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DEBIX SOM A Testing TSN Clock Synchronization with PTP

Test Environment:

LinuxDevelopment Environment: Yocto 5.0(scarthgap)

U-Boot: U-Boot 2024.04

Kernel: Linux-6.6.36

Linux SDK: L6.6.36-2.1.0

Version: Debix SOM A V1.01_20241024

Devices: 2 * DEBIX SOM A + DEBIX SOM A IO Board

Test Steps:

Power on and run 2 pcs of mainboards, then enter the device console.

Run DebixVersion to check the basic information of the device.


Connect the ETH1 interfaces of the two DEBIX SOM A IO Boards using an Ethernet cable (only ETH1 supports TSN, you can check with the command ethtool -T ens33).

On the master device console, run:

ptp4l -E -4 -H -i ens33 -l 6 -m -q -f /etc/linuxptp/ptp4l.conf
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On the slave device console, run:

ptp4l -E -4 -H -i ens33 -s -l 6 -m -q -f /etc/linuxptp/ptp4l.conf
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Check the printed log information.

The log shows that the slave device synchronizes with the external master clock 100723.fffe.6df691-1, which corresponds to the master device’s ETH1 port.

Once the test stabilizes, review the data.

Example of the last log entry:

ptp4l[882.689]: master offset 12 s2 freq -8638 path delay 747
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ptp4l[882.689]

ptp4l: This is the core daemon implementing the PTP (Precision Time Protocol) on Linux. PTP, also known as IEEE 1588, is a high-precision time synchronization protocol designed to provide sub-microsecond synchronization for devices within a LAN.

[882.689]: Process runtime timestamp in seconds, showing elapsed time since the process started.

master offset: 12

Meaning: The time difference between the local clock (slave) and the remote master clock.

Unit: Nanoseconds (ns).

Interpretation: 12 means the local clock lags behind the master clock by 12 ns. This is extremely precise synchronization (1 second = 1,000,000,000 ns).

s2 freq: -8638

Meaning: The frequency adjustment value calculated by ptp4l to correct clock offset in slave state. s2 refers to the slave state of ptp4l.

Unit: Parts per billion (ppb). This value will be passed to phc2sys (used to synchronize the system clock and hardware clock) or directly to the Linux kernel clock discipline.

Interpretation: -8638 means the local oscillator frequency is reduced by 8638 ppb to catch up with the master. This relatively large adjustment indicates the local clock was initially faster.

path delay: 747

Meaning: The round-trip delay between slave and master.

Unit: Nanoseconds (ns).

Interpretation: 747 ns is very low, suggesting excellent network hardware performance (likely hardware timestamping support). In software-timestamped networks, this value is usually tens to hundreds of microseconds.

Explanation of Test Command Parameters

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