Re: Raspbery Pi support (release notes/wiki page) update?

From: Mark Millard <marklmi_at_yahoo.com>
Date: Thu, 28 Nov 2024 04:15:42 UTC
On Nov 27, 2024, at 17:36, Bjoern A. Zeeb <bzeeb-lists@lists.zabbadoz.net> wrote:

> I just noticed that in the hardware release notes it says  (it's too
> late likely to change for now there but we could update the wiki page):
> 
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
> Raspberry Pi, more info about the support at the Raspberry Pi Wiki page:
> *  Raspberry Pi 3
> *  Raspberry Pi 4
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
> 
> The Wiki page is here not even mentioning the RPi5:
> https://wiki.freebsd.org/arm/Raspberry%20Pi
> 
> Can anyone who knows the latest state of affairs update that?

So far as I know:

) There is no FreeBSD supported U-Boot for any of:
    RPi5B
    CM5 (now orderable too)
    Pi500 (not yet orderable but there is a *.dtb now)

) There has been no FreeBSD kernel work for any of those.

) Together, the above 2 mean: no official support.

) Those of us using RPi5B's (only) via FreeBSD are using
   Release 3 of the EDK2 that one can get to via:
   https://github.com/worproject/rpi5-uefi?tab=readme-ov-file

) I'm not aware of EDK2 support for the CM5 or Pi500 at this
   point.

) If I understand right, FreeBSD does not support modern RPi*
   *.dtb's and RPi* firmware even for the RPi3B and RPi4B and
   related. (But I've done no testing of such in modern times.)

) The https://github.com/pftf/RPi4/?tab=readme-ov-file EDK2
   for the RPi4B has an error that FreeBSD now handles via a
   panic. There are other issues (known before the changes in
   the error detection/hanndling) that make USB I/O to file
   systems corrupt data at times unless the 3 GiByte (or less)
   limit is imposed. (Duplicating sufficiently-huge files
   appeared to always end up with corruptions, for example.)
   So only U-Boot-based was working reasonably.

) The EDK2's tend to require specific *.dtb versions as well,
   but include such in what they bundle with the EDK2 materials.

I do not remember the FreeBSD materials ever saying much
explicitly about what FreeBSD does not officially support at
all, which seems to be the RPi5B / CM5 / Pi500 status. I'm not
aware of any developer claiming any stage of support or to be
developing such for any non-personal/public use.

The "so far as I know" status may well limit the accuracy of
the above.

===
Mark Millard
marklmi at yahoo.com