STM32MP15 distribution for Android release note - v2.0.0

This article describes the content of STM32MPU distribution for Android software release v2.0.0 st-android-11.0.0-2021-01-29 (tag), which is part of STM32MP15 ecosystem release note - v2.1.0.

1 Intended audience[edit]

The targeted audience is STM32MP15 customers or partners.

2 Delivery scope and purpose[edit]

The STM32MPU distribution for Android provides all the components required for running, developing and/or making your own platform based on Android framework. It runs on the Arm® Cortex®-A7 processors, and is a fundamental part of the STM32MPU Embedded Software distribution for Android.

It is compatible with Android 11.0.0.

It is provided as an example. The Android certifications are not guaranteed.


This delivery of STM32MP15 distribution for Android™ v2.0.0 is part of STM32MP15-Ecosystem-v2.1.0 (see the STM32MP15 ecosystem release note - v2.1.0).

3 Licensing[edit]

This software package is licensed under a SOFTWARE LICENSE AGREEMENT (SLA). Customers may not use this package except in compliance with the software license agreement (SLA).

All packages use the same source components. All components and their respective licenses are listed here.

4 Supported hardware[edit]

This software delivery is compatible with the following boards:

5 Delivered features[edit]

5.1 Main software components[edit]

  • Android version v11.0.0 (AOSP android-11.0.0_r27 tag)
  • Kernel version v5.4.56 (AOSP common kernel) + updates for STM32MP1 and associated boards (waiting upstream finalization)
  • TF-A version v2.2 + updates for STM32MP1 and associated boards (waiting upstream finalization)
  • U-Boot version v2020.01 + updates for STM32MP1 and associated boards (waiting upstream finalization)
  • OP-TEE version v3.9.0 + updates for STM32MP1 and associated boards (waiting upstream finalization)
  • STM32CubeMP1 FW v1.5.0
  • GCC version v9.2
  • openOCD version v0.10.0
  • GCnano version v6.4.3

5.2 Detailed features[edit]

5.2.1 BSP features[edit]

The STM32MP15 distribution for Android™ v2.0.0 is based on the OpenSTLinux BSP v2.1.0 described in the following chapters:

5.2.2 Android features[edit]

Domain Feature STM32MP15
Evaluation board
Comment
Boot Fastboot Yes This mode can be entered by connecting an ST-Link console to the UART interface or by hardware control.
Verified boot No
A/B mechanism No Boot A and B images are available (boot from A is selected by default).
Recovery No
Multimedia Audio speaker Yes Audio speaker output can be used only to connect a headset.
Audio headset Yes Not selected by default (no headset detection)
Audio built-in digital micro Yes Limited to one microphone (mono).
Audio USB No
Camera Yes
Camera USB No
Video SW decode Yes Maximum 480p30 without audio.
Security SELinux Yes
Runtime verification No
Disk encryption Yes
Trusted environment Yes OP-TEE
Keystore Yes OP-TEE solution based on kmgk[1] implementation
Gatekeeper Yes OP-TEE solution based on kmgk[2] implementation
Network and connectivity Ethernet Yes
Wifi Yes TP-LINK dongle (TL-WN722N) is used for test purposes.
Wifi hotspot Yes TP-LINK dongle (TL-WN722N) is used for test purposes.
BT / BLE No
USB Yes Mass storage / MTP / PTP / RNDIS.
Systems Boot control Partially Available but not enabled.
Power control Yes
Thermal control Yes Only one temperature is managed for CPU/GPU (others are stubbed).
Update engine No
Sensors Accelerometer No
Gyroscope No
Magnetometer No
Proximity No
Pressure No
Temperature No
Hub No
Debug ADB (USB) Yes
ADB (Ethernet) Yes
Perfetto Yes
Metrics Yes Boot time.
Storage USB Key Yes
microSD card Yes
eMMC Yes
Others Lights Yes
Touchscreen Yes

6 Recommendations for use[edit]

6.1 Safe use[edit]

  • Flash load and boot from a supported Flash device: SDCard or eMMC Flash memories
  • Develop Android™ applications, libraries and kernel modules
  • Prototype applications based on ST boards
  • Develop your own board based on an STM32MP15x

6.2 Non-recommended use[edit]

  • None

7 Main restrictions[edit]

7.1 BSP restrictions[edit]

  • M-CAN Bus is not functional if power management is activated ("sleep" state defined in pinctrl): the issue is corrected thanks to this patch.

7.2 Android restrictions[edit]

STM32P15 distribution for Android™ is provided as example.

In this context:

  • Compliance tests (VTS/CTS) are not ensured (but they are executed and treated as much as possible).
  • Verified boot and A/B boot mechanism are not available or are partially available.

The following functions are available on STM32MP15 Evaluation board but are not integrated in STM32P15 distribution for Android™:

  • Audio headset detection is not available (its usage has to be forced).
  • Audio RCA is not available (SPDIF input / SPDIF output).
  • Audio digital microphone is limited to mono mode (record usage) without any gain.
  • Joystick is not available.
Warning white.png Warning

In this delivery, the OP-TEE secure storage[3] is using the eMMC RPMB partition with the TESTKEY fused (irreversible) if not already done. If you want to use your own key, you have to rebuild the OP-TEE sources using the distribution package

8 Minor release updates[edit]

STMicroelectronics can deliver corrections and some light changes on purpose through github® components.

8.1 v2.0.1[edit]

Tag: st-android-11.0.0-2021-06-01

Main updates (distribution package only):

  • switch to AOSP android-11.0.0_r37 tag
  • switch to OpenSTLinux BSP v2.1.1
  • change the kernel build config structure

8.2 v2.0.2[edit]

Tag: st-android-11.0.0-2021-08-31

Main updates (distribution package only):

  • change graphics libraries (gcnano 6.4.6) and enable overlay plane usage (warning: display must be switched to BGR mode for color format compatibility)
  • enable AVB for boot partition (eMMC configuration only)
  • add small screen support (MB1166) instead of default one (MB1230)
  • several minor corrections on ST applications

9 How to get started with st-android-11.0.0-2021-01-29[edit]

Refer to How to download the software and start with this release.

10 Associated tools[edit]

Refer to the Referenced tools release notes .

11 Demonstration applications[edit]

The STM32MP15 distribution for Android™ is delivered with several applications provided as example.

11.1 STLauncher[edit]

Simple launcher application example.

The associated application project is available on GitHub® (compatible with Android Studio IDE): STLauncher application.

11.2 STCopro M4Echo application[edit]

Example of application using the proprietary coprocessor service. It allows a direct interaction with the firmware launched on the embedded Arm® Cortex®M4 core.

The firmware just returns the received character via the open serial port.

The associated application project is available on GitHub® (compatible with Android Studio IDE): STCoproM4Echo application.

11.3 STCopro M4Example application[edit]

Example of application using the proprietary coprocessor service. It allows direct interaction with the firmware started on the embedded Arm® Cortex®M4 core.

The firmware generates a signal on the DAC and gets back a signal from the ADC. A wire can be added to loop back the DAC on the ADC. The firmware also shows a simple usage of several blocks available on Arm® Cortex®M4 side.

The associated application project is available on GitHub® (compatible with Android Studio IDE): STCoproM4Example application.

The associated firmware project is available on GitHub® (compatible with STM32CubeIDE): STCoproM4Example firmware.

11.4 STCamera[edit]

Simple camera application (preview) showing a way to manage the built-in camera. It is compatible only with the MB1379 camera extension board. An external storage configured as portable device must be available to allow taking pictures.

The associated application project is available on GitHub® (compatible with Android Studio IDE): STCamera application.

11.5 STAudio[edit]

Simple audio application demonstrating how to play and record audio data. The audio files must be stored in the Music directory on an external storage device (such as a USB key) or anywhere on a primary storage (such as an SD card in case of eMMC configuration).

The associated application project is available on GitHub® (compatible with Android Studio IDE): STAudio application.

11.6 STVideo[edit]

Simple video application illustrating how to play a video. The video files must be stored in the Movies directory on an external storage (such as a USB key) or anywhere on a primary storage (such as an SD card in case of eMMC configuration).

The associated application project is available on GitHub® (compatible with Android Studio IDE): STVideo application.

11.7 STGraphics[edit]

Simple 2D and 3D graphics application illustrating usage of OpenGLES v2.0.

The associated application project is available on GitHub® (compatible with Android Studio IDE): STGraphics application.

11.8 STPerf[edit]

Performance overlay application used to demonstrate in foreground the device performance (CPU usage, GPU usage, frame rate). The application can be configured and stopped via a notification system interface.

Limitation: this application is available only in debug build.

The associated application project is available on GitHub® (compatible with Android Studio IDE): STPerf application.

12 Main changes compared to v1.1.0[edit]

The main differences between v2.0.0 and previous delivery v1.1.0 (see STM32MP15 distribution for Android release note - v1.1.0 page for the v1 ecosystem releases (in archived wiki)):

  • Switch from Android 10.0.0 (android-10.0.0_r22) to Android 11.0.0 (android-11.0.0_r27)
  • Switch from Linux kernel 4.19.94 to 5.4.56
  • Switch from STM32MP1 OpenSTLinux BSP V1.2.0 to V2.1.0
  • Added OP-TEE keystore and gatekeeper as example

13 Detailed delivery content[edit]

13.1 Detailed description of STMicroelectronics modules[edit]

13.1.1 BSP modules[edit]

Module name Path of module Description
stm32mp1-bootloader device/stm/
stm32mp1-bootloader
Primary (Trusted Firmware-A) and secondary (Universal bootloader for embedded devices) bootloaders for STM32MP
Name Version License
tf-a-stm32mp1 2.2 BSD-3-Clause
Name Version License
u-boot-stm32mp1 2020.01 GPLv2+
stm32mp1-kernel device/stm/
stm32mp1-kernel
Linux STM32MP Kernel
Name Version License
linux-stm32mp1 5.4 GPLv2
stm32mp1-tee device/stm/
stm32mp1-tee
OPTEE OS for STM32MP
Name Version License
optee_os-stm32mp1 3.9.0 BSD-2-Clause & BSD-3-Clause
stm32mp1-openocd device/stm/
stm32mp1-openocd
Free and open on-chip debugging, in-system programming and boundary-scan testing
Name Version License
stm32mp1-openocd 0.10.0 GPLv2

13.1.2 Common and peripherals modules[edit]

Module name Path of module Description
stm32mp1 device/stm/
stm32mp1
Configuration of the STM32MP1 distribution for Android
Name Version License
stm32mp1 NA Apache v2.0
allocator device/stm/stm32mp1/
peripheral/allocator
STMicroelectronics allocator HAL public header files useful for composer
Name Version License
allocator NA Apache v2.0
audio device/stm/stm32mp1/
peripheral/audio
STMicroelectronics Audio HAL source code
Name Version License
audio NA Apache v2.0
camera device/stm/stm32mp1/
peripheral/camera
STMicroelectronics Camera HAL source code
Name Version License
camera NA Apache v2.0
composer device/stm/stm32mp1/
peripheral/composer
STMicroelectronics composer HAL source code
Name Version License
composer NA Apache v2.0
copro device/stm/stm32mp1/
peripheral/copro
STMicroelectronics Copro HAL source code
Name Version License
copro NA Apache v2.0
health device/stm/stm32mp1/
peripheral/health
STMicroelectronics Health hardware service source code
Name Version License
health NA Apache v2.0
lights device/stm/stm32mp1/
peripheral/lights
STMicroelectronics Lights HAL source code
Name Version License
lights NA Apache v2.0
memtrack device/stm/stm32mp1/
peripheral/memtrack
STMicroelectronics Memtrack HAL source code
Name Version License
memtrack NA Apache v2.0
oemlock device/stm/stm32mp1/
peripheral/oemlock
STMicroelectronics OemLock HAL source code (stub version)
Name Version License
oemlock NA Apache v2.0
thermal device/stm/stm32mp1/
peripheral/thermal
STMicroelectronics Thermal hardware service source code
Name Version License
thermal NA Apache v2.0
usb device/stm/stm32mp1/
peripheral/usb
STMicroelectronics Usb hardware service source code
Name Version License
usb NA Apache v2.0
wifi device/stm/stm32mp1/
peripheral/wifi
STMicroelectronics libwifi HAL source code
Name Version License
wifi NA Apache v2.0

13.1.3 Board modules[edit]

Module name Path of module Description
eval device/stm/stm32mp1/
eval
STMicroelectronics configuration for Android used to generate images adapted to the STM32MP15 Evaluation boards
Name Version License
eval NA Apache v2.0

13.1.4 Coprocessor service module[edit]

Module name Path of module Description
CoproService packages/services/
CoproService
STMicroelectronics coprocessor service
Name Version License
CoproService NA Apache v2.0

13.1.5 ST application modules[edit]

Module name Path of module Description
app vendor/stm/app STMicroelectronics applications that can be associated, if need be, to their respective coprocessor firmware
Name Version License
app NA Apache v2.0