Setting CONFIG_BOOTLOADER_MCUBOOT=y in prj.config on custom board prevents code working

[Mike Austin (LPI)]

I've been doing all my pre-production coding under the following environment:

• Visual Studio Code v1.71.2, with nRF Connect Extension (v2022.9.179)
• nRF Connect SDK v2.0.0
• nRF52-DK

I've got my code running successfully under the above arrangement.  Recently, I tried porting this to my custom board, which uses the same IC as the nRF52-DK, which is the nRF52832.  I've been able to successfully program this with some simple LED Blinky and System_Off examples I had generated in the earlier days of development with the nRF52-DK, and everything appears to work as expected.

However, when I go to flash my pre-production code, that works on the nRF52-DK, then nothing works.

I've isolated this to the setting of CONFIG_BOOTLOADER_MCUBOOT=y in my prj.config file.  I can't just comment this out of my pre-production code, as it causes all sorts of other issues, but if I copy my working code prj.config file to, say, my LED_Blinky code, then I see the following:

• CONFIG_BOOTLOADER_MCUBOOT=y then the code won't run
• CONFIG_BOOTLOADER_MCUBOOT=n, then the code runs

I'm trying to understand why, even though the IC's on both the nRF52-Dk and my custom board are exactly the same, that trying to enable mcuboot on my custom board is causing me issues.

Ultimately, I need mcuboot as I am including OTA DFU functionality in my final design

Anyone seen this issue before and know how I can go about resolving it?

CHeers,

Mike

[Mike Austin (LPI)]

Hi Sigurd,

No, im not using the DC-DC converter so have set the appropriate CONFIG = n for that.

And yes, I’ve got both the 32MHz HFXO and 32.768kHz LFXO.

There’s some more detail on my custom board here:

devzone.nordicsemi.com/.../issues-with-programming-operation-of-custom-pcb-with-nrf52832

Cheers,

Mike

[Sigurd Hellesvik]

Hi Mike,

Some project configurations can be overwritten by child images. This is what I suspect happens in this case.

Can you post your prj.conf for your project + configurations for your custom boards, and I will see if I can find anything that seems off.

Regards,
Sigurd Hellesvik

[Mike Austin (LPI)]

Hi Sigurd,

Bingo!  That fixed it.  Makes sense too.  I already had the mcuboot.conf as I had to create that to turn off GPIO during mcuboot, as it was clearing out my LATCH register before I had a change to see which GPIO was brining the device out of sleep mode.

Makes sense that I'd need to disable the DC-DC in both the mcuboot.conf and prf.conf files.

Thanks for your help

Cheers,

Mike

[thang47]

Hi Austin,

I have same the problem, can you help me?

[Mike Austin (LPI)]

I had to set CONFIG_ENABLE_DC_DC=n in BOTH my proj.conf and my mcuboot.conf files to solve the issue for my custom board as I wasn’t using the DC DC converter feature that is enabled on the DK

Mike

[thang47]

But I'm using nrf52840 module, not DK.

This is my ticket: devzone.nordicsemi.com/.../rtt-log-with-mcuboot

[thang47]

Can you guide me to add mcuboot.conf to my project?

[Sigurd Hellesvik]

thang47 said:

Can you guide me to add mcuboot.conf to my project?

See my previous explanation:

Sigurd Hellesvik said:

Create a folder in your project called child_image.
Then create the file child_image/mcuboot.conf.