IOT-GATE-iMX8 and SBC-IOT-iMX8: U-Boot: Recovery

Introduction

The following scenarios can lead to a bricked device:

• U-Boot update failure.
• U-Boot update with corrupted image.

In that case U-Boot recovery is needed.

Creating The Recovery SD Card

• Download the U-Boot recovery image archive.
• Extract the image archive:

unzip iot-gate-imx8_firmware-recovery-image.zip

• Use a Linux workstation and an SD card reader to write the U-Boot recovery image on an SD card.

Replace /dev/sdX with the actual SD card device:

sudo dd if=iot-gate-imx8_firmware-recovery_2022-08-02.img of=/dev/sdX bs=1M status=progress

Flashing The Device U-Boot

• Install the recovery SD card in the IOTG-ACC-M2SD module.

The IOTG-ACC-M2SD module is included in the evaluation kit.

• Power off the IOT-GATE-iMX8/SBC-IOT-iMX8 unit.
• If a secondary storage module is installed, remove the module from socket P14.
• Install the IOTG-ACC-M2SD module in socket P14.
• Install jumper E1.
• Power on the IOT-GATE-iMX8/SBC-IOT-iMX8 unit.
• Load the U-Boot image to the RAM.

u-boot=> mmc partconf 2 0 1 0
u-boot=> load mmc 1 ${loadaddr} iot-gate-imx8-firmware

• Make shure that the image was loaded:

1666004 bytes read in 153 ms (10.4 MiB/s)

• Write the U-Boot image to the internal storage:

u-boot=> mmc dev 2 1; mmc write ${loadaddr} 0x42 0xE00

• Power off the IOT-GATE-iMX8/SBC-IOT-iMX8 unit.
• Remove jumper E1.
• Power on the IOT-GATE-iMX8/SBC-IOT-iMX8 unit.