EthFw Release Notes

Version: 08.04.00.02

Introduction

This release notes provides important information that will assist you in using the EthFw component. This document provides the product information and known issues with respect to EthFw software component. The EthFw component consists of firmware for Ethernet switch, profiling tools and demos/applications for J721E, J7200 and J784S4 silicon platforms.

Licensing

Refer to Processor SDK RTOS top-level manifest.

Getting Started

The Ethernet Firmware User's Guide provides the documentation and references necessary to run EthFw demos and begin development on TI's platforms.

Documentation

Refer to following documentation for further details:

Ethernet Firmware User Guide	Build instructions, Demos	[HTML]
Ethernet Firmware API Guide	API Guide	[HTML]

What's New

Ethernet board support moved from Enet LLD to Ethernet Firmware utils.
Initial version of Porting Guide.

Upgrade and Compatibility Information

Users moving from SDK 8.2 or older to SDK 8.4 must refer to the Porting Guide document which describes how the board initialization routines have been restructured.

Device Support

Below table shows device support for EthFw.

SoC	HOST (OS)	Target (OS)	Test Platform
J721E	Linux	FreeRTOS	J721E EVM with GESI and QSGMII Daughter Boards
J7200	Linux	FreeRTOS	J7200 EVM with QSGMII Daughter Board
J784S4	Linux	FreeRTOS	J784S4 EVM with QSGMII Daughter Board

Refer Processor SDK RTOS RTOS release notes for SDK device support.

Validation Information

This release was built and validated using the following tools. Refer to the EthFw User's Guide for additional instructions to install and setup the dependencies.

Build Tools (included in Processor SDK)

TI ARM CLANG: 1.3.0.LTS
FreeRTOS Kernel: 10.4.3
lwIP stack: 2.1.2

Fixed Issues

None.

Known Issues and Limitations

Issue ID	Head Line	Module	Reported in Release	Affected Platforms	Workaround in this release
PROC_BRDS-658	MAC PORT 0 packet drop seen of Rx/TX - Packet drop is seen on MAC PORT0 (RGMII1) on 1Gbps mode on GESI board of J721E EVM alpha version. This port is labeled as PRG1_RGMII1_B in the GESI board connections figure in @ref ethfw_depend_evm_gesi_j721e section. This issue is not applicable to J721E EVM beta version	Alpha EVM	00.08.00.00	J721E	Reduce MAC port 0 speed to 100Mbps in J721E EVM alpha version.
PROC_BRDS-671	External 50MHz RMII clock from PHY is not connected by default to SoC's RMII_REF_CLOCK pin in GESI boards of J721E EVM alpha version This issue is not applicable to J721E EVM beta version	Alpha EVM	00.08.00.00	J721E	To get RMII_50MHZ_CLK, resistor R225 needs to be populated. Move R226 to R225 on GESI board to get this clock.
PROC_BRDS-659	QSGMII expansion board is causing instabilities in the MDIO bus in J721E EVM alpha version. After a few mins, MDIO register access fail. This issue is not applicable to J721E EVM beta version.	Alpha EVM	00.08.00.00	J721E	Disconnect QUAD PORT ETH expansion board from Alpha EVM.
ETHFW-1580	[EthFw] EthFw server app + Linux - I2C access failure	EthFw	07.01.00.00	J721E, J7200, J784S4	EthFw should avoid any I2C operations from Main R5F core to prevent conflicts with A72 or other core from happening. Static MAC address pool can be used instead of dynamically populating from EEPROM.
ETHFW-1902	EthFw: ARP request fails in Linux virtual MAC (switch port) with static IP	EthFw	08.01.00.00	J7200	Replace default firmware in Linux with precompiled images from EthFw component directory.

Dependencies

All Ethernet Firmware dependencies are also part of the SDK, please refer to the User's Guide for details.

Technical Support

For technical support and additional assistance, contact local TI Field Application Engineer

Package Versioning

Each package version is composed of 4 period-delimited numbers - represented here by the letters M, m, p and b [M.m.p.b]. The table below provides a descriptive reference regarding package version numbering.

Digit	Meaning	Description
1 (M=Major)	Major revision	Incremented when the new version is substantially different from the previous For example, a new module added or an existing module's algorithm significantly altered.
2 (m=minor)	Minor revision	Incremented when the new version has changed but not in a major way. For example, some minor changes in the API or feature set.
3 (p=patch)	Patch number	Incremented for all other source code changes. This include any packaging support code.
4 (b=build)	Build number	Incremented for each release delivery to CM. Reset for any change to M, m or p.