New FRDM-K64F resets after 30 seconds

[keithvandierend]

I have a brand new FRDM-K64F just out of the box, but it keeps resetting every 30 seconds or so.

When I plugged it in, it shows up in Device Manager (Windows 10) as "Portable Devices" -> "MBED" and I can see it as a mass storage device until it resets.

I've gone through the Getting Started steps, but the Out-of-Box "bubble level" demo isn't working.

I've installed the SDK, KDS, and serial drivers. The COM port does appear until it resets.

If I try to load the hello_world example, KDS can't find the device.

Is this a hardware problem or can I do something to recover the board?

[BlackNight]

Hi Keith,

are any parts on your board getting hot? I suspect that there is too much current flowing and as a result the DC-DC converter might overheat and cause the voltage drop, causing a reset of the microcontroller. Sounds like a hardware defect on your board to me.

Does it happen regardless which USB port you are using to plug in?

Can you try a different USB port on your machine (maybe a hub) as a USB port on the host side might be bad too.

And try a different USB cable too (I have found bad cables causing issues like this).

I hope this helps,

Erich

[keithvandierend]

Thanks, Erich.

Nothing seems to be getting hot.

I tried 3 different USB cables connected to 2 different USB ports on my computer as well as a powered hub.

If I connect the K64 USB port I just get a solid red LED.

I tried connecting both ports, which didn't change anything at first. But since then, the behavior has changed.

Now when I plug in just the OpenSDA port, it stays dark until I hit the reset button, at which point it blinks green at 1 Hz. It shows up in Device Manager as "BOOTLOADER" and mounts as a storage device for about 30 seconds before it goes away (but continues to blink green).

[BlackNight]

Hi Keith,

>>If I connect the K64 USB port I just get a solid red LED.

The small reset LED? That would mean that the K64F is in constant reset.

Are you using Windows 10? Then it could be that Windows has erased the bootloader, see https://mcuoneclipse.com/2016/08/01/bricking_and_recovering_opensda_boards_in_windows_8_and_10/

I hope this helps,

Erich

[keithvandierend · Accepted solution]

I seem to have it sorted now.

From your link, I made the Group Policy change as suggested. The FRDM-K64F has the OpenSDA v2 bootloader, so the file system looks different and it didn't even show any version information, just a bootload.htm file that contained nothing but 512 nulls.

But I was able to recover without a probe.

Starting from OpenSDA Serial and Debug Adapter|NXP​, I downloaded http://www.nxp.com/files/32bit/software/CMSIS-DAP-BOOTLOADERV2.zip  and copied the bin to the card (which was already stuck in bootloader mode) during my 30-second window when I can see the device. This at least brought me back to my original state where the MBED device and serial port appear but reset every 30 seconds.

Then I downloaded the latest firmware application from Firmware FRDM K64F - Handbook | mbed  ​(version 0226) and copied it to the card.

Now it works.

Meanwhile, since it might have been a hardware problem, DigiKey sent a replacement card which arrived today. The new card had the same initial problem. But I was at least able to see that the DETAILS.TXT file said it came with version 0201. The same solution of updating the bootloader and application worked again.

So it seems like it was something about how the boards were originally flashed and maybe a conflict with Windows 10, despite having made the Group Policy change before connecting the second board for the first time. The serial number on the second board was exactly one higher than the first board, so I assume they were flashed the same way.

Thanks for your help.