NVIDIA BlueField DPU BSP v3.9.0
1.0

Logging

RShim logging uses an internal 1KB HW buffer to track booting progress and record important messages. It is written by the NVIDIA ® BlueField ® Arm cores and is displayed by the RShim driver from the USB/PCIe host machine. Starting in release 2.5.0, ATF has been enhanced to support the RShim logging.

The RShim log messages can be displayed described in the following:

  1. Check the DISPLAY_LEVEL level in file /dev/rshim0/misc.

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    # cat /dev/rshim0/misc DISPLAY_LEVEL   0 (0:basic, 1:advanced, 2:log) …

  2. Set the DISPLAY_LEVEL to 2.

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    # echo "DISPLAY_LEVEL 2" > /dev/rshim0/misc

  3. Log messages are displayed in the misc file.

    The following is an example output for BlueField-2:

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    # cat /dev/rshim0/misc ... --------------------------------------- Log Messages --------------------------------------- INFO[BL2]: start INFO[BL2]: no DDR on MSS0 INFO[BL2]: calc DDR freq (clk_ref 53836948) INFO[BL2]: DDR POST passed INFO[BL2]: UEFI loaded INFO[BL31]: start INFO[BL31]: runtime INFO[UEFI]: eMMC init INFO[UEFI]: eMMC probed INFO[UEFI]: PCIe enum start INFO[UEFI]: PCIe enum end

    The following is an example output for BlueField:

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    # cat /dev/rshim0/misc ... --------------------------------------- Log Messages --------------------------------------- INFO[BL2]: start INFO[BL2]: no DDR on MSS0 INFO[BL2]: calc DDR freq (clk_ref 53836948) INFO[BL2]: DDR POST passed INFO[BL2]: UEFI loaded INFO[BL31]: start INFO[BL31]: runtime INFO[UEFI]: eMMC init INFO[UEFI]: eMMC probed

The following table details the ATF/UEFI messages for BlueField-2:

Message

Explanation

Action

INFO[BL2]: start

BL2 started

Informational

INFO[BL2]: no DDR on MSS<N>

DDR is not detected on memory controller <N>

Informational (depends on device)

INFO[BL2]: calc DDR freq (clk_ref 156M, clk xxx)

DDR frequency is calculated based on reference clock 156M

Informational

INFO[BL2]: calc DDR freq (clk_ref 100M, clk xxx)

DDR frequency is calculated based on reference clock 100M

Informational

INFO[BL2]: calc DDR freq (clk_ref xxxx)

DDR frequency is calculated based on reference clock xxxx

Informational

INFO[BL2]: DDR POST passed

BL2 DDR training passed

Informational

INFO[BL2]: UEFI loaded

UEFI image is loaded successfully in BL2

Informational

ERR[BL2]: DDR init fail on MSS<N>

DDR initialization failed on memory controller <N>

Informational (depends on device)

ERR[BL2]: image <N> bad CRC

Image with ID <N> is corrupted which will cause hang

Error message. Reset the device and retry. If problem persists, use a different image to retry it.

ERR[BL2]: DDR BIST failed

DDR BIST failed

Need to retry. Check the ATF booting message whether the detected OPN is correct or not, or whether it is supported by this image. If still fails, contact NVIDIA Support.

ERR[BL2]: DDR BIST Zero Mem failed

DDR BIST failed in the zero-memory operation

Power-cycle and retry. If the problem persists, contact your NVIDIA FAE.

WARN[BL2]: DDR frequency unsupported

DDR training is programmed with unsupported parameters

Check whether official FW is being used. If the problem persists, contact your NVIDIA FAE.

WARN[BL2]: DDR min-sys(unknown)

System type cannot be determined and boot as a minimal system

Check whether the OPN or PSID is supported. If the problem persists, contact your NVIDIA FAE.

WARN[BL2]: DDR min-sys(misconf)

System type misconfigured and boot as a minimal system

Check whether the OPN or PSID is supported. If the problem persists, contact your NVIDIA FAE.

Exception(BL2): syndrome = xxxxxxxx

Exception in BL2 with syndrome code and register dump. System hung.

Capture the log, analyze the cause, and report to FAE if needed

PANIC(BL2): PC = xxx

Panic in BL2 with register dump. System will hung.

Capture the log, analyze the cause, and report to FAE if needed

ERR[BL2]: load/auth failed

Failed to load image (non-existent/corrupted), or image authentication failed when secure boot is enabled

Try again with the correct and properly signed image

INFO[BL31]: start

BL31 started

Informational

INFO[BL31]: runtime

BL31 enters the runtime state. This is the latest BL31 message in normal booting process.

Informational

Exception(BL31): syndrome = xxxxxxxx
cptr_el3 xx
daif xx

Exception in BL31 with syndrome code and register dump. System hung.

Capture the log, analyze the cause, and report to FAE if needed

PANIC(BL31): PC = xxx
cptr_el3 xxx
daif xxx

Panic in BL31 with register dump. System hung.

Capture the log, analyze the cause, and report to FAE if needed

INFO[UEFI]: eMMC init

eMMC driver is initialized

Informational and should always be printed

INFO[UEFI]: eMMC probed

eMMC card is initialized

Informational and should always be printed

ASSERT(UEFI]: xxx : line-no

Runtime assert message in UEFI

Contact your NVIDIA FAE with this information. Usually the system is able to continue running.

INFO[UEFI]: PCIe enum start

PCIe enumeration start

Informational

INFO[UEFI]: PCIe enum end

PCIe enumeration end

Informational

ERR[UEFI]: Synchronous Exception at xxxxxx
ERR[UEFI]: PC=xxxxxx
ERR[UEFI]: PC=xxxxxx

UEFI Exception with PC value reported

Contact your NVIDIA FAE with this information

The following table details the ATF/UEFI messages for BlueField:

Message

Explanation

Action

INFO[BL2]: start

BL2 started

Informational

INFO[BL2]: no DDR on MSS<N>

DDR is not detected on memory controller <N>

Informational (depends on device)

INFO[BL2]: calc DDR freq (clk_ref 156M, clk xxx)

DDR frequency is calculated based on reference clock 156M

Informational

INFO[BL2]: calc DDR freq (clk_ref 100M, clk xxx)

DDR frequency is calculated based on reference clock 100M

Informational

INFO[BL2]: calc DDR freq (clk_ref xxxx)

DDR frequency is calculated based on reference clock xxxx

Informational

INFO[BL2]: DDR POST passed

BL2 DDR training passed

Informational

INFO[BL2]: UEFI loaded

UEFI image is loaded successfully in BL2

Informational

ERR[BL2]: DDR init fail on MSS<N>

DDR initialization failed on memory controller <N>

Informational (depends on device)

ERR[BL2]: image <N> bad CRC

Image with ID <N> is corrupted which will cause hang

Error message. Reset the device and retry. If problem persists, use a different image to retry it.

ERR[BL2]: DDR BIST failed

DDR BIST failed

Need to retry. Check the ATF booting message whether the detected OPN is correct or not, or whether it is supported by this image. If still fails, contact NVIDIA Support.

ERR[BL2]: DDR BIST Zero Mem failed

DDR BIST failed in the zero-memory operation

Power-cycle and retry. If the problem persists, contact your NVIDIA FAE.

WARN[BL2]: DDR frequency unsupported

DDR training is programmed with unsupported parameters

Check whether official FW is being used. If the problem persists, contact your NVIDIA FAE.

WARN[BL2]: DDR min-sys(unknown)

System type cannot be determined and boot as a minimal system

Check whether the OPN or PSID is supported. If the problem persists, contact your NVIDIA FAE.

WARN[BL2]: DDR min-sys(misconf)

System type misconfigured and boot as a minimal system

Check whether the OPN or PSID is supported. If the problem persists, contact your NVIDIA FAE.

Exception(BL2): syndrome = xxxxxxxx

Exception in BL2 with syndrome code and register dump. System hung.

Capture the log, analyze the cause, and report to FAE if needed

PANIC(BL2): PC = xxx

Panic in BL2 with register dump. System will hung.

Capture the log, analyze the cause, and report to FAE if needed

ERR[BL2]: load/auth failed

Failed to load image (non-existent/corrupted), or image authentication failed when secure boot is enabled

Try again with the correct and properly signed image

INFO[BL31]: start

BL31 started

Informational

INFO[BL31]: runtime

BL31 enters the runtime state. This is the latest BL31 message in normal booting process.

Informational

Exception(BL31): syndrome = xxxxxxxx
cptr_el3 xx
daif xx

Exception in BL31 with syndrome code and register dump. System hung.

Capture the log, analyze the cause, and report to FAE if needed

PANIC(BL31): PC = xxx
cptr_el3 xxx
daif xxx

Panic in BL31 with register dump. System hung.

Capture the log, analyze the cause, and report to FAE if needed

INFO[UEFI]: eMMC init

eMMC driver is initialized

Informational and should always be printed

INFO[UEFI]: eMMC probed

eMMC card is initialized

Informational and should always be printed

ASSERT(UEFI]: xxx : line-no

Runtime assert message in UEFI

Contact your NVIDIA FAE with this information. Usually the system is able to continue running.

ERR[UEFI]: Synchronous Exception at xxxxxx
ERR[UEFI]: PC=xxxxxx
ERR[UEFI]: PC=xxxxxx

UEFI Exception with PC value reported

Contact your NVIDIA FAE with this information

During UEFI boot, the BlueField sends IPMI SEL messages over IPMB to the BMC in order to track boot progress and report errors. The BMC must be in responder mode to receive the log messages.

SEL Record Format

The following table presents standard SEL records (record type = 0x02).

Byte(s)

Field

Description

1
2

Record ID

ID used to access SEL record. Filled in by the BMC. Is initialized to zero when coming from UEFI.

3

Record Type

Record type

4
5
6
7

Timestamp

Time when event was logged. Filled in by BMC. Is initialized to zero when coming from UEFI.

8
9

Generator ID

This value is always 0x0001 when coming from UEFI

10

EvM Rev

Event message format revision which provides the version of the standard a record is using.
This value is 0x04 for all records generated by UEFI.

11

Sensor Type

Sensor type code for sensor that generated the event

12

Sensor Number

Number of the sensor that generated the event.
These numbers are arbitrarily chosen by the OEM.

13

Event Dir |
Event Type

[7] – 0b0 = Assertion, 0b1 = Deassertion
[6:0] – Event type code

14

Event Data 1

[7:6] – Type of data in Event Data 2

  • 0b00 = unspecified

  • 0b10 = OEM code

  • 0b11 = Standard sensor-specific event extension

[5:4] – Type of data in Event Data 3

  • 0b00 = unspecified

  • 0b10 = OEM code

  • 0b11 = Standard sensor-specific event extension

[3:0] – Event Offset; offers more detailed event categories.

See IPMI 2.0 Specification section 29.7 for more detail.

15

Event Data 2

Data attached to the event. 0xFF for unspecified.
Under some circumstances, this may be used to specify more detailed event categories.

16

Event Data 3

Data attached to the event. 0xFF for unspecified.

See IPMI 2.0 Specification section 32.1 for more detail.

Possible SEL Field Values

BlueField UEFI implements a subset of the IPMI 2.0 SEL standard. Each field may have the following values:

Field

Possible Values

Description of Values

Record Type

0x02

Standard SEL record. All events sent by UEFI are standard SEL records.

Event Dir

0b0

All events sent by UEFI are assertion events

Event Type

0x6F

Sensor-specific discrete events. Events with this type do not deviate from the standard.

Sensor Number

0x06

UEFI boot progress “sensor”. If value is 0x06, the sensor type will always be “System Firmware Progress” (0x0F).

For Sensor Type, Event Offset, and Event Data 1-3 definitions, see next table.

Event Definitions

Events are defined by a combination of Record Type, Event Type, Sensor Type, Event Offset (occupies Event Data 1), and sometimes Event Data 2 (referred to as the Event Extension if it defines sub-events).

The following tables list all currently implemented IPMI events (with Record Type = 0x02, Event Type = 0x6F).

Warning

Note that if an Event Data 2 or Event Data 3 value is not specified, it can be assumed to be Unspecified (0xFF).

Sensor Type

Sensor Type Code

Event Offset

Event Description, Actions to Take

System Firmware Progress

0x0F

0x00

System firmware error (POST error).

Event Data 2:

  • 0x06 – Unrecoverable EMMC error. Contact NVIDIA support.

0x02

System firmware progress: Informational message, no actions needed.

Event Data 2:

  • 0x02 – Hard Disk Initialization. Logged when EMMC is initialized.

  • 0x04 – User Authentication. Logged when a user enters the correct UEFI password. This event is never logged if there is no UEFI password.

  • 0x07 – PCI Resource Configuration. Logged when PCI enumeration has started.

  • 0x0B – SMBus Initialization. This event is logged as soon as IPMB is configured in UEFI.

  • 0x13 – Starting OS Boot Process. Logged when Linux begins booting.

Reading IPMI SEL Log Messages

Log messages may be read from the BMC by issuing it a “Get SEL Entry Command” while it is in responder mode, either from a remote host, or from the BlueField DPU itself once it is booted.

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$ ipmitool sel list 7b | Pre-Init |0000691604| System Firmwares #0x06 | SMBus initialization | Asserted 7c | Pre-Init |0000691604| System Firmwares #0x06 | Hard-disk initialization | Asserted 7d | Pre-Init |0000691654| System Firmwares #0x06 | System boot initiated $ ipmitool sel get 0x7d SEL Record ID : 007d Record Type : 02 Timestamp : 01/09/1970 00:07:34 Generator ID : 0001 EvM Revision : 04 Sensor Type : System Firmwares Sensor Number : 06 Event Type : Sensor-specific Discrete Event Direction : Assertion Event Event Data : c213ff Description : System boot initiated $ ipmitool sel clear Clearing SEL. Please allow a few seconds to erase. $ ipmitool sel list SEL has no entries


ACPI boot error record table (BERT) is supported to log last boot error in Linux. Once Linux printk is enabled (e.g., by adding "kernel.printk=8" to /etc/sysctl.conf), it will try to report the errors automatically for last boot. The following is an example of such error reports:

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[ 2.635539] BERT: Error records from previous boot: [ 2.640434] [Hardware Error]: event severity: fatal [ 2.645331] [Hardware Error]: Error 0, type: fatal [ 2.650236] [Hardware Error]: section type: unknown, c6adf9e6-1108-4760-8827-003d059fe2e1 [ 2.658606] [Hardware Error]: section length: 0x35 [ 2.663580] [Hardware Error]: 00000000: 52524520 4645555b 203a5d49 0a0d0a0d ERR[UEFI]: .... [ 2.672284] [Hardware Error]: 00000010: 636e7953 6e6f7268 2073756f 65637845 Synchronous Exce [ 2.680987] [Hardware Error]: 00000020: 6f697470 7461206e 36783020 37313643 ption at 0x6C617 [ 2.689696] [Hardware Error]: 00000030: 34 37 30 0d 0a ...

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