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Learn more: How to create a new Development Environment

You can create new Development Environments from containerized tools. The tool images can be present:

  • locally: dem list-tools
  • in registry: dem list-tools --reg

As an example let's create another, alternative Environment for our target with the following elements:

These tools are available in the axem registry. The cmake and GNU-arm-toolchain are present in the same container image alongside with make: cmake_make_gnu-arm. The stlink-org has its own image: stlink_org.

Obtaining the dummy test tool image

You can use your own tools that you containerized by yourself in Development Environments created with DEM. To see how to do it, we containerize a dummy test tool. (This won't be an actual test environment, just a script that prints "test environment" 🤭.)

Let's create a directory for building the dummy test tool!

mkdir dummy_test
cd dummy_test

Create a shell script that will run inside the container.

dummy_test.sh
#!/bin/sh

echo "test environment"

Set the dummy_test.sh, file to be executable.

chmod +x dummy_test.sh

Create a file called Dockerfile (without extension) that describes how to build this dummy image.

Dockerfile
FROM debian:12

WORKDIR /work
ADD dummy_test.sh /work

Build the Docker container image.

docker build -t dummy_test:latest .

Now run the script inside a container to ensure everything works as expected.

docker run dummy_test /bin/sh -c "./dummy_test.sh"

Create the new Environment

To start the interactive Development Environment creation you need to use the dem create command. 

dem create alt_env

You will see the available tool images. Select the following:

  • build system and toolchain: axemsolutions/cmake_make_gnu-arm:latest
  • debugger: axemsolutions/stlink-org:latest
  • test framework:dummy_test:latest

Tool type selection

Select save when you finished. Now you have the new Dev Env descriptor in your local catalog.

Finally, install the Development Environment:

dem install alt_env

Share your new Development Environment

A very important feature of DEM is to provide a reliable way to share Development Environments, to make every member of an organization use the same toolset. The best way is to assign the Development Environment to the development project. This can be done with the dem assign command, which will create a configuration file in the project's .axem directory. This configuration file then can be added to the version control system. Installing the Development Environment on another host is as easy as cloning the project and running the dem init and dem install commands.

If you would like to share your Development Environment with someone directly, DEM has your back! A Development Environment descriptor can be exported to a file in JSON format, which then can be loaded to another host.

Note

The exported file only contains the Development Environments descriptor in JSON format. The other host needs access to all required registries for successful installation.

If you'd like to share the newly created alt_env, first export it:

dem export alt_env alt_env.json

This will create the alt_env.json file in your current directory.

On the other host, the Development Environment descriptor can be imported:

dem import alt_env.json

And finally, the Development Environment can be installed:

dem install alt_env