IMX6 SWUpdate fw-setenv corrupted file

[MichaelBMiner]

It has taken a long time but I am able to build and run a SWUpdate kernel. Now I am attempting to communicate between Linux and the Bootloader using fw_setenv. 

To configure this I have

1. added IMAGE_INSTALL_append = " u-boot-fw-utils" to my image bitbake file
2. added PREFERRED_PROVIDER_u-boot-fw-utils = "libubootenv" to local.conf
3. Added a do install append to my u-boot-imx.bbappend to create /etc/fw_env.config

FILESEXTRAPATHS_prepend := "${THISDIR}/${PN}:"
SRC_URI += "file://uboot.diff file://fw_env.config"

do_install_append () {
    install -d ${D}${sysconfdir}
    install -m 0644 ${WORKDIR}/fw_env.config ${D}${sysconfdir}/fw_env.config
}

 With all of this when I boot into my application and run fw_setenv I always get

root@imx6ull14x14evk:~# fw_setenv SOME_SETTING 1
Configuration file wrong or corrupted

[MichaelBMiner]

Looking at some PDFs I found from NXP I ran fdisk -l on my device and I see

fdisk -l
Disk /dev/mmcblk1: 29 GB, 31292129280 bytes, 61117440 sectors
954960 cylinders, 4 heads, 16 sectors/track
Units: sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes

Device       Boot StartCHS    EndCHS        StartLBA     EndLBA    Sectors  Size Id Type
/dev/mmcblk1p1 *  64,0,1      418,3,24          8192      53623      45432 22.1M  c Win95 FAT32 (LBA)
/dev/mmcblk1p2    448,0,1     1023,3,32        57344     575249     517906  252M 83 Linux

So I updated /etc/fw_env.config to be

/dev/mmcblk1p1 0xE0000 0x2000

This now gives me the error 

fw_printenv
Cannot read environment, using default
Cannot read default environment from file

[MichaelBMiner]

To be clear

fdisk -l
Disk /dev/mmcblk1: 29 GB, 31292129280 bytes, 61117440 sectors
954960 cylinders, 4 heads, 16 sectors/track
Units: sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes

Device       Boot StartCHS    EndCHS        StartLBA     EndLBA    Sectors  Size Id Type
/dev/mmcblk1p1 *  64,0,1      418,3,24          8192      53623      45432 22.1M  c Win95 FAT32 (LBA)
/dev/mmcblk1p2    448,0,1     1023,3,32        57344     575249     517906  252M 83 Linux

In the uboot config

#define CONFIG_ENV_OFFSET 0xE0000
#define CONFIG_ENV_SIZE 0x2000
#define CONFIG_ENV_IS_IN_MMC 1

So my /etc/fw_env.config contains

/dev/mmcblk1p1 0xE0000 0x2000

So it seems everything is set correct. But when I try to print from linux I get 

fw_printenv
Cannot read environment, using default
Cannot read default environment from file

What setting am I missing?

[Sanket_Parekh]

Hi @MichaelBMiner 

I hope you are doing well.

Please include the below line in the board configuration header file.

#define CONFIG_SYS_MMC_ENV_PART 0.

Note: CONFIG_SYS_MMC_ENV_PART does not refer to software partitions, such as /dev/mmcblk2p1.
          Here, Partition 0 refers to the user area of emmc.

Thanks & Regards,

Sanket Parekh

[MichaelBMiner]

Hello @Sanket_Parekh The setting

#define CONFIG_SYS_MMC_ENV_PART 0

Was already set in my u-boot.cfg.

In my Yocto build I am in the folder

/mnt/YoctoDrive/Documents/MAIN_Application/build-fb/tmp/work/imx6ull14x14evk-poky-linux-gnueabi/u-boot-imx/2021.04-r0/build/mx6ull_14x14_evk_config

[Sanket_Parekh]

Hi @MichaelBMiner 

I hope you are doing well.

Please confirm if you are able to saveenv in u-boot.

Please try after executing the saveenv command in u-boot as env will be in memory till we use saveenv to save it.

Please try with the below command to cross-check if the env file is present in mmc.

# dd if=/dev/mmcblk1p1 of=env.bin bs=1024 skip=896 count=1 | hexdump -C env.bin

Thanks & Regards,

Sanket Parekh

[MichaelBMiner]

Hello @Sanket_Parekh here is the output of my setenv, saveenv, printenv

=> setenv MY_VAR = 12345
=> saveenv
Saving Environment to MMC... Writing to MMC(1)... OK
=> printenv
MY_VAR== 12345

I tried the dd command in u-boot and realised this is for linux. Here is the result of that command.

 dd if=/dev/mmcblk1p1 of=env.bin bs=1024 skip=896 count=1 | hexdump -C env.bin
1+0 records in
1+0 records out

[MichaelBMiner]

If I run the command a second time. I get more output

root@imx6ull14x14evk:~# dd if=/dev/mmcblk1p1 of=env.bin bs=1024 skip=896 count=1 | hexdump -C env.bin
00000000  22 28 a0 e1 0f 20 02 e2  04 10 a0 e3 11 12 a0 e1  |"(... ..........|
00000010  01 20 41 e2 02 00 c0 e1  01 b0 4b e2 02 b0 cb e1  |. A.......K.....|
00000020  0b 00 50 e1 02 00 00 ca  3e 0f 07 ee 01 00 80 e0  |..P.....>.......|
00000030  fa ff ff ea 9a af 07 ee  15 af 07 ee 9a af 07 ee  |................|
00000040  95 af 07 ee 0e f0 a0 e1  01 00 14 e3 0e f0 a0 11  |................|
00000050  7e ff 17 ee fd ff ff 1a  15 0f 07 ee 9a 0f 07 ee  |~...............|
00000060  0e f0 a0 e1 01 00 14 e3  0e f0 a0 11 01 28 a0 e3  |.............(..|
00000070  20 b0 a0 e3 30 3f 10 ee  09 00 33 e1 09 00 00 0a  | ...0?....3.....|
00000080  23 19 a0 e1 07 10 01 e2  01 2b a0 e3 12 21 a0 e1  |#........+...!..|
00000090  01 09 13 e3 a2 20 82 10  23 36 a0 e1 03 30 03 e2  |..... ..#6...0..|
000000a0  08 b0 a0 e3 1b b3 a0 e1  0f 10 a0 e1 3f 10 c1 e3  |............?...|
000000b0  02 20 81 e0 0b 30 91 e6  02 00 31 e1 fc ff ff 1a  |. ...0....1.....|
000000c0  15 1f 07 ee 16 1f 07 ee  9a 1f 07 ee 0e f0 a0 e1  |................|
000000d0  01 00 14 e3 0e f0 a0 11  00 10 a0 e3 10 1f 07 ee  |................|
000000e0  0e f0 a0 e1 00 f0 20 e3  00 f0 20 e3 00 f0 20 e3  |...... ... ... .|
000000f0  00 f0 20 e3 00 f0 20 e3  00 f0 20 e3 00 f0 20 e3  |.. ... ... ... .|
00000100  fe ff ff ea fe ff ff ea  fe ff ff ea fe ff ff ea  |................|
00000110  fe ff ff ea 01 00 00 ea  fe ff ff ea fe ff ff ea  |................|
00000120  00 00 a0 e3 07 10 a0 e1  08 20 a0 e1 04 f0 a0 e1  |......... ......|
00000130  30 30 9f e5 03 30 8f e0  01 20 f3 e5 00 00 52 e3  |00...0... ....R.|
00000140  fc ff ff 1a 01 30 d0 e4  00 00 53 e3 fc ff ff 1a  |.....0....S.....|
00000150  14 30 9f e5 03 30 8f e0  01 20 f3 e5 00 00 52 e3  |.0...0... ....R.|
00000160  fc ff ff 1a fe ff ff ea  50 10 00 00 34 10 00 00  |........P...4...|
00000170  08 00 9f e5 10 40 2d e9  00 00 8f e0 eb ff ff eb  |.....@-.........|
00000180  24 10 00 00 08 00 9f e5  10 40 2d e9 00 00 8f e0  |$........@-.....|
00000190  e6 ff ff eb 2c 10 00 00  98 c0 9f e5 10 40 2d e9  |....,........@-.|
000001a0  94 e0 9f e5 0c c0 8f e0  0e e0 9c e7 00 00 8e e5  |................|
000001b0  88 e0 9f e5 0e e0 9c e7  00 10 8e e5 80 10 9f e5  |................|
000001c0  01 10 9c e7 00 20 81 e5  78 20 9f e5 78 10 9f e5  |..... ..x ..x...|
000001d0  01 10 8f e0 02 20 9c e7  00 30 82 e5 01 30 f1 e5  |..... ...0...0..|
000001e0  00 00 53 e3 fc ff ff 1a  60 e0 9f e5 00 20 a0 e1  |..S.....`.... ..|
000001f0  5c 10 9f e5 5c 30 9f e5  0e 00 9c e7 01 10 9c e7  |\...\0..........|
00000200  03 30 9c e7 00 10 41 e0  92 01 00 eb 00 00 50 e3  |.0....A.......P.|
00000210  05 00 00 1a 40 30 9f e5  03 30 8f e0 01 20 f3 e5  |....@0...0... ..|
00000220  00 00 52 e3 fc ff ff 1a  10 80 bd e8 2c 00 9f e5  |..R.........,...|
00000230  00 00 8f e0 bd ff ff eb  a4 0d 64 00 14 00 00 00  |..........d.....|
00000240  1c 00 00 00 0c 00 00 00  18 00 00 00 14 10 00 00  |................|
00000250  08 00 00 00 04 00 00 00  10 00 00 00 e4 0f 00 00  |................|
00000260  e8 0f 00 00 08 00 9f e5  10 40 2d e9 00 00 8f e0  |.........@-.....|
00000270  ae ff ff eb cc 0f 00 00  f0 4f 2d e9 02 00 51 e3  |.........O-...Q.|
00000280  01 80 80 e0 00 70 93 e5  0c d0 4d e2 07 70 82 e0  |.....p....M..p..|
00000290  a0 00 00 9a 00 a0 d0 e5  02 60 a0 e1 04 00 51 e3  |.........`....Q.|
000002a0  82 00 00 9a 11 00 5a e3  80 00 00 1a 01 20 d0 e5  |......Z...... ..|
000002b0  02 50 80 e2 02 a0 d0 e5  02 b0 a0 e1 11 00 5a e3  |.P............Z.|
000002c0  27 00 00 8a 06 40 a0 e1  00 20 a0 e3 ff e0 a0 e3  |'....@... ......|
000002d0  01 e1 40 e3 fc 9f 0f e3  00 e0 8d e5 0f 00 5a e3  |..@...........Z.|
000002e0  01 10 85 e2 0a 00 a0 e1  2e 00 00 8a 00 00 52 e3  |..............R.|
000002f0  b3 00 00 1a 00 00 5a e3  c0 00 00 0a 03 20 80 e2  |......Z...... ..|
00000300  01 c0 48 e0 04 00 a0 e1  0f e0 82 e2 00 40 47 e0  |..H..........@G.|
00000310  0c 00 5e e1 6f 00 00 8a  04 00 5e e1 6d 00 00 8a  |..^.o.....^.m...|
00000320  02 50 81 e0 02 40 80 e0  00 20 91 e5 10 10 81 e2  |.P...@... ......|
00000330  00 20 80 e5 10 00 80 e2  05 00 51 e1 0c 20 11 e5  |. ........Q.. ..|
1+0 records in
1+0 records out
00000340  0c 20 00 e5 08 20 11 e5  08 20 00 e5 04 20 11 e5  |. ... ... ... ..|
00000350  04 20 00 e5 f3 ff ff 3a  00 a0 d5 e5 04 20 a0 e3  |. .....:..... ..|
00000360  d9 ff ff ea 01 10 85 e2  11 20 4a e2 06 00 a0 e1  |......... J.....|
00000370  03 00 52 e3 01 c0 48 e0  e2 ff ff ca 05 00 5c e3  |..R...H.......\.|
00000380  2d 00 00 9a 00 c0 47 e0  03 00 5c e3 2e 00 00 9a  |-.....G...\.....|
00000390  00 40 a0 e1 00 00 91 e5  02 50 81 e0 02 00 84 e6  |.@.......P......|
000003a0  02 a0 d1 e7 c8 ff ff ea  3f 00 5a e3 35 00 00 8a  |........?.Z.5...|
000003b0  1f 00 5a e3 5c 00 00 9a  1f 50 0a e2 00 00 55 e3  |..Z.\....P....U.|
000003c0  02 50 85 e2 ba 00 00 0a  b2 c0 d1 e0 03 20 0c e2  |.P........... ..|
000003d0  2c c1 e0 e1 0c c0 84 e0  0c 00 56 e1 d8 00 00 8a  |,.........V.....|
000003e0  0c 00 44 e0 04 a0 47 e0  07 00 50 e3 05 00 84 e0  |..D...G...P.....|
000003f0  d7 00 00 da 0f e0 85 e2  0a 00 5e e1 63 00 00 8a  |..........^.c...|

[MichaelBMiner]

Doing some more reading it seems I need to set 

+CONFIG_CMD_SAVEENV=y
+CONFIG_CMD_LOADENV=y

I added these to a defconfig and patch file. The file is patching mx6ull_14x14_evk_defconfig. I get the same error. 

[Sanket_Parekh · Accepted solution]

Hi @MichaelBMiner 

I hope you are doing well.

From the above output, it seems the env variables are not correctly set or overwritten.

Please check with the below command in linux after using saveenv in u-boot.

dd if=/dev/mmcblk1 of=env.bin bs=1024 skip=896 count=1 

hexdump -C env.bin

Alternatively one can create a separate partition in mmc (Note: define partition offset in CONFIG_ENV_OFFSET) to store uboot environment variables.

Thanks & Regards,

Sanket Parekh

[MichaelBMiner]

I am performing the following

• Boot the device
• Interrupt the boot process and enter u-boot
• Run saveenv
• Run reset and allow device to boot
• Run the command dd if=/dev/mmcblk1 of=env.bin bs=1024 skip=896 count=1 | hexdump -C env.bin

I now get out that seems to show my variables boot variables. I am still getting the same error above. I did make a few more changes. My fw_env.config now contains 

/dev/mmcblk1p2 0xE0000 0x2000
/dev/mmcblk1p2 0xE2000 0x2000

[MichaelBMiner]

So I got it! I changes fw_env.config to contain 

/dev/mmcblk1 0xE0000 0x2000
/dev/mmcblk1 0xE2000 0x2000

fw_printenv now works. Testing to see if I can set custom variables now.