How to set up Chromium for the byteDEVKIT-iMX9

Building a Custom Yocto Image with Chromium for the byteDEVKIT-OSM-iMX93

Introduction

This guide walks you through the complete process of building a custom Yocto image tailored for the byteDEVKIT-iMX93 platform. It includes integration of the Chromium browser, OpenGL and X11 support, and several essential development tools. This setup is particularly useful for embedded development scenarios requiring a graphical interface and extended system utilities.

Step 1: Clone and Prepare the Base Image

Note: This guide assumes you already have a working Yocto environment as described in the documentation.

Step 2: Add Browser and Clang Layers

To enable Chromium support and Clang-based tooling, clone the following layers into your Yocto project source directory:

cd <your-yocto-dir>/sources
git clone https://github.com/OSSystems/meta-browser.git
git clone https://github.com/kraj/meta-clang.git

Make sure to add these layers to your bblayers.conf file:

BBLAYERS += "${BSPDIR}/sources/meta-browser"
BBLAYERS += "${BSPDIR}/sources/meta-clang"

Step 3: Extend local.conf for Graphics Support

Edit your conf/local.conf file and append the required features:

DISTRO_FEATURES:append = " opengl x11"

Note: This ensures your image supports X11 and OpenGL, which are required by Chromium.

Step 4: Customize the Image with a .bbappend File

Create a .bbappend file to extend the base core-image-x11 with additional packages:

vi sources/meta-bytesatwork/recipes-graphics/images/core-image-x11.bbappend

Paste the following configuration:

IMAGE_INSTALL:append = "\
coreutils \
chromium-x11 \
ethtool \
dfu-util \
libgpiod-tools \
openssh-sshd \
openssh-ssh \
openssh-sftp-server \
openssh-scp \
vim \
"

# Minimal locale settings

IMAGE_LINGUAS = " "

# Enable package management tools

IMAGE_FEATURES += "package-management"

# Expand root filesystem to 5.5 GB to allow extra packages

IMAGE_ROOTFS_SIZE = "5767168"

require password.inc

Note: This process may take a while depending on your machine and network speed.

Step 6: Flash the Image to the Device

Once the build is complete, flash the resulting image to your ByteDevKit-iMX93 device using your preferred flashing method (e.g., dd , bmaptool , or a dedicated flashing script).

Conclusion

By following this guide, you’ve built a fully customized Yocto image for the byteDEVKIT-iMX93 with integrated Chromium support, graphical capabilities via X11 and OpenGL, and a suite of essential tools for embedded development. This setup provides a solid foundation for applications that require a lightweight GUI, browser-based interfaces, or remote system access.

If you have questions or encounter any problems, please contact us through our support: support@bytesatwork.ch.

Manifest

poky dce4163d42f7036ea216b52b9135968d51bec4c1
meta-freescale 90f519b0f053af1309ef6d31119001a1dce90537
meta-openembedded 2e3126c9c16bb3df0560f6b3896d01539a3bfad7
meta-iot-cloud 7e8ce5ed80fd950d09cb9f78ee039c3c35f2bcff
meta-qt5 eb828418264a49b8d00035cb3d7b12fcea3be801
meta-bytesatwork 83f033c2cb43b6ed6c0a707a81a88e45db71f7b1
meta-bytesatwork-nxp 7763513768b4ed27f2db25baeb3ff4af81ab7e07
base 9b3a25ddf9c082e2bb4311cb0df66866dbb9acae
meta-browser 0dad36da5970315e53635b4b1c2013e1aec43a29
meta-clang 9fbfa9db33131abdf3870a94f00199eb53e276e5