Linaro 12.06 Release with Kernel 3.5 and Android 4.0.4

Linaro has released version 12.06 based on Linux Kernel 3.5-rc3 and Android 4.0.4 (r2.1).

This release brings further multimedia enablement for Android as well as some improvement to perf for Android, improved instructions & scripts for multi-arch on Ubuntu, and lots of little improvements and bugs fixes.

Here are the highlights of the release:

Android
- Multimedia enablement on AOSP, patches are in review.
- Most of the benchmarking applications have been automated via Monkeyrunner, working on PandaBoard and Snowball.
- Update panda-ics-gcc47-tilt-tracking-blob build to the TI LT 3.4 kernel.
- USB camera preview and still capture forward ported to tilt-tracking.
- 3D graphics and multimedia working on tilt-stable.
- IOMMU for Origen’s Multi format codec (MFC) enabled.
- IOMMU for Origen’s FIMC enabled. (FIMC stands for Fully Interactive Mobile Camera, and it’s used for camera input).
- Snowball upgraded to Android 4.0.4.
- Cortex strings landed in Linaro Android and submitted to AOSP (https://android-review.googlesource.com/#/c/38031/). This is part of the Android optimizations discussed here.
- Linaro Android updated to Android 4.0.4 r2.1.
- Linaro Android panda-ics-gcc47-tilt-stable-blob build graphics acceleration upgraded with 4.0.4 binaries from AOSP.
- perf for Android in PandaBoard, patches submitted to Linaro kernel maintainers for other boards and lkml (http://patches.linaro.org/9603/)
- Worked around PandaBoard graphics issue (Panda crashes after 10 min, https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/912651) by using a lower resolution.
Developer Platform
- Kernel config fragments are now used by all the kernel packages available in the Linaro Evalution Builds, including one single fragment for the Ubuntu specific configs, which now allows all builds to behave similarly.
- Pre-built images validation was improved for the supported Linaro Evaluation Builds flavors, including a html file that describe the image content, and displays the test results from LAVA.
- Fixes for wifi-enablement, bluetooth-enablement, leb-basic-graphics and perf test cases. They should now be properly reflecting the Linaro Evaluation Builds images results.
- Kernel packages updated to the latest development trees from Linux Linaro and Landing Teams.
- A new Linux Linaro branch, called Linux Linaro Tracking, is now published. It contains the 3.4 Landing Team trees from TI, Samsung and ARM, delivering a single and unified tree which helps identifying conflicts and issues ahead of upstream.
- Linux Linaro maintenance scripts are now available on http://git.linaro.org/gitweb?p=people/ynk/ll-tools.git;a=summary repository.
- Improved instructions and scripts to easily cross-build a package using multi-arch with Ubuntu, available on https://wiki.linaro.org/Platform/DevPlatform/CrossCompile/UsingMultiArch
Infrastructure
- Engineering views are now available for consumption by Linaro engineers and managers in Launchpad directly. e.g. https://launchpad.net/~linaro-infrastructure/+upcomingwork
- We are now in the process of using custom AMIs (Amazon Machine Images) preloaded with build dependencies for faster builds on android-build.linaro.org and ci.linaro.org services.
- Publishing improvements to infrastructure include: builds with license-protected binary blobs and builds with restricted access (OpenID-based)
- Bug fixes and improvements made to patches.linaro.org (now functioning) and to linaro-image-tools.
Graphics
- Added 2 new features to GLMmark2: running in fullscreen mode and some additional per-frame statistics (average time per frame rather than just the frames per second).
- On the Graphics WG dashboard, multiple data series (for example from different sessions like Ubuntu/plain X/Android) can be displayed in the graphs.
Multimedia
- The gathering of 5.1 and 7.1 test audio files now complete.
- UCM support on PulseAudio 2.0 updated.
- Libjpeg-turbo updated to 1.2.1+svn837.
Power Management
- PowertTOP 2.0 made to work on ARM platforms
  - Patches sent upstream (in review).
  - package available in LInaro Ubuntu.
  - Work in progress on Android.
Toolchain
- Linaro GCC 4.7 2012.06, updated to GCC 4.7.0+svn188038
  - Adds multilib support for use in the binary builds
  - Improves performance of 64 bit shifts in core registers
  - An off-by-one error in vrev
- Linaro GCC 4.6 2012.06, updated to GCC 4.6.3+svn188320
  - Uses the new /lib/ld-linux-armhf.so.3 loader for hard float binaries
- Linaro GDB 7.4 2012.06, updated to GDB 7.4.1 code base
  - GDB now expands tildes in solib-search-path entries.
- Linaro QEMU 1.1.0 2012-06, updated to QEMU 1.1.0
- Linaro Toolchain Binaries 2012.06
  - Refine the system root
Validation
- lava-deployment-tool updated to use zc.buildout and provides greater reliablity in the management of server upgrades.
- Serial port reset scripts developed to improve the reliability of device connections in the lab.
- Dashboard bundle’s now include a link to the job details, allowing users to easily find the raw logs from a test job.
- Improvements made on timeouts handling in tests.

Here are the known issues for this release:

Android
- Bluetooth does not work on Origen
- Tethering over Bluetooth/WiFi/USB missing in ICS
- Missing GL ES 2.0 drivers, unable to run GLMark2 benchmark
- Define “OpenAccessory” test steps
- Panda: Audio record and audio playback fails
- vexpress-a9: No sound in Android
- vexpress-a9: ADB over USB doesn’t work
- vexpress-a9: USB mass storage doesn’t work
- Phone app missing on ICS
- USB mass storage functionality missing
- Wifi doesn’t work on ICS on Panda
- Camera App does not work on ICS
- Messaging crashes if try to use it
- vexpress-a9: ICS: Suspend-Resume doesn’t work
- vexpress-a9: ICS: No thumbnails in gallery application
- vexpress-a9: Video playback fails in Gallery app
- Pandaboard: Serial log shows “line disc installation timed out” continously
- Panda: Resume failing on tracking-panda build
- glmark2 crashed on tracking-panda#145
- Downloading an .apk from a Site never finishes. Rights issue?
- No USB camera support
- Manual ethernet configuration required to enable browsing
- Youtube video does not work in small screen mode(Origen Board)
- android: kernel 3.3 doesn’t come out of hibernation
- Device Tree is unavailable on Linaro Android build for Snowball Board
- Device Tree is unavailable on Linaro Android build for Samsung Origen Board
- vexpress: Angrybirds display severely trucated
- vexpress: YouTube video playback fails
- vexpress: Device-tree not yet supported on A9
- Testing calendar app requires Exchange server
- Ethernet default interfaces are invalid.
- Email account setup fails on Linaro Android image.
- Snowball: Audio recording does not work as expected.
- Panda: Bluetooth file transfer fails (Rfcomm socket connect exception)
- Panda: Youtube video playback fails
- Snowball: Running powertop causes crash
- Suspend / resume failed on Origen Android image after the first suspend & resume cycle.
- Hear nothing while play back the audio file generated by Speech Recorder (Origen Android).
- The “Native” test suite can’t be run in Origen Google Hangout Android release.
- Video can’t be played on Origen Android Google Hangout release.
- The USB works unstable on Origen Android Google Hangout image.
- USB Tethering doesn’t work on Origen 12.05 Android image.
- DNS needs to be manually set on Origen Android image when using WiFi
- Can’t play video on Origen Linaro Android image.
- Panda: Hardware graphics enablement missing on “panda-ics-gcc47-tilt-tracking-blob/#build=101” and later
- Snowball Android: Need to configure ethernet manually after bootup on
- Panda: adb over usb broken on panda-ics-gcc47-tilt-tracking-blob/#build=101″
- GLMark2 is unstable on Origen Linaro Android image.
- Can’t listen music through Bluetooth headset on Origen Linaro Android build.
- SD-MMC test failed on Panda 4430 with Linaro Android image.
- Snowball : SDCard partition not mounted
- Kernel panic when run “powertop” on Panda 4430 with Linaro Android image.
- “Phone” app is unavailable on Panda 4430 with Linaro Android image.
- Snowball: Bluetooth and WiFi functionality broken on “snowball-ics-gcc46-igloo-stable-blob”
Ubuntu:
- HW graphics acceleration does not work on Origen with Ubuntu LEB
- Origen: device tree not enabled at Ubuntu
- Audio jack input and output not working on Panda
- Snowball kernel for ubuntu does not use device tree
- Origen: Missing automatic detection of the HDMI Video output
- Origen: HDMI Audio not working
- vexpress-a9: ubuntu: Reboot and shutdown don’t work
- Snowball: Reboot fails in Ubuntu
- LCD and LEDs are still enabled after halting the kernel
- Pandaboard ES freezes with the default CPU scaling governor ondemand
- Snowball: Audio functionality broken, audio playback and audio record doesn’t work
- Snowball: bluetooth file transfer fails
- Microphone doesn’t work on Origen ubuntu image
- HTML5 video playback is not smooth
- Panda: Video playback is distorted (using totem player + 480p video)
- Ubuntu: halt command throws error messages continuously and fails to shut down board
- Hardware accelerated Video playback support missing on Origen
- Video playback is not smooth and shows artifacts for HD video playback
- Snowball: Running powertop causes crash
- Panda: Bluetooth functionality broken
- Panda: ubuntu-omap4-extras-multimedia package not available for Precise
- There are some error information when run “glmark2-es2” in Panda ubuntu image.
- The UI response is quite slow on Panda ubuntu image.
- No way to set the sound playback from HDMI on Panda ubuntu image.
- Audio Record & Playback doesn’t work in Panda ubuntu image.
- [snowball] bluetooth headset does not play audio
- Power Management LAVA test failed on “checking ‘ondemand’ directory exists”.
- vexpress: No sound in Ubuntu
- snowball does not work with usb powered hub
- Linaro ubuntu image performance is poor on vexpress board.
- YouTube video can’t be played smoothly on Origen Linaro ubuntu image.
- Many SD card errors in vexpress Linaro ubuntu image.
- HDMI audio for html5 videos have breaks/artifacts
- snowball wifi device mac address changes every boot
- snowball UI doesn’t return after screen blank
- lockdep warning during boot with tilt-3.4
- System hangs when sending files to another Bluetooth device.
- Hear nothing when playing music through a paired Bluetooth headset.
- Panda: sigabort at xorg while trying to open www.youtube.com at firefox
- Testsuite fails on Panda 4430 with Linaro ubuntu image
- Ethernet icon is wrong in vexpress Linaro ubuntu image.
- YouTube can’t be played smoothly on vexpress Linaro ubuntu image.
- No hardware acceleration on vexpress Linaro ubuntu image.
- Can’t play 480p video smoothly on vexpress board with Linaro ubuntu image.
- Can’t play 1080p video on vexpress board with Linaro ubuntu image.
- Bluetooth is unavailable on vexpress board with Linaro ubuntu image.
- Several “pwrmgmt” test suites failed on vexpress board with Linaro ubuntu image.

Go to https://wiki.linaro.org/Cycles/1206/Release for further release details about the LEB, Android, Kernel, Graphics, Landing Team, Platform, Power management and Toolchain (GCC / Qemu) components.

Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft)

Jean-Luc started CNX Software in 2010 as a part-time endeavor, before quitting his job as a software engineering manager, and starting to write daily news, and reviews full time later in 2011.