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OpenBMC failures become much easier to diagnose when you first identify the layer involved: the BitBake build, BMC systemd startup, the managed host’s power and boot state, or the management network. Each layer has different evidence and different risks. Start with read-only logs and state checks, then change power, configuration, or images only when the evidence points there.

This guide follows the procedures and architecture documented by the OpenBMC project. Machine names, interface names, recipe names, image paths, bootloader variables, and memory addresses are target- and revision-dependent, so verify them against your board documentation and checked-out OpenBMC revision.

Start by identifying the failure layer

“The system will not boot” can describe at least three different failures:

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  • Build failure: BitBake cannot compile, install, package, or assemble an image.
  • BMC startup failure: the OpenBMC operating system does not reach its normal services.
  • Managed-host failure: the BMC is running, but the server it controls will not power on or advance through firmware and operating-system boot.
  • Network failure: the BMC is up, but management access, name resolution, time synchronization, or image transfer does not work.

Use the symptom and the strongest available evidence to choose a path rather than changing several variables at once.

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Failure layer Best first evidence Typical next action Risk
BitBake recipe or task Recipe task log, especially log.do_compile or log.do_install Inspect the failing task’s work directory and correct the dependency, source, configuration, or toolchain issue Read-only until a rebuild is started
BMC systemd startup Systemd target and service state, kernel and journal output Determine which target or service failed to reach the expected state Service restarts or reboots can interrupt management
Host power and boot Host state, boot-progress properties, event log, and boot-block status Resolve a blocking event or investigate the host power and firmware path Power transitions can interrupt workloads
Management network Deployed interface properties, link status, routes, DNS and NTP behavior Correct target-specific network settings or test connectivity Network changes can disconnect the BMC
Kernel image test U-Boot environment, TFTP reachability, image format, and board documentation Load a FIT image temporarily with TFTP and boot it Wrong image or address can prevent a test boot

These routes reflect the workflows in the OpenBMC cheatsheet, systemd architecture documentation, phosphor-logging README, REST cheatsheet, and boot-progress design. They are diagnostic dimensions, not benchmark results.

Fix OpenBMC build failures

Confirm the machine target and revision first

OpenBMC images are built for a specific machine target. Record the Git revision you checked out and the board or platform you intend to run. The project’s Distribution README demonstrates the basic flow:

  1. From the OpenBMC source tree, source the setup script with the machine target: source setup <machine>.
  2. Build the standard image: bitbake obmc-phosphor-image.

The supported-machine information and platform documentation in the README should decide the value passed to setup. A successful compile does not prove that a board is fully supported. The README warns that installing an image on an unsupported system may provide only basic functionality and can expose hardware-specific problems, such as cooling fans running continuously at full speed.

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Read the task log instead of the end of the BitBake scrollback

When BitBake reports a failed task, identify the recipe and task name in the error, then open that task’s log in the recipe work directory. The cheatsheet calls the compile and install logs common, fast starting points:

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  • build/tmp/work/<arch>/<recipe>/<version>/temp/log.do_compile
  • build/tmp/work/<arch>/<recipe>/<version>/temp/log.do_install

The architecture, recipe, and version components vary with the target and revision. The final lines often show the command that failed, while earlier lines contain the compiler, linker, missing file, permission, or packaging message that explains why it failed. Keep the failing task name attached to any fix; changing unrelated layers before understanding the task can hide the original cause.

Account for kernel recipe naming changes

Kernel development instructions are revision-sensitive. The cheatsheet notes that Aspeed-based builds use the linux-aspeed recipe after the referenced project change; older examples may refer to linux-obmc. If a command or path from an older guide does not exist, check the recipe names in your checked-out revision rather than creating a new path by guesswork.

Separate BMC startup from managed-host startup

How the BMC startup path is organized

The OpenBMC systemd architecture document describes the initial BMC startup path. Unless the kernel command line selects another target, systemd starts default.target. In the Phosphor OpenBMC arrangement, that target links to multi-user.target. A BMC that never reaches its expected services is therefore a systemd and service-state problem, even if the host itself is powered off.

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Inspect the system journal and the state of the relevant targets and services before forcing a reboot. A target that is not reached, or a required service that repeatedly fails, gives you a narrower fault than a generic “BMC did not boot” message.

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How the host power-on path differs

Powering on the server controlled by the BMC follows a separate path. The architecture document identifies obmc-host-start@.target as the host-start target; it pulls in a minimum target and the services required for host startup. A healthy BMC can therefore coexist with a host that remains off, is quiesced, or stops during firmware initialization.

Before issuing a power command, determine whether the failure is in BMC startup, host power control, firmware progress, or operating-system boot. Treat REST host controls as state-changing operations: authenticate correctly, confirm the intended host, and understand the effect before requesting soft off, hard off, power on, or reboot. The operation examples and log-retrieval requests are documented in the OpenBMC REST cheatsheet.

Use event logs and boot-block status to find power-on blockers

Check whether boot quiesce is enabled

The phosphor-logging README documents an optional boot-quiesce behavior. When the setting is enabled and a newly created event contains a qualifying hardware callout, the event can prevent the host from powering on. This is conditional: it depends on the setting and platform support, so not every power-on failure is a boot-block condition.

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Inspect and clear the blocking entry

  1. Run obmcutil listbootblock to check whether an event is currently marked as blocking boot.
  2. Use the event details and hardware callout to identify the component or condition that must be addressed.
  3. Resolve the underlying hardware or firmware condition, then resolve or clear the corresponding logging entry according to your platform procedure.
  4. Attempt the host power transition again and record whether the block reappears.

Clearing an entry without correcting the condition can make the next failure less obvious. Preserve the event information if you need to escalate the issue.

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Interpret host state and boot progress

The System Boot Progress on OpenBMC design describes host states including Off, Running, Quiesced, and DiagnosticMode, along with boot-progress properties. It also explains how host state is represented in Redfish and relates boot progress to IPMI and PLDM.

Use those properties to distinguish “never powered on” from “powered on but halted during firmware” and from “operating system has not completed boot.” The document is a design description, not a guarantee that every release exposes identical properties. Verify the interfaces and values implemented by your target revision. Andrew Geissler, the document’s author, summarizes the challenge directly: “The boot progress of an OpenBMC managed system is complex.”

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Troubleshoot management-network configuration

Verify the real interface name and supported properties

Network examples in the REST cheatsheet use the object path /xyz/openbmc_project/network/eth0 for settings such as NTP servers and name servers. That path is an example, not a universal interface name. Inspect the deployed object model and platform documentation before sending a request; a board may expose a different interface or a different set of writable properties.

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Make one change at a time and keep an out-of-band console available. A mistaken address, route, DNS value, or reset can immediately disconnect the management session. The REST cheatsheet also documents a factory-reset action for network settings. Treat it as a recovery operation: confirm that you have console or physical access and understand which settings will be lost before invoking it.

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Use logs and state APIs together

Retrieving logging entries through the REST interface can correlate a link, address, or service failure with a hardware event. Combine that evidence with the interface’s current properties and the BMC’s service state rather than assuming a failed REST request proves that the network hardware is defective. Authentication and exact request syntax depend on the deployed OpenBMC version; use the current cheatsheet for the operation you intend to perform.

Test a kernel with U-Boot and TFTP without flashing it

The cheatsheet describes a developer workflow for a Romulus target that loads a generated FIT image from a TFTP server. It is not a universal recovery method. The target’s U-Boot, network path, image format, and load address must all be compatible.

  1. Build the kernel or image for the exact machine target and revision.
  2. Copy the generated FIT image to a reachable TFTP server, following the Romulus image-path example in the cheatsheet.
  3. Enter the board’s U-Boot console and set or verify the ethaddr, ipaddr, and serverip environment variables for the target MAC address, board address, and TFTP server.
  4. Use U-Boot’s tftp command to load the FIT image into the board’s documented memory address.
  5. Start it with bootm and observe the console output, kernel messages, and resulting service state.

Do not copy a load address from one board to another. The documented example gives different addresses for AST2600-era use and AST2400, which is why the board manual and the matching cheatsheet section must take precedence over a generic command copied from the internet. A TFTP timeout points first to link, addresses, routing, or server reachability; a load or boot failure after transfer points to image format, address, or board compatibility.

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A low-risk troubleshooting sequence

  1. Record identity: OpenBMC Git revision, machine target, board or SoC family, and the symptom’s exact time.
  2. Classify the layer: build task, BMC startup, host power/boot, or management network.
  3. Collect read-only evidence: task log, systemd state, event log, boot-block result, host state, boot progress, or interface properties.
  4. Check platform assumptions: recipe naming, interface name, bootloader support, FIT format, TFTP reachability, and memory address.
  5. Apply the smallest reversible change: fix the failing recipe input, resolve a logged boot block, correct one network property, or perform a temporary image load.
  6. Retest and document: capture the new state and any changed log entry before taking another action.

Official OpenBMC documentation does not publish a general statistic for how often these failures occur or how frequently each remedy succeeds. The practical advantage comes from isolating the layer and using its native evidence, not from assuming a universal failure rate or a one-size-fits-all command.

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