Firmware ABI stability
summary
Embedded ARM systems expose bootloader firmware ABIs (notably PSCI and SCMI) that Linux uses for core start, clocks, resets and power domains, and vendors routinely change IDs or add nonstandard commands, breaking kernels and blocking upstreaming. Proposed remedies are bundling firmware with kernel using U‑Boot fitImage and minimizing SPL footprint, adding firmware introspection/versioning, or a kernel remapping driver that translates stable DT IDs to firmware IDs; each approach has tradeoffs and partial coverage.
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chapters (6)
- 0:00Introduction and speaker intro
- 2:09Firmware API stability problem
- 7:56Discussion on vendor-specific extensions
- 15:03Potential solutions and challenges
- 28:39Broader implications beyond clocks
- 34:31Final thoughts and Q&A
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