Sysconfig Image Creator User Guide

Table of Contents

Introduction to SysConfig ImageCreator

SysConfig ImageCreator is a tool for CC3x20 and CC3x35 devices for image creation and programming.

The programming image is a file containing the SimpleLink Wi-Fi device configurations and files required for the operation of the device. For the CC32xx Wi-Fi SoC, the programming image also includes the host application MCU file.

CC32xx devices contain two separate execution environments consisting of the host application MCU and the network processor subsystem. SysConfig supports this by separating the TI Drivers configuration and the programming image configuration.

For an introduction to the SysConfig tool, see SysConfig Tool Basics in SimpleLink Academy.

For legacy UniFlash ImageCreator documentation, see the UniFlash ImageCreator User’s Guide.

Getting Started with SysConfig ImageCreator

Code Composer Studio

Note: SysConfig ImageCreator is only supported on CCS v10.1.0.00005 or newer and SysConfig v1.5.0 or newer.

CC32xx projects support two SysConfig scripts:

Figure 1

SysConfig is included in your Code Composer Studio v10.1+ installation.

Start a project

Begin by importing an example project from the CC32xx SDK.

Note: In the CC32xx SDK 4.30 preview, this is only the local_ota CCS examples on Windows.

In order to use all features of SysConfig ImageCreator, user should work on the MCU + Image configuration mode. The post-build compilation steps for this configuration create and flash an image to the CC32xx.

Debug configuration mode builds the host application MCU project only.

Figure 2

In addition to the image.syscfg file, each CCS project will have a userFiles folder. For more information on user files, see the File System section of this document.

Build project

In the MCU + Image project configuration, build the CCS project. This will compile the host application MCU binary as usual, and then run the image.syscfg script to generate the image files.

If the device is in Development mode and Auto-detect MAC address is enabled, the LaunchPad will need to be connected. See General Settings.

Generated image files can be found inside the project at MCU+Image/syscfg/sl_image/Output

Figure 3

Program image

To program the generated SLI image, build the project, navigate to the drop-down arrow next to Flash button in the toolbar, and select Load SLI Image. This will load the generated SLI image to the CC32xx serial flash.

Figure 4

This differs from loading the .out file via the JTAG debugger because the image stored on the serial flash will be retained upon reboot.

Note: In this version, the Flash option does not support OTP or encrypted SLI features. To program an image with OTP, add this post-build step to your project properties:
${COM_TI_SIMPLELINK_CC32XX_SDK_INSTALL_DIR}/source/ti/drivers/net/imagecreator/bin/SLImageCreator.exe syscfg program --file ${CWD}/syscfg/${BuildArtifactFileBaseName}.sli --json ${CWD}/syscfg/ti_drivers_net_wifi_config.json

SysConfig Standalone

Users can create and program images without the use of Code Composer Studio or other IDE.

Note: SysConfig ImageCreator is supported on SysConfig 1.5.0 or newer.

To use SysConfig ImageCreator, install SysConfig. An installer is also available in the tools/standalone_syscfg folder of this SDK.

Start a project

Open the SysConfig tool from your install location and select the SimpleLink CC32xx SDK software product.

Select ImageCreator mode and your LaunchPad, and press the Start button to open a new image project.

Figure 5

If you would like to start a new TI Drivers configuration for the host application MCU, uncheck ImageCreator mode.

Standalone SysConfig ImageCreator is independent of a host application MCU project. The user can provide a compiled host application binary from any IDE or compiler.

Create image

The user should provide a file path for the generated programming images, or select the default file path. By default, the output SLI is created as: /tools/standalone_sysconfig/generated_images/.sli

The Create Image button should open a command line window to show logs and will output any error to the Response value.

Program image

The user can program the default image based on the file path chosen by Create Image, or manually specify another SLI file.

The Program Image button should open a command line window to show logs and will output any error to the Response value.

Export and share image.syscfg

To share configurations between CCS users, copy the entire CCS project from your workspace.

To share with a standalone tool user, you will need to copy image.syscfg, userFiles folder (or other root directory), and the MCU image (if desired for CC32xx devices).

Configurations

Network Processor

General Settings

User can set image mode, set capacity and restore settings, and configure an encrypted image.

Image Mode:

Network Applications

User can configure HTTP and mDNS applications internal to the Network Processor subsystem.

Radio Settings

User can configure the RF settings for the PHY radio.

For CC3x20 devices:

For CC3x3x devices:

Role Settings

User can configure MAC settings for the device.

File System

Certificate Store

The Trusted Root-Certificate Catalog is a file provided by TI. The catalog contains a list of known and trusted root CAs, and a list of revoked certificates. The list of the CAs supported by TI can be found in at tools/cc32xx_tools/certificate-catalog/readme.html

A dummy certificate catalog is also available for use with dummy certificates for development purposes.

Users can choose the the Trusted Root-Certificate or the dummy catalog from their SDK package. This package version is chosen by the imported example location, or the Software Product selection in the standalone tool. The user can also manually select a file path to a certificate catalog.

MCU Image

The MCU image is the compiled host application file. This is the output of a CCS project, but can also be the application binary from other IDEs and compilers.

In CCS, image.syscfg loads from the default location of the application binary after compilation. User can load other files manually.

For secure devices, the host file must be created with the flags secure-signed. To enable future updates of the file (by OTA), the user must open it with the public-write flag. In addition, the maximum size of the file should consider the future growth of the file, as the maximum size of a file cannot be changed after the file creation.

Service Pack

The service pack is used to upgrade the Network Processor subsystem firmware. The service pack file is provided by TI in the SDK package, in the tools folder. Image.syscfg loads the SDK’s service pack by default. This package version is chosen by the imported example location, or the Software Product selection in the standalone tool. The user can also manually select a file path.

User Files

User can add files to the image, such as certificates or HTML files. The user file directory should have the same structure as desired in the device. The user must provide a file path to a root directory.

Select the arrow next to a folder to collapse it. Add/remove/edit files directly from the root directory. Image.syscfg will update automatically. The user can set file properties by selecting the file from the User Files GUI.

Individual user files have a new parameter called “Include in OTA Bundle”. This parameter is used to specify that the file will be included in the TAR bundle generated by the Create OTA setting. For more details, see the OTA Settings section.

Figure 8

Flags options

Figure 9

Other file options

Figure 10

Advanced

Device Identity

This option is valid for CC323x only. More information is in section 6.8.1.2 of SWRU469.

OTA Settings

The Over-the-Air (OTA) update process downloads a bundle, which allows the process to change the content of a group of files, and accept or reject the changes for all the files in that group simultaneously. For more details on Bundle Protection, see the Network Processor User’s Guide. For more details on the OTA process, see the Over the Air Update Guide.

The TAR bundle will include the MCU binary (if available), servicepack, and any user files that have been set with the “Include in OTA bundle” parameter.

OTA in CCS

If Create OTA is checked, the OTA TAR file will be generated when the project is built. The TAR will be in the Output folder:

Figure 11

OTA in Standalone

If Create OTA is checked, the Create Image button will generate a TAR file.

ImageCreator Command Line

For ImageCreator CLI documentation, see the Command Line section of the legacy UniFlash ImageCreator User’s Guide.