NXP UUU (Universal Update Utility)

The UUU (Universal Update Utility is an open source programm provided by NXP, it is the successor of NXP's MFG Tools, intended to download and execute code on i.MX SoC family via the Serial Download Protocol (SDP). Documentation, source code and prebuild releases are available via the NXP mfgtools github repository.

1. Download the latest release from Universal Update Utility repository or build it from source

2. MOD_NAME BSP built following the BSP quickstart instructions.

A prebuild UUU release version can be downloaded from the UUU git repository.

It is recommended to use the latest avialable release.

The Universal Update Utility (UUU) tool can be compiled manually. The build instructions for Linux, Windows are available in the UUU documentation:

A U-Boot binary with the U-Boot configuration is required to use the UUU. This particular U-Boot will be built during the MOD_NAME Yocto BSP build process and is located in the build directory deploy folder named .

The syntax of the UUU tool is identical for Windows and Linux.
In Windows uuu.exe has to be used while in Linux the uuu binary has no file extension.

For the sake of siplicity, copy the following components to a new folder e.g. in your home directory:

UUU binary (manually compiled or prebuilt release)
U-Boot binary with UUU configuration
SD / eMMC image for example the default image

The following commands are executed in the folder containing the tool and the binaries.

Set the STKa8MPxL DIP switches to Serial Downloader Mode (See DIP-Switch Settings)
Connect STKa8MPxL via connector to the Host Computer

After connecting the kit, it should be automatically detected when it is in serial downloader mode. Run the following command to list all detected devices:

uuu -lsusb

To load the U-boot binary into the RAM and start it from there use the command below:

uuu <u-boot binary>

Example for the STKa8MPxL:

uuu

Use the following command to program a U-Boot binary into the eMMC.

uuu -b emmc <u-boot binary>

Example for the STKa8MPxL:

uuu -b emmc

Follow the command below to load the mfgtool U-Boot and write an image onto the MOD_NAME eMMC afterwards.

uuu -b emmc_all <u-boot binary> <wic-image>

Example for the STKa8MPxL:

uuu -b emmc_all  .bin

Attention: By default the bootstream is written to eMMC boot partition and eMMC is configured to use boot partition. To write all firmware components into the eMMC user area a custom update script can be used. The next section shows how to create such an update script.

Use a custom workflow:
For a custom workflow uuu commands can be listed in a cmdlist file. The following example shows how to program a wic image to eMMC user area, without writing the bootstream to the eMMC boot partition.

Following example is tested with uuu version 1.5.4.

Example cmdlist file on STKa8MPxL:

For the sake of simplicity, create the cmdlist file in the same location as the uuu executable. For example uuu.MOD_NAME_CODE

Example command for the STKa8MPxL using custom cmdlist:

uuu -e BOOTSTREAM=<bootstream for uuu> -e WICIMAGE=<wic image for eMMC> uuu.<label mod_name_code>MOD_NAME_CODE</label>

uuu -e BOOTSTREAM=  -e WICIMAGE= uuu.<label mod_name_code>MOD_NAME_CODE</label>

NXP UUU (Universal Update Utility)

Prerequisites

Download a Prebuild UUU Release Version

Building the Universal Update Utility from source

U-Boot Binary

Usage

Prepare Host Computer

Prepare STKa8MPxL

List detected devices

Start U-Boot over Serial Downloader

Program U-Boot over Serial Downloader

Program .wic image over Serial Downloader