Introduction to Embedded Linux Part 2 – Yocto Project | Digi-Key Electronics

juin 3, 2024 Mourad ELGORMA

Linux is a powerful operating system that can be compiled for a number of platforms and architectures. One of the biggest draws is its ability to be customized for an application. Tools like Buildroot, OpenWRT, and Yocto Project help us create custom Linux distributions for embedded systems.

In this video series, we will explore Buildroot and the Yocto Project. We also demonstrate how you might develop applications for embedded Linux. We will not dive into the specifics of how each of these systems work but give you a good starting place so you can read or watch more advanced material about working with embedded Linux.

See this written tutorial if you would like to review the commands issued in this tutorial for the Yocto Project: https://www.digikey.com/en/maker/projects/intro-to-embedded-linux-part-2-yocto-project/2c08a1ad09d74f20b9844e566d332da4

In this episode, we create another custom Linux image using the Yocto Project (instead of Buildroot). As you will see, there is a lot more work involved in configuring the Yocto Project, as it is built on a series of layers provided by OpenEmbedded, the Yocto Project, vendors, and the community. These layers consist of a number of metadata (files that contain information used to build the distribution) that must be read during the build process.

The OpenEmbedded System Workflow diagram shown in the video can be found here: https://www.yoctoproject.org/docs/2.5/overview-manual/overview-manual.html#openembedded-build-system-workflow

We configure the necessary recipes (and other metadata) to construct a minimal Linux image for the STM32MP157D-DK1 single board computer. To do this, we must download the board support package (BSP) from STMicroelectronics and supporting layers from the OpenEmbedded Project. We use the bitbake tool to read the configurations, download necessary source code, compile everything, and create a number of image files to be flashed to an SD card (or other non-volatile memory).

In the next video, we will demonstrate how to configure an SD card with the necessary partitions and flash the required images before booting into Linux on the single board computer.

Product Links:
https://www.digikey.com/en/products/detail/stmicroelectronics/STM32MP157D-DK1/13536964