Installing ARM Keil MDK and Packs
Install ARM Keil Microcontroller Development Kit (MDK)
- Community Edition (free version for academic use)
(If installing on a Mac, also review “Using MDK-ARM on Mac or Linux machines”)
You can download the latest ARM Keil MDK Core installation package from the Keil website:
[Link] . As illustrated in Figure 1, ARM Keil MDK (Version [Link], with µVision
IDE) comprises a set of core functions (IDE with editor, compilers, debugger, pack installer) and one or
more Software Packs, each of which provides resources (device drivers, system/startup code, etc.) for a
specific family of microcontrollers. The user must install a software pack for each microcontroller family
to be used.
Desktop
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Figure 1. ARM Keil MDK comprises the MDK Core and one or more Software Packs
When installing ARM Keil MDK on your PC, the Pack Installer (Figure 2) will prompt you to select one or
more Software Packs. Scroll down to the “Device Family Pack” (DFP) for the microcontroller on your
board and click the Install button, which changes to “Up to date” when the pack has been installed.
STM32F3348-Discovery board:
Install Keil::STM32F3xx_DFP for STM32F3xx microcontrollers
STM32F411E-Discovery, STM32F4-Discovery, STM32F401/411 Nucleo boards:
Install Keil::STM32F4xx_DFP for STM32F4xx microcontrollers
Figure 2. µVision Pack Installer with Keil:STM32F3xx_DFP selected for STM32F334C8Tx device.
Installing a New MDK5 Software Pack
After ARM Keil MDK has been installed, use the following procedure to install a new software pack (for
example, STM32F3xx_DFP to support the STM32F334C8 or STM32F4xx_DFP to support the STM32F411
and/or other microcontrollers in the STMicroelectronics STMF4 Series).
Alternatively, you may obtain the software pack from the Keil web site
([Link] Then from the Pack Installer menu bar, select File -> Import and
then locate and select the downloaded pack file.
1. Open the Pack Installer from the µVision menu bar by selecting: Project Manage Pack Installer
or click on the Pack Installer icon, as illustrated in Figure 3.
Pack Installer
Figure 3. Click on the Pack Installer icon to add or change a device software pack.
2. In the Pack Installer “Devices” tab (Figure 4), navigate to STMicroelectronics, click + to expand the
list of supported microcontroller families, and select the family whose pack is to be installed – ex.
STM32F4 Series.
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Figure 4. Select microcontroller series and device family pack in the Pack Installer.
3. Under “Device Specific” in the “Packs” tab, locate the device family pack that supports the
selected microcontroller family, ex, Keil::STM32F4x_DFP. The box next to that family will say one
of three things:
a. Up to date – the latest pack is installed; no further action required.
b. Update or Install – the pack must be installed/updated. Click on that box to initiate the
install/update process. This may take several minutes, as packs are downloaded from
Keil and then installed.
4. When the box indicates Up to date, installation is complete. Close the Pack Installer window. (You
may be asked to “reload packs” – click OK.) The pack will be available when uVision is
subsequently opened.
Install the ST-Link USB Driver
For Windows systems, the ST-Link USB driver (needed to communicate with the ST Discovery and Nucleo
boards) will need to be installed.
1. Connect the board to your computer with a USB cable.
2. Go to: Computer Properties Device Manager.
3. In Device Manager, find “STM32 STLink” or “STMicroelectronics STLink dongle”, right click, and
select Update Driver Software Search automatically for updated driver software.
4. If the automatic search does not find the driver, select Browse my compute for driver software
and then select directory C:\Keil\ARM\STLink\USBDriver.
For other operating systems, you can find information on the ST website.
STM32CubeProgrammer Software
On the ST web page [Link] is the useful (and
free) utility program STM32CubeProgrammer. This tool works with all STM32 products, including the
STM32F3348-Discovery, STM32F411E-Discovery and similar boards. It allows one to erase, program,
view and verify device Flash memory through the debug (ST-LINK) interface, as well as to access other
internal microcontroller memories. To obtain this program, go to the above web page, scroll down to
“Get Software”, and then download and install the STM32CubeProgmmer software for your computing
platform (Win32, Win64, Mac, or Linux.) Documentation and videos for the tool are also available on
this web page.
