|
|
Formally, two large embedded Linux projects was their efforts this week, a move that simplifies the landscape for device and embedded software developers. Yocto, a Linux Foundation LF stewarded project that created development tools, and OpenEmbedded, a community driven distribution build system, their "alignment" announced, on March 1st. The merger includes governance changes and new corporate collaborators, but for the average Linux developers, the main effect is an optimized embedded development process.
Yocto started in October 2010, with the aim of simplifying the build process for teams working on embedded Linux systems. "Embedded" systems in Yocto's context refers to computing environments without a traditional computer interface, and perhaps no GUI at all. It includes router, NAS devices, and other stationary platforms that provide a Web front end management, but also extremely small, single-purpose devices, little more than boat to do that and run from flash memory. In any case the memory, processing power and memory available are typically very small - rare of a few megabytes to even the high-end router - and almost always on non - X 86 CPU architectures built.
This class of device is very different from the portable GUI based platform for consumer electronics specifically from MeeGo, where today's mobile phones almost all resources found offer on desktops and notebooks from a few years ago. Building "true" embedded Linux products requires a cross-compilation environment and the distribution build system that can target very specific device specifications. Yocto tries to simplify by plug-ins for large host IDEs such as Eclipse and Anjuta, plus much-needed missing pieces such as a fakeroot-like utility called pseudo, one cross-Prelinker, and a suite of tests and quality assurance process tools.
First embedded Yocto build system that allows developers, worked on the tiny cross-distro compile a whole, quickly and guarantees in terms of stability. But poky itself shares many of the goals of OpenEmbedded although OpenEmbedded is not only limited to building embedded Linux, and the two projects have long retained compatibility. When Yocto was announced for the first time, there therefore questions were whether it started with the older and well established OpenEmbedded or completed it.
So, this week's announcement not officially two projects, align the similar goals amount to a significant shift in the underlying technology, but it. As one of the fusion supports now Yocto a "OpenEmbedded core", the basis for building an embedded Linux distribution can serve as. The OpenEmbedded core consists of base-layer recipes and files to the developer, other components, including other Yocto utilities, hardware-specific drivers and user-defined or application code would stack.
The two projects strictly define the core, to resolve one of the original criticism of OpenEmbedded-, that unnecessarily many components contain his width design for true embedded products, to complicate adding development time and QA.
Together with the technical adoption of OpenEmbedded core fusion OpenEmbedded project adds representatives in the Yocto governance Board, to ensure that the two projects work together continue smoothly. The Linux Foundation also announced that the commercial companies officially combined a slate his support after the effort, including Cavium Networks, Dell, Freescale Semiconductor, Intel, LSI, Mentor Graphics, Mindspeed, MontaVista Software, NetLogic Microsystems, Texas instruments, Tilera, Timesys and Wind River throw was.
With more support the Yocto is far less likely as "Challenge" to OpenEmbedded are perceived, and to increase the ugly Specter of fragmentation. The definierteren OpenEmbedded core system providers are building devices with OpenEmbedded access to Yocto tool-set and Yocto developers who offered an additional set of options for the extension of your system, poky.
Ultimately, the type of the embedded devices where Yocto and OpenEmbedded make their strongest result, are those where the vast majority of consumers is never aware of, which is - running on the inside, and where you should not have to care. But that's exactly, why Linux is the dominant player on these devices: it is customizable and solid enough that the owner simply flip the power switch and runs it. But historically it adapt to the specifics was not easy to Linux each particular embedded hardware device. Yocto not yet developing for these systems trivial, but it is a big step in the right direction, and code-sharing with OpenEmbedded only makes things easier.
View the Original article
