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Flashing via NXP uuu (Universal Update Utility)

Some i.MX-based boards support flashing via uuu (Universal Update Utility), NXP's USB-based download tool. This is useful for flashing eMMC without removing it from the board.

For board-specific hardware setup (boot switches, jumpers) see:

Prerequisites​

  • USB Type-A to USB-C (or Micro-USB) cable connected to the board's USB OTG / download port
  • uuu installed on the host
# Install uuu on Debian/Ubuntu
sudo apt install uuu

# Or download the binary from GitHub releases

Locating the artifacts​

After a successful build, the WIC image and SPL/u-boot binaries are at:

build/tmp-scarthgap/deploy/images/<machine>/
  pantavisor-starter-<machine>*.wic
  imx-boot-<machine>*.bin       # SPL + u-boot FIT image

Flashing procedure​

1. Put the board into USB download (serial download) mode​

See the board-specific page for the exact switch/jumper settings.

2. Connect USB and verify​

# uuu should detect the board
sudo uuu -lsusb

You should see an SE Blank or SDP:MX8M* device listed.

3. Flash with uuu​

Option A — using the WIC image directly​

sudo uuu -b emmc_all imx-boot-<machine>*.bin pantavisor-starter-<machine>*.wic

Option B — using a board-vendor uuu script (Variscite)​

Variscite BSPs ship a uuu_imx_android_flash.sh script. Refer to the Variscite wiki for the board-specific command.

4. Boot normally​

Remove the download-mode jumper/switch, then power-cycle the board. It will boot from eMMC.

Notes​

  • uuu requires root or udev rules granting access to the USB device. Add the NXP vendor udev rule if you get permission errors: 
    echo 'SUBSYSTEM=="usb", ATTR{idVendor}=="1fc9", MODE="0666"' \
        | sudo tee /etc/udev/rules.d/70-nxp-uuu.rules
    sudo udevadm control --reload-rules
  • The emmc_all profile writes the full WIC image (boot partitions + rootfs). Use emmc if you only want to update the rootfs partition.