[TUTORIAL/DEV]Build AOSP Android 2.3.7 for Allwinner A10 tablets (Teclast P76Ti)

sztupy · Feb 10, 2012

Hi!

I haven't really found any kind of guides on how to build a complete AOSP android build from source (kernel and software) for Allwinner A10 tablets like the Ainol Novo 7 Advanced or the Teclast P76Ti.

I have a Teclast P76TI (rev4), and the following guide is only tested on such a device. As it's mostly based on the source drop of the Ainol Novo 7 Advanced, it should also work on that too.

sztupy · Feb 10, 2012

Part 1

Part 1: Preparations

A: Preconditions

For building and creating a LiveSuite flashable package you will need the following:

For building the kernel and android you will need a 64 bit Linux machine. Ubuntu 10.04 64 bit is preferred for Gingerbread builds
For creating the LiveSuite flashable images, and actually flashing you will need a Windows machine. Windows 7 x64 works fine, as should Windows XP 32 bit too.
You will also need a working LiveSuite image file, for your tablet. Make sure that you can flash it to your device without problems!

Virtual machines are fine, if you have enough memory available. To build Android in a VM, you should give it at least 2GB of RAM. Alternatively if you're using Linux, you can create a Windows VM for the image creation or flashing part.

For the rest of the tutorial I will assume you are using a Linux Virtual Machine on a Windows box.

For building the kernel and AOSP you will need at least 35GB of free space in your linux machine (the more the better). To create the images you will need an additional 2GB of space on your Windows machine.

B: Getting the kernel and AOSP sources

First initialize your Linux machine according to this page: http://source.android.com/source/initializing.html

Here are the most important commands:

Code:

$ sudo add-apt-repository "deb http://archive.canonical.com/ lucid partner"
$ sudo apt-get update
$ sudo apt-get install sun-java6-jdk
$ sudo apt-get install git-core gnupg flex bison gperf build-essential \
  zip curl zlib1g-dev libc6-dev lib32ncurses5-dev ia32-libs \
  x11proto-core-dev libx11-dev lib32readline5-dev lib32z-dev \
  libgl1-mesa-dev g++-multilib mingw32 tofrodos python-markdown \
  libxml2-utils xsltproc
$ mkdir ~/bin
$ PATH=~/bin:$PATH
$ curl https://dl-ssl.google.com/dl/googlesource/git-repo/repo > ~/bin/repo
$ chmod a+x ~/bin/repo
// Additonal commands for Ubuntu 10.10:
$ sudo ln -s /usr/lib32/mesa/libGL.so.1 /usr/lib32/mesa/libGL.so
// Additonal commands for Ubuntu 11.10:
$ sudo apt-get install libx11-dev:i386

Now create a directory on your linux machine. The path should contain no spaces in it. Inside this directory first pull the kernel source from the allwinner github page:

Code:

$ git clone https://github.com/allwinner/linux-2.6.36 lichee

Make sure that the kernel resides in the lichee directory

Now download AOSP Android. We will use Gingerbread version 2.3.7:

Code:

$ mkdir android
$ cd android
$ repo init -u https://android.googlesource.com/platform/manifest -b android-2.3.7_r1
$ repo sync

Allwinner uses a special init, which has a few additional commands that you have to download too:

Code:

$ cd system/core
$ git pull git://github.com/sztupy/allwinner_android_system_core.git
$ cd ../..

You will also need the device descriptors for the tablets:

Code:

$ cd device
$ git clone git://github.com/sztupy/android_device_softwinner.git softwinner
$ cd ..

C: ARM compiler

You might simply use a compiler that is supplied for AOSP, they are inside the android/prebuilt/linux-x86/toolchain/arm-eabi-4.4.3/ directory. Alternatively you can also download the ARM compiler of CodeSourcery. Get the arm-2009q3 / arm-none-linux-gnueabi version, and unpack it inside a directory.

If ready, go on to next step: building the kernel

sztupy · Feb 10, 2012

Part 2: Building the kernel

Change to the directory of the kernel. Now edit the file scripts/build_sun4i_crane.sh

Change the line "export CROSS_COMPILE=" to point to the ARM compiler. For example if you extracted the CodeSourcery files to /opt then use:

Code:

export CROSS_COMPILE=/opt/arm-2009q3/bin/arm-none-linux-gnueabi-

The default .config file is more or less the same that is supplied with your tablet. On the Teclast P76TI you can actually extract the .config file used from /proc using "adb pull /proc/config.gz" Not sure about other vendors.

Now you have to compile. Issue the command:

Code:

./build.sh -p sun4i_crane

This will build the kernel and modules inside the the "output" directory.

Next step is to compile Android

sztupy · Feb 10, 2012

Part3

Part 3: Building Android

Go to the android directory. Now setup android using:

Code:

$ source build/envsetup.sh
$ lunch

You will get simething like this:

Code:

You're building on Linux

Lunch menu... pick a combo:
     1. generic-eng
     2. simulator
     3. full_passion-userdebug
     4. full_crespo4g-userdebug
     5. full_crespo-userdebug
     6. crane_Ainol_Novo7A-eng
     7. crane_Teclast_P76TI_REV4-eng

Which would you like? [generic-eng]

Here select your device (option 6 or 7 depending on your tablet)

After you have selected it issue a make command:

Code:

$ make

This will take a while. If you're using ubuntu 11.10 make might fail, but you can fix it using these fixes: http://groups.google.com/group/android-building/browse_thread/thread/3484e7797909d014

After the building is complete you have to create the image files. Run the following command:

Code:

$ ./device/softwinner/crane-tcp76ti_r4/mkfs.sh

(substitute tcp76ti_r4 with ainovo7a if you're using the other tablet)

The image files will be ready in the directory "out/target/product/crane-tcp76ti_r4/images/" or "out/target/product/crane-ainovo7a/images/"

Copy the three files from here (root.img, recovery.img, system.img), and the "bImage" file from the "output" directory of the kernel to your Windows machine.

The next step is creating the flashable image, and flashing your build

sztupy · Feb 10, 2012

Part 4: Flashing

A: Initialize kitchen

First download my A10 flash kitchen from this site: http://android.sztupy.hu/dl/a10/a10_flash_kitchen_v1.zip
This is based on the ainol novo 7 soruce drop, but only contains the nescessary files, and has a few batch scripts to automate the process.
There is also a v2, wich also supports ICS firmwares: http://android.sztupy.hu/dl/a10/a10_flash_kitchen_v2.zip

First unzip the files to a directory. You will see a few directories and to commands here: extract_image.bat and create_image.bat

First we have to extract an official image for your tablet. Simply comply the image file to this directory, and rename it to "original.img". If done, run extract_image.bat. This command should extract your image to the _extract directory.

Next you need to extract the bootfs inside the _bootfs directory. You have multiple options on how to do this:

1. Get the bootfs from your device on-line using adb:

Code:

> cd _bootfs
> adb shell
$ cd /
$ mount -o remount,rw -t ext4 /dev/root /
$ mkdir bootfs
$ mount -t vfat /dev/block/nanda /bootfs
(Control-C: exit adb shell)
> adb pull /bootfs

2. Get the bootfs from the extracted image file using Linux:

A. Copy the RFSFAT16_BOOTFS_000000000.fex file to linux
B.

Code:

$ mkdir bootfs
$ sudo mount -o loop RFSFAT16_BOOTFS_000000000.fex bootfs
$ cp -a bootfs b2
$ sudo umount bootfs

C. Copy the contents of the b2 directory to Windows, inside the _bootfs directory of the kitchen

B: Create image

If you have initialized the kitchen, you have to copy the four files from linux (system.img, root.img, recovery.img and bImage) inside the _input directory. You will also need to rename the .img files to .fex (so they should be system.fex, root.fex, recovery.fex).

If you are done with this, then run create_image.bat. It will create an output.img file, that can be flashed to the device using LiveSuite.

sztupy · Feb 10, 2012

Additional information for developers:

1. Difference between AOSP 2.3.4 and Novo7 android 2.3.4

Download the diff file from here: http://android.sztupy.hu/dl/a10/diff_ainovo_aosp.gz

Filelist of differences: http://android.sztupy.hu/dl/a10/diff_ainovo_aosp_filelist.txt

fonix232 · Feb 10, 2012

sztupy, did you figure out why eDragonEx and FSBuild have an apparently unused Lua library next to each? I was interested by it, as it might be possible that some parts of the apps are actually written in Lua (would it be possible? Lua in a native DLL?), what would help reversing it.

sztupy · Feb 10, 2012

fonix232 said:
sztupy, did you figure out why eDragonEx and FSBuild have an apparently unused Lua library next to each? I was interested by it, as it might be possible that some parts of the apps are actually written in Lua (would it be possible? Lua in a native DLL?), what would help reversing it.

Yeah, saw that. Also their build script used "convert" on the image.cfg, but that file wasn't in lua anyway (except for the image parts part which seems to be a lua hash).

There are also a lot of compiled files that are compiled inside the image file and which are neither the bootfs nor android or the kernel. I don't yet know what they are for, but I think they are used by LiveSuite during the flashing.

fonix232 · Feb 10, 2012

sztupy said:
Yeah, saw that. Also their build script used "convert" on the image.cfg, but that file wasn't in lua anyway (except for the image parts part which seems to be a lua hash).

There are also a lot of compiled files that are compiled inside the image file and which are neither the bootfs nor android or the kernel. I don't yet know what they are for, but I think they are used by LiveSuite during the flashing.

I know most of the files from the flashing, they are the following:
- SYS_CONFIG is used as a command bunch for LiveSuite. It tells the app how to flash, what to flash, where, and it configures the device too (screen size, ram info, cpu info, etc)
- Boot0 and Boot1 bins are NAND bootloaders
- FED FES and FET tools are NAND flashing utilities, checksums, hardware scanner, and other tools used during flashing.
- '12345678' files are bootloaders, config files, and tools for SDMMC flashing, if there's a device with SDMMC internal instead of NAND, these are used
- Split seems to be some kind of ID string, I had no luck retrieving it's usage and meaning.

So you say, that the actual Lua parts are the image encryption parts of eDragonEx? Interesting, maybe I've missed that spot with my tool...

Might I ask if you have tried disassembling (and decompiling) unimg.exe? I had several problems with it, but that would greatly help understanding how the images are created. I've got a C# framework, with image config parser, etcetera etcetera, to be able to read and create images in a much more advanced environment (filtering user errors, having tools for everything (bootfs modding, script.bin reversal, etcetera), and creating a working image as a final result), and it only needs the image file format (and some of my work, to create a parser).
The problems with unimg were all about positive sp values, and as I'm not a big assembly programmer, I couldn't make out anything from that. Maybe you understand it a bit more

Illetve beszélhetünk egy kicsit magyarul is. Tabletrepublic-on írtam hogy vegyél fel MSNre és részletezem a különböző Crane SDK elemek funkcióit, működését, egyebeket, amit eddig sikerült kiderítenem az egészről.
Sajnos elég zavaros, mivel vagy négyféle csomagoló rendszer készíti a fileokat, és ezek közül csak egy működött rendesen (crane_pack.exe). Jó lenne megérteni ezt a file formátumot, hogy egy kicsit normálisabb módon hozhassam létre, különféle vacakolások nélkül.

sztupy · Feb 10, 2012

fonix232 said:
I know most of the files from the flashing, they are the following:
- SYS_CONFIG is used as a command bunch for LiveSuite. It tells the app how to flash, what to flash, where, and it configures the device too (screen size, ram info, cpu info, etc)
- Boot0 and Boot1 bins are NAND bootloaders
- FED FES and FET tools are NAND flashing utilities, checksums, hardware scanner, and other tools used during flashing.
- '12345678' files are bootloaders, config files, and tools for SDMMC flashing, if there's a device with SDMMC internal instead of NAND, these are used
- Split seems to be some kind of ID string, I had no luck retrieving it's usage and meaning.

Thanks for these. Seems I was mostly right

So you say, that the actual Lua parts are the image encryption parts of eDragonEx? Interesting, maybe I've missed that spot with my tool...

I think lua is not really used anymore. It probably had more relevance back in the past.

Might I ask if you have tried disassembling (and decompiling) unimg.exe? I had several problems with it, but that would greatly help understanding how the images are created. I've got a C# framework, with image config parser, etcetera etcetera, to be able to read and create images in a much more advanced environment (filtering user errors, having tools for everything (bootfs modding, script.bin reversal, etcetera), and creating a working image as a final result), and it only needs the image file format (and some of my work, to create a parser).
The problems with unimg were all about positive sp values, and as I'm not a big assembly programmer, I couldn't make out anything from that. Maybe you understand it a bit more

No, haven't tried disassembling it yet. I was very glad that it worked, and that I could create a whole working build just from the sources. I know there are a lot of quirks, like if the extension of the file is not .fex, then it will encrypt(?) it, etc. I might try it, but currently I'm more interested in getting a working AOSP ICS on my tablet. Besides for disassembly I need to be in a special mood, which I'm not really in now

Illetve beszélhetünk egy kicsit magyarul is. Tabletrepublic-on írtam hogy vegyél fel MSNre és részletezem a különböző Crane SDK elemek funkcióit, működését, egyebeket, amit eddig sikerült kiderítenem az egészről.
Sajnos elég zavaros, mivel vagy négyféle csomagoló rendszer készíti a fileokat, és ezek közül csak egy működött rendesen (crane_pack.exe). Jó lenne megérteni ezt a file formátumot, hogy egy kicsit normálisabb módon hozhassam létre, különféle vacakolások nélkül.

Már egy jó ideje nem használok MSN-t. Skype/GTalk/email viszont van.

Ha nem használsz olyanokat, akkor azért majd felrakom.

sztupy · Feb 11, 2012

Made a diff between AOSP android 2.3.4 and the Novo 7 2.3.4 source drop. The list can be found at post 6: http://xdaforums.com/showpost.php?p=22397984&postcount=6

FezzFest · Feb 11, 2012

Nice tutorial! Do you mind if I fork your Github repo and add the device tree for the Bmorn V11 to the lunch list?

fonix232 · Feb 11, 2012

sztupy said:
Made a diff between AOSP android 2.3.4 and the Novo 7 2.3.4 source drop. The list can be found at post 6: http://xdaforums.com/showpost.php?p=22397984&postcount=6

Most of the things changed aren't even needed for the device - ril can be replaced with a local one (and suggested by Google to do so), just like recovery changes, in ICS we already have USB BT support enabler, so BT changes can be dropped, just like framework changes (they are for the softbuttons on the notification bar), camera and mediaplayer changes should be local too (in the device tree), so 99% of changes can be dropped.

Additions are different, some can be totally erased, and some are needed. From your github, I see that you've already began making a cleaned up, generic A10 tree, but I miss a few things - libsensor for one, stagefright, camera, and audio. The AOSP stock ALSA should work, if the proper audio config is placed in a ROM, but I have bad feelings about the missing libsensors source, and camera. Stagefright has a chance too to work, but camera definitely won't, and the used sensors aren't the common ones to be included.

Használok GTalk-ot is, ott is ugyanez a nicknevem, gmail utótaggal, szóval a szokásos

sztupy · Feb 11, 2012

FezzFest said:
Nice tutorial! Do you mind if I fork your Github repo and add the device tree for the Bmorn V11 to the lunch list?

That's what github is for

sztupy · Feb 11, 2012

fonix232 said:
Most of the things changed aren't even needed for the device - ril can be replaced with a local one (and suggested by Google to do so), just like recovery changes, in ICS we already have USB BT support enabler, so BT changes can be dropped, just like framework changes (they are for the softbuttons on the notification bar), camera and mediaplayer changes should be local too (in the device tree), so 99% of changes can be dropped.

Additions are different, some can be totally erased, and some are needed. From your github, I see that you've already began making a cleaned up, generic A10 tree, but I miss a few things - libsensor for one, stagefright, camera, and audio. The AOSP stock ALSA should work, if the proper audio config is placed in a ROM, but I have bad feelings about the missing libsensors source, and camera. Stagefright has a chance too to work, but camera definitely won't, and the used sensors aren't the common ones to be included.

Használok GTalk-ot is, ott is ugyanez a nicknevem, gmail utótaggal, szóval a szokásos

libsensor and stagefright are still there, as I could manage them to get compiled. Not that they work though. For the libcamera it depends on CedarX, which I couldn't manage to compile, that's why I removed it (for now). Besides CedarX unfortunately not "open-source", so in theory we couldn't use it either (well... not that I actually care about licence violations).

I'm still compiling ICS. Will put back libcamera and try to get the other hardware libs to work after I managed to get ICS to boot.

fonix232 · Feb 11, 2012

sztupy said:
libsensor and stagefright are still there, as I could manage them to get compiled. Not that they work though. For the libcamera it depends on CedarX, which I couldn't manage to compile, that's why I removed it (for now). Besides CedarX unfortunately not "open-source", so in theory we couldn't use it either (well... not that I actually care about licence violations).

I'm still compiling ICS. Will put back libcamera and try to get the other hardware libs to work after I managed to get ICS to boot.

Please be noted that ICS requires new stagefright, camera HAL, new GPU drivers, and so on.
ICS also should have some differences in the build tree, make a new branch for sure (as an example, it requires a device.mk and device_base.mk, both being the base containers without target definition, full_[devicename].mk for the actual full target, and cm.mk for CyanogenMod, what I'd suggest you to build).

I couldn't find any of the sources, but must have overlooked something. Will check it further.

esxgx · Feb 14, 2012

hi, I'm the author of unimg(esxgx).
and your unimg is not up-to-date(the version still have bugs to lead to fail the packing process.
Here is the latest version (fix bugs but no virus alarm[compared with the former version]), and you can use it in the same way.
please update your file.

PS. yes, the unimg can unpack and pack all allwinner's firewares without diffculty, good luck.

sorry for my english.

esxgx · Feb 14, 2012

fonix232 said:
Might I ask if you have tried disassembling (and decompiling) unimg.exe? I had several problems with it, but that would greatly help understanding how the images are created. I've got a C# framework, with image config parser, etcetera etcetera, to be able to read and create images in a much more advanced environment (filtering user errors, having tools for everything (bootfs modding, script.bin reversal, etcetera), and creating a working image as a final result), and it only needs the image file format (and some of my work, to create a parser).
The problems with unimg were all about positive sp values, and as I'm not a big assembly programmer, I couldn't make out anything from that. Maybe you understand it a bit more

I think you should use unimg.exe.
unimg is the only tool to unpack it correctly.
you know, allwinner didn't want me to release the tool in public last year(the tool is for sc9800[the former chip]). for some commercial reason, the offical toolchain of a10 only contains pack_tool.
so I released the tool with other tools(rootcr, rootpk,etc..) in a small group.
but some person posted it on the internet. so....

I developed the analysis tools in the form of many files(unimg, rootcr, rootpk, unimg2), because I want to keep each of the packing stages simple.
you can use a "bat" file / a GUI shell to communicate with each other, and that is what I expected.

I can't smoothly speak english, so I modified several times.

fonix232 · Feb 14, 2012

Thank you very much!
If I may ask, would it be possible to release the source code too?

esxgx · Feb 14, 2012

fonix232 said:
Thank you very much!
If I may ask, would it be possible to release the source code too?

I cannot released yet, but I will release it in a proper time on github (I have been touching with allwinner company, so I have to consider many factors).

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