_deb.sh
 
 
 
= Ubuntu Software =
 
  
 
== Web Apps ==
 
== Web Apps ==
  
 
=== Midori ===
 
=== Midori ===
Given that the BeagleBoard has fewer resources than a desktop a light weight browser is more responsive. Midori is a light weight browser that still supports flash etc
+
Given that the BeagleBoard has fewer resources than a desktop a lightweight browser is more responsive. Midori is a lightweight browser that still supports flash, etc. It is available from the standard repositories:
It is available from the standard repositories.
 
 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Midori_%28web_browser%29
 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Midori_%28web_browser%29
  
Line 602: Line 542:
  
 
=== Motion ===
 
=== Motion ===
If you have a video source (webcam, IP cam etc) which appears as /dev/video0 etc then you can use the Linux Surveillance software "motion" to monitor the video stream and record periods of activity.
+
If you have a video source (webcam, IP cam, etc.) which appears as /dev/video0, etc. then you can use the Linux surveillance software "motion" to monitor the video stream and record periods of activity.
  
Motion is also available from the standard repositories.
+
Motion is also available from the standard repositories:
 
http://www.debian-administration.org/article/An_Introduction_to_Video_Surveillance_with_%27Motion%27
 
http://www.debian-administration.org/article/An_Introduction_to_Video_Surveillance_with_%27Motion%27
Using a 960x720 resolution webcam with 15 fps rate under the UVC driver the Rev C BeagleBoard under Xubuntu reports ~60% CPU utilisation.
+
Using a 960x720 resolution webcam with a 15&nbsp;fps rate under the UVC driver the Rev C BeagleBoard under Xubuntu reports ~60% CPU utilisation.
  
To make the BeagleBoard automatically start recording on boot do the following:
+
To make the BeagleBoard automatically start recording on boot, do the following:
  
 
* Auto Login - run "gdmsetup" from a terminal and select a user to automatically login  
 
* Auto Login - run "gdmsetup" from a terminal and select a user to automatically login  
* Sessions - make sure you don't save any previous xwindows sessions so that it doesn't prompt you for which one you want
+
* Sessions - make sure you don't save any previous X Windows sessions so that it doesn't prompt you for which one you want
* motion.conf - amend /etc/motion/motion.conf to the settings you want (ie video output directory, record only video, record in mpeg4, set frame rate etc). Do this with "sudo medit /etc/motion/motion.conf" at a prompt.
+
* motion.conf - edit /etc/motion/motion.conf to use the settings you want (that is, video output directory, record only video, record in MPEG-4, set frame rate, etc). Do this with "sudo medit /etc/motion/motion.conf" at a prompt.
* Boot script - create a new script in /etc/rc2.d called "S65motion_client" and set permissions appropriately ("sudo chmod 777 /etc/rc2.d/S65motion_client"). Then edit the file so it has the following text in it:
+
* Boot script - create a new script in /etc/rc2.d called "S65motion_client" and set permissions appropriately ("sudo chmod 777 /etc/rc2.d/S65motion_client"). Then edit the file so it contains the following lines:
  
 
  #! /bin/sh
 
  #! /bin/sh
Line 620: Line 560:
 
This will now launch the motion client as root when you boot up.
 
This will now launch the motion client as root when you boot up.
  
Also note that unless your BeagleBoard can remember the time (battery backed up clock installed) the timestamps will not be correct until you update the time. If your BeagleBoard has an Internet Connection this can be achieved with the ntpdate app.
+
Also note that unless your BeagleBoard can remember the time (battery backed up clock installed), the timestamps will not be correct until you update the time. If your BeagleBoard has an Internet connection this can be achieved using the ntpdate application.
 +
 
 +
== Robotics ==
 +
 
 +
=== ROS ===
 +
ROS (Robot Operating System) provides libraries and tools to help software developers create robot applications. It provides hardware abstraction, device drivers, libraries, visualizers, message-passing, package management, and more. ROS is licensed under an open source, BSD license.
 +
 
 +
There are currently builds of ROS for Ubuntu Bionic armhf. These builds include most but not all packages, and save a considerable amount of time compared to doing a full source-based installation:
 +
 
 +
http://wiki.ros.org/melodic/Installation/Ubuntu
 +
 
 +
Alternatively ROS can be installed from source and is generally easy to do so (although slow).
 +
 
 +
For more information about ROS, see www.ros.org.

Latest revision as of 08:47, 13 March 2020

(For BeagleBoardAngstrom, click here.) (Should Beagleboard:Ubuntu On BeagleBone Black be merged into this page?)

This page is about running a Linux distribution (ARM EABI) Ubuntu on the BeagleBoard. BeagleBoard will boot the (ARM EABI) Ubuntu distribution from the SD card. Since much of this page is generic, it has also been extended to help support devices such as the PandaBoard and BeagleBone.

  • For the best experience, make sure you have an LCD/HDMI monitor attached to the BeagleBoard's HDMI port, 2 GB/4 GB/8 GB SD card, and a known good USB 2.0 hub with mouse and keyboard.

Help

If you need any help:

  • Ubuntu related help:
    • #ubuntu-arm: Ubuntu's ARM IRC on Freenode (logs -> year -> month -> day -> #ubuntu-arm.html)
  • When requesting help, please provide some debugging information:
    • U-Boot Version installed on board
    • Kernel Version: uname -a
    • pastebin dmesg
      • Copy from serial port or use "dmesg | pastebinit" (sudo apt-get install pastebinit)

Required Beagle Software

Mainline U-Boot:

  • All older BeagleBoard (classic) Ax, Bx, Cx and Dx boards are required to upgrade to at least these U-Boot versions
  • XM Boards have no NAND, so MLO/u-boot.img is always required on the first partition
  • Directions: Upgrade X-loader and U-Boot

Omap Serial Changes

boot.scr/boot.cmd changes:

With 2.6.35:

console=ttyS2,115200n8

With 2.6.36/37+:

console=ttyO2,115200n8

Serial console login: /etc/init/ttyO2.conf

start on stopped rc RUNLEVEL=[2345]
stop on runlevel [!2345]

respawn
exec /sbin/getty 115200 ttyO2

Method 1: Download a Complete Pre-Configured Image

Demo Image

git clone https://github.com/RobertCNelson/armv7-multiplatform.git
cd armv7-multiplatform
git checkout origin/v5.4.x -b tmp
./build_kernel.sh
git clone https://github.com/RobertCNelson/ti-linux-kernel-dev.git
cd ti-linux-kernel-dev
git checkout origin/ti-linux-4.19.y -b tmp
./build_kernel.sh

Ubuntu (18.04.4)

Default username/password:

  • username: ubuntu
  • password: temppwd

Image Updated:

  • 2020-03-12
    • BeagleBoard xM: v5.4.24-armv7-x20 kernel
    • All BeagleBone Variants and PocketBeagle: v4.19.94-ti-r36 kernel
    • BeagleBoard-X15 (and BeagleBone AI): v4.19.94-ti-r36 kernel
  • 2019-04-10
    • BeagleBoard xM: v4.19.31-armv7-x31 kernel
    • All BeagleBone Variants and PocketBeagle: v4.14.108-ti-r104 kernel
    • BeagleBoard-X15: v4.14.108-ti-r104 kernel
  • 2018-12-10
    • BeagleBoard xM: v4.19.8-armv7-x11 kernel
    • All BeagleBone Variants and PocketBeagle: v4.14.79-ti-r84 kernel
    • BeagleBoard-X15: v4.14.79-ti-r84 kernel

Services Active:

Note: Depending on your internal network these may work out of the box
Apache, Port 80: http://arm.local/ (Bone: via usb) (Windows/Linux) http://192.168.7.2, (Mac/Linux) http://192.168.6.2
SSH, Port 22: ssh ubuntu@arm.local (Bone: via usb) (Windows/Linux) ubuntu@192.168.7.2, (Mac/Linux) ubuntu@192.168.6.2
Getty, Serial Port

Default user: ubuntu pass: temppwd

Get prebuilt image:

wget https://rcn-ee.com/rootfs/2020-03-12/elinux/ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12.tar.xz

Verify Image with:

sha256sum ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12.tar.xz
abe086f9132dfe8e8b9df8d14da225e0ce89a082abc92515de8a2ac63fc54ae2  ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12.tar.xz

Unpack Image:

tar xf ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12.tar.xz
cd ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12

If you don't know the location of your SD card:

sudo ./setup_sdcard.sh --probe-mmc

You should see something like:

Are you sure? I don't see [/dev/idontknow], here is what I do see...

fdisk -l:
Disk /dev/sda: 500.1 GB, 500107862016 bytes <- x86 Root Drive
Disk /dev/sdd: 3957 MB, 3957325824 bytes <- MMC/SD card

lsblk:
NAME   MAJ:MIN RM   SIZE RO TYPE MOUNTPOINT
sda      8:0    0 465.8G  0 disk 
├─sda1   8:1    0 446.9G  0 part /  <- x86 Root Partition
├─sda2   8:2    0     1K  0 part 
└─sda5   8:5    0  18.9G  0 part [SWAP]
sdd      8:48   1   3.7G  0 disk 
├─sdd1   8:49   1    64M  0 part 
└─sdd2   8:50   1   3.6G  0 part 
  • In this example, we can see via mount, /dev/sda1 is the x86 rootfs, therefore /dev/sdd is the other drive in the system, which is the MMC/SD card that was inserted and should be used by ./setup_sdcard.sh...

Install Image:

Quick install script for [board]

sudo ./setup_sdcard.sh --mmc /dev/sdX --dtb board

board options:

  • BeagleBoard Ax/Bx/Cx/Dx - omap3-beagle
  • BeagleBoard xM - omap3-beagle-xm
  • All BeagleBone Variants - beaglebone
  • OMAP5432 uEVM - omap5-uevm
  • BeagleBoard-X15 (BeagleBone AI) - am57xx-beagle-x15

So for the BeagleBoard xM:

sudo ./setup_sdcard.sh --mmc /dev/sdX --dtb omap3-beagle-xm

Advanced: Build Image:

git clone https://github.com/RobertCNelson/omap-image-builder.git
cd omap-image-builder
git checkout v2020.03 -b tmp

Stable:

./RootStock-NG.sh -c rcn-ee_console_ubuntu_bionic_armhf

Flasher

eMMC: All BeagleBone Variants with eMMC

This image can be written to a 2GB (or larger) microSD card, via 'dd' on Linux or on Windows/Mac/Linux: https://etcher.io First press and hold the boot select button (next to the microSD card), then apply power. On boot-up the board should indicate it has started the flashing procedure visually via a Cylon Sweep pattern shown on the 4 LED's next to the Ethernet jack. Progress is reported on both the serial debug and HDMI connectors, once completed all 4 LED's should be full ON. Simply remove power, remove the microSD card and Ubuntu will now boot directly from eMMC.

Script for reference: (this is the script that writes to the eMMC)

https://github.com/RobertCNelson/boot-scripts/blob/master/tools/eMMC/init-eMMC-flasher-v3.sh

This script will only take about 5-6 Minutes after power on.

Notes:

  • If only two LED's stay lit and nothing happens, the board has crashed due to lack of power. Retry with a 5Volt DC power supply connected.
  • If the 4 LED's blink a constant pattern, the eMMC write has failed. First REMOVE ALL capes, then retry again.

User: ubuntu pass: temppwd

Image Updated:

  • 2020-03-12
    • All BeagleBone Variants with eMMC: v4.19.94-ti-r36 kernel
  • 2019-04-10
    • All BeagleBone Variants with eMMC: v4.14.108-ti-r104 kernel
  • 2018-12-10
    • All BeagleBone Variants with eMMC: v4.14.79-ti-r84 kernel

Get prebuilt image:

wget https://rcn-ee.com/rootfs/2020-03-12/flasher/bone-eMMC-flasher-ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12-2gb.img.xz

Verify Image with:

sha256sum bone-eMMC-flasher-ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12-2gb*
2bc7f92df84dbd89c1cdd790ec794926a5d6b0f0b891143085d77141170518e2  bone-eMMC-flasher-ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12-2gb.img.xz

Windows/Mac/Linux gui

http://etcher.io

Linux: (dd)

xzcat bone-eMMC-flasher-ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12-2gb.img.xz | sudo dd of=/dev/sdX

eMMC: BeagleBoard-X15 and BeagleBone AI

This image can be written to a 2GB (or larger) microSD card, via 'dd' on Linux or on Windows/Mac/Linux: https://etcher.io First press and hold the boot select button (next to the microSD card), then apply power. On boot-up the board should indicate it has started the flashing procedure visually via a Cylon Sweep pattern shown on the 4 LED's next to the Ethernet jack. Progress is reported on both the serial debug and HDMI connectors, once completed all 4 LED's should be full ON. Simply remove power, remove the microSD card and Ubuntu will now boot directly from eMMC.

Script for reference: (this is the script that writes to the eMMC)

https://github.com/RobertCNelson/boot-scripts/blob/master/tools/eMMC/init-eMMC-flasher-v3.sh

This script will only take about 5-6 Minutes after power on.

Notes:

  • If only two LED's stay lit and nothing happens, the board has crashed due to lack of power. Retry with a 5Volt DC power supply connected.
  • If the 4 LED's blink a constant pattern, the eMMC write has failed. First REMOVE ALL capes, then retry again.

User: ubuntu pass: temppwd

Image Updated:

  • 2020-03-12
    • BeagleBoard-X15 (and BeagleBone AI): v4.19.94-ti-r36 kernel
  • 2019-04-10
    • BeagleBoard-X15 (and BeagleBone AI): v4.14.108-ti-r104 kernel
  • 2018-12-10
    • BeagleBoard-X15 (and BeagleBone AI): v4.14.79-ti-r84 kernel

Get prebuilt image:

wget https://rcn-ee.com/rootfs/2020-03-12/flasher/am57xx-eMMC-flasher-ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12-2gb.img.xz

Verify Image with:

sha256sum am57xx-eMMC-flasher-ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12-2gb*
0c359f2b5e9d27d167f55877d3abfea0af2fe721463136f354dfd5d72be8a541  am57xx-eMMC-flasher-ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12-2gb.img.xz

Windows/Mac/Linux gui

http://etcher.io

Linux: (dd)

xzcat am57xx-eMMC-flasher-ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12-2gb.img.xz | sudo dd of=/dev/sdX

raw microSD img

BeagleBoard xM

This image can be written to a 2GB (or larger) microSD card, via 'dd' on Linux or on Windows/Mac/Linux: https://etcher.io

User: ubuntu pass: temppwd

Auto partition resize:

cd /opt/scripts/tools
git pull
./grow_partition.sh
sudo reboot

Image Updated:

  • 2020-03-12
    • BeagleBoard xM: v5.4.24-armv7-x20 kernel
  • 2019-04-10
    • BeagleBoard xM: v4.19.31-armv7-x31 kernel
  • 2018-12-10
    • BeagleBoard xM: v4.19.8-armv7-x11 kernel

Get prebuilt image:

wget https://rcn-ee.com/rootfs/2020-03-12/microsd/bbxm-ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12-2gb.img.xz

Verify Image with:

sha256sum bbxm-ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12-2gb*
a3d8780a69ceca6c5462c80c5a061dbba7df91d9111e08e718ecf55420302b91  bbxm-ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12-2gb.img.xz

Windows/Mac/Linux gui

http://etcher.io

Linux: (dd)

xzcat bbxm-ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12-2gb.img.xz | sudo dd of=/dev/sdX

All BeagleBone Variants and PocketBeagle

This image can be written to a 2GB (or larger) microSD card, via 'dd' on Linux or on Windows/Mac/Linux: https://etcher.io

User: ubuntu pass: temppwd

Auto partition resize:

cd /opt/scripts/tools
git pull
./grow_partition.sh
sudo reboot

Image Updated:

  • 2020-03-12
    • All BeagleBone Variants and PocketBeagle: v4.19.94-ti-r36 kernel
  • 2019-04-10
    • All BeagleBone Variants and PocketBeagle: v4.14.108-ti-r104 kernel
  • 2018-12-10
    • All BeagleBone Variants and PocketBeagle: v4.14.79-ti-r84 kernel

Get prebuilt image:

wget https://rcn-ee.com/rootfs/2020-03-12/microsd/bone-ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12-2gb.img.xz

Verify Image with:

sha256sum bone-ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12-2gb*
4c41976f1f574a4786002482167fe6443d8c9f1bced86a174459ffeba1f5b780  bone-ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12-2gb.img.xz

Windows/Mac/Linux gui

http://etcher.io

Linux: (dd)

xzcat bone-ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12-2gb.img.xz | sudo dd of=/dev/sdX

BeagleBoard-X15 and BeagleBone AI

This image can be written to a 2GB (or larger) microSD card, via 'dd' on Linux or on Windows/Mac/Linux: https://etcher.io

User: ubuntu pass: temppwd

Auto partition resize:

cd /opt/scripts/tools
git pull
./grow_partition.sh
sudo reboot

Image Updated:

  • 2020-03-12
    • BeagleBoard-X15 (and BeagleBone AI): v4.19.94-ti-r36 kernel
  • 2019-04-10
    • BeagleBoard-X15 (and BeagleBone AI): v4.14.108-ti-r104 kernel
  • 2018-12-10
    • BeagleBoard-X15 (and BeagleBone AI): v4.14.79-ti-r84 kernel

Get prebuilt image:

wget https://rcn-ee.com/rootfs/2020-03-12/microsd/am57xx-ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12-2gb.img.xz

Verify Image with:

sha256sum am57xx-ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12-2gb*
cd253167b43186c14c02e9e85ede006cd51336d5f8beae5b96765f494c24bd91  am57xx-ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12-2gb.img.xz

Windows/Mac/Linux gui

http://etcher.io

Linux: (dd)

xzcat am57xx-ubuntu-18.04.4-console-armhf-2020-03-12-2gb.img.xz | sudo dd of=/dev/sdX

Method 2: Manual Install (no automatic scripts)

Note, this section used to have a lot of details, but maintenance of the two wiki's became a pain, so for now on we will just link to my other pages:

Beagle/Beagle xM

http://eewiki.net/display/linuxonarm/BeagleBoard

BeagleBone

http://eewiki.net/display/linuxonarm/BeagleBone

BeagleBone Black

http://eewiki.net/display/linuxonarm/BeagleBone+Black

Panda/Panda ES

http://eewiki.net/display/linuxonarm/PandaBoard

Advanced

Install Latest Kernel Image

General apt syntax for searching and installing a specific kernel:

sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-cache search linux-image | grep <branch>
sudo apt-get install linux-image-<specific version>
sudo reboot

Latest kernel script

cd /opt/scripts/tools/
git pull
sudo ./update_kernel.sh <OPTIONS>

3.8.x

This is the first beagleboard.org long term kernel tree with capemanager support, it's been the default install for Debian Wheezy

beagleboard.org patchset: https://github.com/beagleboard/linux/tree/3.8
3.8.x BeagleBone/BeagleBone Black FULL Cape Support
--bone-channel --stable
3.8.x BeagleBone/BeagleBone Black FULL Cape Support + Xenomai
--bone-xenomai-channel --stable

4.9.x-ti

beagleboard.org patchset: https://github.com/beagleboard/linux/tree/4.9
Based on: http://git.ti.com/gitweb/?p=ti-linux-kernel/ti-linux-kernel.git;a=shortlog;h=refs/heads/ti-linux-4.9.y
4.9.x-ti BeagleBone/BeagleBone Black/BeagleBoard-X15
--ti-channel --lts-4_9
4.9.x-ti BeagleBone/BeagleBone Black/BeagleBoard-X15 + RT
--ti-rt-channel --lts-4_9
4.9.x-ti BeagleBone/BeagleBone Black/BeagleBoard-X15 + Xenomai
--ti-xenomai-channel --lts-4_9

4.14.x-ti

beagleboard.org patchset: https://github.com/beagleboard/linux/tree/4.14
Based on: http://git.ti.com/gitweb/?p=ti-linux-kernel/ti-linux-kernel.git;a=shortlog;h=refs/heads/ti-linux-4.14.y
4.14.x-ti BeagleBone/BeagleBone Black/BeagleBoard-X15
--ti-channel --lts-4_14
4.14.x-ti BeagleBone/BeagleBone Black/BeagleBoard-X15 + RT
--ti-rt-channel --lts-4_14

Mainline (4.9.x lts)

4.9.x BeagleBone/BeagleBone Black
--bone-kernel --lts-4_9
4.9.x BeagleBone/BeagleBone Black + RT
--bone-rt-kernel --lts-4_9

Mainline (4.14.x lts)

4.14.x BeagleBone/BeagleBone Black
--bone-kernel --lts-4_14
4.14.x BeagleBone/BeagleBone Black + RT
--bone-rt-kernel --lts-4_14

Reboot with your new Kernel Image.

Xorg Drivers

Script:

cd /opt/scripts/tools/
git pull

BeagleBoard/PandaBoard:

cd /opt/scripts/tools/graphics/
./ti-omapdrm.sh

BeagleBone/BeagleBone Black:

cd /opt/scripts/tools/graphics/
./ti-tilcdc.sh

SGX Drivers

SGX BeagleBone/BeagleBone Black

Note, these are FBDEV only, no xorg/x11/etc...

Install the "4.1.x" lts/bone kernel: http://elinux.org/BeagleBoardUbuntu#Mainline_.28lts.29

Build SGX userspace for 4.1.x (must be done on an x86, due to the TI 5.01.01.02 blob extractor)

git clone https://github.com/RobertCNelson/bb-kernel.git
cd bb-kernel/
git checkout origin/am33x-v4.1 -b tmp-sgx
./sgx_create_package.sh

Copy ./deploy/GFX_5.01.01.02.tar.gz to BeagleBone/BeagleBone Black and install

sudo tar xfv GFX_5.01.01.02.tar.gz -C /
cd /opt/gfxinstall/
sudo ./sgx-install.sh
sudo reboot

Verify omaplfb & pvrsrvkm loaded

debian@arm:~$ lsmod | grep omaplfb
omaplfb                12065  0 
pvrsrvkm              178782  1 omaplfb

Xorg Drivers

Script:

cd /opt/scripts/tools/
git pull

BeagleBoard/PandaBoard:

cd /opt/scripts/tools/graphics/
./ti-omapdrm.sh

BeagleBone/BeagleBone Black:

cd /opt/scripts/tools/graphics/
./ti-tilcdc.sh

Swapfile

Using a File for Swap Instead of a Partition

On the Beagleboard you should expect to require a swap file given the limitation of how little RAM is available (between 256 MB and 512 MB). Some system programs like apt-get will only run properly when some swap space is present (due to 256 MB not being enough RAM).

Some images (such as those from Linaro.org) do not come with a swap partition or any swap space allocated.

Under Linux, swap space can be either a dedicated partition or a swap file. Both can be mounted as swap which the OS can access.

Creating a Swapfile

The following commands will create a 1 GB file, limit access only to root, format it as swap and then make it available to the OS:

sudo mkdir -p /var/cache/swap/   
sudo dd if=/dev/zero of=/var/cache/swap/swapfile bs=1M count=1024
sudo chmod 0600 /var/cache/swap/swapfile 
sudo mkswap /var/cache/swap/swapfile 
sudo swapon /var/cache/swap/swapfile 

To tell the OS to load this swapfile on each start up, edit the /etc/fstab file to include the following additional line:

/var/cache/swap/swapfile    none    swap    sw    0   0

To verify that the swapfile is accessilble as swap to the OS, run "top" or "htop" at a console.

Ubuntu Software

Wi-Fi Networking (command line)

/etc/network/interfaces

It is relatively easy to configure a Wi-Fi card from the command line.

You will need to edit the /etc/network/interfaces file. There are several guides available via Google.

This is a particularly useful guide https://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=202834

A sample /etc/network/interfaces file for a WPA2 encrypted access point is:

auto lo
iface lo inet loopback
auto wlan0
iface wlan0 inet dhcp
wpa-driver wext
wpa-ssid <NAME OF AP>
wpa-ap-scan 1
wpa-proto RSN
wpa-pairwise CCMP
wpa-group CCMP
wpa-key-mgmt WPA-PSK
wpa-psk <INSERT KEY XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX>

Your Wi-Fi card will automatically load these settings upon startup and initialize wireless network access.

Lightweight window managers

If you intend to use Ubuntu on the BeagleBoard you can install JWM or IceWM to improve performance.

JWM in particular uses little RAM. On a BeagleBoard with 256 MB, using JWM will leave about 60 MB free in which to run applications.

Web Apps

Midori

Given that the BeagleBoard has fewer resources than a desktop a lightweight browser is more responsive. Midori is a lightweight browser that still supports flash, etc. It is available from the standard repositories: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Midori_%28web_browser%29

Surveillance

Motion

If you have a video source (webcam, IP cam, etc.) which appears as /dev/video0, etc. then you can use the Linux surveillance software "motion" to monitor the video stream and record periods of activity.

Motion is also available from the standard repositories: http://www.debian-administration.org/article/An_Introduction_to_Video_Surveillance_with_%27Motion%27 Using a 960x720 resolution webcam with a 15 fps rate under the UVC driver the Rev C BeagleBoard under Xubuntu reports ~60% CPU utilisation.

To make the BeagleBoard automatically start recording on boot, do the following:

  • Auto Login - run "gdmsetup" from a terminal and select a user to automatically login
  • Sessions - make sure you don't save any previous X Windows sessions so that it doesn't prompt you for which one you want
  • motion.conf - edit /etc/motion/motion.conf to use the settings you want (that is, video output directory, record only video, record in MPEG-4, set frame rate, etc). Do this with "sudo medit /etc/motion/motion.conf" at a prompt.
  • Boot script - create a new script in /etc/rc2.d called "S65motion_client" and set permissions appropriately ("sudo chmod 777 /etc/rc2.d/S65motion_client"). Then edit the file so it contains the following lines:
#! /bin/sh
/usr/bin/motion -c /etc/motion/motion.conf

This will now launch the motion client as root when you boot up.

Also note that unless your BeagleBoard can remember the time (battery backed up clock installed), the timestamps will not be correct until you update the time. If your BeagleBoard has an Internet connection this can be achieved using the ntpdate application.

Robotics

ROS

ROS (Robot Operating System) provides libraries and tools to help software developers create robot applications. It provides hardware abstraction, device drivers, libraries, visualizers, message-passing, package management, and more. ROS is licensed under an open source, BSD license.

There are currently builds of ROS for Ubuntu Bionic armhf. These builds include most but not all packages, and save a considerable amount of time compared to doing a full source-based installation:

http://wiki.ros.org/melodic/Installation/Ubuntu

Alternatively ROS can be installed from source and is generally easy to do so (although slow).

For more information about ROS, see www.ros.org.