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Binman firmware packager

Test status PyPI version Documentation status Supported Python versions

Binman packages firmware. Building firmware should be separate from packaging it: build all the pieces you need, using whatever projects and build systems they require, then use binman to stitch everything together into an image. It:

  • reads an image description from a devicetree and works out what to place where, with padding, alignment, compression and hashing;

  • supports hierarchical images and a large set of entry types, including FIT, CBFS, ARM Trusted Firmware FIP and many SoC-specific formats;

  • lets firmware find other binaries in the image, using linker symbols or the devicetree description of the image;

  • inspects existing images, extracting and replacing their contents and repacking where needed;

  • copes with missing binary blobs and fetches the external tools it needs.

Binman is designed primarily for use with U-Boot and associated binaries such as ARM Trusted Firmware, but is general enough to be used with other projects.

Installation

Install the latest release from PyPI:

pip install binary-manager

The pylibfdt dependency is built from source, so this needs swig, a C compiler and the Python development headers (on Debian and Ubuntu: apt install swig build-essential python3-dev).

The binman command is then on your path.

Quick start

Build an image from the description in a devicetree, taking the input files from the current directory:

binman build -d u-boot.dtb

List the contents of an existing image:

binman ls -i image.bin

Binman runs external tools for some entry types. To install any which are missing:

binman tool -f missing

See binman -H for the complete manual, or the documentation linked below.

Documentation

Full documentation is hosted on Read the Docs:

https://binman.readthedocs.io/

Development

Run the test suite from a checkout:

pip install -r requirements.txt
pip install -e .[test]
binman tool -f missing
binman test

The tests build some small x86 ELF programs, so they need make and a gcc which can produce 32-bit x86 code (gcc-multilib), or set CROSS_COMPILE to a suitable cross-compiler. They also need a recent mkimage from U-Boot, since the expected output tracks its development; pass --toolpath to point binman at a U-Boot tools/ build directory. binman test -T checks that the tests cover all of the code.

The u_boot_pylib and dtoc libraries are vendored from the U-Boot tree, so no surrounding U-Boot source is required.

Metadata

Release files for binary-manager 0.1.2

For a detailed explanation of source distributions (sdists) and built distributions (wheels), please see the package formats documentation.

Source distribution (sdist)

Source distribution for binary-manager 0.1.2
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binary_manager-0.1.2.tar.gz 429.3 kB Details

Built distribution (wheel)

Table of built distributions (wheels) for binary-manager 0.1.2
File Interpreter ABI Platform
binary_manager-0.1.2-py3-none-any.whl Python 3 none any Details

Total release size: 1.1 MB

Release files / binary_manager-0.1.2.tar.gz

Download URL binary_manager-0.1.2.tar.gz
Size 429.3 kB
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Release files / binary_manager-0.1.2-py3-none-any.whl

Download URL binary_manager-0.1.2-py3-none-any.whl
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Yes
Uploaded via twine/7.0.0 CPython/3.13.14

Provenance

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PyPI Publish Attestation

PyPI verified that this artifact, at this checksum, originated from the publisher listed below.

Signed by GitHub Actions, verified by PyPI on Oct 10, 2026.

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