Re-program STM32F102 trouble - stm32

I am trying to make some custom firmware for a MIDI controller (AKAI LPD8).
There is an STM32F102R8T6 chip in the unit.
I am trying to reach it with a programmer to wipe it, but it seems to not be responsive.
Some information and thing I have tried:
The firmware that came with the unit works, so the chip is not broken
Removed the components connected to the programming pins (PA9-PA10 and PA13-PA14)
I am able to pull BOOT0 high and have it not run the main program, but I am however not able to get a life sign using either an ST-Link2(clone) connected to PA13/14, nor a USB to serial adapter connected to PA9/PA10, so I am not sure what mode it is in
The connection has been checked, and RX-TX etc is the correct way around (but also for the sake of trying it all, I reversed the connections as well...).
Tried both the STM32CubeProgrammer and stm32flash, but none connects.
I am actually not sure if AKAI have locked the chip in such a way that you cannot even do a full chip erase and use the chip for something new? The NRST pin is strangely not doing anything to the running of the firmware either when I try to pull it low.
Is there a way to reprogram these chips when they come off of a commercial product, or are they permanently locked?
Any solution/tips?

Many of the STM32 parts have "proprietary code read-out protection" (google PCROP) which but you might be lucky and they haven't enabled it in the option bytes. Read the documentation for that and the bootloader documentation and get a good idea of what you expect it to do if it is enabled and if it isn't.
If you have a scope, try watching the SWD/JTAG pins to see if there is any response from the device. (If you aren't even sure if it is in reset then scope the crystal if there is one).
If you haven't got a scope, you might be able to to verify what it is doing by seeing if it sets the pins and pull-resistors to how they would be expected to be in the bootloader mode, eg: UART TX should be high if it is enabled, even it it isn't transmitting anything. Put a strong pull-down (~1k) on there and see if it still reads high.

After hours of trying different ways of making it work (also tried the alternate mapping of the UART port), and probed the TX pin as suggested by Tom V to no avail, I have given up working on that specific chip and ordered an upgrade from the STM32F4 family instead to replace it with. A lot more power and useful peripherals.
A bit of a non-answer to the specific question. Frustrating to not have found out what was wrong (chip or approach) but being mindful of the sunk cost fallacy, I think it was best to just replace the chip with a fresh one and start development from there.

Related

Problem programming and running STM32F103C8

I'm facing an unexpected problem with stm32f103c8. I'm programming the chip and after reset, it starts to run the program, but after a few seconds the microcontroller getting mixed up and stops running the program. After that when I try to reprogram the microcontroller, IDE(IAR EWARM) tells "target held in reset state".
It's very unusual issue because sometimes when I connect nRST pin directly to the VCC(3.3V), microcontroller runs program but unfortunately the current goes over 120mA and chip breaks down finally.
I'm using STM32CubeMX to generate the codes and my programmer is STLINK V2(clone), also tried Jlink V8.0(clone) but didn't change the result.
Could it be because of the clone programmers?
Can anyone help me solve this problem?
Thanks
Never connect nRST directly to VDD/VCC. This is a bi-directional input-output which must only ever be connected to an open-drain/open-collector signal. It can be pulled low externally or from within, it must never ever be pulled or driven high other than by the internal pull-up resistor.
When your debugger or programmer has finished programming the flash and wants to start running the new program then it requires to be able to pull this line low, which it might do externally if you connect this line to it in hardware, or else it has to be able to pull it low by software using the internal reset pulse-generator. If it does this and you have tied the line high externally then you are effectively shorting out your power supply, which is the cause of the over-current condition that you have observed.
Maybe the original problem is that your counterfeit ST-Link has its reset output configured as push-pull when it should be open-drain.
I would suggest that the easiest way to proceed is to leave the nRST line unconnected and configure your programming tool to use a software reset only.

Dump the firmware from an STM8 microcontroller

I have a 600W digital step up converter with broken STM8S103K3T6C and another that is currently working OK. Is there a way to copy (dump) firmware from the working one and upload it to the new chip. Since I have only one working, I have to be extra careful not to damage the working controller. I do have some basic experience with STM32, but I am grateful for any help I could get. I have a copy of ST-Link v2 programmer. Apparently (if there is a way), it has to be done via SWIM (which I don't nothing about, started reading few days ago). Not sure what is the proper way to start. Converter itself has UART pins at the right side of the board.
Thanks in advance.
if the chip is not locked, yes it's possible using SWIM interface. use STVP tool to extract firmware from the old one or to program it to the new one. it is bundled in a package called "ST toolset" for STM8 and downloadable from ST website. the SWIM needs 1 pin (plus reset if target uses that pin). despite that the STM8s hvae 3~5V supply, it's better to use 3.3V supply for it for the sake of the other circuitry. you can extract it even when the device is on, so there's no need to connect a supply pin from programmer to it.

STM32L4 - HAL_I2C_STATE_BUSY_RX issue

I'm having trouble with i2c communication. In my i2c bus, i have 4 boards (STM32L4 Sensortiles) and sometimes one of them blocks the bus and the others stop communicating consequently. When I reset that one that blocks the bus, all boards starting working again.
In my debugs, this bug happened when HAL_I2C_GetState(&hi2c3) returns HAL_I2C_STATE_BUSY_RX, even my others i2c functions HAL_I2C_Slave_Receive_IT and HAL_I2C_Slave_Transmit_IT returns HAL_OK:
Any ideas what Im doing wrong? Thanks.
Using libraries like HAL leads to problems like this one. Why?
HAL users feel free from knowing your hardware as magic library will do everything for you.
HAL users usually do not know how the peripheral works and how to debug it.
HAL users do not bother to go through the magic HAL function to see what the problem is.
Posting some images form debugger will not help.
What you need to do:
Get even the cheapest logic analyzer (there are $10 on ebay) and record the communication. See if the slave keeps the clock or data line low. If yes toggle the clock pin 9 times to unblock the line
If nothing helps reset the I2C peripheral using RCC register (it has to be implemented on all connected boards).

Atmega64 pins question. SCL/SDA same as TXD/RDX?

I'm not an Atmega pro by any means whatsoever. In fact, never worked with them. I'm trying to add an external eeprom using i2c interface to a device that uses an Atmega64 controller. From the datasheet, I see that pins 25 and 26 are labeled PD0/PD1 and are the SCL/SDA for i2c. That's fine and dandy. So then I go to the board and start tracing. I see that those go to a rocker switch with some simple circuitry that I haven't had a good look at yet, but I assumed it was something i2c compatible. But then what dawned on me was that this device has two such rockers so I expected to trace the other rocker back to the same two pins (since i2c is a bus that can have multiple slaves). Instead, they traced back to the two adjacent pins 27 and 28 labeled PD2/PD3 and RXD1/TXD1. Well, now that confused me.
I expected that I could add the memory in parallel on the SCL/SDA lines, but does what I now figure that what I discovered either means:
SCL/SDA is interchangeable with RXD1/RXD2 or
I'm confused on how SCL/SDA works and its not a bus or it can be used as a simple input?
Sadly, I'm not really sure what I'm asking. Can someone shed some light on this? Should I still be able to add the memory to SCL/SDA or probably not?
Thanks.
Steve
Nevermind, I found the answer. Its BOTH a bus and a simple input... either one or the other. In this case, its being used as an input so I can't also use it as a bus. Darn. Oh well.

How do I configure an ATA hard disk to start generating interrupts?

RESOLVED
After much confusion and frustration, I finally got my hard disk to interrupt. :D It basically came down to the fact that I kept reading the status register instead of the alternate status register. A few other things were messed up to boot, but the point is my hard disk driver is finally starting to take shape. Now, for others I will leave the original post.
P.S. For further clarification, I didn't need to issue any sort of reset command. All I did was the following:
Select the device (didn't want to kill the Solaris OS on the other disk)
clear the nIEN bit in the DEVICE CONTROL register
issue an IDENTIFY DEVICE command***
Actually, I am not sure if the IDENTIFY DEVICE command is need because I left the lab happy before I could test the code without issuing the command. However, the main point is that I needed to be sure to read the alternate status register and have the nIEN bit cleared without the need for a reset. The BIOS apparently takes care of most stuff.
I am currently trying to write a disk driver for a hobby OS being developed at my school. I currently have routines to read/write data in the PCI configuration space and assembly routines to do port IO with the various registers defined by ATA/ATAPI-7. Now, my question is, specifically how will I get an IDE hard drive to start generating interrupts? I have been looking through all this documentation and is hasn't become clear to me what I am doing wrong.
Can someone explain exactly what causes an IDE hard drive to start generating interrupts? I already have an interrupts service routine ready to test, but am having difficulty getting the interrupts in the first place. Can this be accomplished through the ATA SOFT RESET?
Thanks!
UPDATE: Ok, I was able to get the secondary channel, an ATAPI CDROM to generate interrupts by setting the SRST bit in the DEVICE CONTROL register for a soft reset. This does not work for the hard disk on the primary channel. What I have noticed so far is that when I set the SRST bit for the HDD, it sets the BSY bit and leaves it set. From there I don't know what to do.
This reference should help you a fair bit: Kenos description of programming ATA/ATAPI.
The basic mechanism to enable interrupts is to clear nIEN in the DCR (Device Control Register):
nIEN: Drive Interrupt Enable bit. The enable bit for the drive interrupt to the host. When nIEN is 0 or the drive is selected the host interrupt signal INTRQ is enabled through a tri state buffer to the host. When nIEN is 1 or the drive is not selected the host interrupt signal INTRQ is in a high impedance state regardless of the presence or absence of a pending interrupt.
This www.ata-atapi.com is a good jumping-off point to find way more info about ATA/PATA/SATA/ATAPI than you want to know... Note that the official ATA-6/7/etc specs cost $$ from T13, though you can download current drafts of ATA-8 from them.
This link describes a few of the many ways ATA devices vary from the specs. (I used to write SCSI and ATA/ATAPI drivers for Commodore/Amiga, way back when, as well as help with qualifying drives - or more accurately, figuring out what idiocies drive makers had done.)
if this is just a hobby OS, why not use the BIOS interrupt (int 13h)? admittedly not as fast as direct disk access but safer for your hard drive (I've put a read head through a plate before messing with disk I/O).