Firmware upgrades for DM24s using Platinum - Manual method

Overview

This document describes how to upgrade the firmware of a DM24 using a connected Platinum systemA "platinum system" is any system running the Platinum operating system. This includes stand-alone acquisition systems such as EAMs and NAMs, DAS units such as the Affinity and DM24SxEAM and digital instruments with built-in acquisition systems such as the 3TDE, 40TDE or 5TDE.. Platinum systems provide the dm24-upgrade command and this is the recommended way of upgrading connected digitisers. There may be times, however, when the dm24-upgrade command cannot be used, such as when a previous firmware upgrade has failed and the DM24 will not boot beyond the initial boot-loader menu. This procedure can be used in those cases.

Connecting

This procedure is carried out on the command line of the Platinum system.

If it is possible to connect via the network, it is recommended that ssh or PuTTY be used to log into the Platinum system. If a network connection is not available, however, a serial link can be used.

The rest of this procedure assumes that you are familiar with connecting and logging in to the command line.

Power-cycling

At various stages in this procedure, you will be asked to power-cycle the DM24. There are three ways of doing this, depending on your hardware:

1. 

   If you have a cylindrical system, such as a DM24SxEAM in a metal, cylindrical case or a *TDE integrated instrument such as a 3TDE, you can power-cycle the embedded DM24 using the "Digital I/O" page in the web interface.

   

   Select the appropriate port - normally Port_A - and set the output to "Low" to power off. Once powered off, click "Return to details" to proceed. Set the output to "High" to power the DM24 on again and, again, click "Return to details" afterwards.

2. 

   If you have a separate DM24 (in a peli-case or a *TD integrated instrument) with a cable connection to the Platinum system, the simplest method is to unplug the cable between the two for five seconds and then plug it back in again.

3. 

   If neither of these methods is possible (as in the case, for example, of a DM24SxEAM in a black plastic peli-case) a DC power-supply with an adjustable output is required. Power the Platinum system and the DM24 from this power supply. Start by setting the output voltage to 12 V DC and log in to the Platinum system. Type into the console while gradually reducing the supply voltage until the system stops responding to your key-strokes. Wait a few seconds and then increase the voltage by one volt. The Platinum system should boot and allow you to log in again. Note the voltage of the power supply at this point; we shall refer to this as the lower voltage. The DM24 requires a higher voltage to run than does the Platinum system so only the Platinum system should be running at this point. If you now increase the supply voltage to 12 V, the DM24 will boot as well. To power cycle the DM24, therefore, you should first decrease the power supply voltage to the lower voltage (as established earlier), wait five seconds and then increase the voltage to 12 V again.

Tips

1. Many parts of this procedure need to be completed within a time-out period and it can be difficult to read the instructions at the same time while still reacting quickly enough to the prompts. For this reason, each section begins with a detailed description of the process, including several screen-shots, so that you can read and understand fully the process before you start. At the end of each section, there is a link to a quick summary of the required key-strokes.

   We recommend that you read each section thoroughly until you are familiar with the various screens and prompts that you will encounter. You can then use the summary page to refresh your memory while actually performing the procedure.

2. At various stages throughout this procedure, the boot-loader menu will be displayed and you will be required to make a selection from this menu within five seconds. If you would like more time, simply key
   spacebar to increase the time-out to thirty seconds. You can do this as often as you wish.

3. When selecting the directory for the file transfer, you will be required to type /usr/share/firmware/CMG-DM24-mk3 and, if you take too long, the system may time-out. This is especially likely if you make a mistake typing it and need to erase your typing and start again. We recommend copying the path into your PC's clipboard and familiarising yourself with the keystroke necessary to paste it into your session: typically a middle cmouse or right rmouse mouse-click or a key sequence like ctrl + shift + v or shift + insert.

The Procedure

1. Changing the line-speed

Firmware upgrades can fail if the line-speed of the communication link between the Platinum system and the DM24 is too high. We recommend a line-speed of 38,400 Baud. If the current line-speed is higher than this, it should be reduced to avoid this problem. If it is lower than this, it should be increased to reduce the time taken by the upgrade. The first step of the procedure, therefore, is to set the line-speed of both the terminal emulator and the DM24 to 38,400 Baud.

Log in to the Platinum system and run the command minicom PortA to start the minicom terminal emulator. You should see the following screen:

In this example, the current line-speed is 115,200 Baud, as indicated by the text 115200 in the status line at the bottom of the screen. If the status line is not displayed, key ctrl + a to make it visible.

If the current line-speed is 38,400 already, you can skip this step and jump to Upgrading the boot-loader.

To change the line-speed, leave this screen open and power-cycle the DM24, as described above. The following menu will be displayed:

Immediately key f to select "Run the FORTH monitor" and then key enter once or twice until you see the ok prompt.

Type the command 0 38400 BAUD and key enter. The line-speed of the digitiser changes immediately so you do not see an ok prompt this time. You may see a few random, indecipherable characters instead.

The line-speed of the DM24 is now set to 38,400 Baud so we need to change the line-speed of the minicom terminal emulator to match. To do this, key ctrl + a and then p to open the "Comm Parameters" dialogue. Key d and then enter to select 38,400 Baud.

Key enter a few times until the ok prompt is displayed again. Now type the command reboot and key enter to restart the system.

Leave minicom running and proceed to upgrade the boot-loader.

Follow this link to the one-page summary

2. Upgrading the boot-loader

The boot-loader is the first piece of code to run when the DM24 first starts. It normally loads the correct system code and DSP code and then transfers control to the system code. It does, however, control the updating of all the parts of the firmware using the "boot-loader" menu. Most of the rest of this procedure will involve using this menu.

Power-cycle the DM24, as described above. The following menu will be displayed:

Immediately key b.

The following prompt is displayed:

Key y to confirm and then x to select the X-Modem protocol. The following is displayed:

Key ctrl + a then s to open the "Upload" protocol selection dialogue.

Key down-arrow until xmodem is highlighted:

and then key enter. The file selection dialogue is displayed.

Key g to Go to a directory and paste in (or type, if you are fast and accurate) /usr/share/firmware/CMG-DM24mk3

and then key enter.

Scroll down the resulting list of files to dm24mk3-boot3002.img and then key spacebar to select it. It should now be displayed highlighted:

Key enter to start the transfer.

The xmodem upload indicator is displayed and, after a few seconds, it will start to show the progress of the transfer:

It takes less than a minute to transfer the boot-loader, after which the following is displayed:

Key enter to continue. The new boot-loader code will be programmed into the FLASH memory and you will then be prompted to reboot the DM24:

Key y to confirm and the DM24 will restart. You can proceed immediately to the next section and upgrade the system code but, if you do not manage to react in time, simply power-cycle the DM24 to return to the boot-loader menu.

Follow this link to the one-page summary

3. Upgrading the System Code

The system code is the main software that monitors and controls the operation of the DM24, including handling time synchronisation and the user interface.

If the DM24 is currently displaying the boot-loader menu as a result of completing the previous section, you can proceed directly. Otherwise, power-cycle the DM24 to display the boot-loader menu.

From the boot-loader menu, take option s to update the system code. You will be prompted to select a file transfer protocol: key x to select the Xmodem-128 protocol. The system will respond with the message

Immediately key ctrl + a then s to open the "Upload" protocol selection dialogue and key down-arrow until xmodem is highlighted:

and then key enter. The file selection dialogue is displayed.

Use down-arrow to place the cursor on dm24mk3-107b27.img and then key spacebar to select it. It should now be displayed highlighted:

Key enter to start the transfer.

The xmodem upload indicator is displayed and, after a few seconds, it will start to show the progress of the transfer, which takes around four minutes. When the transfer is complete, you are prompted to press any key to continue... :

Key enter to return to the boot-loader menu. Proceed promptly to the next section.

Follow this link to the one-page summary

4. Upgrading the DSP Code

The DSP code is the firmware for the Digital Signal Processor, which is responsible for decimation, filtering and other repetitive mathematical tasks.

If the DM24 is currently displaying the boot-loader menu as a result of completing the previous section, you can proceed directly. Otherwise, power-cycle the DM24 to display the boot-loader menu.

Once you are sure that slot zero is the default DSP code slot, key d at the boot-loader menu to update the DSP code. You will be asked to specify which slot to update:

so key 0 and enter to select slot zero.

You are next prompted to enter a Filename and Date to identify the DSP code. Type

and key enter to name the code. It is not necessary to enter a date or any further text here.

You will next prompted to select a file transfer protocol: key x to select the Xmodem-128 protocol. The system will respond with the message Start hosts' Xmodem-128 transmitter.

Immediately key ctrl + a then s to open the "Upload" protocol selection dialogue and key down-arrow until xmodem is highlighted:

The file selection dialogue is displayed.

Use down-arrow to place the cursor on dm24mk3-dsp1091.bin and then key spacebar to select it. It should now be displayed highlighted:

Key enter to start the transfer.

The xmodem upload indicator is displayed and, after a few seconds, it will start to show the progress of the transfer, which takes less than a minute. When the transfer is complete, you are prompted to press any key to continue... :

Key enter to proceed: you will be returned to the boot-loader menu.

Follow this link to the one-page summary

5. If you changed the baud rate...

Key f at the boot-loader menu to select "Run the FORTH monitor" and then key enter once or twice until you see the ok prompt.

Type the command 0 115200 BAUD, replacing 115200 with the desired Baud rate, then key enter. The line-speed of the digitiser changes immediately so you do not see an ok prompt this time. You may see a few random, indecipherable characters instead.

The line-speed of the DM24 is now set to the desired Baud rate and we now need to change the line-speed of the minicom terminal emulator to match. To do this, key ctrl + A and then P to open the "Comm Parameters" dialogue.

Some common speeds have single-letter commands to select them. To obtain a speed which does not have an associated single-letter command, select the nearest speed and then use a or b to change the speed up or down until the required speed is displayed:

Key enter to select the displayed speed.

Key enter once or twice more until you see the ok prompt and then enter the command re-boot. Confirm by keying y.

6. Tidying up

Allow the system to boot normally.

You will see some legible messages scrolling rapidly up the screen followed by regular bursts of indecipherable characters. This is the GCF protocol; a binary protocol generated by the DM24 when it is running.

Once you see this, wait for a few seconds and then key ctrl + a then q to exit minicom.

Key y to confirm that you wish to "leave without reset". After a few seconds, you are returned to the command line of the Platinum system.

This completes the loading of the DSP code and the DM24 firmware upgrade procedure.

Please contact if you have any questions or encounter any problems during the procedure.