Introduction

- Objectives
- Who You Are
- The Linux Foundation
- Copyright and No Confidential Information
- Linux Foundation Training
- Certification Programs and Digital Badging
- Linux Distributions
- Platforms
- Preparing Your System
- Things change in Linux
- Documentation and Links

Preliminaries

- Linux Distributions
- Virtual Machine Installation
- Procedures
- Labs

How to Work in OSS Projects **

- Overview on How to Contribute Properly
- Know Where the Code is Coming From: DCO and CLA
- Stay Close to Mainline for Security and Quality
- Study and Understand the Project DNA
- Figure Out What Itch You Want to Scratch
- Identify Maintainers and Their Work Flows and Methods
- Get Early Input and Work in the Open
- Contribute Incremental Bits, Not Large Code Dumps
- Leave Your Ego at the Door: Don’t Be Thin-Skinned
- Be Patient, Develop Long Term Relationships, Be Helpful

Embedded and Real-Time Systems Concepts

- Basic Concepts
- Protection Motivations
- Off the Shelf (OTS)
- Embedded Caveats
- Real Time Operating Systems
- Real Time Linux
- Custom Hardware Assistance
- Resources

Cross-Development Environments: Goals and Needs

- Introduction
- Why is it Hard?
- Project Goal Considerations
- Links to Additional Discussions
- Labs

Kbuild System

- Introduction
- Kbuild Makefiles
- Kconfig Basics
- Searching Kconfig

Cross-Development Toolchain

- The Compiler Triplet
- Built-in Linux Distribution Cross Compiler
- Linaro
- CodeSourcery
- crosstool-ng
- Buildroot
- OpenEmbedded
- Yocto Project
- Clang
- Labs

QEMU

- What is QEMU?
- Why use QEMU?
- Emulated Architectures
- Image Formats
- Labs

Booting a Target Development Board from uSD

- Why do we use uSD cards?
- Getting SW onto a uSD card
- Booting from flash
- Why is using uSD cards a bad idea?
- Labs

Booting a Target Development Board over Ethernet

- Using virtual Hardware
- An easier way to develop
- The Boot Sequence using TFTP and NFSroot
- Objectives of the Lab
- Labs

Boot loaders and U-Boot

- Boot Code Stages
- Some GPL BIOSes
- Some GPL Boot Loaders
- Das U-Boot
- U-Boot Command Line
- U-Boot Environment
- Labs

Kernel Configuration, Compilation, Booting

- Configuring the Kernel for the Development Board
- Labs

Device Drivers**

- Types of Devices
- Device Nodes
- Character Drivers
- An Example
- Labs

Device Trees

- What are Device Trees?
- What Device Trees Do and What They Do Not Do
- Device Tree Syntax
- Device Tree Walk Through
- Device Tree Bindings
- Device Tree support in Boot Loaders
- Using Device Tree Data in Drivers
- Coexistence and Conversion of Old Drivers
- Labs

Target Filesystem Packaging

- Embedded Filesystem Goals
- Directories: a Survey
- Embedded Filesystem Types

Build Target Root Filesystem

- Objectives of the Lab
- Labs

Root Filesystem Choices

- SysV init vs. BusyBox init
- udev vs. BusyBox mdev
- Systemd
- C Library Choices
- Labs

Configuring uClibc

- Configuring uClibc for NFS
- Labs

Another Alternate C-library: musl **

- What is musl?
- Configuring BuildRoot for musl
- Labs

Build BusyBox Utility Suite

- Basic Workings
- Integrated with Buildroot
- Labs

Kernel Monitoring and Debugging

- Tracing and Profiling
- Ftrace, Trace-Cmd, Kernelshark
- Perf
- Using perf
- sysctl
- SysRq Key
- oops Messages
- Kernel Debuggers
- debugfs

Right-Sizing

- Oft-Needed Embedded Components
- Taking Inventory of Kernel Sizes

Memory Technology Devices (Flash Memory Filesystems)

- What are MTD Devices?
- NAND vs. NOR vs. eMMC
- Driver and User Modules
- Flash Filesystems

Compressed Filesystems

- SquashFS
- Deploying in an MTD Partition
- Labs

System Upgrades

- When do we need to update?
- Update strategies
- Prebuilt upgrade systems
- Labs

Real-Time Extensions

- Predictability and Preemption and Locks
- PREEMPT RT Project
- Real-Time Checklist

Closing and Evaluation Survey

- Evaluation Survey

Kernel Architecture Preview

- Linux and UNIX
- Monolithic and Micro Kernels
- Main Kernel Tasks
- User-Space and Kernel-Space

Kernel Source Tree Overview

- Installation and Layout of the Kernel Source
- Kernel Browsers
- Kernel Configuration Files
- Why is it Hard? Part 2

Kernel Programming Preview

- Coding Style
- kernel-doc
- Using Generic Kernel Routines and Methods
- Error Numbers, Printing Kernel Output, syslogd
- Task Structure
- Memory Allocation
- Transferring Data between User and Kernel Space

Modules

- What are Modules?
- A Trivial Example
- Compiling Modules
- Modules vs Built-in
- Module Utilities
- Automatic Module Loading
- Module Usage Count
- Module Licensing
- Exporting Symbols
- Resolving Symbols **
- Labs

Basic Target Development Board Setup

- Objectives of the Lab
- Labs

Booting the Target Development Board from uSD

- Objectives of the Lab
- Labs

Booting a Target Development Board over Ethernet

- An easier way to develop
- The Boot Sequence using TFTP and NFSroot
- Objectives of the Lab
- Labs

Mar 2025

The instructor had industry and practical experience.

Learning each step, and running it along in my machine.

I liked how we were able to build things step by step by using the chapters of the material.

Good coverage of the relevant material, and relevant personal experience from the instructor.

Oct 2024

The course provided a good background to many Linux topics.

I liked learning about the various components of embedded Linux.

I think the topics the book covered were interesting, and within what I expected to be covered and more. I also think the labs ran relatively smoothly, and I did like the textbook that assisted me when following along in the class.

I liked the sheer breadth of this field of study, and now I feel like I have a far greater understanding of how one can set up/compile a filesystem for embedded hardware.

I appreciated learning about all the different toolchains, tools, software, and packages used for embedded development, and going into how Linux development is done.

The lab exercises were fantastic in terms of building muscle memory, and didn't abstract away too much.

I thought the class progressed in a very logical manner from start to finish, building on previous knowledge.

Jul 2024

Hands-on sessions, insight from the trainer's experience, and a nice atmosphere.

It gave a nice complete picture from scratch to the final system.

The large overview of so many solutions.

I liked learning about the device tree, and about real-time extension.

The real-world steps building something from nothing, to having a fully working environment. These steps helped me understand how everything works.

Embedded Linux Development (LFD450)

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