Getting Android up and running on the iMX6 platform using an open source graphics stack has been impossible up until recently, but now you can. Here's a guide through the steps.

Since the hardware very much matters this is going to be divided into a few parts, the common steps and the hardware specific ones.

This post is a bit of a living document and will be changed over time, and if you have any questions about it, please reach out through email (robert.foss at collabora.com) or irc (tomeu or robertfoss on #dri-devel on freenode).

mkdir /opt/android repo init -u https://android.googlesource.com/platform/manifest -b android-7.1.1_r28 cd /opt/android/.repo git clone https://git.collabora.com/git/user/robertfoss/android_manifest.git local_manifests -b android-etnaviv repo sync -j10 mkdir /opt/imx6_android cp /opt/imx6_android git clone https://git.collabora.com/git/user/robertfoss/linux.git -b imx_rdu2_v4.11-rc3 # The mkimage tool is used even if you're not # using u-boot it as a bootloader sudo apt install u-boot-tools # Fetch Kconfig, bootloaders and some scripts git clone https://git.collabora.com/git/user/robertfoss/rdu2.git . # This will destroy all data on /dev/mmcblk0 and # create boot/system/cache/data ext4 partitions ./setup_sdcard.sh /dev/mmcblk0 # Build android, the kernel, and flash it onto an SD-card ./build_android.sh



Hardware: iMX6 Sabre

Select correct dtb file for u-boot

nano uboot_android_boot.scr # Uncomment the correct dtb file for your platform setenv fdt_file imx6q-sabresd.dtb #setenv fdt_file imx6qp-sabresd.dtb # Run build script again, to make sure boot.scr # is created and moved to the SD-card ./build_android.sh



Start Android

The SD-card can now be put into the middlemost slot and the device can be restarted.





Hardware: RDU2

Install the bootloader

# Depending if you have a >=13" version of the RDU2 # use the imx6qp, if <13" then use the imx6q IMX6_TYPE=imx6q IMX6_TYPE=imx6qp BAREBOX="zodiac/barebox-zii-${IMX6_TYPE}-rdu2.img" # Flash bootloader to SD-card dd if=${BAREBOX} of=/dev/mmcblk0 bs=1k sync # Put SD-card in the middle-most slot on the RDU2 # Install lrzsz, since it is used for a ymodem upload sudo apt install lrzsz # Connect to serial device /dev/ttyUSB2 and # /dev/ttyUSB3 with minicom # The numbering assumes the RDU2 is the only serial # serial device connected sudo minicom -s +------------------------------------------+ | A - Serial Device : /dev/ttyUSB3 | B - Lockfile Location : /var/lock | C - Callin Program : | D - Callout Program : | E - Bps/Par/Bits : 115200 8N1 | F - Hardware Flow Control : No | G - Software Flow Control : No | | Change which setting? +------------------------------------------+ # Connect to Quark console on /dev/ttyUSB3 # Set boot SD-card as boot source #HostBoot s 0 reset # Restart device, connect to barebox loaded just loaded # from the SD-card on /dev/ttyUSB2 pic_setwdt 0 60 loady # Using the minicom quickly initiate a ymodem file # of the same barebox image you wrote to the SD-card # Be quick, the upload will timeout after a few seconds # Write the bootloader to SPI NOR erase /dev/m25p0.barebox # Depending on your RDU2 type flash one of the following cp barebox-zii-imx6q-rdu2.img /dev/m25p0.barebox # Or cp barebox-zii-imx6qp-rdu2.img /dev/m25p0.barebox # Connect to the Quark console on /dev/ttyUSB3 again # Set SPI NOR as the boot source #HostBoot s 2 reset # Connect to the barebox console on /dev/ttyUSB2 again # Edit configuration to automatically boot from mmc: sedit /env/config export global.boot.default=/env/boot/mmc export global.bootm.image=/mnt/mmc1.0/android_zImage export global.bootm.initrd=/mnt/mmc1.0/android_ramdisk.img.gz export global.bootm.oftree=/mnt/mmc1.0/imx6qp-zii-rdu2.dtb export global.linux.bootargs.base="console=ttymxc0,115200 console=tty0 rw rootwait ip=dhcp buildvariant=userdebug debug ignore_loglevel root=/dev/mmcblk0p2 rootfstype=ext4 rootwait init=/init printk.devkmsg=on verbose enforcing=0 androidboot.selinux=permissive drm.debug=0x00" sedit /env/boot/mmc #!/bin/sh detect mmc1 mkdir -p /mnt/mmc1.0 automount -d /mnt/mmc1.0 'mount /dev/mmc1.0 /mnt/mmc1.0' bootm pic_setwdt 0 60 # Disable watchdog exit



Start Android

The SD-card created in the common steps can now be put into the middlemost slot and the device can be restarted.





Thanks!

This work is built on efforts by a lot people:

Pengutronix who's been doing i.MX6 platform work.

Christian Gmeiner, Wladimir Van Der Laan, and the other etnviv developers.

Rob Herring at Linaro for getting the ball rolling with AOSP for Zii.

Andrey Smirnov for driver support for the RDU2 such as i.MX6 PCI, ARM PL310 L2 Cache controller, RTC, and other i.MX6qp driver fixups.

This post has been a part of work undertaken by my employer Collabora.

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