Flash Qualcomm Linux using QDL

​

Download the Qualcomm Linux image

1. Download the Qualcomm Linux image.
2. Extract the zip file. The flashable artifacts are in:
   <path-to-image>/images/iq-8275-evk/qcom-multimedia-proprietary-image-iq-8275-evk/
   
   Where <path-to-image> is the folder created when you extracted the image zip.

​

Download QDL

1. Download the QDL tool for Linux (x64) and unzip it. The unzipped folder contains the qdl binary — referred to as <qdl_dir> below.
2. Install the required libraries (skip if already installed):
   sudo apt-get install libxml2-dev libudev-dev libusb-1.0-0-dev
   
   We recommend extracting both the image and QDL into the same parent folder. This keeps all paths under one root and simplifies navigation between the provision, SAIL, and image folders.

​

Set up QDL driver

1. Check whether the rule already exists:
   ls /etc/udev/rules.d/51-qcom-usb.rules
   
2. If the file is not present, create it in one command:
   echo 'SUBSYSTEMS=="usb", ATTRS{idVendor}=="05c6", ATTRS{idProduct}=="9008", MODE="0664", GROUP="plugdev"' | sudo tee /etc/udev/rules.d/51-qcom-usb.rules
   
   If the file already exists, verify the rule is present:
   cat /etc/udev/rules.d/51-qcom-usb.rules
   
3. Reload udev to apply the rule:
   sudo systemctl restart udev
   
   If the USB cable was already connected, disconnect and reconnect it.

​

Set up QDL

1. Make QDL executable:
   chmod +x <qdl_dir>/qdl
   
2. Verify QDL is working:
   <qdl_dir>/qdl --help
   
   You should see the QDL usage output. If you get an error, check the path.

​

Put the device in EDL mode

1. Turn on the SW2-3 DIP switch — push it up.
2. Connect the 12 V power supply to the EVK.
3. Connect the USB Type-C cable from USB0 on the EVK to your host.
4. Toggle the power switch to turn on the device.
5. Confirm the device is in EDL mode:
   lsusb
   
   Expected output:
   Bus 002 Device 014: ID 05c6:9008 Qualcomm, Inc. Gobi Wireless Modem (QDL mode)
   
   If the device doesn’t appear, recheck SW2-3 and the USB-C cable.

​

Provision UFS

• This is a brand-new board that has never been flashed.
• You are upgrading to a new image version.
• You are switching distributions (Qualcomm Linux ↔ Ubuntu).

1. Download and unzip the provision file:
   wget https://artifacts.codelinaro.org/artifactory/codelinaro-le/Qualcomm_Linux/QCS8300/provision.zip
   unzip provision.zip
   
2. Provision UFS from the unzipped provision directory:
   cd provision
   <qdl_dir>/qdl --storage ufs prog_firehose_ddr.elf provision_1_3.xml
   
   Expected output:
   UFS provisioning succeeded
   

​

Flash SAIL firmware

1. Navigate to the sail_nor subfolder inside the extracted image:
   cd <path-to-image>/images/iq-8275-evk/qcom-multimedia-proprietary-image-iq-8275-evk/sail_nor
   
2. Flash the SAIL firmware:
   <qdl_dir>/qdl --storage spinor prog_firehose_ddr.elf rawprogram0.xml patch0.xml
   
   Expected output:
   flashed "SAIL_HYP" successfully
   flashed "SAIL_SW1" successfully
   flashed "SAIL_HYP_BKUP" successfully
   flashed "SAIL_SW1_BKUP" successfully
   11 patches applied
   
   If flashing fails, see How to troubleshoot flashing-related issues.

​

Flash Qualcomm Linux

1. Navigate to the main image folder:
   cd <path-to-image>/images/iq-8275-evk/qcom-multimedia-proprietary-image-iq-8275-evk
   
2. Flash the image:
   <qdl_dir>/qdl --storage ufs prog_firehose_ddr.elf rawprogram*.xml patch*.xml
   
   The flash is complete when the final line reads:
   partition 1 is now bootable
   
   Any sector-truncation warnings during flashing are harmless.