Zephyr SDK for Workshop

This SDK provides the Zephyr RTOS source tree and build tools (west, cmake, ninja) for embedded firmware development. A companion zephyr-sdk-ng SDK provides the toolchain bundle, and individual toolchain SDKs (e.g. zephyr-amd64) supply architecture-specific cross-compilers. The venv plug should be connected to a venv provider such as the uv SDK. The Zephyr build cache and Python virtual environment are persisted on the host across workshop updates.

Compatibility matrix

SDK NG / Toolchain	Zephyr
1.1.x	4.5.x
1.0.x	4.4.x
0.17.x	4.2.x, 4.3.x

The zephyr SDK's check-health hook verifies this compatibility at runtime.

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Reference workshop

A minimal usable workshop:

# workshop.yaml
name: dev
base: [email protected]
sdks:
  - name: uv
    channel: latest/stable
  - name: zephyr
    channel: 4.4/stable
  - name: zephyr-sdk-ng
    channel: 1.0.1/stable
  - name: zephyr-amd64
    channel: 1.0.1/stable

actions:
  build-amd64: |-
    for DIRNAME in */; do
        DIRNAME=${DIRNAME%/}
        [[ $DIRNAME == build* ]] && continue

        cmake -GNinja \
            -S "${DIRNAME}/" \
            -B "build-${DIRNAME}-amd64" \
            -DBUILD_VERSION="$ZEPHYR_VERSION" \
            -DBOARD=qemu_x86 \
            -DCROSS_COMPILE="$ZEPHYR_SDK_INSTALL_DIR/x86_64-zephyr-elf/bin/x86_64-zephyr-elf-"

        ninja -C "build-${DIRNAME}-amd64"
    done

connections:
  - plug: zephyr:sdk-ng
    slot: zephyr-sdk-ng:sdk-ng
  - plug: zephyr-sdk-ng:amd64
    slot: zephyr-amd64:toolchain
  - plug: zephyr:venv
    slot: uv:venv

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Using the SDK

Prerequisites

1. The zephyr-sdk-ng SDK is required — it provides the SDK NG bundle (host tools, CMake toolchain files). Connect the sdk-ng plug on zephyr to the sdk-ng slot on zephyr-sdk-ng.
2. At least one toolchain SDK (e.g. zephyr-amd64) is required. Connect its toolchain slot to the matching architecture plug on zephyr-sdk-ng.
3. A venv provider is required. Connect the venv plug to the uv SDK (or another provider). On first launch, the SDK installs west into this venv.

Build firmware

Place your Zephyr application directories in your project root. Then run the build-amd64 action from the example workshop above:

workshop run build-amd64

ZEPHYR_BASE and ZEPHYR_SDK_INSTALL_DIR are set automatically by the setup-project hook.

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Plugs (resources this SDK consumes)

sdk-ng

• Interface: mount
• Workshop target: $SDK/zephyr-sdk
• Purpose: Receives the SDK NG bundle from zephyr-sdk-ng. This provides host tools, CMake toolchain files, and mount points for architecture-specific toolchains. The check-health hook verifies that this plug is connected and that the SDK NG version is compatible with the Zephyr version.

zephyr-cache

• Interface: mount
• Workshop target: /home/workshop/.cache/zephyr
• Purpose: Persists the Zephyr build cache across workshop updates.

modules

• Interface: mount
• Workshop target: /home/workshop/modules
• Purpose: Mount point for extra Zephyr modules such as hal_espressif from companion SDKs.

venv

• Interface: mount
• Workshop target: $SDK/venv
• Purpose: Receives a Python virtual environment from an external provider (e.g. the uv SDK). The setup-project hook installs west into this venv. Persisted on the host across workshop updates.

Slots (resources this SDK provides)

This SDK doesn't define any slots.

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Documentation and guidance

• Zephyr official documentation
• Zephyr getting started guide
• Workshop documentation

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Community and support

• Zephyr community: Zephyr GitHub
• Zephyr community forum: Zephyr Discord
• Workshop forum: Discourse
• Please review our Code of Conduct before participating.

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Contributions

All contributions, including code, documentation updates, and issue reports, are welcome!

• See CONTRIBUTING.md for guidelines.
• Open issues or pull requests on the official repository.

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License and copyright

Copyright 2025 Canonical Ltd.

The Zephyr RTOS is licensed under the Apache License 2.0.