Quick Start Frequently Asked Questions
Contents
General Setup
How do I connect to the debug port?
To plug into the DB9 connector on the Quick Start kit, you will require a Null-Modem cable.
All of our modules use a default console set to the following settings:
- 115200 baud
- 8 data bits
- No parity
- 1 stop bit
- No hardware or software flow control
To view the debug port output on your PC you will need some kind of serial terminal software, such as those listed below.
Minicom
Minicom is the most common Linux based serial software. It is relatively easy to configure via its menu system, which is accessed by pressing 'Ctrl-A O'. Once within the menu, select 'Serial port setup', then change option 'E' - Bps/Par/Bits to 115200 8N1. Change option 'A' if you are not attached to the Quick Start Kit via /dev/ttyS0.
ser2net
ser2net is a serial to telnet gateway. It converts the serial devices on your PC to a telnet device. Once installed, the configuration is stored in /etc/ser2net.conf, and should contain a line similar to the following:
4000:telnet:600000:/dev/ttyS0:115200 8DATABITS NONE 1STOPBIT banner LOCAL -RTSCTS -XONXOFF
This will mean that telnet'ing to port 4000 on your development machine will attached to /dev/ttyS0 at 115200 8N1, for example:
andre@tutira:~$ telnet localhost 4000
Trying 127.0.0.1...
Connected to localhost.
Escape character is '^]'.
ser2net port 4000 device /dev/ttyS0 [115200 N81] (Debian GNU/Linux)
HyperTerminal
HyperTerminal is the standard serial software which ships with Windows versions up until XP. It is configured using the 'Configure' button under the 'New Connection' menu option.
Tera Term
Tera Term is a free simple serial comms program. It is frequently recommended as an alternative to HyperTerminal, being more directed towards serial devices, rather than modems.
How do I install/remove the Snapper 9260 module?
The Snapper 9260 uses the same sodimm edge connector as a large number of laptop memory systems. Its installation is done in the same manner - please see http://www.pcwmemory.com/memory-knowledgebase-how-to-install-sodimm-notebook-memory.html for details on how to install sodimm modules.
Software
Linux
What distribution is supplied with the Quick Start Kit?
We supply a custom OpenEmbedded distribution with the Kits.
Where do I get the latest Linux kernel for my Snapper module?
All of our code is updated nightly to http://www.bluewatersys.com/public/. This includes both the source, and pre-built binary versions of our kernels. See our Linux Kernel page for more details on downloading & building this source.
How do I install the GCC toolchain?
See our GNU GCC Toolchain page for more discussion.
First visit the Code Sourcery 2007q3 download page. Select "GNU/Linux" then "IA32 GNU/Linux TAR" to begin the download. Once this has been downloaded, the archive will need to be unpacked. We will assume that '/opt' is being used, but any directory will suite.
tar -xjp -C /opt -f arm-2007q3-51-arm-none-linux-gnueabi-i686-pc-linux-gnu.tar.bz2
Once installed we need to add the compiler bin directory into the PATH, so that it will be found by Makefiles etc...
export PATH=$PATH:/opt/arm-2008q3/bin
If using the bash shell, it is useful to put this into $HOME/.profile, so that it will be automatically put into the path for all shells, otherwise you have to type the export command every time you want to use the compiler.
How do I install some new software onto my board?
Please see our OpenEmbedded page for more discussion on this.
What software is available for installation?
Almost any standard Linux package can be built for the ARM platform and run on the Quick Start kit - including high-end graphical applications such as OpenOffice, or Firefox. Bluewater maintains a repository of some standard packages, which can be viewed here. Our repository grows as we build additional software, so if you require an additional package to be added to the repository, please visit the forums and post a request. We can normally build these utilities within a few days.
Packages not available in our repository can be manually built. Most packages use configure scripts to manage their build system, in which cases they can typically be built using the following commands:
andre@tutira:~/package$ ./configure --host=arm-none-linux-gnueabi CFLAGS=-march=armv4t
...
andre@tutira:~/package$ make
Please see our OpenEmbedded page for more discussion on the Bluewater package repository.
How to get audio working
Audio under Linux is done using the Alsa audio system. To allow audio playback, the simplest utility is aplay. This allows for playback of .wav, .voc, .raw and .au files. Use the alsamixer utility to set up the volume settings. Once installed, more involved audio formats can be played using utilities such as mpg123 or FLAC.
SigGen is a suite of tools for producing standard signal waveforms on a Linux audio device. This is useful for debugging audio output/input circuitry in a new hardware design.
root@snapper:~$ ipkg-cl install alsa-utils-alsamixer alsa-utils-aplay
Installing alsa-utils-aplay (1.0.18-r0) to root...
Downloading http://www.bluewatersys.com/public/ipk/armv4t/alsa-utils-aplay_1.0.18-r0_armv4t.ipk
Installing alsa-utils-alsamixer (1.0.18-r0) to root...
Downloading http://www.bluewatersys.com/public/ipk/armv4t/alsa-utils-alsamixer_1.0.18-r0_armv4t.ipk
package ncurses suggests installing ncurses-terminfo
Installing ncurses (5.4-r16) to root...
Downloading http://www.bluewatersys.com/public/ipk/armv4t/ncurses_5.4-r16_armv4t.ipk
Installing libasound2 (1.0.18-r0) to root...
Downloading http://www.bluewatersys.com/public/ipk/armv4t/libasound2_1.0.18-r0_armv4t.ipk
Installing alsa-conf-base (1.0.18-r0) to root...
Downloading http://www.bluewatersys.com/public/ipk/armv4t/alsa-conf-base_1.0.18-r0_armv4t.ipk
Configuring alsa-utils-aplay
Configuring alsa-conf-base
Configuring alsa-utils-alsamixer
Configuring libasound2
Configuring ncurses
Successfully terminated.
root@snapper:~$ alsamixer
root@snapper:~$ aplay /path/to/file.wav
How do I upgrade the kernel stored in flash on my board?
On Snapper 9260, the Linux kernel is not stored as a file in the filesystem, but raw on a separate partition on the NAND flash. This allows for faster booting, as the bootloader (U-Boot) does not have to do a full filesystem mount to find the kernel. Thus to upgrade the filesystem, a special NAND/MTD access tool must be used. These can either be the standard Linux MTD tools, or Bluewaters simplified MTDTool program, available as an ipk from our repository.
root@snapper:~$ ipkg-cl install mtdtool
root@snapper:~$ cat /proc/mtd
dev: size erasesize name
mtd0: 00020000 00020000 "Preboot"
mtd1: 00040000 00020000 "Bootloader"
mtd2: 00020000 00020000 "Environment"
mtd3: 00400000 00020000 "Kernel"
mtd3: 03B7F800 00020000 "Filesystem"
root@snapper:~$ mtdtool --quick_erase Kernel
root@snapper:~$ mtdtool --write Kernel /path/to/kernel/uImage
How do I use a camera on the Snapper 9260?
Have a look at the 9260 Linux Camera application note for details on this.
Windows CE
U-Boot
Where do I get the latest U-Boot for my Snapper module?
All of our code is updated nightly to http://www.bluewatersys.com/public/. This includes both the source, and pre-built binary versions of our U-Boot software.
How do I install the GCC toolchain?
Please see the Linux GCC entry for this above.
How do I boot off an NFS server?
See Network Based Development for more details.
How do I upgrade the U-Boot image?
Snapper> setenv autoload n
Snapper> bootp
Snapper> tftp $bootaddr /tftpboot/path/to/u-boot.bin
Snapper> nand erase 0x20000 0x6ffff
Snapper> nand write $bootaddr 0x20000 0x40000
Toolchain
Known Issues
The 2007q3 Toolchain recommended by Bluewater Systems has some known issues:
- Using the "-fomit-frame-pointer" option generates broken code
- Profiling support using the "-pg" option generates broken code
Hardware
What voltages are suitable to power on the Snapper 9260 Quick Start Kit?
- For revision 1 boards, the input voltage must be 6v.
- For revision 2 boards, the input voltage must be between 6v and 12v.
- The required amperage depends on what peripherals are attached. Typically we would recommend at least 500mA
- For all revisions, the connector is positive tip.
What analogue inputs are provided?
All four of the 9260's A/D pins are available on the QSK header. Each A/D pin can be used to sample an analogue voltage within a range of 0 - 3.3V (ADVREF is fixed at 3.3V).
Note: AD1 is dual function and is also used for the Audio Clock. Hence it cannot be used as an A/D input if Audio is needed.
How do I disable the ethernet interface to save power?
The ethernet PHY consumes quite a lot of power, and if not required it can be powered down. Unfortunately the PHY will parasitically power itself off the control lines if its power rail is disable. To power it down fully, both the power domain, and the control lines need to be low. The following Linux commands will cause this.
echo eth_power disable > /proc/snapper/power_domain
echo clear > /proc/gpio/GPIOA13
echo clear > /proc/gpio/GPIOA12
echo clear > /proc/gpio/GPIOA19
echo clear > /proc/gpio/GPIOA16
echo clear > /proc/gpio/GPIOA26
echo clear > /proc/gpio/GPIOA15
echo clear > /proc/gpio/GPIOA14
echo clear > /proc/gpio/GPIOA18
echo clear > /proc/gpio/GPIOA27
echo clear > /proc/gpio/GPIOA17
echo clear > /proc/gpio/GPIOA21
echo clear > /proc/gpio/GPIOA20
Once in this mode, ethernet can be re-instated with the following:
echo a > /proc/gpio/GPIOA13
echo a > /proc/gpio/GPIOA12
echo a > /proc/gpio/GPIOA19
echo a > /proc/gpio/GPIOA16
echo in > /proc/gpio/GPIOA26
echo a > /proc/gpio/GPIOA15
echo a > /proc/gpio/GPIOA14
echo a > /proc/gpio/GPIOA18
echo in > /proc/gpio/GPIOA27
echo a > /proc/gpio/GPIOA17
echo a > /proc/gpio/GPIOA21
echo a > /proc/gpio/GPIOA20
echo eth_power enable > /proc/snapper/power_domain
How do I attach a USB Host port to the QuickStart Kit?
There are two USB Host ports available on the Snapper 9260. These are exposed on the QuickStart expansion header pins 3,4 & 5,6. To attach a USB host port, attach the pins as follows:
| QSK Expansion Pin | Name | USB Connector Pin |
| 1 | GND | 4 |
| 2 | 5V | 1 |
| 3 or 5 | D+ | 3 |
| 4 or 6 | D- | 2 |
How do I attach an SD/SDIO/MMC card to the QuickStart Kit?
Please see our 9260 SD Connection application note.
