Re: Pi2 bootcode.bin puzzle

Theo <theom+news@chiark.greenend.org.uk> wrote:

bp@www.zefox.net wrote:

Can bootcode.bin pick up any parameters (other than noting the
presence of a timeout file) from any files placed on the microSD?

 
No idea, but one problem I've had in the past is that USB devices can take a
while to initialise, and it varies quite a bit between devices.  This could
be a reason why boots will sometimes fail - especially with eg spinning HDD.
 
Often it was necessary to add an explicit delay so that system didn't try to
read them before they were ready.  I think on Linux the kernel cmdline
options were 'rootwait' and 'rootdelay' but I don't know if bootcode.bin has
any kind of setting like that.

I've tried with and without the presence of a timeout file on the
fat32  partition of the microSD, far as I can tell it makes no
difference once things start going wrong. I do use it out of habit.

Does bootcode.bin pay any attention to config.txt? I thought it did,
but am not sure it has any effect on USB mass storage boot. The docs
say don't use any extra files on the fat32 partition.

Thanks for writing,

bob prohaska