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Re: [ts-7000] Re: Booting TS7300 from SDCard

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Subject: Re: [ts-7000] Re: Booting TS7300 from SDCard
From: "Breton M. Saunders" <>
Date: Thu, 22 Apr 2010 10:57:32 +0100
I wrote the original linux loader for the alertme hub - fit the entire 
NAND flash loader into about 1.2k of eeprom space, including CRC codes.  
The development board for it was a ts7400.

When I was looking at the sdcard last year I figured that it would be 
quite difficult to fit the boot loader into the 2k eeprom on the 
ts7400.  With about 5k I think its possible; but you'll need at least 3 
stages of loader.

Incidentally, since you have done your own board, how have you connected 
the sdcard to the ep9307 - are you gpio banging it?

The TS boards have a pretty simple 4 bit interface onto the sdcard that 
is implemented in the CPLD.

If I remember correctly, they do something like a 3 stage loader on the 
ts7400:
 Stage 1: 2k loaded from eeprom into cirrus's ethernet buffer to start 
the system and load the 1st page  (which are supposed to be reliable) 
from NAND and call it.
 Stage 2: Load the first 16k from NAND using CRC and call it.
 Stage 3: Load Linux from NAND or load Linux from partition 0 of the 
sdcard (tsfastboot vs tssdboot).

Loading linux itself is quite easy - just copy the data into ram, setup 
the registers correctly and jump to the start address.

Oh yeah - since you've done your own board, have you correctly managed 
the ep93xx lockup-on-reset bug?  About 1/3 of the chips have this 
problem.  TS works around it using their CPLD and watchdog.

   -Brett


pkm_munot wrote:
> --- In  Jason Stahls <> wrote:
>   
>> pkm_munot wrote:
>>     
>>> Hi Guys,
>>>
>>> As per the manual under boot section. This board as a initial bootloader in 
>>> EEPROM which is loaded at power up and later talks to SDcard. Apter 
>>> initializing of SDcard the boards boots from SDcard directly. I am trying 
>>> to implement a similar boot sequence for my board based on EP9307 chip.
>>>
>>> Can anyone please provide some pointers to the source code for EEPROM 
>>> bootloader and TS_SDBOOT. 
>>>       
>> I doubt TS will release the code for their bootloader but the best way 
>> to get it would call them and ask for it.  Now for SD boot, I believe 
>> the SD interface is implemented in the FPGA so that would hose using 
>> TS's boot loader anyways :(
>>
>> -- 
>> Jason Stahls
>>
>>     
>
> Thanks Jason,
>
> I will trying calling them and see if I can get any pointers from them. As 
> per the current design for TS7300 I guess the sdcard interface is implemented 
> in FPGA. In my case I dont have a FPGA but I have a serial flash. I have 
> downloaded spi_boot example from Cirrus logic website and its working 
> successfully on my board. 
>
> Now I am trying to write a second stage bootloader which will initialize the 
> sdcard and load redboot from sdcard. This in turn will load rest of the bits 
> from SDcard. 
>
> Its this approach right? 
> Cheers
> Tama
>
>
>  
>
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>
> ------------------------------------
>
> Yahoo! Groups Links
>
>
>



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