MSP-FET: Error updating RF430FRL152HEVM firmware.

Aditya Kamlesh Dhabekar

Part Number: MSP-FET
Other Parts Discussed in Thread: ENERGIA, UNIFLASH, CCSTUDIO, , RF430FRL152HEVM, TRF7970A, RF430FRL152H, MSP-EXP430G2ET

Hi,

I was using the MSP-FET tool to update the firmware of RF430FRL152HEVM with the JTAG interface. When I started updating the firmware a message 'error recognizing the MSP-FET tool' popped up in the CCStudio IDE. I clicked on Recover option at the IDE prompt and shortly after that I received the message 'error recognizing ez-FET tool, only one FET tool should be connected at one time'. I checked under Device manager and my system is not able to recognize the MSP-FET tool now. I tried the solutions discussed on the forums related to this topic but I am not able to resolve the issue still. When I power up the RF430FRL152HEVM using USB cable both the alarm and power LEDs turn on. Does that mean the EVM is not working? I tried updating the firmware using 3 different systems but I am getting the same message on all 3 systems. I even tried using Energia and UniFlash to update the firmware but the issue wasn't resolved. Is the MSP-FET tool completely bricked? Do I need to purchase a new MSP-FET tool or RF430FRL152HEVM? I need to update the firmware ASAP to move onto the next stage of development of the project. Any help in resolving the issue is greatly appreciated.

1 month ago

0 Dylan OBrien 1 month ago

TI__Genius 10270 points

Hi Aditya,

How are you connecting the MSP-FET to the EVM? Looking at pictures of the EVM online, I am not seeing the correct header to connect to the EVM with the FET. Maybe I am missing something here. A picture would be helpful. Have you connected to this EVM using this MSP-FET before?

If the above answer is yes, then I would be concerned that either the tool is damaged or somehow the device is damaged and it is affecting the tool. You could try swapping some parts in and out with known good ones to see if you can isolate the issue. It does sounds like an MSP-FET error though.

0 Aditya Kamlesh Dhabekar 1 month ago

Prodigy 10 points

Hi Dylan,

Thanks for replying to my post. I am connecting the MSP-FET tool to my PC via a USB cable and the EVM via JTAG connector provided with the MSP-FET tool. I read about connecting the EVM to the MSP-FET tool via JTAG interface in the RF430FRL152HEVM user guide. I am attaching a photo of the connection in this message. Am I connecting the EVM correctly?

0 Aditya Kamlesh Dhabekar 1 month ago in reply to Aditya Kamlesh Dhabekar

Prodigy 10 points

I have connected the EVM using the FET before using the JTAG cable provided with the FET.

0 Dylan OBrien 1 month ago in reply to Aditya Kamlesh Dhabekar

TI__Genius 10270 points

Considering that you have connected to the EVM using that device previously, and it suddenly does not work, I am questioning whether the MSP-FET or the EVM sustained damage. You could try swapping the MSP-FET and the EVM out for other parts that you know to be working to attempt to isolate the issue.

0 Aditya Kamlesh Dhabekar 1 month ago in reply to Dylan OBrien

Prodigy 10 points

I think the EVM is damaged. When I power the EVM using the provided USB cable both Power and Alarm LEDs turn on. My system is also unable to recognize either MSP-FET tool or the EVM when I check connected devices in Device Manager on my system. I faced similar issue while updating the Firmware of TRF7970A-BNDL but I was able to use the Recover option on a different system and update the firmware of TRF7970A. Do I need to purchase a new MSP-FET tool and RF430FRL152HEVM board?

0 Dylan OBrien 1 month ago in reply to Aditya Kamlesh Dhabekar

TI__Genius 10270 points

Id encourage you to try the part swap I mentioned above before purchasing anything new, just to make sure that you aren't wasting money on extra EVMs that you don't need, but yes after doing your best to confirm which part(s) are broken, I do think you'll need to purchase a new device.

0 Aditya Kamlesh Dhabekar 1 month ago in reply to Dylan OBrien

Prodigy 10 points

Got it, thanks for sharing your perspective on the issue. I would try swapping the part to see if either of the two is broken and make a purchase based on what I observe by following your advice.

0 Aditya Kamlesh Dhabekar 1 month ago in reply to Dylan OBrien

Prodigy 10 points

So I got replacement parts from TI last week and I tried updating the firmware of the RF430FRL152HEVM using the steps mentioned in the user guide and I am facing the same issue. What should I do now? The fixes given on other forums don't seem to be working this time around as well.

0 Charles Tsai 1 month ago in reply to Aditya Kamlesh Dhabekar

TI__Guru**** 165095 points

Hi,

Aditya Kamlesh Dhabekar said:
So I got replacement parts from TI last week

What replacement part are you talking about here? Is it the RF432FRL152H? If this is the case and you still cannot connect to the board using MSP-FET then it is most likely a problem with MSP-FET. Do you have another MSP board that you can try out connecting using MSP-FET? This will confirm if the problem is with the MSP-FET or with the RF430FRL152HEVM .

Aditya Kamlesh Dhabekar said:
When I power up the RF430FRL152HEVM using USB cable both the alarm and power LEDs turn on. Does that mean the EVM is not working?

Refer to the RF430FRL152HEVM user's guide. https://www.ti.com/lit/pdf/slau607. When both the power and alarm LEDs are on, they are normal if the board is connected to a USB cable.

• The EVM board can be powered by RF scavenged energy, battery, FET emulator tool, or USB power. When powered through the USB connection or an MSP-FET emulation tool, switch S6 must be set to "Supply". If the EVM is powered by scavenged RF energy or a battery, switch S6 must be set to "Battery".

• Level translators are used on I 2C, SPI, and FET emulator interfaces.

• The power (green) LED should turns on only when the board is powered by a USB connection.

• Jumper SV7 is needed to bypass the internal battery switch and provide power directly to the core. This jumper should be populated for most use cases.

• When the EVM is powered by the USB connection, the Alarm LED briefly flashes at power-up or stays illuminated if there is an interrupt from the RF430FRL152H. It is normal for the Alarm LED to stay lit during MSP-FET tool programming.

Make sure you have the correct switches setting according to the user's guide when debugging with MSP-FET.

2.3.2 Debugging or Programming

The following instructions show how to program the FRAM memory or debug the RF430FRL152H using a MSP-FET emulation tool. In this configuration the EVM is powered by the MSP-FET emulation tool.

1. Set switch S6 (near the BoosterPack plug-in module headers) to "Supply".

2. Connect the MSP-FET430 emulation tool to the JTAG header, SV2.

3. Start a debug session using IAR or CSS IDE.

4. Connection with the USB cable is not necessary for debugging or programming the RF430FRL152H.

Note: The Alarm LED may be illuminated during the debugging process if the USB cable is connected. This is normal behavior. Note: If the USB cable is not connected, the power LED (U5) and the Alarm LED (7) are not illuminated even if the emulation tool is connected. This is normal behavior. The MSP-FET emulation tool can be used to program or debug the EVM at this point.

0 Aditya Kamlesh Dhabekar 1 month ago in reply to Charles Tsai

Prodigy 10 points

I received a new MSP-FET tool and RF430FRL152HEVM from TI. I have followed the above steps before trying to update the firmware of the EVM board i.e. the steps mentioned in Debugging or Programming guide of RF430FRL152HEVM. After trying to update the firmware I encountered the "MSP430: Error initializing emulator: One of the connected MSP-FETs / eZ-FETs debuggers needs recovery. Select 'Recover' to start the recovery process. Note: Only one MSP-FET / eZ-FET debugger can be connected to your system during recovery."
So I did, but it gave the error
"MSP430: Error: MSP-FET / eZ-FET recovery failed". I have tried to use multiple systems to update the firmware as mentioned in: https://e2e.ti.com/support/microcontrollers/msp-low-power-microcontrollers-group/msp430/f/msp-low-power-microcontroller-forum/872507/ccs-msp-exp430fr2433-msp430-error-msp-fet-ez-fet-recovery-failed-firmware-bricked

I even tried using older CCS versions but it is of no use. What should I do now? Do I need to replace the parts again?

0 Charles Tsai 1 month ago in reply to Aditya Kamlesh Dhabekar

TI__Guru**** 165095 points

Hi,

Were you at one point of time able to program/debug the board with MSP-FET? Or it was always dead on arrival?

0 Aditya Kamlesh Dhabekar 1 month ago in reply to Charles Tsai

Prodigy 10 points

It seems that it was working initially but whenever I try to use the MSP-FET tool for updating the firmware of RF430FRL152HEVM the MSP-FET tool gets bricked. I was able to see the MSP-FET tool in my Device Manager when I initially connected it to my system but now when I check connected devices in my Device manager I am unable to see the MSP-FET tool or the EVM.

0 Charles Tsai 1 month ago in reply to Aditya Kamlesh Dhabekar

TI__Guru**** 165095 points

I can't relate how a MSP-FET would be bricked when programming a RF430FRL152HEVM board. Do you have any other non-RF430FRL152HEVM boards that you can try to connect with the MSP-FET? If the MSP-FET is indeed bricked, it is possible that the bootloader on it is corrupted for some reason. I don't have experience with MSP-FET as to how to recover it. Here I find these posts of similar issue and how to recover it.

https://e2e.ti.com/support/microcontrollers/msp-low-power-microcontrollers-group/msp430/f/msp-low-power-microcontroller-forum/1080047/faq-recover-launchpad-debugger-ez-fet-msp-exp430f5529lp-no-usb-fet-was-found

https://e2e.ti.com/support/microcontrollers/msp-low-power-microcontrollers-group/msp430/f/msp-low-power-microcontroller-forum/1078007/msp-fet-msp-fet-doesn-t-work

In any case, I will transfer your post to the MSP-FET expert as I doubt it is a RF430FRL152HEVM issue.

0 Aditya Kamlesh Dhabekar 1 month ago in reply to Charles Tsai

Prodigy 10 points

I have a MSP-EXP430G2ET and a TRF7970A booster pack. I haven't used MSP-FET tool for updating the firmware on those two boards as their datasheets did not mention using the MSP-FET tool. I used the USB cable provided with MSP-EXP430G2ET for updating the firmware and it successfully updated the firmware of the boards. Thanks for sharing the links for forums related to this topic. I will let you know if any of the insights shared on the forums help me in resolving the issue.

0 Aditya Kamlesh Dhabekar 28 days ago in reply to Aditya Kamlesh Dhabekar

Prodigy 10 points

So, I recently tried to cold boot the MSP-FET tool to see if I can somehow recover the tool but I was getting the same error as shown in the image below -

Whenever I try to recover the board I keep getting this message. This fix was mentioned in - https://www.ti.com/lit/ug/slau647o/slau647o.pdf?ts=1718301511080 (refer section5.6.5.3) Can you refer me to the MSP-FET tool team? They might be able to provide a better solution for this issue.

+1 Gary Gao 25 days ago in reply to Aditya Kamlesh Dhabekar

TI__Mastermind 33875 points

When you plug in the MSP-FET does it can detected by PC as below?

You could also look at the recovery process described in section 5.6.5.3 of the users guide below.

https://www.ti.com/lit/ug/slau647o/slau647o.pdf

0 Aditya Kamlesh Dhabekar 24 days ago in reply to Gary Gao

Prodigy 10 points

I don't see the MSP Application UART under COM ports when I connect the MSP-FET debugger to my PC. I tried the recovery process and tried to update the firmware of the MSP-FET tool as described in section 5.6.5.3 but the firmware was not updated. Should I consider the MSP-FET tool is not working?

0 Gary Gao 24 days ago in reply to Aditya Kamlesh Dhabekar

TI__Mastermind 33875 points

I think so

0 Aditya Kamlesh Dhabekar 23 days ago in reply to Gary Gao

Prodigy 10 points

Ok, I will see if I can return the MSP-FET tool and get a new one.

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MSP-FET: Error updating RF430FRL152HEVM firmware.