Installation Guide

Installation Guide#

Requirements#

  • Make sure to have Python 3.10+ installed (old version 2.x is not supported).

  • It is recommended to create and activate a virtual environment (venv, pipenv, etc.) to avoid conflict with other packages

  • Upgrade pip to the latest version

  • Install SPSDK

Note

For more information about creating of virtual environments go to the official documentation

Warning

Please note that not all SPSDK dependencies might be distributed as wheels (built package format for Python). In this case please ensure that you have C compiler on your system. In some cases rust compiler is also needed

Windows#

To install SPSDK under Windows follow:

python -m venv venv
venv\Scripts\activate
python -m pip install --upgrade pip
pip install spsdk
spsdk --help

SPSDK help for command-line applications should be displayed.

Note

In Windows OS you need to install Microsoft Visual C++ Build Tools

Linux#

To install SPSDK under Linux follow:

python3 -m venv venv
source venv/bin/activate
python -m pip install --upgrade pip
pip install spsdk
spsdk --help

SPSDK help for command-line applications should be displayed.

UART under Linux#

Several steps need to be performed before SPSDK can list and use NXP devices connected to the host PC under Linux using UART.

By default on Ubuntu tty serial devices are only accessible to users in group dialout. The permissions for /dev/ttyACM0 can be permanently solved by adding the user to the dialout group:

sudo usermod -a -G dialout $USER

Then the user has to perform logout and login from the system for the group changes to take effect. Afterward, the UART device could be shown in nxpdevscan and are ready for use.

USB under Linux#

For SPSDK to access connected devices using USB, it is necessary to configure udev rules.

Note

NXP VIDs list - USB - VID & PID.

  1. Create a file for example 50-nxp.rules containing following rules:

SUBSYSTEM=="hidraw", KERNEL=="hidraw*", ATTRS{idVendor}=="0d28", MODE="0666"
SUBSYSTEM=="hidraw", KERNEL=="hidraw*", ATTRS{idVendor}=="1fc9", MODE="0666"
SUBSYSTEM=="hidraw", KERNEL=="hidraw*", ATTRS{idVendor}=="15a2", MODE="0666"

  1. To install rules copy the file to /etc/udev/rules.d:

sudo cp 50-nxp.rules /etc/udev/rules.d

sudo udevadm control --reload-rules

sudo udevadm trigger

  1. Plug your NXP device(s) and call nxpdevscan.

NXPUUU under Linux#

If you want to use nxpuuu under Linux without sudo. Append these rules to udev rules.

SUBSYSTEM=="usb", ATTRS{idVendor}=="1fc9", ATTRS{idProduct}=="012f", MODE="0666"
SUBSYSTEM=="usb", ATTRS{idVendor}=="1fc9", ATTRS{idProduct}=="0129", MODE="0666"
SUBSYSTEM=="usb", ATTRS{idVendor}=="15a2", ATTRS{idProduct}=="0076", MODE="0666"
SUBSYSTEM=="usb", ATTRS{idVendor}=="15a2", ATTRS{idProduct}=="0054", MODE="0666"
SUBSYSTEM=="usb", ATTRS{idVendor}=="15a2", ATTRS{idProduct}=="0061", MODE="0666"
SUBSYSTEM=="usb", ATTRS{idVendor}=="15a2", ATTRS{idProduct}=="0063", MODE="0666"
SUBSYSTEM=="usb", ATTRS{idVendor}=="15a2", ATTRS{idProduct}=="0071", MODE="0666"
SUBSYSTEM=="usb", ATTRS{idVendor}=="15a2", ATTRS{idProduct}=="007d", MODE="0666"
SUBSYSTEM=="usb", ATTRS{idVendor}=="15a2", ATTRS{idProduct}=="0080", MODE="0666"
SUBSYSTEM=="usb", ATTRS{idVendor}=="1fc9", ATTRS{idProduct}=="0128", MODE="0666"
SUBSYSTEM=="usb", ATTRS{idVendor}=="1fc9", ATTRS{idProduct}=="0126", MODE="0666"
SUBSYSTEM=="usb", ATTRS{idVendor}=="1fc9", ATTRS{idProduct}=="0135", MODE="0666"
SUBSYSTEM=="usb", ATTRS{idVendor}=="1fc9", ATTRS{idProduct}=="0134", MODE="0666"
SUBSYSTEM=="usb", ATTRS{idVendor}=="1fc9", ATTRS{idProduct}=="012b", MODE="0666"
SUBSYSTEM=="usb", ATTRS{idVendor}=="0525", ATTRS{idProduct}=="b4a4", MODE="0666"
SUBSYSTEM=="usb", ATTRS{idVendor}=="0525", ATTRS{idProduct}=="a4a5", MODE="0666"
SUBSYSTEM=="usb", ATTRS{idVendor}=="066F", ATTRS{idProduct}=="9BFF", MODE="0666"

macOS#

To install SPSDK under macOS follow:

python3 -m venv venv
source venv/bin/activate
python -m pip install --upgrade pip
pip install spsdk
spsdk --help

SPSDK help for command-line applications should be displayed.

GitHub#

To install SPSDK form GitHub follow:

$ pip install -U git+https://github.com/nxp-mcuxpresso/spsdk.git

GitHub - from sources#

To install SPSDK from source code follow:

$ git clone https://github.com/nxp-mcuxpresso/spsdk.git
$ cd spsdk
$ pip install -U -e .

Note

In case of problems during installation, please make sure that you have the latest pip version. You can upgrade pip using this command:

pip install --upgrade pip

PyInstaller#

PyInstaller bundles SPSDK applications into executable binaries which might be executed without Python interpreter.

To bundle SPSDK applications into executables run the following line:

$ pyinstaller --clean --noconfirm apps.spec

Note

It is possible to define custom SPSDK_DATA_FOLDER location using environment variable with the name SPSDK_DATA_FOLDER or SPSDK_DATA_FOLDER_version. Where the version is SPSDK version with underscores. SPSDK_DATA_FOLDER_version has priority over SPSDK_DATA_FOLDER. E.g.: SPSDK_DATA_FOLDER_2_0_0

Optional Dependencies (Extras)#

SPSDK provides several optional dependencies that can be installed based on your specific needs. These dependencies are organized into logical groups called “extras”.

To install SPSDK with specific extras, use the following syntax:

$ pip install "spsdk[extra_name]"

For example, to install SPSDK with support for examples and CAN bus:

$ pip install "spsdk[examples,can]"

To install all optional dependencies:

$ pip install "spsdk[all]"

If you are installing from a local repository, use:

$ pip install ".[extra_name]"

Available Extras#

examples#

Dependencies for running example jupyter notebooks:

  • flask - Web framework for building applications

  • requests - HTTP library for making requests

  • ipython - Enhanced interactive Python shell

  • notebook - Jupyter notebook environment

  • ipywidgets - Interactive widgets for Jupyter notebooks

$ pip install "spsdk[examples]"

dk6#

Dependencies for DK6 hardware support:

  • pyftdi - Python interface for FTDI devices

  • pylibftdi - Another Python interface for FTDI devices

  • ftd2xx - Python interface to D2XX drivers

$ pip install "spsdk[dk6]"

Note

For Pyftdi backend on Linux and macOS, libusb 1.x is needed. Install it with apt-get install libusb-1.0 on Linux or brew install libusb on macOS. On Windows, install D2XX drivers from https://ftdichip.com/drivers/d2xx-drivers/

oscca#

Dependencies for Office of State Commercial Cryptography Administration (OSCCA) support:

  • gmssl - Implementation of Chinese national cryptographic standards

$ pip install "spsdk[oscca]"

can#

Dependencies for CAN bus communication:

  • python-can - Python interface to various CAN implementations

$ pip install "spsdk[can]"

Note

Refer to the documentation of python-can for more information about supported devices.

lauterbach#

Dependencies for Lauterbach debug probe support:

  • spsdk-lauterbach - Python interface for Lauterbach debug probes

$ pip install "spsdk[lauterbach]"

pemicro#

Dependencies for PEMicro debug probe support:

  • spsdk-pemicro - Python interface for PEMicro debug probes

$ pip install "spsdk[pemicro]"

pqc#

Dependencies for Post-Quantum Cryptography support:

  • spsdk-pqc - Post-quantum cryptography implementation

$ pip install "spsdk[pqc]"

rblhost#

Dependencies for rapid rust blhost:

  • pymboot-rs - Python interface for MCU bootloader

$ pip install "spsdk[rblhost]"

all#

Installs all optional dependencies (except pkcs11 which is currently disabled):

$ pip install "spsdk[all]"

Note

The PKCS#11 extra is currently disabled due to Python 3.12 compatibility issues (see: pyauth/python-pkcs11#165)

SPSDK Plugins#

SPSDK allows users to install additional plugins that integrate with and extend SPSDK’s core functionality. These plugins enable specialized features while keeping the core codebase clean and focused.

Overview#

The SPSDK plugins repository contains various extension modules that enhance SPSDK capabilities through a modular architecture. Each plugin follows standardized interfaces and provides specific functionality like debug probe support, cryptographic operations.

Shell Autocompletion#

SPSDK provides shell autocompletion support for all command-line tools to improve user experience and productivity.

Setup#

To enable autocompletion for all SPSDK tools, use the built-in setup command:

# Auto-detect shell and setup completion for all tools
spsdk utils setup-autocomplete

# Setup for specific shell
spsdk utils setup-autocomplete --shell bash
spsdk utils setup-autocomplete --shell zsh
spsdk utils setup-autocomplete --shell fish

# Setup for specific tools only
spsdk utils setup-autocomplete --tools nxpfuses nxpimage

# List all available tools
spsdk utils setup-autocomplete --list-tools

# Preview what would be done (dry run)
spsdk utils setup-autocomplete --dry-run

Supported Shells#

  • Bash: Supported on Linux, macOS, and Windows (Git Bash, WSL)

  • Zsh: Supported on macOS and Linux

  • Fish: Supported on Linux and macOS

Note

PowerShell is not directly supported by the autocompletion library. For PowerShell users, consider using Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) with bash, or Git Bash for Windows.

Activation#

After running the setup command, activate completion by:

Bash:

source ~/.bashrc
# or start a new terminal session

Zsh:

source ~/.zshrc
# or start a new terminal session

Fish:

source ~/.config/fish/config.fish
# or start a new terminal session

Usage Examples#

Once enabled, you can use tab completion with any SPSDK tool:

# Complete main commands
spsdk <TAB><TAB>
# Shows: blhost nxpfuses nxpcrypto nxpdebugmbox nxpdevscan ...

# Complete subcommands
nxpfuses <TAB><TAB>
# Shows: get-template write write-single print fuses-script get-config

# Complete options
nxpfuses --<TAB><TAB>
# Shows: --family --help --config --output

# Complete family names
nxpfuses --family <TAB><TAB>
# Shows available chip families

Requirements#

The autocompletion feature requires the auto-click-auto package. If not installed, you’ll see an error message with installation instructions:

pip install auto-click-auto
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