Getting started with micropython development requires first building the appropriate binaries for your platform.
It is advisable to create a virtual environment on your system to separate your micropython build system from your local python installation. This is not mandatory, so skip the virtual environment setup if you are happy to create your build system directly on your host machine.
Creating A Virtual Environment
To setup a virtual environment you first need virtualenv installed on your machine. Go to here to find instructions on how to set this up.
Once you have installed virtualenv, create a private virtual environment so that our build process which uses python scripts will not be influenced by python modules and libraries that a user may typically download and install on their root machine.
/> mkvirtualenv --python=/usr/bin/python3 microPython
Already using interpreter /usr/bin/python3
Using base prefix '/usr'
New python executable in /home/<your directory>/virtalenv/microPython/bin/python3
Also creating executable in /home/<your directory>/virtalenv/microPython/bin/python
Installing setuptools, pkg_resources, pip, wheel...done.
The mkvirtualenv command creates an area within your file system for your project files and updates environment variables to point to a local installation of a new python environment. The command --python=/usr/bin/python3 tells virtualenv to use Python3 files. The microPython keyword is the name of the virtual environment.
Setup Project Directory
Now you will be in your virtual environment. You know this from the output of your bash shell. It should show in brackets the name of the active virtual environment like this:
(microPython) ~/virtalenv/microPython
Now create a project directory to hold micropython files
mkdir project cd project
Note To deactivate your virtual environment you can type deactivate. And to work on your virtual environment after it has been deactivated you type: /> source virtalenv/microPython/bin/activate. This assumes that you created your virtual environment with the name 'micropython'.
UNIX
- DEB-based systems
- FreeBSD-based systems
- RPM-based systems
- Pacman-based systems
- Gentoo-based systems
- Mac systems
Debian, Ubuntu, Mint, and variants
The following packages will need to be installed before you can compile and run MicroPython:
- build-essential
- libreadline-dev
- libffi-dev
- git
- pkg-config (required at least in ubuntu 14.04)
- gcc-arm-none-eabi
- libnewlib-arm-none-eabi
To install these packages, use the following command:
sudo apt-get install build-essential libreadline-dev libffi-dev git pkg-config gcc-arm-none-eabi libnewlib-arm-none-eabi
Then, clone the repository to your local machine, or if you have created a virtual environment clone into your project folder.
git clone --recurse-submodules https://github.com/micropython/micropython.git
First check that the mpy-cross script exists to allow cross compiling. This may be fixed at some point in the future to be done automatically but for now you need to do this manually. Change directory to the mpy-cross directory here:
cd ~/virtalenv/microPython/project/micropython/mpy-cross
If mpy-cross does not exist do:
make
You should notice the mpy-cross executable is now created.
Change directory to the Unix build directory:
cd ./micropython/ports/unix
And then make the executable
make axtls
make
At that point, you will have a functioning micropython executable, which may be launched with the command:
./micropython
FreeBSD
(Release 11.1 tested)
Ensure that you have git, GCC, gmake, python3, bash, autotools, and pkgconf packages installed:
[as root] pkg install git gcc gmake python3 bash autotools pkgconf
Clone the git repository to your local machine:
git clone --recurse-submodules https://github.com/micropython/micropython.git
Change directory to the Unix build directory:
cd ./micropython/ports/unix
And then make the executable:
gmake axtls
gmake
At that point, you will have a functioning micropython executable, which may be launched with the command:
./micropython
Fedora, CentOS, and Red Hat Enterprise Linux and variants
For Fedora 'micropython' is available in the Fedora Package Collection.
sudo dnf -y install micropython
Additional details can be found in the Fedora Developer Portal.
If you want a more recent release or if you are running CentOS then follow those steps. The required packages can be installed with:
sudo yum install git gcc readline-devel libffi-devel
Clone the git repository to your local machine:
Change directory to the Unix build directory:
cd ./micropython/ports/unix
And then make the executable
make axtls
make
At that point, you will have a functioning micropython executable, which may be launched with the command:
./micropython
ArchLinux
The following packages will need to be installed before you can compile and run MicroPython:
- gcc or gcc-multilib
- readline
- git
To install these packages, use the following command:
pacman -S gcc readline git
Then, clone the repository to your local machine:
Change directory to the Unix build directory:
cd micropython/ports/unix
And then make the executable
make axtls
make
At that point, you will have a functioning micropython executable, which may be launched with the command:
./micropython
Gentoo Linux
emerge dfu-util app-mobilephone/dfu-util-0.9::gentoo
Mac OSX
Dependencies are listed on MicroPython on Mac OSX
The XCode and Command Line Developer Tools package will need to be installed before you can compile and run MicroPython:
xcode-select --install
Then, clone the repository to your local machine:
Change directory to the git repo and fetch all the submodules:
git submodule update --init
Change directory to the Unix build directory:
cd micropython/ports/unix
Make the dependencies:
make axtls
And then make the executable
make
At that point, you will have a functioning micropython executable, which may be launched with the command:
./micropython
Microcontrollers (Bare-Metal, without an OS)
ARM-based microcontrollers
On a Ubuntu 14.04LTS this worked. First remove the arm-none-eabi that comes with Ubuntu 14.04LTS and install the gcc-arm-embedded version.
sudo apt-get remove binutils-arm-none-eabi gcc-arm-none-eabi
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:terry.guo/gcc-arm-embedded
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install gcc-arm-none-eabi
(as of 2015Sept19 pulled in amd64 4.9.3.2015q2-1trusty1)
If needed to remove
sudo apt-get remove gcc-arm-none-eabi
For teensy script add-memzip.sh need
sudo apt-get install realpath
Assuming micropython has been installed via git in current directory
cd git\micropython\stmhal
make
(completes but didn't test)
cd ../teensy
make
(completes but didn't test)
See Running Scripts in https://github.com/micropython/micropython/wiki/Board-Teensy3.1)
Discussion on design https://forum.pjrc.com/threads/24794-MicroPython-for-Teensy-3-1/)
cd ../minimal
make - FAILS
Fedora
Install packages arm-none-eabi-gcc, arm-none-eabi-binutils and arm-none-eabi-newlib to be able to build stmhal port. Install dfu-util for flashing the firmware.
