Platformio instead of Arduino compiler; suitable editors

[thawkins]

Building marlin for printrboards is about to get seriously easier, i have been working with one of the leads to integrate platformio into Marlin.

Platformio (platform.io) is a cool build system and library manager that manages the building of projects on embedded systems. It automatates installation and build of projects with various profiles, on Marlin we have defined support for 3 cpu's mega2560 for RAMPS boards, mega1280 and the AT90USB1286/1287 for printrboards etc.

Platformio also handles the listing of available connections and uploading of the hex file, via a suitable programmer.

The big plus for printrboard users is that platform uses proper linking rather than the take all source, compile it, and push it into the output. The net result is 10-15% better use of memory as many unnesscary functions wont get linked.

The next step is to break Marlin down into smaller units and build the configuratiin independant secions as a common libray. Which will further improve the link size.

Current printrbit sourced code, is built with an old copy of the aurduino framework, the platformio setup uses a version based on 1.6.x arduino framework, which the current arduino system uses.

Platform is also completly cross platform, in that works on windows, linux and mac, you can even install it on a raspberry pi and cross compile Marlin on there.

[thawkins]

[KD6HQ]

[RetireeJay]

In this thread, viewtopic.php?f=20&t=10144, thawkins mentions some editors that are available which are specifically designed for working with source code: "You dont need the Arduino IDE installed, platformio allows you to use Visual Studio, Eclipse, or dedicated ide's like cLion to maage your code." Visual Studio comes from Microsoft; Eclipse is easy to find, and both are free. I know they both work on Windows; I don't know about other platforms.

[frankv]

[thawkins]

[cacb]

[RetireeJay]

I created this thread for Platformio. I moved relevant posts from viewtopic.php?f=21&t=9929 to this thread.

See also viewtopic.php?f=20&t=10144 where thawkins discusses improvements on the way in Marlin.

[RetireeJay]

So, thawkins, what do I need to download in order to work with platformio?

I'm thinking of trying to do a "virgin" installation on a laptop that just got upgraded to Windows 10 today. Unlike my desktop, the laptop has no Marlin, no Arduino, no Teensy. It does have Eclipse, but that's configured to work with Java (and I have no idea if I need to do a second installation of Eclipse, or whether this one can be configured to work with Arduino code). It also has Repetier and has been used to demonstrate my printer.

As far as I understand it, there are "library" components scattered among the directories for Marlin, Arduino, and Teensy. So do I need to Install Arduino and Teensy as well as Marlin in order to make platformio work? Or does platformio somehow magically find all the missing components from the Web?

[KD6HQ]

I decided this just might confuse the process.....so I deleted it. Don, kd6hq

[RetireeJay]

Is this the version of Eclipse you downloaded?
Eclipse for C download button.PNG

[KD6HQ]

Yes, to the best of my belief.

[thawkins]

[KD6HQ]

[RetireeJay]

[thawkins]

[RetireeJay]

I, too, got stuck where KD6HQ did, not finding the PlatformIOAddons folder.
Just for reference, here is where PlatformIO ended up on my computer: C:\Python27\Lib\site-packages\platformio

[KD6HQ]

RJ

Where did you find "git" on github.com? When I did a search I found about 600+ and have no idea which one it is.

[RetireeJay]

[thawkins]

[KD6HQ]

1. Are the files at "github.com/Marlinfirmware/Marlindev" released files?

I ask because I set up a repository then did the desktop clone command.
Switched to platformioAddons and ran platformio run -e printrboard and received
a Error 2 message.

2. What should the relationship be between Eclipse and the Repository be? Should they both be in the same directory or can they be separate?

[thawkins]

[KD6HQ]

Thank you that did help. It compiles with several warnings (yellow) text, but at least there are no error messages. Time for more reading.

[thawkins]

[RetireeJay]

A Warning can be for something as simple as "you declared this variable, but you never used it." These can be very helpful for code developers ("Oh, I forgot..."). But Marlin is configurable for a galaxy of different boards and printers so it's not surprising that some snippets of code might be floating around that are not at all harmful but not relevant to your particular build.

[RetireeJay]

OK, I did a bit more work today, with some interesting findings:

1) It is absolutely NOT necessary to use Git to download the files from GitHub. Downloading the Zip file works just fine. That is how I downloaded Marlinfirmware/Marlindev.

2) The correct version of PlatformIO.ini is the one that thawkins shared above (shows as 10 August on my screen). I got the same error that KD6HQ did when I tried to use the one from GitHub.

3) When I ran PlatformIO run -e printrboard the first time, it noticed that I was missing components from "teensy" so it asked if I wanted to install them. I answered yes, and it took about 10 minutes to accomplish that task. However, that was a one-time exercise; subsequent attempts to compile did not need to retrieve "teensy."

4) The compilation was apparently a success when in the directory Marlinfirmware/Marlindev. However, I have no idea where it put the hex file! It looks like it was named "printrboard.hex" instead of "Marlin.hex" - but no matter.

5) Then I copied the PlatformIOAddons directory into an un-modified copy of the Marlin Unified source code (which is basically what I am running on my printer, with a few small tweaks). However, when I ran "PlatformIO run -e printrboard" there, I got errors and it did not finish successfully.
PlatformIO result with Directory Structure 1.PNG

In fact, I then noticed that maybe I had copied the Addons folder into the wrong place, one level too far down in the tree.
MarlinDirectoryStructure1.PNG

So I moved it back up to be equivalent to the position in "Marlinfirmware/Marlindev" - but in that position it generated even more errors faster!
MarlinDirectoryStructure2.PNG

I do like the idea of working this way, but I have no idea how to fix the problems. (I'd really like to be able to stick with the "Unified" firmware, not getting messed up with probing and all that stuff.)

By the way, I've installed Notepad Plus Plus and I really like it. When you use Eclipse, you are entering a high-powered system that keeps track of file locations and names with internal metadata, so if you ever move anything or change a file name, Eclipse gets broken (unless you do it from within Eclipse). But with Notepad++, you are simply navigating in an ordinary file system. One thing I really like about Notepad++ is that you can search for a particular string wherever it might appear in the current directory or subdirectory. This is fantastic for tracking down references in the huge array of files that comprise Marlin. As far as I know, Arduino doesn't have that capability, and I haven't found it in Eclipse either!

[RetireeJay]

[RetireeJay]

[KD6HQ]

[RetireeJay]

[KD6HQ]

Interesting - it's not listed on mine, did you have to use the board manager to download it?

[thawkins]

[Mooselake]

[cacb]

[RetireeJay]

[thawkins]

[KD6HQ]

I've been primarily working with a RAMPS setup using platformio.

I've noticed that a lot of information scrolls by during the compile.
Is this information saved in a temporary file somewhere that I could go back and look at it?

[thawkins]

[RetireeJay]

My Printrboard is Rev D. But for the newer Printrbot owners, does PlatformIO know about the Rev F Printrboard? It uses some "pins" differently (and has digital trimpots).

[KD6HQ]

[thawkins]

[RetireeJay]

OK, I'm on my Win-7 desktop, connected by USB cable to my Printrbot Plus with a Rev D card.

Starting with MarlinFirmware/MarlinDev, I've gone through Configuration.h with a fine-tooth comb and made several changes that were needed for my particular setup. PlatformIO compiles the package with no errors.

But when I issue PlatformIO run -e printrboard -- target upload, the message in the command window says SUCCESS, but in fact the program does NOT get uploaded! A "Teensy" window pops up saying to press the programming button - which I had done beforehand, of course. The Teensy window doesn't seem to have any button for me to click to finish the process.
PlatformIO-TeensyWindow.PNG

Just for kicks, I used FLIP to upload a couple of different versions of hex files I had sitting around, and it did work correctly. I've got different text in the M115 messages, so that's how I know. But the M115 message stayed the same after trying to program from PlatformIO. Also, all the EEPROM values stayed unchanged (and I would have expected the new firmware to use EEPROM differently, and thus start out with "factory default" values.)

So... what gives?

(BTW, I'm not finding it "easier" to remember all the different command line options, compared to a GUI environment. I have to go back searching through this thread to find the command I need.)

[KD6HQ]

For what it's worth.... I used notepad to make up a list of commands, options and what they did. It's not that many but I don't have to look them up anymore......

[KD6HQ]

[RetireeJay]

Yeah, KD6HQ, that's the way to do it. And yes, of course I was in programming mode when I tried. I have even outfitted my Plus with a switch to make it easy for me to go back and forth between modes without having to upend the printer (the "reset" switch is accessible to my finger through the hole in the chassis for the SD card).

thawkins, do I dare try to use FLIP to upload "firmware.hex"? Is there any chance that doing so would mess up my bootloader? If it's safe to use FLIP, then at least I could check out the functioning of the code. The new Marlinfirmware/Marlindev hex file is about half the size of the Unified hex file!

[thawkins]

[RetireeJay]

Why can't I use PlatformIO to program my Rev D Printrboard? What's missing?

When I have my printer in normal "run" mode, there is a COM port that's shown in Device manager:
"USB Serial (Communication Class, Abstract Control Model) (COM30)" (I have no idea why it's COM30, but it's been that way since I first installed the Teensy serial driver.) Naturally, Repetier uses this port to communicate with the board.

But when I go into Program mode (jumper + reset switch), the above serial COM port goes away. In fact, I can't find ANY port in Device Manager, either COM port or USB port, that appears only when I'm connected in Program mode. PlatformIO serialports list doesn't show any likely candidate, just several COM ports that seem to be tied up with Bluetooth, and COM1 which is clearly NOT associated with the Printrboard.

Nevertheless, FLIP has no problem connecting to the Printrboard when it's in Programming mode. (And FLIP can't see the board when it's in Run mode). So the board is there, but how to connect to it??? Why does the Teensy window seem to indicate success when it did not succeed?

[thawkins]

[RetireeJay]

[thawkins]

[RetireeJay]

[RetireeJay]

Well, make that 20 places in Configuration.h that need to be edited.

Apparently the Marlinfirmware/Marlindev program doesn't support EEPROM modification of the X, Y, and Z maximum dimensions (the M211 command introduced by Printrbot) so you have to hard-code the maximum dimensions into the source code. This is somewhere in the vicinity of line 428, depending on how many comment lines you added at the top of the file.

[thawkins]

[PxT]

[thawkins]

[KD6HQ]

I'm considering upgrading to Windows 10. As far as platformio goes any reason I should not?

[thawkins]

[Mooselake]

[RetireeJay]

[thawkins]

[RetireeJay]

Thanks, @thawkins. I did post about the thermal shutdown issue on Github, and someone explained that the parameters in the Configuration_Adv.h file set up a slope, in degrees per second (or seconds per degree). So when I tripled both numbers, I actually left the slope the same. Now I've increased the time window while leaving the delta-T the same and it fixed my problem. So it wasn't really a true "bug" in the firmware, just a problem with semi-opaque documentation that I couldn't interpret properly.

[mechanizedmedic]

I'm having issues uploading using any of the platformio options above on Debian. Is there a way to make platformio use dfu-programmer instead of teensy?

[RetireeJay]

@thawkins,
I downloaded, compiled, and installed the then current version of Marlin several months ago now, and it's been working fine for me. But just out of curiosity, are there mechanisms on Github for me to:
1) Check when a revised version has come out; and
2) More importantly - see what changed since the prior version (hopefully in language I can understand)?

-RJ

[RetireeJay]

Can anyone answer my question?

I assume, actually, that Github does have this functionality, but how do I use it?

I find Github to be EXTREMELY opaque. For example, I'm almost NEVER successful in Searching for something that I know is there. I have to use a link provided by someone else to find anything useful.

And yes, they do have a Help site, but it's also opaque. There are zillions of thing you can do with Git and I don't understand any of them. I've gone to the particular page of the Marlin software I'm using, but that page does not show me an easy-to-find history of what's been done to the program and why.

[thawkins]

[RetireeJay]

[thawkins]

[thawkins]

[thawkins]

Think you are looking for this.

https://github.com/MarlinFirmware/Marlin/releases

[thawkins]

Think you are looking for this.

https://github.com/MarlinFirmware/Marlin/releases

[RetireeJay]

@thawkins - help!

For some reason, using the recent mainstream Marlin, settings that I save in EEPROM are not being really saved. I didn't notice that earlier because when I built the version that I've been using for the last few months, I set all the factory defaults to good values. But now I'm doing some things that require changes and they are not "sticking." I can make a change, use M500 to supposedly save it to EEPROM, and then use M501 to check: the change is NOT being stored!

This is true both for the MarlinDev version you originally pointed me to, and also to the Marlin Release version in your last post in this thread.

Do you have any idea what I'm doing wrong?

[thawkins]

[RetireeJay]

[RetireeJay]

[RetireeJay]

[thawkins]

The platformiO team have released their own IDE based on the excellent "atom" editor. It comes as a single download and install for most platforms with both the IDE and the platformiO runtimes as one integrated setup. Making it a true drop in replacement for the arduino IDE, whilst providing a vastly better user experience and capabilities set.

http://platformio.org/#!/platformio-ide

[rdlaner]

Hey everybody, this thread has been really helpful in getting platformio up and running for me. I just got marlin compiling without any errors using Sublime Text as my IDE. It actually went pretty smoothly.

Here's what I'm running:
Mac 10.11
Sublime Text 3
Printrboard Rev F
ATX power supply

The problem I am having is when I actually try to load the compiled hex file to the printrboard via platformio. Whenever I try to upload I get this far in the process, but can progress no further:

[Sun Feb 21 20:37:07 2016] Processing printrboard (platform: teensy, board: teensy20pp, framework: arduino, build_flags: -I $BUILDSRC_DIR -D MOTHERBOARD=BOARD_TEENSY2)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"/Users/dustinlane/.platformio/packages/tool-teensy/teensy_loader_cli" -mmcu=at90usb1286 -w -s -v .pioenvs/printrboard/firmware.hex
Teensy Loader, Command Line, Version 2.0
Read ".pioenvs/printrboard/firmware.hex": 51904 bytes, 39.9% usage
Soft reboot is not implemented for OSX
Waiting for Teensy device...
(hint: press the reset button)

I've pressed the only button on the printrboard many times, but have never been able to progress any further than this. I tried following the instructions on how to load firmware to no avail. I did read that the rev F's boot loader jumper is the reverse of the older boards, so I did try setting the jumper, pressing the reset button, removing the jumper and then trying to upload the firmware (as well as the opposite), but to no avail.

Any thoughts or suggestions that may help me out?
Thanks!!

[RetireeJay]

Well, whoever told you that the Rev F jumper is opposite of Rev D was wrong. They changed the jumper logic around Rev B, I think. Very, very few people have ever seen anything except Rev D and Rev F - and their logic for the bootloader jumper is the same.

Jumper off = run the firmware.
Jumper on at power-up = run the firmware (Power-up is not the same as "reset"!!!)
Jumper on + press of "reset" button = go into bootloader mode until either power-down or press of "reset" button while jumper is off

Now, as for loading the firmware into the board is concerned, I too found that PlatformIO did not work for me for that function. I'm on a Windows computer, so I use FLIP. I understand that there is some other way to do it using Mac computers. This is documented in the Printrbottalk Wiki (the red, beige and white button next to the "Search..." text box in the upper right of this screen).

[rdlaner]

Thanks for the response. So I was able to successfully load the firmware to the printrboard. I ended up using "dfu-programmer", which I suspect is what is used behind the Firmware Update App for Mac described in the wiki you pointed me to. It would be nice to have platformio's upload tool to actually work sometime, though.

I also found that I could only get Marlin 1.0.2+ to work on my printrboard. After loading the firmware I would connect with Pronterface and verify I could connect and send commands. Pronterface connected easily to a board programmed with Marlin 1.0.2+, but it would never connect to a board with 1.1RC3 or 1.1RCBugFix.

Have you been able to successfully program and use Marlin 1.1 with a printrboard?

[RetireeJay]

When I migrated from a Rev D board to a Rev F board, I switched from using "Mainstream Marlin" to using of Marlin specifically designed for the Rev F board - which means it includes commands for the digipots, for example. There are a couple of posts I made about this: viewtopic.php?f=21&t=10715 and viewtopic.php?f=22&t=10716

I'm not sure how well supports the Rev F board; I didn't examine that question in detail. On my Rev D board, I could use Mainstream Marlin or the Printrbot "Unified" version, compiled with PlatformIO.

[thawkins]

[RetireeJay]

The Rev F board uses a different pin for the Y axis "endstop" (in addition to having the digipots). There are other pin changes too, involving the Expansion connectors. See the attachment.

I sure wish I could figure out how to track down some of those other pin assignments.

[rdlaner]

Thanks for the info, guys.

thawkins, you mentioned that mainstream Marlin should support digipots with a compile option. Could you specify which option? I'm currently compiling with platformio.

I've been able to successfully compile Marlin 1.1 with platformio and upload it via dfu-programmer. However, afterwards whenever I try to connect via Pronterface or Cura, I can never get it to connect. Do you suspect this is an issue with using platformio? I can try compiling with the Arduino IDE.
I also found this fork of Marlin that appears to have incorporated the Rev F specific changes to mainstream Marlin (I would post the url, but I'm too new of a user):
/StephS/Marlin at github
Again, I could compile and upload it fine, but still was unable to connect with either Pronteface or Cura. I'm curious if you guys have any better luck.

[thawkins]

[RetireeJay]

[rdlaner]

[rdlaner]

[rdlaner]

Also, just a quick FYI. With my current .ini configuration I can compile, load and run any code from the Printrbot github just fine. I can even connect afterwards with Pronterface and it connects immediately. I'm currently running the RevF-Version-5. The problem only arises when I try to use any mainstream Marlin 1.1 code.

[rdlaner]

Just wanted to check in again. I noticed that the latest release candidate of Marlin (RC7) has Platformio support removed. Has anyone else encountered this or have good workarounds?

[RetireeJay]

I'm not certain of this, but I think it all has to do with the definition of the motherboard. I've compiled Printrbot versions and older versions of Marlin (e.g. "Unified") successfully for the Printrboard, and the key was to find a common way for both Marlin and PlatformIO to refer to the board - for example by number instead of name. IIRC, the Rev D was either 80 or 81, and Rev F is 84. So when mainstream Marlin "dropped support for PlatformIO" maybe that just means that they added a new motherboard that is unknown to PlatformIO. But I think if you compiled the latest version for the Printrboard you'd probably be OK. I haven't done it, so no guarantees. Give it a try and let us know.

[rdlaner]

Ok, so here's what I found out. The current RC release (RC7), no longer has the PlatformioAddons directory and consequently on longer has a platformio.ini file. I did find, however, that the most current RCBugfix branch has added the platformio.ini file back to the repo.

So, once I had the .ini file back in, I was able to compile and build just fine as before. The nice thing is that the latest RC release has explicit support for the RevF board now:
#define BOARD_PRINTRBOARD_REVF 811 // Printrboard Revision F (AT90USB1286)

So instead of setting the MOTHERBOARD value to 84, it needs to be set to either BOARD_PRINTRBOARD_REVF or 811

[KD6HQ]

Hello All

I've been gone for a little over a year and am just stating to feel a little comfortable again with my printer. I see that progress has been made in the area of compilation software in the form of a program called Atom. Although I'm just getting started with Atom, it appears to automate the build and upload functions of PlatformIO. More steep learning curves.

I still have the Printrbot makers kit and a RAMPS 1.4 / Arduino 2560 board based printer that has never been finished.

Have there been any major advances in board design and if so what are you using now?

[KD6HQ]

Anyone know how up upload the "U8glib" library to Atom?
I have not been able to figure out how to use the Library Manger to add it.

[cline.matt1]

Hey guys,
I have been trying to get the latest Marlin 1.1 to compile so I can try to upload to my RevF5 board.
The problem I am running into is that it always throws an error about either customizedSerial or bluetoothSerial depending on if I enable bluetooth or not.
Do you guys have any suggestions?

I am using Atom and PlatformIO
I also get the same error if I try to compile the RevF5 source code from the printrbot branch with no changes at all.

[cline.matt1]

Github figured out that adding in Marlinserial.h to serial.h made it compile. and and then I needed to change the board choice in PlatformIO to be 811 instead of 81 or 84 to get it to compile with the correct pin call outs