Q: Why are there two versions of the script mkromfsimg.sh, one in apps/tools and one in nuttx/tools.

A: The version of mkromfsimg.sh in nuttx/tools is a generic tool to simplify creation of ROMFS file system from any directory contain content that you would like to access within the the target.

The version in apps/tools, on the other hand, has a very special purpose. It is part of the support that can be used in the KERNEL build mode.

Processes and Programs in the KERNEL Build

In the kernel build, there are no tasks. There are only processes and all code lives in its own, private address space. Reference

One consequence of that is that functions like task_create() and friends cannot be used in the KERNEL build mode. Instead, all processes must be loaded into a virtual address space from an ELF or NxFLAT file residing in the file system. ROMFS is one of many file system, but one that is particularly usable for this purpose in deeply embedded systems.

KERNEL Build Differences

You have probably seen logic like this and wonder what was going on:

  #ifdef CONFIG_BUILD_KERNEL
  int main(int argc, FAR char *argv[])
  #else
  int hello_main(int argc, char *argv[])
  #endif
  ...

In the FLAT and PROTECTED build mode all applications are built into a single BLOB, so every symbol must have a unique name to avoid name collisions.

In the KERNEL build mode, all applications are built at separately linked programs that reside in a file system. The entry point to ALL programs is the function main().

There is also some strange magic in all of the {{Makefile}}s to build each application differently in the KERNEL build.

See also APPNAME vs. PROGNAME.

apps/bin

When you build the apps/ programs in FLAT or PROTECTED modes, all of the object files are put into an archive apps/libapps.a which is, eventually, copied to nuttx/libs and the BLOB is created by linking NuttX archives with lib/libapps.a.

But when you build the apps/ programs in the KERNEL mode, the directory apps/bin is created by the top-level apps/Makefile. Each source file is compiled, but the object files are not added to ayn archive. Instead, the object files are linked into a separate compiled and linked program. Each program is then _install_ed at apps/bin.

apps/tools/mkromfsimg.sh

When the apps/ kernel build is complete, all of the programs have been installed in apps/bin. That is where apps/tools/mkromfsimg.sh file comes into to play. It takes all of the programs in apps/bin and creates a ROMFS file system image containing all of the applications. That ROMFS file system image is built into the kernel.

Application Initialization

At run time, when the kernel boots, it will mount that ROMFS file system at /bin. In the FLAT build mode, the OS boot logic calls task_create() to start the initial task you have configured with CONFIG_USER_ENTRYPOINT. But in the KERNEL build, something different happens. {{ CONFIG_USER_ENTRYPOINT}} is not used. Instead, CONFIG_INIT_FILEPATH is used. This will be the name of the program to stared in /bin to bring up the system.

Look at the logic in nuttx/sched/init/nx_bringup.c:

#elif defined(CONFIG_INIT_FILEPATH)
static inline void nx_start_initthread(void)
{
  int ret;

#ifdef CONFIG_BOARD_LATE_INITIALIZE
  /* Perform any last-minute, board-specific initialization, if so
   * configured.
   */

  board_late_initialize();
#endif

  /* Start the application initialization program from a program in a
   * mounted file system.  Presumably the file system was mounted as part
   * of the board_late_initialize() operation.
   */

  sinfo("Starting init task: %s\n", CONFIG_USER_INITPATH);

  ret = exec(CONFIG_USER_INITPATH, NULL, CONFIG_INIT_SYMTAB,
             CONFIG_INIT_NEXPORTS);
  ASSERT(ret >= 0);
}

Where exec() is an internal, more primitive function that is the basis for the POSIX standard functions execv() and friends.

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