Remove hardcoded fls version default once fls is included in images

[raballew]

TODO Comment

# TODO(majopela): set default to "" once fls is included in our images

Location

python/packages/jumpstarter-driver-flashers/jumpstarter_driver_flashers/client.py, line 1513

Context

@click.option(
    "--fls-version",
    type=str,
    default="0.2.0",  # TODO(majopela): set default to "" once fls is included in our images
    help="Download an specific fls version from the github releases",
)
@click.option(
    "--fls-binary-url",
    type=str,
    help="Custom URL to download FLS binary from (overrides --fls-version)",
)

The --fls-version default is hardcoded to "0.2.0" because fls is not yet included in the base images. Once fls is bundled in the images, the default should be changed to "" (empty string).

[ambient-code]

Investigation Summary

The TODO at line 1513 in client.py is in the CLI option definition for --fls-version:

@click.option(
    "--fls-version",
    type=str,
    default="0.2.0",  # TODO(majopela): set default to "" once fls is included in our images
    help="Download an specific fls version from the github releases",
)

How fls_version is used:

1. In the flash() method, fls_version is passed to _perform_flash_operation() and then to _flash_with_fls().
2. In _flash_with_fls() (line 654): if fls_version != "", the code downloads the fls binary from GitHub releases using get_fls_github_url(fls_version, arch="aarch64") and installs it on the target device via _download_fls_binary().
3. If fls_version == "", no download occurs and the code assumes fls is already available on the target device (pre-installed in the flasher image).

Current status of fls:

• The latest fls release is v0.2.0 (published 2026-02-10), which matches the current hardcoded default.
• The fls project has a Containerfile for building cross-compiled aarch64 binaries, indicating it is designed to be bundled into container images.
• The fls.py utility in jumpstarter (at jumpstarter/common/fls.py) has a get_fls_binary() function that falls back to "fls" (system PATH) when no version or URL is specified, confirming the design intent is for fls to eventually be pre-installed.

Whether fls is included in images yet: This requires checking the flasher OCI bundle images (built externally). The TODO author (majopela) intended to include fls in the flasher images and then change the default to "". Based on the code structure, the images referenced by the manifest files (e.g., flasher-fedora.itb) would need to have fls pre-installed in their root filesystem. This is an external dependency that cannot be verified from the code alone.

Risk Assessment

Low risk if fls IS already in the images; high risk if it is NOT. Setting the default to "" when fls is not yet in the images would cause all fls method flash operations to fail because the binary would not be found on the target device. The failure would manifest as a command-not-found error during flashing.

The change itself is trivial (one character), but the prerequisite (fls being included in the flasher images) must be verified first.

Proposed Implementation Plan

1. Verify prerequisite: Check whether the current flasher images (the OCI bundles referenced by manifest-ti.yaml, manifest-nxp.yaml, etc.) include the fls binary. This can be done by:
   • Booting a device with the flasher image and checking if fls is in the PATH.
   • Inspecting the image build process/Dockerfile to confirm fls is installed.
2. If fls IS included in images:
   • Change the default from "0.2.0" to "" on line 1513.
   • Remove the TODO comment.
   • Test that flash operations work without downloading fls (the pre-installed version is used).
   • Consider keeping the --fls-version option available for users who want to override with a specific version.
3. If fls is NOT yet included in images:
   • Keep the current default of "0.2.0".
   • Track the image build work separately.
   • Update this TODO once the images are rebuilt with fls included.
4. Optional improvement: Update the default version from "0.2.0" to track the latest fls release, or implement a mechanism to check for the latest version automatically.