Jetson TK1 Kernel Recompile Guide

Robotics & Edge Computing Jetson & Embedded Systems Jetson TK1
1

Hello I have an Dual Band / Bluetooth mini pcie - Intel 3160. It looks like support for this is left out by the default kernel.
Could someone at NVIDIA please write a guide on how to get a recompiled kernel installed and boot with it?

I was able to create a zImage but unsure of testing as I have not been able to flash by Jetson.

Would also like to look at GSM / 3G / 4G LTE cards as an option in the future for Mobile + Automotive applications with the Jetson, but as such I am limited due to a lack of documentation.

Thanks!

2

If the necessary drivers can be built as kernel modules, that’s a lot easier than reflashing the kernel. Here’s approximately how I got my usb wifi dongle going. (Take this with a grain of salt as it’s my first time fooling around with kernel sources in about 10 years!)

  1. On the TK1, download and unpack the L4T kernel sources to ~/kernel (or whatever) https://developer.nvidia.com/sites/default/files/akamai/mobile/files/L4T/kernel_src.tbz2
  2. zcat /proc/config.gz > ~/kernel/.config
  3. make menuconfig
  4. find the goodies you need and set them to compile as modules...for wifi I think you need cfg80211, mac80211, and the driver for your particular device
  5. make prepare; make modules_prepare
  6. make modules SUBDIRS=net/wireless, make modules SUBDIRS=net/mac80211, make modules SUBDIRS=drivers/net/wireless, and so on for any other relevant subdirectories of the kernel source tree containing modules you need
  7. copy the built .ko files to /lib/modules/$(uname -r)/kernel
  8. depmod -a
  9. apt-get install linux-firmware
  10. add entries for the necessary modules to /etc/modules and reboot

I got bluetooth working this way too (bluetooth, hidp, btusb, and dongle-specific driver). I’ve hit a wall with my TV tuner stick though, which seems to need some stuff in the kernel that can’t be built as modules. So I’d also like to see NVIDIA provide a step-by-step for compiling and installing a kernel (ideally without resetting the whole root FS).

3

Check this thread for recompiling the kernel:

If you can think of other often needed packages like the “apt-get install linux-firmware”, please let me know and I’ll include them in the post.

4

So I’ve added the built modules and they are running according to lsmod, but I can’t still seem to get the network adapter appearing as an eth when I check under ifconfig. Were there any special steps after the reboot I might be missing?

5

For some reason it still does not seem to work - there is an nvm error - I tried 3160, the 6230, and soon will try the 6235

6

Hi mlin, is it not needed to also edit the Makefile to add the “EXTRAVERSION = -g6a2d13a” in order for the kernel and modules version to match ?

7

Im buidling a ATH9K module and have downloaded the firmware files.

http://wireless.kernel.org/download/htc_fw/1.3/htc_7010.fw
http://wireless.kernel.org/download/htc_fw/1.3/htc_9271.fw

but the issue i found is the wireless is disabled by switch

rfkill unblock all
rfkill list all

the wireless interface is still blocked

8

We (NVIDIA) are aware that many devices currently need firmware drivers installed to “/lib/firmware” or building & flashing a custom L4T kernel. We will provide some instructions soon on how to build & flash a custom L4T kernel and will provide many common Wifi & webcam drivers on our Support page soon. But we want to know which drivers are the most desired.

I created a list of drivers at [url]Jetson/Network Adapters - eLinux.org, if you don’t see your driver mentioned then add it to the list or email me (semami@nvidia.com).

Thanks for your patience!

9

Shervin we waitng :) but how to deal with rfkill? Some coped with kernel compilation, but how to get around this problem?

10

I agree I really need to know how to flash the kernel, I was tempted to just try it but turning my board into a paperweight doesn’t seem terribly fun.

11

NVIDIA support is terrible… I used a few similar platforms, but there at least was answered questions.

12

I added some info here:

Flashing the kernel isn’t hard. Prerequisites:

  1. From kernel build, arch/arm/boot/zImage, copy this to your L4T kernel subdirectory (back up the old zImage).
  2. If you have previously upgraded from fastboot to u-boot (such as flashing R19.3 with u-boot option), also copy zImage to your Jetson's /boot directory (and back up old zImage here too).
  3. Make sure your host machine has /dev/loop0...if not, as root run "losetup --find" to create this file temporarily.
  4. Start Jetson with the proper reset button held down and micro-B USB cable connected to host computer.
  5. flash.sh -k 6 jetson-tk1 mmcblk0p1