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dsp is not running

Scheduled Pinned Locked Moved VOXL SDK
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  • R Offline
    R Offline
    RoyAzriel
    Contributor
    wrote last edited by
    #1

    Hi,

    this is my dev drone info.
    after working with it quite a bit it started to fail with power issues in prefight. later I noticed battery level is not available. and learned that the dsp is not working good after boot.
    I have another drone with same FW there is no problem. can I somehow fix this issue. see below some information.

    Thanks,

    Roy

    ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
    system-image: 1.8.06-M0054-14.1a-perf
    kernel: #1 SMP PREEMPT Wed Oct 22 04:29:38 UTC 2025 4.19.125
    ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
    hw platform: M0054
    mach.var: 1.2.1
    SKU: MRB-D0012-4-V3-C28-T8-M36-X0
    ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
    voxl-suite: 1.6.4~alpha2
    ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────

    Symptom

      After a session of repeated power-cycles/reboots (while troubleshooting unrelated Wi‑Fi/adb and flight-mode params), PX4 stopped functioning. The apps-side voxl-px4 launcher runs stably (NRestarts=0,
      stable PID), but no PX4 flight modules run — commander reports not running, battery_status is never published, preflight checks can't run, and voxl-px4 -s hangs.
    
      Root cause observed
    
      The journal shows the apps↔DSP bridge is dead:
      ERROR [muorb] Keep alive timeout from DSP: ~1009000 ms
      repeating continuously. So the SLPI/DSP-side of PX4 isn't responding — everything that runs on the DSP (commander, sensors, ekf2, battery) is absent.
    
      What we ruled out
    
      - SLPI hardware/firmware is healthy — dmesg shows the subsystem loads fine: slpi: Brought out of reset, Power/Clock ready interrupt received, adsprpc: slpi subsystem is up, opened rpmsg channel for slpi.
      FastRPC to the DSP is up.
      - Not a version mismatch — /usr/bin/px4 and /usr/lib/rfsa/adsp/libpx4.so are the same build (both Mar 24 2026), and this exact build flew successfully earlier in the same session.
      - Not the apps side — apps launcher runs stably, no crash loop.
    
      Recovery attempts that did NOT work
    
      - systemctl restart voxl-px4 (restarts only the apps-side launcher)
      - voxl-reset-slpi -t 5000 (DSP "recovered after 800ms" but PX4-on-DSP still didn't come up)
      - Manual px4-commander start — "succeeds" on the apps side but nothing actually executes on the DSP
      - A warm/adb reboot — fresh boot (uptime ~6 min, new PID) but commander still absent
    
      Question for ModalAI
    
      Why does libpx4.so fail to start/communicate on a healthy SLPI (FastRPC channel open, subsystem up) when the apps-side launcher and the DSP .so are the same build that worked earlier? Is this a known
      FastRPC/qurt PD-restart state that survives voxl-reset-slpi and a warm reboot, and is the recommended recovery a full cold power-cycle and/or a voxl-px4 reinstall to restore the signed/known-good
      libpx4.so?
    
    Eric KatzfeyE R 2 Replies Last reply
    0
    • R RoyAzriel

      Hi,

      this is my dev drone info.
      after working with it quite a bit it started to fail with power issues in prefight. later I noticed battery level is not available. and learned that the dsp is not working good after boot.
      I have another drone with same FW there is no problem. can I somehow fix this issue. see below some information.

      Thanks,

      Roy

      ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
      system-image: 1.8.06-M0054-14.1a-perf
      kernel: #1 SMP PREEMPT Wed Oct 22 04:29:38 UTC 2025 4.19.125
      ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
      hw platform: M0054
      mach.var: 1.2.1
      SKU: MRB-D0012-4-V3-C28-T8-M36-X0
      ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
      voxl-suite: 1.6.4~alpha2
      ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────

      Symptom

        After a session of repeated power-cycles/reboots (while troubleshooting unrelated Wi‑Fi/adb and flight-mode params), PX4 stopped functioning. The apps-side voxl-px4 launcher runs stably (NRestarts=0,
        stable PID), but no PX4 flight modules run — commander reports not running, battery_status is never published, preflight checks can't run, and voxl-px4 -s hangs.
      
        Root cause observed
      
        The journal shows the apps↔DSP bridge is dead:
        ERROR [muorb] Keep alive timeout from DSP: ~1009000 ms
        repeating continuously. So the SLPI/DSP-side of PX4 isn't responding — everything that runs on the DSP (commander, sensors, ekf2, battery) is absent.
      
        What we ruled out
      
        - SLPI hardware/firmware is healthy — dmesg shows the subsystem loads fine: slpi: Brought out of reset, Power/Clock ready interrupt received, adsprpc: slpi subsystem is up, opened rpmsg channel for slpi.
        FastRPC to the DSP is up.
        - Not a version mismatch — /usr/bin/px4 and /usr/lib/rfsa/adsp/libpx4.so are the same build (both Mar 24 2026), and this exact build flew successfully earlier in the same session.
        - Not the apps side — apps launcher runs stably, no crash loop.
      
        Recovery attempts that did NOT work
      
        - systemctl restart voxl-px4 (restarts only the apps-side launcher)
        - voxl-reset-slpi -t 5000 (DSP "recovered after 800ms" but PX4-on-DSP still didn't come up)
        - Manual px4-commander start — "succeeds" on the apps side but nothing actually executes on the DSP
        - A warm/adb reboot — fresh boot (uptime ~6 min, new PID) but commander still absent
      
        Question for ModalAI
      
        Why does libpx4.so fail to start/communicate on a healthy SLPI (FastRPC channel open, subsystem up) when the apps-side launcher and the DSP .so are the same build that worked earlier? Is this a known
        FastRPC/qurt PD-restart state that survives voxl-reset-slpi and a warm reboot, and is the recommended recovery a full cold power-cycle and/or a voxl-px4 reinstall to restore the signed/known-good
        libpx4.so?
      
      Eric KatzfeyE Offline
      Eric KatzfeyE Offline
      Eric Katzfey
      ModalAI Team
      wrote last edited by
      #2

      @RoyAzriel Does it come up fine after a power cycle?

      1 Reply Last reply
      0
      • R RoyAzriel

        Hi,

        this is my dev drone info.
        after working with it quite a bit it started to fail with power issues in prefight. later I noticed battery level is not available. and learned that the dsp is not working good after boot.
        I have another drone with same FW there is no problem. can I somehow fix this issue. see below some information.

        Thanks,

        Roy

        ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
        system-image: 1.8.06-M0054-14.1a-perf
        kernel: #1 SMP PREEMPT Wed Oct 22 04:29:38 UTC 2025 4.19.125
        ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
        hw platform: M0054
        mach.var: 1.2.1
        SKU: MRB-D0012-4-V3-C28-T8-M36-X0
        ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
        voxl-suite: 1.6.4~alpha2
        ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────

        Symptom

          After a session of repeated power-cycles/reboots (while troubleshooting unrelated Wi‑Fi/adb and flight-mode params), PX4 stopped functioning. The apps-side voxl-px4 launcher runs stably (NRestarts=0,
          stable PID), but no PX4 flight modules run — commander reports not running, battery_status is never published, preflight checks can't run, and voxl-px4 -s hangs.
        
          Root cause observed
        
          The journal shows the apps↔DSP bridge is dead:
          ERROR [muorb] Keep alive timeout from DSP: ~1009000 ms
          repeating continuously. So the SLPI/DSP-side of PX4 isn't responding — everything that runs on the DSP (commander, sensors, ekf2, battery) is absent.
        
          What we ruled out
        
          - SLPI hardware/firmware is healthy — dmesg shows the subsystem loads fine: slpi: Brought out of reset, Power/Clock ready interrupt received, adsprpc: slpi subsystem is up, opened rpmsg channel for slpi.
          FastRPC to the DSP is up.
          - Not a version mismatch — /usr/bin/px4 and /usr/lib/rfsa/adsp/libpx4.so are the same build (both Mar 24 2026), and this exact build flew successfully earlier in the same session.
          - Not the apps side — apps launcher runs stably, no crash loop.
        
          Recovery attempts that did NOT work
        
          - systemctl restart voxl-px4 (restarts only the apps-side launcher)
          - voxl-reset-slpi -t 5000 (DSP "recovered after 800ms" but PX4-on-DSP still didn't come up)
          - Manual px4-commander start — "succeeds" on the apps side but nothing actually executes on the DSP
          - A warm/adb reboot — fresh boot (uptime ~6 min, new PID) but commander still absent
        
          Question for ModalAI
        
          Why does libpx4.so fail to start/communicate on a healthy SLPI (FastRPC channel open, subsystem up) when the apps-side launcher and the DSP .so are the same build that worked earlier? Is this a known
          FastRPC/qurt PD-restart state that survives voxl-reset-slpi and a warm reboot, and is the recommended recovery a full cold power-cycle and/or a voxl-px4 reinstall to restore the signed/known-good
          libpx4.so?
        
        R Offline
        R Offline
        RoyAzriel
        Contributor
        wrote last edited by
        #3

        @RoyAzriel no.

        Eric KatzfeyE 1 Reply Last reply
        0
        • R RoyAzriel

          @RoyAzriel no.

          Eric KatzfeyE Offline
          Eric KatzfeyE Offline
          Eric Katzfey
          ModalAI Team
          wrote last edited by
          #4

          @RoyAzriel I'm guessing that there is a version mismatch somewhere. Can you install a recent SDK from scratch and see if everything comes up fine? And when you say "dev crone" do you mean that this is a custom drone and not one of our products?

          R 1 Reply Last reply
          0
          • Eric KatzfeyE Eric Katzfey

            @RoyAzriel I'm guessing that there is a version mismatch somewhere. Can you install a recent SDK from scratch and see if everything comes up fine? And when you say "dev crone" do you mean that this is a custom drone and not one of our products?

            R Offline
            R Offline
            RoyAzriel
            Contributor
            wrote last edited by
            #5

            @Eric-Katzfey by Dev drone I mean starling2 max. We have 4 units. We have never made changes except aligning the px4 of the sitl with the version of the px4 you are shipping the product with.
            Is there a way to diagnose the dsp operation? Some logs to send to you to understand better. Like I said we deploy same software to one drone that behaves well. Second drone was working fine with same deploy was working well until suddenly it started saying battery level is not available. After digging in into it we realized it has something to do with dsp boot.

            Waiting for your guidance.

            BR.
            Roy

            Eric KatzfeyE 1 Reply Last reply
            0
            • R RoyAzriel

              @Eric-Katzfey by Dev drone I mean starling2 max. We have 4 units. We have never made changes except aligning the px4 of the sitl with the version of the px4 you are shipping the product with.
              Is there a way to diagnose the dsp operation? Some logs to send to you to understand better. Like I said we deploy same software to one drone that behaves well. Second drone was working fine with same deploy was working well until suddenly it started saying battery level is not available. After digging in into it we realized it has something to do with dsp boot.

              Waiting for your guidance.

              BR.
              Roy

              Eric KatzfeyE Offline
              Eric KatzfeyE Offline
              Eric Katzfey
              ModalAI Team
              wrote last edited by
              #6

              @RoyAzriel Can you just try a fresh SDK install and see if that helps?

              R 1 Reply Last reply
              0
              • Eric KatzfeyE Eric Katzfey

                @RoyAzriel Can you just try a fresh SDK install and see if that helps?

                R Offline
                R Offline
                RoyAzriel
                Contributor
                wrote last edited by
                #7

                @Eric-Katzfey what do you mean by "fresh SDK install" ?
                run apt install voxl-suite on target ?

                Eric KatzfeyE 1 Reply Last reply
                0
                • R RoyAzriel

                  @Eric-Katzfey what do you mean by "fresh SDK install" ?
                  run apt install voxl-suite on target ?

                  Eric KatzfeyE Offline
                  Eric KatzfeyE Offline
                  Eric Katzfey
                  ModalAI Team
                  wrote last edited by
                  #8

                  @RoyAzriel Instructions are here: https://docs.modalai.com/flash-system-image/#flashing-a-voxl-sdk-release

                  R 1 Reply Last reply
                  0
                  • Eric KatzfeyE Eric Katzfey

                    @RoyAzriel Instructions are here: https://docs.modalai.com/flash-system-image/#flashing-a-voxl-sdk-release

                    R Offline
                    R Offline
                    RoyAzriel
                    Contributor
                    wrote last edited by
                    #9

                    @Eric-Katzfey where can I find 1.6.4_alpha2 it is not present in https://modalai.filecloudonline.com/ui/core/index.html#expl-tabl./SHARED/downloads/VOXL 2 Platform Releases

                    Thanks,

                    Roy

                    Eric KatzfeyE 1 Reply Last reply
                    0
                    • R RoyAzriel

                      @Eric-Katzfey where can I find 1.6.4_alpha2 it is not present in https://modalai.filecloudonline.com/ui/core/index.html#expl-tabl./SHARED/downloads/VOXL 2 Platform Releases

                      Thanks,

                      Roy

                      Eric KatzfeyE Offline
                      Eric KatzfeyE Offline
                      Eric Katzfey
                      ModalAI Team
                      wrote last edited by
                      #10

                      @RoyAzriel I would just grab the most recent one.

                      R 1 Reply Last reply
                      0
                      • Eric KatzfeyE Eric Katzfey

                        @RoyAzriel I would just grab the most recent one.

                        R Offline
                        R Offline
                        RoyAzriel
                        Contributor
                        wrote last edited by
                        #11

                        @Eric-Katzfey thanks. before I did sdk reflash I found out the px4 params were somehow corrupted. I have tried to reproduce these values without success.
                        what made it work is taking a similar drawn read the params usign px4-param show -a and writing the to the corrupted one.

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