Microbit Flash Script

This repository provides a simple script to flash a micro:bit board, automatically archiving downloaded MakeCode hex files.

Usage

Quick flash (for beginners)

Plug in your micro:bit normally (no special buttons), then run:

scripts/flash.sh

It will find the latest MakeCode .hex in your Downloads folder, flash it, and you're ready to go!

Advanced usage

To see detailed logs and archive previous builds, use:

scripts/flash_dbg.sh

The script will:

• Find the newest downloaded microbit-*.hex file in $HOME/Downloads.
• Archive it to archive/ with a timestamp prefix.
• Copy it as microbit.hex to the connected micro:bit.
• Compare SHA-1 checksums before and after flashing.
• Unmount the device and show kernel messages.

Firmware update

To update the DAPLink interface firmware on a micro:bit in maintenance mode, follow these steps:

1. Unplug the micro:bit, then press and hold the reset button while plugging it back in to enter maintenance mode. It will mount as a drive labeled MAINTENANCE.
2. (Optional) Verify the maintenance-mode drive is mounted:

   lsblk -o LABEL,MOUNTPOINT | grep MAINTENANCE

3. Run the firmware update script:

   scripts/flash_fw.sh

Python development with VSCode

For Python-based micro:bit projects (for advanced users), we've included a template and VSCode setup to make editing and flashing easy.

Prerequisites

• Python 3
• Install the uflash tool:

  pip install uflash

• VSCode with the Python extension

Getting started

1. Open this folder in VSCode:

   code .

2. Create (if needed) and edit a per-child Python file under python/ (for example python/axel/main.py) instead of the default python/main.py to organize code per kid.
3. Press Ctrl+Shift+B (or Cmd+Shift+B on macOS) to run the Flash to micro:bit task, which will also archive your source to prevent accidental loss.

Behind the scenes this will call scripts/flash_py.sh, which:

1. Converts the active .py file to a .hex using py2hex (via the uflash package) and saves it to ./build/.
2. Archives your .py source under python/archive/ or python/<kid>/archive/ with a timestamp.
3. Copies the .hex to the connected micro:bit drive.
4. Syncs/unmounts the drive and checks for FAIL.TXT so you get immediate feedback if something went wrong.

When everything is fine you will see a green “Flash successful!” message in the VS Code terminal and your Python program will start running on the board within a couple of seconds.

(Optional) Serial console

Want to see print() output or REPL messages? Run the Open serial console task:

1. Press F1 → Tasks: Run Task → Open serial console, or
2. Use the dedicated keybinding you may assign in VS Code.

This opens a miniterm session at 115200 baud on /dev/ttyACM0. Close it with Ctrl-] then Ctrl-D.

Saving hex programs from the micro:bit

If you need to retrieve a MakeCode or previously flashed Python .hex file from the board, use the scripts/save_hex.sh helper:

scripts/save_hex.sh <kid_name> [dest_base_dir]

This will copy microbit.hex from the connected micro:bit drive into a timestamped file under programs/<kid_name>/ by default (or the specified destination directory), making it easy to keep each child's programs organized.