Supported Devices
Vexpress-aarch64
 | CPU Information processor : 0 Features : fp asimd evtstrm aes pmull sha1 sha2 crc32 CPU implementer : 0x41 CPU architecture: 8 CPU variant : 0x1 CPU part : 0xd07 CPU revision : 0 boot.log |
About this device
The Vexpress-aarch64 platform is a QEMU emulation target for 64-bit ARM (ARMv8/AArch64) systems, based on the Versatile Express family by ARM Holdings. It is widely used for development, testing, and continuous integration of ARM64 software without the need for physical hardware. CRUX-ARM provides official support for Vexpress-aarch64, making it an excellent choice for users and developers looking to experiment or automate builds in a virtualized ARM64 environment.
Introduction
CRUX-ARM provides official support for Vexpress-aarch64, making it an excellent choice for users and developers looking to experiment or automate builds in a virtualized ARM64 environment.
Needed stuff
- Kernel
- Kernel DTB
- Kernel modules
- CRUX-ARM release
Preparation
Before you begin, make sure you have the following:
- QEMU installed on your host system (version 2.0 or newer recommended).
- All the needed files
- Sufficient disk space to create a virtual disk image (at least 2 GB recommended).
Optional:
- A swap file for improved performance during testing.
- Network configuration for QEMU if you need internet access inside the virtual machine.
Installation
- Create a virtual hard disk image:
$ qemu-img create hd.img 2G $ mkfs.ext4 -F -m 0 -b 1024 hd.img
- Prepare the root file system:
$ sudo mount -o loop -t ext4 hd.img /mnt $ sudo rm -rf /mnt/lost+found $ sudo tar -C /mnt -pxvf crux-3.8-arm64.rootfs.tar.xz
Configuration
After deploying the CRUX-ARM root filesystem, it is important to configure several key system files to ensure proper operation and customization of your installation. The following files should be reviewed and edited according to your needs:
- /etc/pkgmk.conf
- Configure build options and package directories for pkgmk, the package building tool.
- /etc/prt-get.conf
- Set up the package management frontend, specifying the ports tree locations and other preferences for prt-get.
- /etc/inittab
- Define system runlevels and configure console access, including serial console settings if needed (e.g., enabling serial login on ttyS0).
- /etc/fstab
- List all filesystems and mount points to be mounted at boot. Make sure your root partition and any additional filesystems are correctly specified.
- /etc/rc.conf
- Set system-wide settings such as hostname, keyboard layout, timezone, and enabled services.
- /etc/network.d/net or /etc/rc.d/net
- Configure your network interface settings to ensure connectivity at boot.
- Edit /mnt/etc/inittab to enable serial login:
T0:23:respawn:/sbin/agetty -L ttyAMA0 9600 vt100
- Configure /mnt/etc/fstab and /mnt/etc/rc.conf as needed for your environment.
- Optional: Create and enable swap:
dd if=/dev/zero of=/mnt/var/swap bs=128K count=1024 mkswap /mnt/var/swap # Swap will be 128 MB; add to /mnt/etc/fstab: # /var/swap none swap sw 0 0
Booting the system
- Booting up
$ qemu-system-aarch64 -kernel Image -machine virt -cpu cortex-a57 -machine type=virt -nographic -smp 1 -m 1024 -hda .hd.img -append "root=/dev/vda console=ttyAMA0"
Additional information
The Vexpress-aarch64 platform is ideal for CI, automated testing, and development when physical ARM64 hardware is not available. Kernel and QEMU machine type must match; use the correct Image and virt machine for your kernel version. You can adjust RAM size (-m) and disk image size as needed. Networking can be enabled via QEMU’s virtual NIC options if required.