MCUXpresso SDK Documentation
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Building Your First Project

Building Your First Project#

This guide explains how to build and run your first SDK example project using the west build system. This applies to both GitHub Repository SDK and Repository-Layout SDK Package.

Prerequisites#

  • GitHub Repository SDK workspace initialized OR Repository-Layout SDK Package extracted

  • Development board connected via USB

  • Build tools installed per Installation Guide

Understanding Board Support#

Use the west extension to discover available examples for your board:

west list_project -p examples/demo_apps/hello_world

This shows all supported build configurations. You can filter by toolchain:

west list_project -p examples/demo_apps/hello_world -t armgcc

Basic Build Process#

Simple Build#

Build the hello_world example with default settings:

west build -b your_board examples/demo_apps/hello_world

The default toolchain is armgcc, and the build system will select the first debug target as default if no config is specified.

Specifying Configuration#

# Release build
west build -b your_board examples/demo_apps/hello_world --config release

# Debug build (default)
west build -b your_board examples/demo_apps/hello_world --config debug

Alternative Toolchains#

# IAR toolchain
west build -b your_board examples/demo_apps/hello_world --toolchain iar

# Other toolchains as supported by the example

Multicore Applications#

For multicore devices, specify the core ID:

west build -b evkbmimxrt1170 examples/demo_apps/hello_world --toolchain iar -Dcore_id=cm7 --config flexspi_nor_debug

For multicore projects using sysbuild:

west build -b evkbmimxrt1170 --sysbuild ./examples/multicore_examples/hello_world/primary -Dcore_id=cm7 --config flexspi_nor_debug --toolchain=armgcc -p always

Flash an Application#

Flash the built application to your board:

west flash -r linkserver

Debug#

Start a debug session:

west debug -r linkserver

Common Build Options#

Clean Build#

Force a complete rebuild:

west build -b your_board examples/demo_apps/hello_world -p always

Dry Run#

See the commands that get executed without running them:

west build -b your_board examples/demo_apps/hello_world --dry-run

Device Variants#

For boards supporting multiple device variants:

west build -b your_board examples/demo_apps/hello_world --device DEVICE_PART_NUMBER --config release

Project Configuration#

CMake Configuration Only#

Run configuration without building:

west build -b your_board examples/demo_apps/hello_world -Dcore_id=cm7 --cmake-only -p

Interactive Configuration#

Launch the configuration GUI:

west build -t guiconfig

Troubleshooting#

Build Failures#

Use pristine builds to resolve dependency issues:

west build -b your_board examples/demo_apps/hello_world -p always

Getting Help#

View the help information for west build:

west build -h

Check Supported Configurations#

To see available configuration options and board targets for an example, refer to the below command:

west list_project -p examples/demo_apps/hello_world

Next Steps#

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