Dear Nordic Semiconductor Support Team,
I’m encountering two related issues when updating my nRF9160 application firmware that cause the Onomondo SoftSIM profile to be erased. Both issues use the same partition layout and J-Link Commander commands, and I need guidance on how to preserve the SoftSIM data in NVS during firmware upgrades.
Background
- Target: nRF9160_SICA running Zephyr OS
- SoftSIM provider: Onomondo
- Two firmware variants:
- Test firmware – validates peripherals, provisions SoftSIM, and works flawlessly
- Main firmware – intended only to update application code
Partition table is identical in both firmware builds.
Problem 1: SoftSIM Profile Disappears After “erase app section”
- Provision SoftSIM profile successfully under test firmware.
- Switch to main firmware and execute J-Link Commander script:
device NRF9160_XXAA
if SWD
speed 4000
erase 0x00010000,0x00050000
- After flashing,
nrf_softsim_check_provisioned()returns “not present.” - It appears J-Link’s partial erase also clears the SoftSIM’s NVS area.
Request: How can I restrict the J-Link erase to the application region (0x10000–0x50000) without touching NVS partitions? Are there alternate commands or options to preserve NVS data?
pm_static.yml
Problem 2: Custom NVS Partition for SoftSIM Also Gets Cleared
To isolate the issue, I created dedicated NVS partitions under nonsecure_storage for both Onomondo SoftSIM and my own data. My custom entries survive a firmware update, but the SoftSIM profile is still lost.
Custom partition excerpt:
nonsecure_storage:
address: 0x000ee000
size: 0x0c000
span:
- settings_storage
- nvs_storage # SoftSIM uses this
- my_nvs # persists correctly
nvs_storage:
address: 0x000ee000
size: 0x08000
my_nvs:
address: 0x000f6000
size: 0x02000
Observation: After replaying the same J-Link erase and flash, my_nvs data remains intact but nvs_storage (SoftSIM) is wiped.
pm_static.yml
Requested Support
- Recommended J-Link Commander commands or options to erase only the application partition.
- Best practices for partition alignment and partition table configuration to safeguard SoftSIM profiles.
- Any known limitations or additional steps required by the nRF9160 secure/non-secure flash attribution unit to preserve non-volatile data.
- how i can presure my softsim profile after reflashing,
Thank you for your assistance—I’m happy to provide any further logs or details.
Best regards,
Aizaz Ullah
