ESH Roadmap Advanced

An advanced, project-based learning roadmap for embedded systems development on the STM32C031C6T6 (Cortex-M0+). From here on, the focus shifts to design decisions, scalability, and long-term maintainability. You'll stop asking "How do I make this peripheral work?" and start asking "How should this system be structured so it can grow, be reused, and be maintained?"

Table of Contents

• ESH Roadmap Advanced
  • Table of Contents
  • Overview
  • Hardware
  • Prerequisites
  • Repository Layout
  • Projects
  • Getting Started
  • Building & Flashing
    • adv-01-cmake
    • adv-02-docker-cmake
  • Documentation & Resources
  • Contributing

Overview

This repository is the continuation of ESH Roadmap Basic. While the basic roadmap focused on understanding individual peripherals through register-level access, this advanced roadmap tackles the engineering challenges that come after: system architecture, build infrastructure, reproducible environments, and scalable firmware design.

Key learning objectives:

• Containerized, reproducible build environments with Docker
• Firmware architecture patterns (layered drivers, HAL abstractions, event-driven design)
• Testing strategies for embedded software
• CI/CD pipelines for firmware projects

Hardware

MCU	STM32C031C6T6 — ARM Cortex-M0+, 48 MHz, 32 KB Flash, 12 KB SRAM
Board	NUCLEO-C031C6
Debugger	On-board ST-LINK/V2-1 (SWD)
User LED	LD4 — PA5
User Button	B1 — PC13 (active low)

Prerequisites

Tool	Version	Purpose
Visual Studio Code	Latest	Primary IDE
Docker	Latest	Reproducible build environment
GNU ARM Embedded Toolchain	Latest	arm-none-eabi-gcc cross-compiler
Make	Latest	Build automation
CMake	Latest	Cross-platform firmware configuration and builds
OpenOCD	Latest	On-chip programming & debugging

Repository Layout

ESH_roadmap_advanced/
├── adv-00-docker/              # Dockerized bare-metal blinky (Makefile build)
├── adv-01-cmake/               # Bare-metal blinky upgraded to a CMake workflow
├── adv-02-docker-cmake/        # Dockerized ARM GCC workflow driven by CMake presets
├── STM32C031C6/                # Datasheets & reference manuals
└── README.md

Each project follows a consistent internal structure:

adv-XX-<topic>/
├── src/                        # Source files (.c)
├── inc/                        # Header files (.h)
├── startup_stm32c031xx.S       # Vector table & startup code
├── stm32c031x6_flash.ld        # Linker script
├── Makefile/CMake              # Build configuration
└── build/                      # Build output (generated)

Projects

#	Folder	Topic	Description
00	adv-00-docker	Docker Build Environment	Bare-metal blinky project built with a Makefile inside a Docker container. Demonstrates reproducible, host-independent firmware builds.
01	adv-01-cmake	CMake Build Structure	Bare-metal blinky project migrated from a Makefile to a reusable ARM GCC CMake workflow with presets and a flash target.
02	adv-02-docker-cmake	Docker + CMake Workflow	Bare-metal blinky project that combines a Dockerized toolchain with a preset-based CMake build and OpenOCD flash flow.

Getting Started

1. Clone the repository

   git clone https://github.com/Padifu03/ESH_roadmap_advanced.git
   cd ESH_roadmap_advanced

2. Open in VS Code

   code .

When VS Code prompts for recommended workspace extensions, install them. In particular, STMicroelectronics.stm32-vscode-extension is recommended for STM32 device setup, STM32 tooling integration, and board-oriented workflows.

1. Select a project — open the desired folder (e.g. adv-00-docker).

Building & Flashing

adv-01-cmake

Configure the project:

cmake --preset debug
cmake --preset release

Build the firmware:

cmake --build --preset debug
cmake --build --preset release

Flash with OpenOCD:

cmake --build --preset debug --target flash
cmake --build --preset release --target flash

adv-02-docker-cmake

Build the Docker image:

docker build -t stm32c031-blinky adv-02-docker-cmake/docker/

Configure and build the firmware inside the container:

docker run --rm -v ${PWD}:/workspace stm32c031-blinky cmake --preset debug
docker run --rm -v ${PWD}:/workspace stm32c031-blinky cmake --build --preset debug

Clean or flash from the container:

docker run --rm -v ${PWD}:/workspace stm32c031-blinky cmake --build --preset debug --target clean
docker run --rm -v ${PWD}:/workspace --device /dev/bus/usb:/dev/bus/usb stm32c031-blinky cmake --build --preset debug --target flash

Documentation & Resources

Document	File
STM32C031C6 Reference Manual	stm32c031c6_RM.pdf
STM32C031C6 Datasheet	stm32c031c6_datasheet.pdf
STM32C031C6 User Manual	stm32c031c6_user_manual.pdf
NUCLEO-64 Board User Manual	stm32_nucleo64_UM.pdf
Cortex-M0+ Generic User Guide	Cortex-M0plus_UG.pdf
ESH Roadmap Basic (prerequisite)	GitHub

Contributing

Contributions, suggestions, and bug reports are welcome. To contribute:

1. Fork the repository.
2. Create a feature branch (git checkout -b feat/my-feature).
3. Commit your changes with clear, descriptive messages.
4. Open a Pull Request against master.

Please keep the existing project structure and coding style consistent.