fdt: Add support for embedded device tree (CONFIG_OF_EMBED)

This new option allows U-Boot to embed a binary device tree into its image
to allow run-time control of peripherals. This device tree is for U-Boot's
own use and is not necessarily the same one as is passed to the kernel.

The device tree compiler output should be placed in the $(obj)
rooted tree. Since $(OBJCOPY) insists on adding the path to the
generated symbol names, to ensure consistency it should be
invoked from the directory where the .dtb file is located and
given the input file name without the path.

This commit contains my entry for the ugliest Makefile / shell interaction
competition.

Signed-off-by: Simon Glass <sjg@chromium.org>

1 files changed, 172 insertions, 0 deletions

diff --git a/doc/README.fdt-control b/doc/README.fdt-control
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index 000000000..3f8bb5a67
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+#
+# Copyright (c) 2011 The Chromium OS Authors.
+#
+# See file CREDITS for list of people who contributed to this
+# project.
+#
+# This program is free software; you can redistribute it and/or
+# modify it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as
+# published by the Free Software Foundatio; either version 2 of
+# the License, or (at your option) any later version.
+#
+# This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
+# but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+# MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.	See the
+# GNU General Public License for more details.
+#
+# You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License
+# along with this program; if not, write to the Free Software
+# Foundation, Inc., 59 Temple Place, Suite 330, Boston,
+# MA 02111-1307 USA
+#
+
+Device Tree Control in U-Boot
+=============================
+
+This feature provides for run-time configuration of U-Boot via a flat
+device tree (fdt). U-Boot configuration has traditionally been done
+using CONFIG options in the board config file. This feature aims to
+make it possible for a single U-Boot binary to support multiple boards,
+with the exact configuration of each board controlled by a flat device
+tree (fdt). This is the approach recently taken by the ARM Linux kernel
+and has been used by PowerPC for some time.
+
+The fdt is a convenient vehicle for implementing run-time configuration
+for three reasons. Firstly it is easy to use, being a simple text file.
+It is extensible since it consists of nodes and properties in a nice
+hierarchical format.
+
+Finally, there is already excellent infrastructure for the fdt: a
+compiler checks the text file and converts it to a compact binary
+format, and a library is already available in U-Boot (libfdt) for
+handling this format.
+
+The dts directory contains a Makefile for building the device tree blob
+and embedding it in your U-Boot image. This is useful since it allows
+U-Boot to configure itself according to what it finds there. If you have
+a number of similar boards with different peripherals, you can describe
+the features of each board in the device tree file, and have a single
+generic source base.
+
+To enable this feature, add CONFIG_OF_CONTROL to your board config file.
+
+
+What is a Flat Device Tree?
+---------------------------
+
+An fdt can be specified in source format as a text file. To read about
+the fdt syntax, take a look at the specification here:
+
+https://www.power.org/resources/downloads/Power_ePAPR_APPROVED_v1.0.pdf
+
+You also might find this section of the Linux kernel documentation
+useful: (access this in the Linux kernel source code)
+
+	Documentation/devicetree/booting-without-of.txt
+
+There is also a mailing list:
+
+	http://lists.ozlabs.org/listinfo/devicetree-discuss
+
+In case you are wondering, OF stands for Open Firmware.
+
+
+Tools
+-----
+
+To use this feature you will need to get the device tree compiler here:
+
+	git://jdl.com/software/dtc.git
+
+For example:
+
+	$ git clone git://jdl.com/software/dtc.git
+	$ cd dtc
+	$ make
+	$ sudo make install
+
+Then run the compiler (your version will vary):
+
+	$ dtc -v
+	Version: DTC 1.2.0-g2cb4b51f
+	$ make tests
+	$ cd tests
+	$ ./run_tests.sh
+	********** TEST SUMMARY
+	*     Total testcases:	1371
+	*                PASS:	1371
+	*                FAIL:	0
+	*   Bad configuration:	0
+	* Strange test result:	0
+
+You will also find a useful ftdump utility for decoding a binary file.
+
+
+Where do I get an fdt file for my board?
+----------------------------------------
+
+You may find that the Linux kernel has a suitable file. Look in the
+kernel source in arch/<arch>/boot/dts.
+
+If not you might find other boards with suitable files that you can
+modify to your needs. Look in the board directories for files with a
+.dts extension.
+
+Failing that, you could write one from scratch yourself!
+
+
+Configuration
+-------------
+
+Use:
+
+#define CONFIG_DEFAULT_DEVICE_TREE	"<name>"
+
+to set the filename of the device tree source. Then put your device tree
+file into
+
+	board/<vendor>/dts/<name>.dts
+
+This should include your CPU or SOC's device tree file, placed in
+arch/<arch>/dts, and then make any adjustments required. The name of this
+is CONFIG_ARCH_DEVICE_TREE.dts.
+
+If CONFIG_OF_EMBED is defined, then it will be picked up and built into
+the U-Boot image (including u-boot.bin).
+
+If CONFIG_OF_SEPARATE is defined, then it will be built and placed in
+a u-boot.dtb file alongside u-boot.bin. A common approach is then to
+join the two:
+
+	cat u-boot.bin u-boot.dtb >image.bin
+
+and then flash image.bin onto your board.
+
+You cannot use both of these options at the same time.
+
+
+Limitations
+-----------
+
+U-Boot is designed to build with a single architecture type and CPU
+type. So for example it is not possible to build a single ARM binary
+which runs on your AT91 and OMAP boards, relying on an fdt to configure
+the various features. This is because you must select one of
+the CPU families within arch/arm/cpu/arm926ejs (omap or at91) at build
+time. Similarly you cannot build for multiple cpu types or
+architectures.
+
+That said the complexity reduction by using fdt to support variants of
+boards which use the same SOC / CPU can be substantial.
+
+It is important to understand that the fdt only selects options
+available in the platform / drivers. It cannot add new drivers (yet). So
+you must still have the CONFIG option to enable the driver. For example,
+you need to define CONFIG_SYS_NS16550 to bring in the NS16550 driver,
+but can use the fdt to specific the UART clock, peripheral address, etc.
+In very broad terms, the CONFIG options in general control *what* driver
+files are pulled in, and the fdt controls *how* those files work.
+
+--
+Simon Glass <sjg@chromium.org>
+1-Sep-11