In setting up a Raspberry Pi 4B for use as a remote build server to generate executables for my Pi Picos, I followed the instructions in the "Getting Started..." document. Which means, I ssh'ed into my remote Pi 4B, downloaded and ran the pico_setup.sh script. The script creates a 'pico' directory in my home folder, and a bunch of subfolders (debugProbe, pico-examples, pico-playground, picotool, openocd, pico-extras, pico-sdk), with various stuff in them. With this setup I could, from a remote terminal, execute 'cmake ..' and 'make' to build executables which I could copy onto my Pi Pico.
Yay!
Then I decided to install VS Code, and the VS Code Remote-SSH extension, so I could use VS Code as a code editor for projects on the remote system. I would edit code in VS Code, then move to my remote terminal to run cmake and make from the command line. The VS Code Remote-SSH extension installs a special VS Code Remote Server on the remote system to facilitate interactions of the Local instance of VS Code running on my local machine and the file system (and other stuff) on the remote system.
Good!
Every time I would go back to work (after having closed down the VS Code SSH connection) and re-open the workspace I had created for my project, VS Code would prompt me with a little box telling me that there were a bunch of great extensions I could add to my Remote VS Code Server. So, I finally decided, "Sure, that sounds like a good idea." and clicked the "Install" button in the little box. This installed C/C++ Intellesense, Cortex-Debug, Memory View, Micro Pico, a bunch of Python stuff, and the Official Raspberry Pi Pico Extension.
OK!
Then, just for S&G, I decided to try using the Official Extension to play with one of the Pico Example programs (blink_simple).
At which point, the Official Extension proceeded to download the Pico-SDK, install the toolchain, cmake, examples, ninja, openocd, picotool, and tools, all within a new directory, .pico-sdk (note the leading dot, making this a hidden directory).
UM!
So, now I have TWO copies of the Pico-SDK (granted, in two different subdirectories of my home directory), two copies of the examples, two copies of openocd, picotool, toolchain, and cmake.
I hesitate to do anything, now, for fear that building something within the Remote VS Code Server will mess with my command line build process, or to build something at the command line for fear that doing so will mess with VS Code.
Maybe someone can tell me what I SHOULD have done...perhaps to tell VS Code and the Official Pico Extension that I already had all that stuff, and where it is. Maybe I should have just continued to ignore those helpful suggestions. Maybe someone can tell me that I have nothing to fear...(but fear itself?)
I can always scrap the whole business and re-install PiOS on the remote Pi 4. I do not (yet) have any essential stuff on the remote system, as this is all part of a "learning experience."
Yay!
Then I decided to install VS Code, and the VS Code Remote-SSH extension, so I could use VS Code as a code editor for projects on the remote system. I would edit code in VS Code, then move to my remote terminal to run cmake and make from the command line. The VS Code Remote-SSH extension installs a special VS Code Remote Server on the remote system to facilitate interactions of the Local instance of VS Code running on my local machine and the file system (and other stuff) on the remote system.
Good!
Every time I would go back to work (after having closed down the VS Code SSH connection) and re-open the workspace I had created for my project, VS Code would prompt me with a little box telling me that there were a bunch of great extensions I could add to my Remote VS Code Server. So, I finally decided, "Sure, that sounds like a good idea." and clicked the "Install" button in the little box. This installed C/C++ Intellesense, Cortex-Debug, Memory View, Micro Pico, a bunch of Python stuff, and the Official Raspberry Pi Pico Extension.
OK!
Then, just for S&G, I decided to try using the Official Extension to play with one of the Pico Example programs (blink_simple).
At which point, the Official Extension proceeded to download the Pico-SDK, install the toolchain, cmake, examples, ninja, openocd, picotool, and tools, all within a new directory, .pico-sdk (note the leading dot, making this a hidden directory).
UM!
So, now I have TWO copies of the Pico-SDK (granted, in two different subdirectories of my home directory), two copies of the examples, two copies of openocd, picotool, toolchain, and cmake.
I hesitate to do anything, now, for fear that building something within the Remote VS Code Server will mess with my command line build process, or to build something at the command line for fear that doing so will mess with VS Code.
Maybe someone can tell me what I SHOULD have done...perhaps to tell VS Code and the Official Pico Extension that I already had all that stuff, and where it is. Maybe I should have just continued to ignore those helpful suggestions. Maybe someone can tell me that I have nothing to fear...(but fear itself?)
I can always scrap the whole business and re-install PiOS on the remote Pi 4. I do not (yet) have any essential stuff on the remote system, as this is all part of a "learning experience."
Statistics: Posted by picopirate — Tue Feb 11, 2025 2:05 am — Replies 0 — Views 47