# Variscite VAR-SOM-MX8M-MINI : NXP i.MX 8M Mini - Kirkstone **URL:** \ **Category:** Yocto Project\ **Tags:** nxp, variscite, kirkstone\ **Created:** [April 12, 2023, 6:31pm UTC](https://hub.mender.io/t/variscite-var-som-mx8m-mini-nxp-i-mx-8m-mini-kirkstone/5757 "2023-04-12T18:31:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 2\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![estape.nt](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex036/user_avatar/hub.mender.io/estape.nt/32/2049_2.png) [@estape.nt](https://hub.mender.io/u/estape.nt)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2023, 6:31pm UTC](https://hub.mender.io/t/variscite-var-som-mx8m-mini-nxp-i-mx-8m-mini-kirkstone/5757/1 "2023-04-12T18:31:56Z")
# Board description The VAR-SOM-MX8M-MINI is a highly scalable, low power System on Module (SoM), offering a mainstream solution to fit a wide range of applications and cost requirements. Based on NXP’s i.MX 8M Mini with up to 1.8GHz Quadcore ARM Cortex-A53 plus 400MHz Cortex-M4 real-time processor and up to 4 GB DDR4, the VAR-SOM-MX8M offers a low-power and cost-optimized solution with ultimate scalability options to suit a wide range of applications and cost requirements. The SoM is pin-compatible with the VAR-SOM Pin2Pin product family, including the i.MX 6UL/6ULL modules, through i.MX 6, i.MX 8M Nano, TI AM625x, i.MX 93, i.MX 8M Mini, i.MX 8M Plus up to i.MX 8X and i.MX 8 QuadMax-based modules providing Variscite’s customers with flexibility, extended lifetime, as well as reduced development time, cost, and risk. ![VAR-SOM-MX8M-MINI-starter-kit](https://canada1.discourse-cdn.com/flex036/uploads/mender/original/2X/2/211114ffa6e120eafbc9e6c3d5fedcb45bfc5bf0.png) - References [VAR-SOM-MX8M-MINI](https://www.variscite.com/product/system-on-module-som/cortex-a53-krait/var-som-mx8m-mini-nxp-i-mx8m-mini/) & [VAR-SOM-MX8M-MINI Evaluation Kits](https://www.variscite.com/product/evaluation-kits/var-som-mx8m-mini-evaluation-kits/) - [Support Wiki](https://variwiki.com/index.php?title=VAR-SOM-MX8M-MINI&target=_blank) # Test results The Yocto Project releases in the table below have been tested by the Mender community. Please update it if you have tested this integration on other [Yocto Project releases](https://wiki.yoctoproject.org/wiki/Releases?target=_blank): ## SD Card Root Filesystem | Yocto Project | Build | Runtime | | --- | --- | --- | | Kirkstone (4.0) | :test_works: | :test_works: | **Build** Means that the Yocto Project build using this Mender integration completes without errors and outputs images. **Runtime** Means that Mender has been verified to work on the board. For U-Boot-based boards, the [integration checklist](https://docs.mender.io/system-updates-yocto-project/board-integration/bootloader-support/u-boot/integration-checklist?target=_blank) has been verified. # Getting started ## Prerequisites - A supported Linux distribution and dependencies installed on your workstation/laptop as described in the [Yocto Mega Manual - Kirkstone](https://docs.yoctoproject.org/4.0.8/ref-manual/system-requirements.html#supported-linux-distributions) - Google repo tool [installed](https://hub.mender.io/t/google-repo/58/2) and in your `PATH`. ## Configuring the build ### Setup Yocto environment Set the Yocto Project branch you are building for: ```auto # set to your branch, make sure it is supported (see table above) export BRANCH="kirkstone" ``` Create a directory for your `mender-imx8mm` setup to live in and clone the meta information. ```auto mkdir mender-imx8mm && cd mender-imx8mm ``` Initialize repo manifest: ```auto repo init -u https://github.com/varigit/variscite-bsp-platform \ -m imx-5.15.71-2.2.0.xml \ -b ${BRANCH} ``` Fetch layers in manifest: ```auto repo sync -j$(nproc) ``` Gather Mender resources: ```auto cd sources git clone https://github.com/mendersoftware/meta-mender.git \ -b ${BRANCH} git clone https://github.com/mendersoftware/meta-mender-community.git \ -b ${BRANCH} cd ../ ``` ## Setup build environment Initialize the build environment: ```auto MACHINE=imx8mm-var-dart DISTRO=fslc-x11 source ./var-setup-release.sh build ``` ### Remove unused resources By default, Variscite includes meta-qt5 in the `bblayers.conf` file, if not used please remove it. ### Add the layers ```auto bitbake-layers add-layer ../sources/meta-mender/meta-mender-core bitbake-layers add-layer ../sources/meta-mender/meta-mender-demo bitbake-layers add-layer ../sources/meta-mender-community/meta-mender-variscite ``` ### Setup the local.conf file ```auto cat ../sources/meta-mender-community/meta-mender-variscite/templates/local.conf.append >> conf/local.conf cat ../sources/meta-mender-community/meta-mender-variscite/templates/local-sdcard.conf.append >> conf/local.conf ``` Please note this will add the `MENDER_TENANT_TOKEN` & `MENDER_SERVER_URL` variables, please modify them accordingly (more info further in this document). ### Configure Mender server URL (optional) This section is not required for a successful build but images that are generated by default are only suitable for usage with the Mender client in [Standalone deployments](https://docs.mender.io/artifact-creation/standalone-deployment?target=_blank), due to lack of server configuration. You can edit the `conf/local.conf` file to provide your Mender server configuration, ensuring the generated images and Mender Artifacts are connecting to the Mender server that you are using. There should already be a commented section in the generated `conf/local.conf` file and you can simply uncomment the relevant configuration options and assign appropriate values to them. Build for Hosted Mender: ```auto # To get your tenant token: # - log in to https://hosted.mender.io # - click your email at the top right and then "My organization" # - press the "COPY TO CLIPBOARD" # - assign content of clipboard to MENDER_TENANT_TOKEN # MENDER_SERVER_URL = "https://hosted.mender.io" MENDER_TENANT_TOKEN = "" ``` ### Building the image You can now proceed with building an image: ```auto bitbake core-image-base ``` You can replace `core-image-base` with your desired image target. Please keep in mind this is the tested image. ### Using the build output After a successful build, the images and build artifacts are placed in `tmp/deploy/images/imx8mm-var-dart/core-image-base-imx8mm-var-dart.sdimg` The disk image (with `.sdimg` suffix) is used to provision the device storage for devices without Mender running already. Please proceed to [the official documentation on provisioning a new device](https://docs.mender.io/system-updates-yocto-project/provisioning-a-new-device?target=_blank) for steps to do this. On the other hand, if you already have Mender running on your device and want to deploy a rootfs update using this build, you should use the [Mender Artifact](https://docs.mender.io/overview/artifact) files, which have `.mender` suffix. You can either deploy this Artifact in managed mode with the Mender server (upload it under Releases in the server UI) or by using the Mender client [standalone mode](https://docs.mender.io/artifact-creation/standalone-deployment). ### Flashing the SD card To flash and make a bootable SD, run: ```auto dd if=build/tmp/deploy/images/imx8mm-var-dart/core-image-base-imx8mm-var-dart.sdimg | pv | dd of=/dev/SD_CARD ``` > **WARNING** : make sure you use the correct device node as the _of=_ parameter to avoid overwriting the wrong device. The command `pv` is optional but is highly recommended to track the RT transfer. ### Booting the board By default, the board will boot to its eMMc storage, by changing the `BOOT_SELECT` switch, this will allow it to boot from the SD card. After the board boots into u-boot from the SD card, please reset the environment values: ```auto env default -a -f saveenv saveenv reset ``` # References - The Variscite imx8m-var-dart template files can be found in [meta-mender-community](https://github.com/estape11/meta-mender-community/tree/kirkstone/meta-mender-variscite) - The official [Mender documentation](https://docs.mender.io/) explains how Mender works. This is simply a board-specific complement to the official documentation. * * * _If this post was useful to you, please leave a like, or leave a thank you note to the contributor who put valuable time into this and made it available to you. It will be much appreciated!_ ---
**Author:** ![h\_fotoohi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/d6d6ee/32.png) [@h\_fotoohi](https://hub.mender.io/u/h_fotoohi)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2023, 6:40am UTC](https://hub.mender.io/t/variscite-var-som-mx8m-mini-nxp-i-mx-8m-mini-kirkstone/5757/2 "2023-05-02T06:40:41Z")
Hi @estape.nt Thanks for sharing it. Would you please let me know how can I use that for emmc (without sd card).