A new eclipse-based NXP MCUXpresso IDE v11.10 is available With this new release, it includes an even easier firmware update mechanism for the MCU-Link (LinkServer) debug probes.

Outline

The NXP MCU-Link is an inexpensive and open source hardware CMSIS-DAP debug probe (see Versatile OSHW Mini MCU-Link Debug Probe: External, On-Board, or Embedded) from NXP for ARM Cortex devices. The NXP LinkServer firmware for gets frequent updates with new features. Traditionally, the LPC55S69 device on the probe uses a ‘firmware update jumper’ to start the update process. Setting such a jumper is painful, especially if you have many debug probes to update, for example in a classroom environment. As outlined in one of my previous posts, the LinkServer had added a jumper-less way of firmware update. Now with the release of the IDE v11.10, the update can be directly triggered from the Eclipse IDE (v11.10.0 or later).

Firmware update with Eclipse

If connecting with Eclipse to a LinkServer MCU-Link debug probe with an older firmware, you get an ‘i’ icon with a tool tip:

You don’t have to update the probe firmware, but it is recommended.

Right-Click on the entry to start the update process:

Then it shows a progress bar, first with putting the probe in to the update mode:

After the update, it confirms that that the programming was successful:

After that, it will show up with the new updated firmware version, ready to go:

That’s it 🙂

Summary

With the new IDE 11.10 the MCU-Link LinkServer probe firmware update is now really easy and jumper-less with the Eclipse IDE. With the UI, I can easily update the firmware, and still have a command line way to do the same or downgrading the firmware if ever needed, see Updating MCU-Link CMSIS-DAP Debug Probe Firmware, Jumper-less.

Happy updating 🙂

Links

• NXP MCU-Link debug probe: https://www.nxp.com/design/design-center/software/development-software/mcuxpresso-software-and-tools-/mcu-link-debug-probe:MCU-LINK
• NXP MCU-Link Pro debug probe: https://www.nxp.com/design/design-center/software/development-software/mcuxpresso-software-and-tools-/mcu-link-pro-debug-probe:MCU-LINK-PRO
• LinkServer for Microcontrollers
• How to create your own MCU-Link debug probe: CMSIS-DAP Debug Probe for Robots and Pixhawk with KiCAD
• How to embed the MCU-Link in your board: Versatile OSHW Mini MCU-Link Debug Probe: External, On-Board, or Embedded
• Updating MCU-Link CMSIS-DAP Debug Probe Firmware, Jumper-less
• MCU-Link-MR v0.2 Drone and Robot Debug Probe with UART-2-USB Bridge
• CMSIS-DAP: https://arm-software.github.io/CMSIS_5/DAP/html/index.html