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Maniphest T1059

Package cbmem for PureOS
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Description

Consider packaging cbmem for pureOS.

cbmem is a package that allow to pull relevant coreboot logs for troubleshooting. This is useful for the support team to assist in troubleshooting coreboot and pureboot issues with librem laptops. And to provide information for the coreboot team to act on reported issues.

Currently the method that the support team has to direct users to use cbmem is to instruct them to download the binary manually and run it. Which is not the best option.

Some considerations:

  • cbmem is not an standalone software project with it's own source, it is a binary artifact generated in the process building the coreboot images for Librem laptops
  • it would need update with each new coreboot image release
  • we still need to verify if there are no third party dependencies that might be problematic.

A copy of cbmem can be found here: https://source.puri.sm/firmware/releases/-/blob/master/tools/cbmem.gz

To run it:

  • Download and unzip it
  • From the same directory run: sudo ./cbmem -1 > cbmem.log

Event Timeline

joao.azevedo added a subscriber: jonas.smedegaard.EditedJun 30 2021, 00:40

@jonas.smedegaard is a package like the above: that is not a standalone project but an artifact generated in the build process of coreboot something that would normally be ok to package as a debian package.
Or is there any debian guideline against packaging something like this?
Considering that we do not package coreboot (the project that generates this binary in it's build process) as deb.

jonas.smedegaard added a comment.Jun 30 2021, 01:38

Debian requires freely licensed source.
An artifact of a build process is not source.
Some third-party simply redistributing the artifact does not make it source.
Some third-party forking the artifact as a new project may make it source (depending on whether it is treated as the preferred form for modification by that new upstream author).

Hope that helps.

jonas.smedegaard added a comment.Jul 3 2021, 02:35

is it perhaps possible to use the binary /usr/lib/grub/i386-coreboot/cbmemc.mod already provided in package grub-coreboot-bin?

If not, then maybe file a bugreport against grub to try convince the package maintainer to provide a runtime-executable binary - as it smells like grub sources include code for cbmem...

jonas.smedegaard triaged this task as Wishlist priority.Jul 3 2021, 02:41
joao.azevedo added a comment.Jul 5 2021, 10:36

maybe, thanks for the tip.