Create Zip firmware package for DFU over Bluetooth

[Neel Oza]

Hi,

I'm developing an application based on the nRF52832 development kit. It is nrf52dk_nrf52832(PCA10040). I have used nRF Connect SDK (3.0.0) for the project development.

Now, I want to add a feature of DFU over Bluetooth to update the firmware. We used the Simple Management Protocol (SMP) and we could complete the DFU using the Android/iOS nRFConnect application using the *.bin file created by Zephyr.

We have a custom mobile application which is based on React Native and it only supports zip packages created using "nrfutil pkg generate" command.

Hereby, the API that using in my custom mobile Application.

import { NordicDFU, DFUEmitter } from "react-native-nordic-dfu";

 

NordicDFU.startDFU({
  deviceAddress: "12:34:56:78:90:99",
  deviceName: "Pilloxa Pillbox",
  filePath: "/data/user/0/com.nordicdfuexample/files/RNFetchBlobTmp4of.zip",
})

Is there any possible way to do DFU using a zip package?

Zephyr version: 3.0.99
Zephyr SDK version: zephyr-sdk-0.13.2

Thanks!

[Hung Bui]

Hi Neel, 
As far as I know when you do "nrfutil pkg generate" to generate .zip file it's not for the application created with NCS but the application created with NRF5SDK and the correspondent bootloader for it is the one in nRF5SDK not MCUboot and SMP protocol. 

If it's the case the app won't be able to do DFU update to the NCS application. 

We do support .zip file but it's the .zip created by Zephyr in build folder, not nrfutil. Please have a look at the NRF Connect Device Manager app here here: https://github.com/NordicSemiconductor/IOS-nRF-Connect-Device-Manager/blob/master/Example/Example/Util/McuMgrPackage.swift

[Neel Oza]

Hi Hung,

Thank you for the quick response. 

As I have mentioned in my ticket, I am using nRF Connect SDK (3.0.0). When I build source code using the WEST command, the build .zip file is not available in the build directory. Please find below the command to compile the source code.

west build -b nrf52dk_nrf52832 -s test-src/peripheral/ -d test-build/peripheral -- -DCONFIG_MCUBOOT_SIGNATURE_KEY_FILE=\"bootloader/mcuboot/root-rsa-2048.pem\"

Here, test-src/peripheral/ is the source directory and test-build/peripheral is the build directory.

Please let me know if I am missing something.

Thanks!

[Hung Bui]

Hi Neel, 

Could you double check which SDK version you are using ? Our latest NCS SDK is v2.0.1

https://github.com/nrfconnect/sdk-nrf

https://developer.nordicsemi.com/nRF_Connect_SDK/doc/latest/nrf/index.html

Have you configured CONFIG_MCUBOOT=y in your prj.conf

I assume you sign the the image manually ? to get the app app_update.bin file. 

I would need to check on how to generate .zip file in NCS , I usually compile using Visual Studio Code and the app_update.bin file and the dfu_application.zip file was automatically generated. 

[Neel Oza]

Hi Hung,

Thank you for your kind response. 

Now, I installed nRF Connect SDK using the "Installing automatically" method and it could generate the dfu_application.zip file. 

Now, I am facing another issue is that I could perform DFU using the Android nRF Connect application but iOS nRF Connect application raising the issue.

Please find below the error message for reference.

As per my knowledge, it tried to find the *.dat file from the ZIP package and it is not available.

Thanks!

[Hung Bui]

Hi Neel, 

Could you check what inside dfu_application.zip ? 
Please let us know the NCS version you are using? 
Have you tried to test with the nRF Device Manager app ? 

[Neel Oza]

Hi Hung,

I am using NCS version V2.0.0.

Yes, I tried the same thing using the nRF Device Manager app and faced the same issue in iOS.

Thanks!

[Hung Bui]

Hi Neel,

Could you provide the .zip file so we can test here ? 

Could you try to test with this file: 

dfu_application.zip

It's created from this project : 

peripheral_uart_smp.zip

[Neel Oza]

Hi Hung,

I have tried to perform DFU using the given dfu_application.zip file using the iOS nRF Connect application, but it throws me the same error message. 

Could you please try to perform it on an iphone?

Thanks!

[Aleksander Nowakowski]

Hello,

You're using Files tab, instead of Image tab. Files tab is to send and download files to a file system on the device, not to update it. Please, use Image tab. There, you'll have 2 modes: Basic and Advanced.

In Basic mode (visible by default) you may select the bin file and upload it. The upload should work.

ZIP files are for updating multi-code devices, like nRF5340, which need one bin file per core.