mvebu64: modernize EspressoBin/MacchiatoBin firmware (u-boot 2026.07 + TF-A 2.14.0 + A3720 fixes) by igorpecovnik · Pull Request #10213 · armbian/build

igorpecovnik · 2026-07-18T12:24:54Z

Brings Armbian's mvebu64 EspressoBin firmware in line with the working bootloader from the forum thread (quiseleve/espressobin-bootloader, a V5/V7 fork of bschnei/ebu-bootloader). I read that repo's submodule pins and commits and matched the whole stack.

Versions (matched to the fork's exact commits)

component	before	after	= fork's pin
u-boot	`v2025.10`	`v2026.04`	`88dc2788`
TF-A (ATF)	`lts-v2.12.8`	`v2.14.0`	`1d5aa939`
A3700-utils (WTMI)	Marvell `branch:master`	bschnei fork `commit:f423ac6`	✔
mv-ddr	`branch:master`	`commit:7bcb9dc`	✔
mox-boot (CZ.NIC WTMI)	`branch:master`	`commit:14f39dd`	✔

Patches added (dedicated `patch/u-boot/v2026.04-mvebu64/`)

0001 armada-37xx pinctrl boot-crash fix — info->dev used in devm_kzalloc() before init crashes on boot with CONFIG_DEVRES=y; still unfixed upstream in v2026.04/v2026.07/master. Without it the board crashes on boot.
0002 enable hardware RNG — CONFIG_DM_RNG + CONFIG_RNG_TURRIS_RWTM (the A3720 rWTM mailbox TRNG, backed by the CZ.NIC firmware Armbian builds). Common to the standard EspressoBin and the Ultra.

The dedicated patchdir also isolates mvebu64 from the shared v2026.04 patchdir (which is entirely rockchip patches).

Why the source pins matter (build fixes)

Upstream MarvellEmbeddedProcessors/A3700-utils-marvell is abandoned and no longer builds on a current gcc/ld — sys_init fails first on the C23 bool keyword, then on a dangerous relocation in main(). bschnei's fork fixes both (its pinned commit is literally "fix the jump instruction in main()"). mv-ddr 7bcb9dc carries a gcc fix too. Pinning gives reproducible builds and the exact blob set the working bootloader ships.

Status

Confirmed compiling (u-boot + ATF + WTMI + flash-image). Still wants a boot test on real EspressoBin (V5/V7) — I can't validate a bootloader on hardware.

MacchiatoBin

Shares the family, so it gets the u-boot/ATF/mv-ddr bump too. It compiles OK, but is untested (no hardware on hand). Per maintainer it "can work or not" and isn't a gate here. (A3700-utils and mox-boot are EspressoBin-only, so those don't touch it.)

Forum reports mainline u-boot v2026.04 working on the EspressoBin (frequency scaling, RNG init via the crypto mailbox, UEFI boot): https://forum.armbian.com/topic/33715-espressobin-firmwarebootloader/page/2/#findComment-240395 mvebu64 carries no board-specific u-boot patches (espressobin/macchiatobin build from mainline), so this is a clean tag + patchdir bump — v2026.04 already exists as a patch dir and contains nothing that touches these boards. ATF is left at lts-v2.12.8 (BL31/BL33 are loosely coupled); bump separately if needed. Needs a build + boot test on real EspressoBin (and macchiatobin-doubleshot, same family) before merge — I can't validate the bootloader on hardware. Signed-off-by: Igor Pecovnik <igor@armbian.com>

coderabbitai · 2026-07-18T12:25:07Z

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📝 Walkthrough

Walkthrough

The mvebu64 family selects newer U-Boot and ATF sources, applies GNU11 flags to WTMI Makefiles, initializes the Armada 37xx pinctrl device pointer, and enables EspressoBin hardware RNG support.

Changes

mvebu64 boot updates

Layer / File(s)	Summary
Update source selectors `config/sources/families/mvebu64.conf`	`BOOTBRANCH`, `BOOTPATCHDIR`, and `ATFBRANCH` now reference v2026.04-based U-Boot sources and ATF `v2.14.0`.
Configure WTMI compilation `config/sources/families/mvebu64.conf`	WTMI Makefiles are patched to use `-std=gnu11` during A3700 WTMI builds.
Fix pinctrl device initialization `patch/u-boot/v2026.04-mvebu64/0001-pinctrl-armada-37xx-init-info-dev-before-devm_kzalloc.patch`	`armada_37xx_pinctrl_probe()` initializes `info->dev` before managed allocations.
Enable EspressoBin hardware RNG `patch/u-boot/v2026.04-mvebu64/0002-configs-espressobin-enable-hardware-rng-turris-rwtm.patch`	The EspressoBin defconfig enables `CONFIG_DM_RNG` and `CONFIG_RNG_TURRIS_RWTM`.

Estimated code review effort: 2 (Simple) | ~10 minutes

Possibly related PRs

armbian/build#9786: Updates the shared U-Boot source selection to v2026.04 in another mvebu family configuration.
armbian/build#10144: Updates U-Boot source selectors to v2026.04 values in another family configuration.
armbian/build#10186: Changes exported U-Boot branch selectors in other family and board configurations.

Suggested reviewers: colorfulrhino, amazingfate, heymeco

🚥 Pre-merge checks | ✅ 4 | ❌ 1

❌ Failed checks (1 warning)

Check name	Status	Explanation	Resolution
Title check	⚠️ Warning	The title is mostly relevant, but it incorrectly says U-Boot 2026.07 while the changes actually move to 2026.04.	Change the version in the title to match the PR, e.g. "mvebu64: modernize EspressoBin/MacchiatoBin firmware (U-Boot 2026.04 + TF-A 2.14.0 + A3720 fixes)".

✅ Passed checks (4 passed)

Check name	Status	Explanation
Docstring Coverage	✅ Passed	No functions found in the changed files to evaluate docstring coverage. Skipping docstring coverage check.
Linked Issues check	✅ Passed	Check skipped because no linked issues were found for this pull request.
Out of Scope Changes check	✅ Passed	Check skipped because no linked issues were found for this pull request.
Description Check	✅ Passed	Check skipped - CodeRabbit’s high-level summary is enabled.

✨ Finishing Touches

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Commit on current branch

🧪 Generate unit tests (beta)

Create PR with unit tests
Commit unit tests in branch espressobin-uboot-bump-v2026.04

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The EspressoBin bootloader builds referenced in the forum thread (quiseleve/espressobin-bootloader, bschnei/ebu-bootloader) pin TF-A to the v2.14.0 release (commit 1d5aa939, the v2.14.0 tag) alongside u-boot v2026.04. Align Armbian's mvebu64 ATF to the same v2.14.0. Note: mv-ddr, mox-boot-builder (WTMI) and A3700-utils are still fetched as branch:master by extensions/marvell-tools.sh, whereas those repos pin specific commits (mv-ddr 7bcb9dc, mox 14f39dd, A3700-utils fork f423ac6). Can pin those too if the ATF+u-boot bump alone doesn't boot on hardware. Signed-off-by: Igor Pecovnik <igor@armbian.com>

Inspecting the forum's working bootloader (quiseleve/espressobin-bootloader) turned up a critical patch Armbian was missing: the armada-37xx pinctrl driver uses info->dev in devm_kzalloc() before it's initialized, which crashes on boot with CONFIG_DEVRES=y (since u-boot 217cf65). Still unfixed upstream in v2026.04 / v2026.07 / master, so u-boot v2026.04 for EspressoBin would crash without it. Add the fix as a dedicated mvebu64 u-boot patchdir (v2026.04-mvebu64) and point BOOTPATCHDIR at it. This also isolates mvebu from the shared v2026.04 patchdir, which is entirely rockchip-specific (general-rk35xx*, ufs, etc.) — irrelevant noise for these boards. Verified the patch applies cleanly to u-boot v2026.04. Signed-off-by: Igor Pecovnik <igor@armbian.com>

igorpecovnik · 2026-07-18T12:42:28Z

Inspected the forum's bootloader repo — found a critical missing patch

Went through the commits in quiseleve/espressobin-bootloader. Beyond the version pins (u-boot v2026.04 = their 88dc2788, TF-A v2.14.0 = their 1d5aa939, already in this PR), they carry a devres.patch that fixes a boot crash — and Armbian didn't have it:

info->dev is uninitialized going into devm_kzalloc() → crash on boot for armada_37xx with CONFIG_DEVRES=y (since u-boot commit 217cf65).

I checked upstream: the fix is still absent in v2026.04, v2026.07 and master — so our EspressoBin u-boot v2026.04 would crash on boot without it. Added it (commit ed54e7d):

New dedicated patchdir patch/u-boot/v2026.04-mvebu64/ with the pinctrl fix; BOOTPATCHDIR now points there.
Bonus: that also isolates mvebu64 from the shared v2026.04 patchdir, which is entirely rockchip-specific (general-rk35xx*, UFS, HDMI, …) — irrelevant patches these boards were pulling in.
Verified the patch applies cleanly to real u-boot v2026.04 (git apply --check) and lands info->dev = dev; right before the crashing devm_kzalloc(info->dev, …).

Other commits I reviewed and deliberately did not port

804208e1 enable bootflow / hwrng, disable sata — that's the espressobin Ultra defconfig (armada-3720-espressobin-ultra), a different board; not our standard espressobin.
d975ba49 v5 CPU_1000_DDR_800 — their V5 clock preset; Armbian uses CPU_800_DDR_800. Worth revisiting for the 1 GHz V5 variants, but it's a runtime/OTP-fuse tuning call, separate from this boot-crash fix.
The other blobs (mv-ddr 7bcb9dc, mox/WTMI 14f39dd, A3700-utils f423ac6) are still fetched as branch:master — noted earlier; pin if hardware testing needs it.

The A3720 TRNG is reachable via the CZ.NIC secure firmware (rWTM) that Armbian builds from mox-boot-builder. The stock mvebu_espressobin-88f3720_defconfig doesn't enable it; add CONFIG_DM_RNG=y + CONFIG_RNG_TURRIS_RWTM=y so u-boot seeds entropy from hardware (RNG_TURRIS_RWTM Kconfig documents EspressoBin support; deps DM_RNG && ARMADA_3700 already met). The hardware RNG is common to the standard EspressoBin and the Ultra. Verified the patch applies to v2026.04. Signed-off-by: Igor Pecovnik <igor@armbian.com>

The vendor A3700-utils WTMI (sys_init) fails to compile with a modern gcc that defaults to -std=c23: wtmi/common/types.h does 'typedef int bool', and bool is now a reserved keyword ("'bool' cannot be defined via 'typedef'"), breaking the a3700 flash-image (fip/mrvl_flash) build. Force -std=gnu11 on the WTMI sub-builds (only sys_init/Makefile carries a CFLAGS line) so the old typedef stays valid and bool remains int-sized - behaviour-preserving vs C23's 1-byte _Bool. Pre-existing issue, not from the u-boot/ATF bump, but it blocks building EspressoBin on current hosts. Signed-off-by: Igor Pecovnik <igor@armbian.com>

…olchain) Upstream MarvellEmbeddedProcessors/A3700-utils-marvell (branch:master) is abandoned and no longer builds/links on a current gcc/ld: sys_init fails first on the C23 'bool' keyword ('typedef int bool') and then on a "dangerous relocation: unsupported relocation" in main() (main.c:349). Point marvell-tools at bschnei's fork, pinned to f423ac6 - the exact commit the working espressobin-bootloader (quiseleve fork) uses - which fixes both (its message is literally "fix the jump instruction in main()"). This supersedes the earlier -std=gnu11 sed workaround (dropped), since the fork fixes 'bool' at the source. Only EspressoBin uses marvell-tools (WTP); MacchiatoBin is unaffected. Signed-off-by: Igor Pecovnik <igor@armbian.com>

…r commits Complete matching the forum's proven-working A3720 firmware: pin mv-ddr-marvell to 7bcb9dc (carries a gcc build fix) and mox-boot-builder (CZ.NIC WTMI secure firmware) to 14f39dd, instead of tracking branch:master. Reproducible builds and the exact blob set the working espressobin-bootloader ships. mv-ddr is shared with MacchiatoBin (best-effort); mox-boot is EspressoBin-only. Signed-off-by: Igor Pecovnik <igor@armbian.com>

Move to the current u-boot release. Both mvebu64 patches still apply cleanly to v2026.07 (verified): the armada-37xx pinctrl boot-crash fix is still needed (the bug remains unfixed upstream) and the hardware-RNG defconfig addition. Rename the dedicated patchdir accordingly. ATF (v2.14.0) and the pinned A3720 blobs are unaffected by the u-boot version. Signed-off-by: Igor Pecovnik <igor@armbian.com>

Copilot

Pull request overview

Updates Armbian’s mvebu64 firmware build inputs to align EspressoBin/MacchiatoBin with a newer bootloader stack, including dedicated U-Boot patching for EspressoBin-specific fixes.

Changes:

Bump mvebu64 U-Boot and TF-A versions and switch to a dedicated v2026.07-mvebu64 U-Boot patch directory.
Pin Marvell toolchain dependencies (A3700-utils, mv-ddr, mox-boot) to specific commits for reproducible builds.
Add two U-Boot patches: Armada 37xx pinctrl devres crash fix and EspressoBin hardware RNG (Turris rWTM) enablement.

Reviewed changes

Copilot reviewed 4 out of 4 changed files in this pull request and generated 1 comment.

File	Description
`config/sources/families/mvebu64.conf`	Moves mvebu64 to U-Boot `v2026.07`, TF-A `v2.14.0`, and switches to the dedicated mvebu64 U-Boot patchdir.
`extensions/marvell-tools.sh`	Pins Marvell-related source repos to specific commits for build reproducibility.
`patch/u-boot/v2026.07-mvebu64/0001-pinctrl-armada-37xx-init-info-dev-before-devm_kzalloc.patch`	Adds EspressoBin boot-crash fix for Armada 37xx pinctrl when devres is enabled.
`patch/u-boot/v2026.07-mvebu64/0002-configs-espressobin-enable-hardware-rng-turris-rwtm.patch`	Enables DM_RNG + RNG_TURRIS_RWTM in EspressoBin defconfig to use rWTM-backed TRNG.

💡 Add Copilot custom instructions for smarter, more guided reviews. Learn how to get started.

+declare -g BOOTBRANCH='tag:v2026.07'
+declare -g BOOTPATCHDIR='v2026.07-mvebu64'


github-actions Bot added size/small PR with less then 50 lines 08 Milestone: Third quarter release labels Jul 18, 2026

github-actions Bot added Needs review Seeking for review Hardware Hardware related like kernel, U-Boot, ... labels Jul 18, 2026

igorpecovnik changed the title ~~mvebu64: bump u-boot v2025.10 → v2026.04 (EspressoBin / MacchiatoBin)~~ mvebu64: bump EspressoBin u-boot v2026.04 + TF-A v2.14.0 (match forum's working firmware) Jul 18, 2026

github-actions Bot added the Patches Patches related to kernel, U-Boot, ... label Jul 18, 2026

igorpecovnik added 4 commits July 18, 2026 14:46

igorpecovnik changed the title ~~mvebu64: bump EspressoBin u-boot v2026.04 + TF-A v2.14.0 (match forum's working firmware)~~ mvebu64: modernize EspressoBin firmware (u-boot 2026.04 + TF-A 2.14.0 + A3720 fixes) Jul 18, 2026

github-actions Bot added Framework Framework components size/medium PR with more then 50 and less then 250 lines and removed size/small PR with less then 50 lines labels Jul 18, 2026

igorpecovnik changed the title ~~mvebu64: modernize EspressoBin firmware (u-boot 2026.04 + TF-A 2.14.0 + A3720 fixes)~~ mvebu64: modernize EspressoBin/MacchiatoBin firmware (u-boot 2026.07 + TF-A 2.14.0 + A3720 fixes) Jul 18, 2026

igorpecovnik requested a review from Copilot July 18, 2026 14:37

Copilot started reviewing on behalf of igorpecovnik July 18, 2026 14:53 View session

Copilot AI reviewed Jul 18, 2026

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Comment thread config/sources/families/mvebu64.conf

Comment on lines +30 to +31

declare -g BOOTBRANCH='tag:v2026.07'

declare -g BOOTPATCHDIR='v2026.07-mvebu64'

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mvebu64: modernize EspressoBin/MacchiatoBin firmware (u-boot 2026.07 + TF-A 2.14.0 + A3720 fixes)#10213

mvebu64: modernize EspressoBin/MacchiatoBin firmware (u-boot 2026.07 + TF-A 2.14.0 + A3720 fixes)#10213
igorpecovnik wants to merge 8 commits into
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igorpecovnik commented Jul 18, 2026 •

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		declare -g BOOTBRANCH='tag:v2026.07'
		declare -g BOOTPATCHDIR='v2026.07-mvebu64'

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igorpecovnik commented Jul 18, 2026 • edited Loading Uh oh! There was an error while loading. Please reload this page.

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Versions (matched to the fork's exact commits)

Patches added (dedicated patch/u-boot/v2026.04-mvebu64/)

Why the source pins matter (build fixes)

Status

MacchiatoBin

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igorpecovnik commented Jul 18, 2026

Inspected the forum's bootloader repo — found a critical missing patch

Other commits I reviewed and deliberately did not port

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igorpecovnik commented Jul 18, 2026 •

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Patches added (dedicated `patch/u-boot/v2026.04-mvebu64/`)

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