Re: [ANN] stmmac enters the Netdev CI

[Hangbin Liu <hangbin.liu@linux.dev>]

Hi Maxime,
On Wed, Oct 21, 2026 at 08:49:22AM +0200, Maxime Chevallier wrote:
> On 10/21/26 03:49, Hangbin Liu wrote:
> > Hi Maxime,
> > On Tue, Oct 20, 2026 at 11:07:16AM +0200, Maxime Chevallier wrote:
> >> Hi everyone,
> >>
> >> It's my pleasure to inform you that the stmmac driver now has a runner
> >> that feeds into the Netdev CI. It runs in a lab I maintain, and the results
> >> are hosted by Bootlin, accessible here :
> >>
> >> https://netdevci.bootlin.com/stmmac/results.json
> >>
> >> What that means is that now contributions will be subject to CI
> >> validation, by having the kernel selftests run on real hardware.
> >>
> >> Results are already aggregated in the patchwork contest, and can also
> >> be found here :
> >>
> >> https://netdev.bots.linux.dev/devices.html
> >> https://netdev.bots.linux.dev/status.html
> > 
> > Thanks for your update!
> > 
> >>
> >> As stmmac is an off-the-shelf IP from Synopsys and is integrated in a lot
> >> of different platforms out there, the CI currently runs on 9 different
> >> boards that include the following SoCs :
> >>
> >>  - Starfive JH7110, riscV, dwmac 5.20 (rgmii-id w/ YT8531 PHY)
> >>  - LoongSon 2K0300, Loongarch, dwmac 3.70a (rgmii-id w/ YT8531 PHY)
> >>  - Amlogic S905X, arm64, dwmac 3.70a (rgmii-txid w/ RTL8211F PHY)
> >>  - Rockchip RK3566, arm64, dwmac4.20a (rgmii-id w/ RTL8211F PHY)
> >>  - Altera AgileX5, arm64, dwxgmac 2.10 (rgmii-id w/ KSZ9031 PHY)
> >>  - Altera cycloneV, arm, dwmac 3.70a (rgmii-id w/ KSZ9031 PHY)
> >>  - ST stm32mp157a, arm, dwmac 4.20a (rgmii-id </ RTL8211F PHY)
> >>  - Allwinner A20, arm, dwmac1000 (rgmii-id w/ RTL8211E PHY)
> >>  - Allwinner H2+, arm, Allwinner specific version (mii w/ internal PHY)
> > 
> > 
> > I’m curious about how our lab is maintained. Do we stick to a single distro
> > across all machines, or reinstall systems periodically?
> > And how are > reinstalls done, manually or via BMC?
> > 
> > Also, do we run all selftests via virtme-ng or docker? Does virtme-ng support
> > all the architectures?
> 
> Tests are run baremetal on the hardware directly. All the SoCs mentionned above
> are on single-board computers, devkits, or just some products out there that
> have the right HW.
> 
> We're talking embedded devices here, so there's no BMC at all :)
> 
> The distro used is based on Buildroot, a build-system similar to Yocto, I can share
> the configs if need be. It allows me to generate small images fast, that that
> work on the plethora of CPU archs the lab has.
> 
> All the boards in the lab are booting an initramfs image through the network, and
> the whole test session runs in it. Using a pure ram-stored rootfs allows bringing
> the network down afterwards, while the tests are running. It also allows easily
> updating the rootfs running on the boards when a new selftest get added for example.
> 
> All the boards are controlled through dedicated relays for power. As we're dealing
> with embedded devices that consume only a few watts, it's only a matter of switching
> some low-level DC voltages on/off (5V/12V/24V). I have a few mains-powered boards, also
> controlled through relays.
> 
> The whole lab is managed via labgrid + some custom software on top of that to manage
> the jobs, the builds, reporting results, etc.


Thanks for sharing. Labgrid looks quite promising for embedded device control.

> 
> I'd say, this setup is quite different to ones used for server-class HW, but the
> whole thing runs on very simple hardware, cheap to acquire and run.

Yes, I’m looking for a stable lab controller that can manage servers with
poor BMC support. It needs to support OS installation, system reboot, and
automated test execution.

> 
> To give you an idea, the build machine I'm using is based on Intel Core Ultra 9 185H,
> a laptop-class 22-core CPU that's in a NUC, and this is more than enough to build
> kernels/rootfs for 10+ boards every 8 hours, with lots of time to spare :)

Thanks, very glad to know these.

Cheers
Hangbin