Xen implementation on Imx8quadmax

[Naresh123]

Technical Support Request: Xen Hypervisor / Dom0 Boot Issues

1. Hardware Environment:

• Module: Apalis iMX8 QuadMax 4GB (V1.1)

• Carrier Board: Ixora V1.3A

• Serial Connection: Using UART_A (Serial Debug Console) via RS232-to-USB converter.

2. Software Environment (Validated via Bitbake):

• BSP Version: 6.4.0-devel (Kirkstone)

• Kernel Version: 5.15.129-6.4.0

• Xen Version: 4.16 

3. Issue Description:

• Issue A (Serial Console): The serial output is consistently garbled/unreadable even when set to 115200 baud, 8-N-1. I have checked my baud rate settings and physical wiring.

• Issue B (Xen/Dom0): The system is not booting into the Xen Hypervisor. Commands like xl info fail with "cannot init xl context," and uname -r shows the standard Linux kernel running on bare metal.

4. Observations:

• The Xen binary (xen-apalis-imx8) is present in the deploy folder but does not appear to be loaded by U-Boot.

• Standard Linux boots successfully, but virtualization features are inaccessible.

5. Request:

• Please provide the correct U-Boot environment settings for the Ixora 1.3A board to properly load the Xen hypervisor binary before the Dom0 kernel.

• Guidance on why the serial console output remains garbled despite using standard 115200 settings.
  
  APALIS-IMX8-KIT

[Shivu_Guru_24]

hi @Naresh123  how you are enabling xen hypervisor ? can you share me the documnets

[Naresh123]

Hi @Shivu_Guru_24 

I have added the xen in my yocto image and after the build , I have flash to my imx8 and for checking in serial port , with command xl info , it was showing no such directlory found.

[Shivu_Guru_24]

@Naresh123 I need to enable the xen support on latest Android kernel?

Can you please support how to enable documentation?

[Naresh123]

@Shivu_Guru_24 

Did you build the yocto with added xen?

Are you able to see Dom0 and DomU?

Are you able to make partitions?

[Shivu_Guru_24]

@Naresh123 i have some questions

i need to run Android and Freertos as guest vm on top of hypervisor i am just exploring before starting   

which yocto is having added xen 

we need to enable xen manually, right?

I did not sync Yoto code if i sync latest Yocto how to enable xen?

after enabling it Linux acts as dom0 right?

we can run Android and freertos as guest (DOmU)

[Naresh123]

Hello @Zhiming_Liu 

To clarify, I am using the official Toradex BSP 6.4.0 (Kirkstone), not the stock NXP release. This environment was built using the  toradex minimal image layers. Since this is a standard Toradex software/hardware combination (Apalis iMX8 on Ixora), I am looking for the specific U-Boot command sequence required by this BSP version to boot Xen.

[Zhiming_Liu]

Hi @Naresh123 

If you are using Toradex BSP 6.4.0, we don't know the command you need on this BSP. It's not released from NXP.

Best Regards,
Zhiming

[Zhiming_Liu]

Hi @Naresh123 

Due to differences between Toradex's BSP and NXP's BSP, we are unable to provide precise assistance. Please seek help on the Toradex community.

Best Regards,
Zhiming