Best practices for getting devices in LAVA
summary
Seven years of LAVA experience yields concrete numbers and rules: the lab runs millions of test jobs across ~150 devices covering 44 device types, using U-Boot, UEFI, Fastboot and PXE. Requirements: unique stable identifiers (MACs/serials), reliable net deployment like netboot via TFTP, immediate boot on power, remote power control or BMC, and powered-by-host USB serial that survives reboots. Avoid custom bootloaders, SD-card-only workflows, flaky Wi‑Fi updates or tools that assume a single desktop.
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chapters (18)
- 0:00Introduction by speaker
- 0:52LAVA background and purpose
- 3:42LAVA's scale and device support
- 6:54Goals of LAVA in CI loops
- 9:08Device requirements for automation
- 14:26Unsuitable devices for automation
- 15:59Unique device identifiers
- 23:20Scalability in device design
- 28:42Reliability in automation racks
- 31:11Deployment and booting methods
- 35:50Serial and graphical interfaces
- 38:23Basic design recommendations
- 41:57Power and boot requirements
- 44:25Standard interfaces and form factors
- 47:17Cost vs reliability trade-offs
- 47:58Firmware design for automation
- 51:30Long-term testing considerations
- 53:21Summary and resources
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