Developing for Bare Metal Devices | Qt Creator Documentation
Description: Create kits to use Bare Metal toolchains installed on the computer to build applications for and run and debug them on connected Bare Metal devices.

- Qt Creator Documentation
- Developing for Bare Metal Devices
- Qt Creator 17.0.1

Reference

# Developing for Bare Metal Devices

Run and debug applications on small devices that are not supported by the remote Linux device plugin by using GDB or a hardware debugger.

Note: Enable the Bare Metal plugin to use it.

Install Bare Metal toolchains on the computer to build applications for Bare Metal devices. Connect the devices to the computer to run and debug applications on them.

Note: If you use qmake to build the project and the device does not have Qt libraries, you need a Qt installation that meets the requirements in Self-built Qt versions. In addition, the `mkspecs` directory needs to be complete enough to parse .pro files.

The following toolchains are supported for building applications:

- GCC: Microchip Technology (AVR, AVR32, PIC16, PIC32), NXP Semiconductors (ColdFire, M68K), Texas Instruments (MSP430), National Semiconductor (CR16C), Renesas Electronics (M32R, M32C, RL78, RX, SuperH, V850), Tensilica XTENSA (ESP8266, ESP32), RISC-V, Arm
- IAR EW: Microchip Technology (AVR, AVR32), NXP Semiconductors (ColdFire, M68K), Texas Instruments (MSP430), National Semiconductor (CR16C), Renesas Electronics (78K, M16/R8C, M32C, R32C, RH850, RL78, RX, SuperH, V850), STMicroelectronics (STM8), 8051, RISC-V, Arm
- Keil: Arm, C51 (8051), C251 (80251), C166 (C16x, XC16x)
- SDCC: STMicroelectronics (STM8), 8051

The bare metal device type accepts custom GDB commands that you specify in the device preferences. You can specify the commands to execute when connecting using a particular debug server provider.

## Debug Server Providers

The following debug server providers are supported when using GDB:

- EBlink
- J-Link
- OpenOCD
- ST-Link

ST-Link and J-Link debug server providers can be used together with the uVision IDE.

To create connections to bare metal devices using a debug server provider, go to Preferences > Devices > Bare Metal and select Add.

The available settings depend on the debug server provider.

See also Add kits, Enable and disable plugins, and How To: Develop for Bare Metal.

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