Mainline Kernels and Open Firmware for Rockchip Platforms
mainline-rock is a collection of open-source projects dedicated to bringing mainline Linux/BSD/RTOS support to Rockchip platforms. Our goal is to enable Rockchip hardware to run upstream kernels and operating systems, avoiding vendor BSP fragmentation while enjoying continuous security updates and new features.
- Mainline First: Contribute code back to upstream communities whenever possible
- Open Firmware: Use open-source firmware solutions like ATF, U-Boot, and UEFI
- Multi-OS Support: Support Linux, FreeBSD, NetBSD, RTEMS, and other operating systems
- Maintainability: Enable users to update their systems easily without depending on specific vendors
| Platform | SoC | Status |
|---|---|---|
| E54C | RK3588S / RK3582 | ✅ Bootable |
| Friendly Elec RK3399 SOM | RK3399 | 🚧 In Development |
| Toybrick Prod RK3399Pro | RK3399Pro | 🚧 In Development |
These platforms already have mature mainline support upstream — just grab and use:
| Platform | SoC | Upstream |
|---|---|---|
| Radxa E54C | RK3588S / RK3582 | Armbian |
Contributions for other Rockchip platforms are welcome!
| OS | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Linux | 🟢 Mainline | Mainline Linux kernel |
| FreeBSD | 🚧 In Development | FreeBSD port |
| NetBSD | 🚧 In Development | NetBSD port |
| OpenBSD | 🚧 In Development | OpenBSD port |
| RTEMS | 🚧 In Development | Real-time OS support |
We use open-source firmware solutions to ensure transparency and maintainability of the boot process:
| Component | Description |
|---|---|
| ARM Trusted Firmware (ATF) | ARM secure firmware providing TrustZone support |
| U-Boot | Universal bootloader with extensive hardware and filesystem support |
| UEFI | Unified Extensible Firmware Interface for standardized boot environment |
| Repository | Description |
|---|---|
| e54c-freebsd | FreeBSD 15.0 for E54C (RK3588S/RK3582), ATF + UEFI boot |
| Repository | Description |
|---|---|
| rockchip_docs | Rockchip technical documentation collection |
| Repository | Description |
|---|---|
| arm-trusted-firmware | ARM Trusted Firmware (ATF) mirror |
| u-boot | U-Boot source tree mirror |
| edk2-rk | EDK2 UEFI firmware for Rockchip platforms |
| Repository | Description |
|---|---|
| freebsd-src | FreeBSD source tree mirror |
| freebsd-ports | FreeBSD ports mirror |
| netbsd-src | NetBSD source tree mirror |
| openbsd-src | OpenBSD source tree mirror |
| rtems | RTEMS RTOS mirror |
| rtems-libbsd | RTEMS BSD userspace mirror |
| Repository | Description |
|---|---|
| linux-rockchip | Rockchip Linux kernel (maintained by Armbian) |
| ubuntu-rockchip | Ubuntu for Rockchip RK35XX devices |
| buildroot | Buildroot embedded Linux build framework mirror |
| Repository | Description |
|---|---|
| radxa-bsp | Radxa BSP build tool |
| crochet | FreeBSD image build tool |
| cheribuild | CHERI project build tool |
mainline-rock is developed with an AI-augmented workflow powered by opencode + oh-my-openagent, orchestrated through a team of specialized AI agents:
| Agent | Role | Model |
|---|---|---|
| Sisyphus | Orchestrator — decomposes tasks, delegates to specialists | DeepSeek V4 Flash |
| Oracle | High-IQ consultant for architecture and debugging | DeepSeek V4 Pro |
| Prometheus | Plan builder for multi-step tasks | DeepSeek V4 Pro |
| Metis | Pre-planning consultant — catches ambiguity early | GLM-5 |
| Momus | Quality assurance and plan review | GLM-5 |
| Hephaestus | General task execution | DeepSeek V4 Flash |
| Librarian | External reference search (docs, OSS, web) | DeepSeek V4 Flash |
| Explore | Codebase pattern discovery | DeepSeek V4 Flash |
| Multimodal Looker | Media analysis (PDFs, images, diagrams) | DeepSeek V4 Flash |
| Atlas | Knowledge graph navigation | DeepSeek V4 Flash |
| Sisyphus-Junior | Focused task executor (no delegation) | DeepSeek V4 Flash |
Optimized category routing:
| Domain | Category | Model |
|---|---|---|
| Frontend / UI / UX | visual-engineering |
DeepSeek V4 Flash |
| Hard logic / architecture | ultrabrain |
DeepSeek V4 Pro |
| Autonomous end-to-end | deep |
DeepSeek V4 Pro |
| Creative problem-solving | artistry |
DeepSeek V4 Flash |
| Trivial / single-file | quick |
GLM-5 |
| Low-effort unspecified | unspecified-low |
GLM-5 |
| High-effort unspecified | unspecified-high |
DeepSeek V4 Pro |
| Documentation / prose | writing |
DeepSeek V4 Flash |
This stack enables rapid, high-quality development across the entire firmware stack — from ATF and U-Boot to kernel drivers and OS ports.
For platform-specific guides, please refer to the documentation in each repository.
- Clone the relevant repositories
- Build firmware and system images following the documentation
- Flash to device and boot
We welcome all forms of contribution!
- 📝 Report issues or suggest features
- 🔧 Submit code improvements
- 📚 Improve documentation
- 🧪 Test new features and fixes
Please check the contribution guidelines in each repository for details.
Each project is licensed according to its repository's license file. Typically:
- Linux kernel: GPL-2.0
- U-Boot: GPL-2.0+
- ATF: BSD-3-Clause
- Other projects: See individual repositories
- GitHub Issues: Submit issues in respective repositories
- Discussions: Discuss in GitHub Discussions
Running truly open-source software on Rockchip devices