Build error when added custom-code copy of nRF NSIB bootloader example as a child project instead of original NSIB bootloader example

[timuritxs]

Hello, I have project with main firmware and a little bootloader which I took from nRF examples (I need to change its source code). I added bootloader as a child image in the CMakeLists of main firmware (put add_child_image(...) between "project(...)" and target_sources(...)). The string added is:

add_child_image(NAME b0 SOURCE_DIR ${CMAKE_CURRENT_LIST_DIR}/bootloader)

When I tried to build the main application (that should automatically build bootloader as it is child), I saw that the bootloader successfully has been accepted as child image and started to build, but after I got a strange error saying about pm_config.h header inclusion in linker definition file (.ld): pm_config.h not found. How to solve that problem? Here s the output log:

...

[15/189] Building C object zephyr/arch/arch/arm/core/aarch32/cortex_m/CMakeFiles/arch__arm__core__aarch32__cortex_m.dir/thread_abort.c.obj
[16/189] Generating linker_zephyr_pre0.cmd
FAILED: zephyr/linker_zephyr_pre0.cmd
cmd.exe /C "cd /D C:\Users\nordic_user\projects\ble_test_project\build\b0\zephyr && C:\ncs\toolchains\v2.2.0\opt\zephyr-sdk\arm-zephyr-eabi\bin\arm-zephyr-eabi-gcc.exe -x assembler-with-cpp -undef -MD -MF linker_zephyr_pre0.cmd.dep -MT linker_zephyr_pre0.cmd -D_LINKER -D_ASMLANGUAGE -imacros C:/Users/nordic_user/projects/ble_test_project/build/b0/zephyr/include/generated/autoconf.h -IC:/ncs/v2.2.0/zephyr/include -IC:/Users/nordic_user/projects/ble_test_project/build/b0/zephyr/include/generated -IC:/ncs/v2.2.0/zephyr/soc/arm/nordic_nrf/nrf53 -IC:/ncs/v2.2.0/zephyr/lib/libc/minimal/include -IC:/ncs/v2.2.0/zephyr/soc/arm/nordic_nrf/common/. -IC:/ncs/v2.2.0/nrf/include -IC:/ncs/v2.2.0/nrf/subsys/bootloader/include -IC:/ncs/v2.2.0/nrf/tests/include -IC:/ncs/v2.2.0/modules/hal/cmsis/CMSIS/Core/Include -IC:/ncs/v2.2.0/modules/hal/nordic/nrfx -IC:/ncs/v2.2.0/modules/hal/nordic/nrfx/drivers/include -IC:/ncs/v2.2.0/modules/hal/nordic/nrfx/mdk -IC:/ncs/v2.2.0/zephyr/modules/hal_nordic/nrfx/. -IC:/ncs/v2.2.0/modules/lib/zcbor/include -D__GCC_LINKER_CMD__ -DUSE_PARTITION_MANAGER=1 -DLINKER_DEVICE_HANDLES_PASS1 -E C:/ncs/v2.2.0/zephyr/soc/arm/nordic_nrf/nrf53/linker.ld -P -o linker_zephyr_pre0.cmd && C:\ncs\toolchains\v2.2.0\opt\bin\cmake.exe -E cmake_transform_depfile Ninja gccdepfile C:/Users/nordic_user/projects/ble_test_project/bootloader C:/ncs/v2.2.0/zephyr C:/Users/nordic_user/projects/ble_test_project/build/b0 C:/Users/nordic_user/projects/ble_test_project/build/b0/zephyr C:/Users/nordic_user/projects/ble_test_project/build/b0/zephyr/linker_zephyr_pre0.cmd.dep C:/Users/nordic_user/projects/ble_test_project/build/b0/CMakeFiles/d/530161fb57b983645235f4cae66d7efd4d4904d41d7f77a4d1b0655285537e3e.d"
In file included from C:\ncs\v2.2.0\zephyr\soc\arm\nordic_nrf\nrf53\linker.ld:9:
C:\ncs\v2.2.0\zephyr\include\zephyr\arch\arm\aarch32\cortex_m\scripts\linker.ld:31:10: fatal error: pm_config.h: No such file or directory
31 | #include <pm_config.h>
| ^~~~~~~~~~~~~
compilation terminated.

...

[Sigurd Hellesvik]

Hi,

I will look into this and return with more information on Monday.

Regards,
Sigurd Hellesvik

[timuritxs]

After some digging, I found that nrf-connect sdk just turns off the partition manager for the bootloader, because it looks for any KConfig options that set CONFIG_PARTITION_MANAGER_ENABLED. But I have added the bootloader manually, not via KConfig, so I must set this constant manually too. I see, probably, the SDK or the VSCode extension prevent me to do that. Why? How to overcome this behavior? Or how to link the bootloader build process to the same partition manager settings as for the application?

Thanks.

[Sigurd Hellesvik]

The nRF Connect SDK do not at this time have support for adding a customer version of the NSIB bootloader.

So to do this, you need to make some changes to the nRF Connect SDK. For example by forking it
You have 2 alternatives:

1. Change the code in nrf/samples/bootloader
2. Change nrf/samples/CMakeLists.txt to allow for custom images.
   See  nRF53 Custom b0n Build  and specifically the last comment in this case.

Regards,
Sigurd Hellesvik

[timuritxs]

Ok, thanks. The same for the mcuboot nordic example?

[Sigurd Hellesvik]

Yes,

For 2. I think it would be https://github.com/nrfconnect/sdk-nrf/blob/b7c6830a6180aeb33d54f4b1d98ae060c3bf9dd2/modules/mcuboot/CMakeLists.txt#L234 which needs changing in that case.

Regards,
Sigurd Hellesvik