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SARPi Project - Slacking on a Raspberry Pi

SARPi Project Software Sources

This page highlights the source(s) from which the SARPi Project creates the available software it distributes. Information on this page contains details and guides on how to build and create the software yourself. It is intended for those who may have an interest in learning how things are done, or who prefer to do things at their own pace, without autonomy.

The following sections will describe how to:
• Download the Slackware ARM on the Raspberry Pi build scripts.
• Create an initrd [initramfs] from the official Slackware ARM initial RAM disk.
• Build a Raspberry Pi Linux kernel from source.
• Download the Raspberry Pi boot-firmware.
• Extract wireless and Bluetooth firmwares from [Debian] packages.

Additional sources:
• Slackware ARM gcc-13.x AArch64 cross-compiler for building ARMv8 64-bit software. Also available on GitHub.

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Slackware ARM on the Raspberry Pi build scripts...

The original and unmodified build scripts, initially used by the SARPi Project to create the Slackware ARM installer and system packages for the Raspberry Pi (1), are copyright © 2012 Dave Spencer and can be downloaded from the idlemoor raspi-slackbuild GitHub repository. These scripts can easily be modified in order to build for any Raspberry Pi version. Or other ARM-based single board computer devices.

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Creating an initrd [initramfs] from the official Slackware ARM initial RAM disk

Slackware ARM initial RAM disk images can be downloaded from:
https://slackware.uk/slackwarearm/slackwarearm-[VERSION]/isolinux

* where [VERSION] is the release version of Slackware ARM - [ e.g. 14.2 | 15.0 ]

Slackware AArch64 initial RAM disk images can be downloaded from:
https://slackware.uk/slackwarearm/slackwareaarch64-current/installer/

Downloading the Slackware ARM current initrd-armv7.img initial RAM disk image is done like this:

Or, downloading the Slackware ARM 14.2 uinitrd-armv7.img [u-boot formatted] initial RAM disk image is done like this:

Extracting the Slackware ARM current initrd-armv7.img initial RAM disk image in order to add or delete files, or modify existing files, is done like this:

Extracting the Slackware ARM 14.2 uinitrd-armv7.img [u-boot formatted] initial RAM disk image is done like this:

Any files that need to be added, or modified, or deleted, should be done at this point. Such as modules, firmwares, etc.

When the files are ready to be re-packed into an initrd.gz (gzip compressed RAM disk) it's done like this:

Or, to re-pack into an initrd.xz (xz compressed RAM disk) it's done like this:

The 'initrd' is now prepared and can be used in a Raspberry Pi /boot partition as an initial RAM disk. An 'initrd' can be used for many purposes and reasons - e.g. emergency recovery. This 'initrd' also includes the Slackware ARM installer with which you can install the operating system!

Copy the 'initrd.gz' (gzip compressed initial RAM disk) to the /boot partition, or to the SD card that will be used to boot the system, like this:

Or for the 'initrd.xz' (xz compressed initial RAM disk) do it in exactly the same way but change the filename extension:

In order the load the 'initrd' an instruction needs to be added to the '/boot/config.txt' file. This can be achieved using any text editor, such as 'vim', 'elvis' or 'nano'. The instruction to load the 'initrd' needs to be on a line on its own but can appear anywhere within the '/boot/config.txt' file.

The '/boot/config.txt' instruction to load the 'initrd.gz' (gzip compressed RAM disk) should look like this:

The '/boot/config.txt' instruction to load the 'initrd.xz' (xz compressed RAM disk) should look like this:

For example, appending the above line to the end of the config.txt file for the 'initrd.gz' could be done by redirecting an echo output like this:

Or, for the 'initrd.xz' it could be added like this:

Once the line to load the 'initrd' has been added to the '/boot/config.txt' file, the next time the Raspberry Pi device is (re)booted, it should load the initial RAM disk instead of booting into the operating system. If you're creating a bootable SD card then obviously copy the 'initrd' file to that location and edit the '/boot/config.txt' for it, so it loads in the same way.

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Building the Linux kernel from source

The Raspberry Pi Linux kernel source is available from the Raspberry Pi Github [linux] repository and can be downloaded via 'git' like this:

To build the Linux kernel and modules for the Raspberry Pi (1), create a 'bcmrpi_defconfig' first and then use it to compile like this:

To build the Linux kernel and modules for the Raspberry Pi 2 or 3, create a 'bcm2709_defconfig' first and then use it to compile like this:

To build the Linux kernel and modules for the Raspberry Pi 4, create a 'bcm2711_defconfig' first and then use it to compile like this:

The above command(s) will install the kernel modules but not the kernel itself, or any device tree blobs. The kernel Image and device tree blobs needs to be located in the /boot partition.

Installing is the appropriate phraseology, but "copying" is more accurate. What's required here is to copy over the /boot files from the compiled binaries you've created from the Linux source code, which includes the kernel, System.map, and device-tree blobs [dtbs]. NB: If you have any existing files that you'll be over-writing, be sure to back them up BEFORE copying any files over!

IMPORTANT! There is a different filename for the kernel depending on which Raspberry Pi version you are building for. These kernel filenames are;
• Raspberry Pi (1) kernel file name: kernel.img
• Raspberry Pi 2/3 kernel file name: kernel7.img
• Raspberry Pi 4 kernel file name: kernel7l.img
• Raspberry Pi 3 or Raspberry Pi 4 ARM64 AArch64 [64-bit] kernel file name: kernel8.img

So, when you copy the kernel image make sure to name it according to your Raspberry Pi device and operating system version that it's intended to run on. The "l" in 'kernel7l.img' is a lower case "L", as in large. It's actually an indicator for "Large Physical Address Extension (LPAE)". The Raspberry Pi 400 uses the same kernel filename as the Raspberry Pi 4.

So, (for example) if you are compiling for a Raspberry Pi 400 you would use the following commands to copy the files:

That's basically all that's required to successfully compile the kernel, kernel modules, and device tree blobs.

Now the system should have the new kernel and modules, and device-tree blobs, in place for the next (re)boot. If you're creating a bootable SD card then obviously copy these files to that location instead.

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Raspberry Pi boot-firmware source

The Raspberry Pi boot-firmware source (NB: this software is propietary and closed-source) is available from the Raspberry Pi Github [firmware] repository and can be downloaded via 'git' like this:

Once the firmware repository has been cloned, all the files required are located in the 'boot' directory within the dowloaded folder. The easiest way to copy these to the '/boot' directory is by using 'rsync', and exlcuding any kernel*.img files, like this:

This will copy everything (except kernel*.img files) from the Raspberry Pi firmware's 'boot' directory into the '/boot' directory on your system. If you're creating a bootable SD card then obviously copy these files to that location instead.

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Raspberry Pi wireless & Bluetooth firmware sources

The raspberry Pi wireless and Bluetooth firmwares is downloaded and extracted from the Raspberry Pi main archive repository.

Downloading the Raspberry Pi wireless firmware [Debian package] is done like this:

Downloading the Raspberry Pi wireless firmware [Debian package] is done like this:

Once both packages have been downloaded, now to extract the contents like this:

This will extract the required files from the 'data.tar.xz' compressed archives and unpack them into the two directories you have created for this purpose.

Now, to copy these wireless and Bluetooth firmwares into the correct place on the system, it's done like this:

This will copy all the required STL*, BCM*, bcm*, and brcmfmac* firmware files into the '/lib/firmware' directory (which includes the 'brcm' firmware folder) on the system. If you're working on another location (e.g. to build a Slackware ARM package, or for testing purposes, etc.) then obviously copy these files to that location instead.

Once you're done, remove the [Debian] *.deb packages and folders created during the process in the '/tmp' directory.

You will now have successfully installed (i.e. downloaded, extracted, and copied) new Raspberry Pi wireless and Bluetooth firmwares onto your system.

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Support for Slackware Linux

If you're in need of help, or have something to contribute, one of the best places to get (and offer) support for Slackware Linux is on the Linux Questions Forum. Another valuable resource is the Slackware Documentation Project.

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