[U-Boot] Unknown image format!

[U-Boot] Unknown image format!

[jobhunts02 at aol.com]

I am trying to switch from writing my JFFS2 filesystem to flash using an NFS mounted root filesystem to creating and installing a JFFS2 image.  The reason I am doing this is so I can use sumtool on the JFFS2 image and speed up my boot time.  When I use the JFFS2 image, I see the following while booting up the first time:
 
VFS: Mounted root (jffs2 filesystem).
Freeing unused kernel memory: 120k init
INFO: task pdflush:9 blocked for more than 120 seconds.
"echo 0 > /proc/sys/kernel/hung_task_timeout_secs" disables this message.
pdflush       D 00000000     0     9      2
Call Trace:
[C7C5FE10] [C000D464] __switch_to+0x4c/0x6c
[C7C5FE30] [C0260590] schedule+0x1a4/0x378
[C7C5FE80] [C0262610] rwsem_down_failed_common+0xbc/0x250
[C7C5FEB0] [C0262810] rwsem_down_read_failed+0x2c/0x44
[C7C5FEE0] [C026186C] down_read+0x38/0x3c
[C7C5FEF0] [C006EF3C] sync_supers+0x88/0x138
[C7C5FF10] [C00519AC] wb_kupdate+0x50/0x14c
[C7C5FF70] [C005219C] pdflush+0x164/0x260
[C7C5FFD0] [C0033924] kthread+0x48/0x84
[C7C5FFF0] [C0006038] kernel_thread+0x44/0x60
*** Running rc.modules
*** Running rc.serial
*** Attempting to start S15inet
 
In addition, after it does boot up and I do a write, the system hangs and u-boot won't even run after I power cycle the board.
 
I see that when I run iminfo after downloading the image to RAM that it reports "Unknown image format!" :
 
=> erase fc040000 ffefffff
 
........................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................
...................... done
Erased 502 sectors
=> tftpboot 00100000 jan10am.img
Using e1000#0 device
TFTP from server 10.174.100.101; our IP address is 10.174.100.120
Filename 'jan10am.img'.
Load address: 0x100000
Loading: #################################################################
         #################################################################
         #################################################################
         #################################################################
         #################################################################
         #################################################################
         #################################################################
         #################################################################
         #################################################################
         #################################################################
         #################################################################
         #################################################################
         #################################################################
         #################################################################
         #################################################################
         #################################################################
         #################################################################
         #################################################################
         ##########################################################
done
Bytes transferred = 18026200(1130ed8 hex)
=> iminfo
 
## Checking Image at 00100000 ...
Unknown image format!
 
 
Does iminfo saying "Unknown image format!" indicate a problem with my JFFS2 image?  Could this cause the long delay when booting after "Freeing unused kernel memory?"  I am using a 2.6.26 kernel with ppc.  I see the same behavior using both u-boot-1.3.4 and u-boot-2010.09.
 

[U-Boot] Unknown image format!

[Detlev Zundel]

Hi jobhunts02,

> I am trying to switch from writing my JFFS2 filesystem to flash using
> an NFS mounted root filesystem to creating and installing a JFFS2
> image.  The reason I am doing this is so I can use sumtool on the
> JFFS2 image and speed up my boot time.  When I use the JFFS2 image, I
> see the following while booting up the first time:
>  
> VFS: Mounted root (jffs2 filesystem).
> Freeing unused kernel memory: 120k init
> INFO: task pdflush:9 blocked for more than 120 seconds.
> "echo 0 > /proc/sys/kernel/hung_task_timeout_secs" disables this message.
> pdflush       D 00000000     0     9      2
> Call Trace:
> [C7C5FE10] [C000D464] __switch_to+0x4c/0x6c
> [C7C5FE30] [C0260590] schedule+0x1a4/0x378
> [C7C5FE80] [C0262610] rwsem_down_failed_common+0xbc/0x250
> [C7C5FEB0] [C0262810] rwsem_down_read_failed+0x2c/0x44
> [C7C5FEE0] [C026186C] down_read+0x38/0x3c
> [C7C5FEF0] [C006EF3C] sync_supers+0x88/0x138
> [C7C5FF10] [C00519AC] wb_kupdate+0x50/0x14c
> [C7C5FF70] [C005219C] pdflush+0x164/0x260
> [C7C5FFD0] [C0033924] kthread+0x48/0x84
> [C7C5FFF0] [C0006038] kernel_thread+0x44/0x60
> *** Running rc.modules
> *** Running rc.serial
> *** Attempting to start S15inet

Can you tell us on what storage you use the JFFS2?  Nor, Nand, how
large?  Did you consider the JFFS2 cleanmarkers which need to be written
by JFFS2 if not included in the pre-built image?

> In addition, after it does boot up and I do a write, the system hangs
> and u-boot won't even run after I power cycle the board.

Please post the relevant commands you issue and the output so that we
have an idea wht might go wrong.

> I see that when I run iminfo after downloading the image to RAM that
> it reports "Unknown image format!" :

[...]

> => iminfo
>  
> ## Checking Image at 00100000 ...
> Unknown image format!
>  
>  
> Does iminfo saying "Unknown image format!" indicate a problem with my
> JFFS2 image?

No.  "iminfo" works on images wrapped with the "mkimage" tool.  It does
not know anything about filesystem images, so this is actually expected.

> Could this cause the long delay when booting after
> "Freeing unused kernel memory?"  I am using a 2.6.26 kernel with ppc.

No.  I suspect that JFFS2 is writing its clean markers.  Usually this
should work in the background, but maybe your system setup has write
operations which then could block on this process.

Please see the JFFS2 FAQ[1].

Cheers
  Detlev

[1] http://www.linux-mtd.infradead.org/faq/jffs2.html#L_clmarker

-- 
I can understand that things like user-level libraries have to take crazy people
into account, but the kernel internal libraries definitely do not.
                                     -- Linus Torvalds
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