AzureRTOS netxduo unable to download ~16K or larger image using web_http_client secure

[Alec Davis 2021]

Netxduo packet pool is using 51K, plenty I would have thought to download a 16K test file.

This problem was initially seen on an F417 board, and then an F429, so moved on to an H723, specifically the NUCLEO-H723ZG.

I filed a bug report at https://github.com/azure-rtos/netxduo/issues/177  but testing this with a Renesas Rx72N envision kit it works flawlessy, hence this seems like an ST problem.

Console output. 

After the first attempt to download the free_packets has been corrupted. normally free_packets is 4 packets less than total_packets.

Thus no further downloads happen.

MX_NetXDuo_Init: Start
MX_NetXDuo_Init: NX_APP_PACKET_POOL_SIZE = 51072
MX_NetXDuo_Init: DEFAULT_PAYLOAD_SIZE    = 1536
MX_NetXDuo_Init: Started
STM32 IpAddress: 192.168.125.45
                                download_test

http_web_request: Start httpbin.org

APP:before nx_dns_host_by_name_get      total_packets = 32      free_packets = 28       empty_pool_requests = 0         empty_pool_suspensions = 0      invalid_packet_releases = 0

ERROR: httpbin.org nx_dns_host_by_name_get status=[0xa3]

ERROR: download_test: status =[0xa3]
download_test

http_web_request: Start httpbin.org

APP:before nx_dns_host_by_name_get      total_packets = 32      free_packets = 28       empty_pool_requests = 0         empty_pool_suspensions = 0      invalid_packet_releases = 0
Client connected to HTTP server: [3.218.223.42]

nx_web_http_client_created

nx_web_http_client_response_header_callback_set
tls_metadata_size mismatch! calculated:10128  actual:18432

nx_web_http_client{_secure]_connect

http client request initialized

nx_web_http_client_request_send
Received header:
        Field name: Date (4 bytes)
        Value: Mon, 11 Dec 2023 06:20:30 GMT (29 bytes)

Received header:
        Field name: Content-Type (12 bytes)
        Value: application/octet-stream (24 bytes)

Received header:
        Field name: Content-Length (14 bytes)
        Value: 16384 (5 bytes)

Received header:
        Field name: Connection (10 bytes)
        Value: keep-alive (10 bytes)

Received header:
        Field name: Server (6 bytes)
        Value: gunicorn/19.9.0 (15 bytes)

Received header:
        Field name: Access-Control-Allow-Origin (27 bytes)
        Value: * (1 bytes)

Received header:
        Field name: Access-Control-Allow-Credentials (32 bytes)
        Value: true (4 bytes)

DONE: firmware=1 total bytes=0 errors 0
Error with http response body get: get_status=0x1

APP:Error response body get     total_packets = 32      free_packets = 9        empty_pool_requests = 1530      empty_pool_suspensions = 5      invalid_packet_releases = 0

APP:before nx_web_http_client_delete    total_packets = 32      free_packets = 9        empty_pool_requests = 1530      empty_pool_suspensions = 5      invalid_packet_releases = 0

APP:after  nx_web_http_client_delete    total_packets = 32      free_packets = 32       empty_pool_requests = 1530      empty_pool_suspensions = 5      invalid_packet_releases = 0
download_test

http_web_request: Start httpbin.org

APP:before nx_dns_host_by_name_get      total_packets = 32      free_packets = 32       empty_pool_requests = 1530      empty_pool_suspensions = 5      invalid_packet_releases = 0

ERROR: httpbin.org nx_dns_host_by_name_get status=[0xa3]

ERROR: download_test: status =[0xa3]
download_test

http_web_request: Start httpbin.org

APP:before nx_dns_host_by_name_get      total_packets = 32      free_packets = 32       empty_pool_requests = 1530      empty_pool_suspensions = 5      invalid_packet_releases = 0

ERROR: httpbin.org nx_dns_host_by_name_get status=[0xa3]

ERROR: download_test: status =[0xa3]
download_test

Attached project files "nx_httpbin.org.7z" and wireshark capture "stm32h7_httpbin_org_NX_PACKET_POOL_SIZE_32_test-16k.7z" with packet pool count set to 32 and attempting to download 16384 bytes.

Changing to 8192 bytes works fine as below, wireshark file "stm32h7_httpbin_org_NX_PACKET_POOL_SIZE_32_test-8k.7z" attached.

MX_NetXDuo_Init: Start
MX_NetXDuo_Init: NX_APP_PACKET_POOL_SIZE = 51072
MX_NetXDuo_Init: DEFAULT_PAYLOAD_SIZE    = 1536
MX_NetXDuo_Init: Started
STM32 IpAddress: 192.168.125.45
                                download_test

http_web_request: Start httpbin.org

APP:before nx_dns_host_by_name_get      total_packets = 32      free_packets = 28       empty_pool_requests = 0         empty_pool_suspensions = 0      invalid_packet_releases = 0

ERROR: httpbin.org nx_dns_host_by_name_get status=[0xa3]

ERROR: download_test: status =[0xa3]
download_test

http_web_request: Start httpbin.org

APP:before nx_dns_host_by_name_get      total_packets = 32      free_packets = 28       empty_pool_requests = 0         empty_pool_suspensions = 0      invalid_packet_releases = 0
Client connected to HTTP server: [75.101.131.185]

nx_web_http_client_created

nx_web_http_client_response_header_callback_set
tls_metadata_size mismatch! calculated:10128  actual:18432

nx_web_http_client{_secure]_connect

http client request initialized

nx_web_http_client_request_send
Received header:
        Field name: Date (4 bytes)
        Value: Mon, 11 Dec 2023 06:49:36 GMT (29 bytes)

Received header:
        Field name: Content-Type (12 bytes)
        Value: application/octet-stream (24 bytes)

Received header:
        Field name: Content-Length (14 bytes)
        Value: 8192 (4 bytes)

Received header:
        Field name: Connection (10 bytes)
        Value: keep-alive (10 bytes)

Received header:
        Field name: Server (6 bytes)
        Value: gunicorn/19.9.0 (15 bytes)

Received header:
        Field name: Access-Control-Allow-Origin (27 bytes)
        Value: * (1 bytes)

Received header:
        Field name: Access-Control-Allow-Credentials (32 bytes)
        Value: true (4 bytes)

DONE: firmware=1 total bytes=0 errors 0
DONE: firmware=1 total bytes=8192 errors 0

APP:before nx_web_http_client_delete    total_packets = 32      free_packets = 28       empty_pool_requests = 0         empty_pool_suspensions = 0      invalid_packet_releases = 0

APP:after  nx_web_http_client_delete    total_packets = 32      free_packets = 27       empty_pool_requests = 0         empty_pool_suspensions = 0      invalid_packet_releases = 0
download_test

http_web_request: Start httpbin.org

APP:before nx_dns_host_by_name_get      total_packets = 32      free_packets = 28       empty_pool_requests = 0         empty_pool_suspensions = 0      invalid_packet_releases = 0
Client connected to HTTP server: [75.101.131.185]

nx_web_http_client_created

nx_web_http_client_response_header_callback_set
tls_metadata_size mismatch! calculated:10128  actual:18432

nx_web_http_client{_secure]_connect

http client request initialized

nx_web_http_client_request_send
Received header:
        Field name: Date (4 bytes)
        Value: Mon, 11 Dec 2023 06:49:50 GMT (29 bytes)

Received header:
        Field name: Content-Type (12 bytes)
        Value: application/octet-stream (24 bytes)

Received header:
        Field name: Content-Length (14 bytes)
        Value: 8192 (4 bytes)

Received header:
        Field name: Connection (10 bytes)
        Value: keep-alive (10 bytes)

Received header:
        Field name: Server (6 bytes)
        Value: gunicorn/19.9.0 (15 bytes)

Received header:
        Field name: Access-Control-Allow-Origin (27 bytes)
        Value: * (1 bytes)

Received header:
        Field name: Access-Control-Allow-Credentials (32 bytes)
        Value: true (4 bytes)

DONE: firmware=1 total bytes=8192 errors 0

APP:before nx_web_http_client_delete    total_packets = 32      free_packets = 28       empty_pool_requests = 0         empty_pool_suspensions = 0      invalid_packet_releases = 0

APP:after  nx_web_http_client_delete    total_packets = 32      free_packets = 27       empty_pool_requests = 0         empty_pool_suspensions = 0      invalid_packet_releases = 0

[Alec Davis 2021]

typo in file nx_stm32_eth_driver.c  function nx_stm32_eth_driver()

default:


/* Invalid driver request. */

/* Return the unhandled command status. */
driver_req_ptr -> nx_ip_driver_status = NX_UNHANDLED_COMMAND;

/* Default to successful return. */
driver_req_ptr -> nx_ip_driver_status = NX_DRIVER_ERROR;
}

It should surely should have been 

  default:


    /* Invalid driver request.  */

    /* Return the unhandled command status.  */
    driver_req_ptr -> nx_ip_driver_status =  NX_UNHANDLED_COMMAND;

    break;
  }

[Alec Davis 2021]

@MSG_ST

Is anyone able to verify the issue that netxduo cannot download large payloads when using nx_web_http_client_secure_connect and nx_web_http_client_response_body_get

The symptom is that part way through the download the nx_stm32_driver corrupts the packet_pool. Seems like Microsoft/express_logic wrote the driver based on the copyright.

I have provided a full example for the H723 named nx_httpbin.org.7z

Any help would be appreciated

Thanks

[JGUIT.1]

Hello Alec

I find your post because I have a similar issue but on another board (b-l4s5i-iot01a) : impossible to download large file (I'm testing with 38kB). Seems on my side IP stack is stuck somewhere....

Did you get some help on this topic ? Have you found related information that may help ?

Thanks

Joel

[Alec Davis 2021]

Hi Joel

You are the first to acknowledge there may be a problem.

 Just to be sure we have similar issue, I was able to use http (non secure) and download multi MB files but not with https (secure). IIRC if I assigned a huge amount of NetXDuo memory pool size or increased number of packets to 50 then secure would work. In otherwords the memory pool wasn't being exhausted.

@B.Montanari 

Maybe https://community.st.com/t5/stm32-mcus/how-to-implement-a-webserver-in-stm32-using-netxduo-ethernet/ta-p/641982 could be good starting point to experiment with downloading, but the linked project requires an enormousd amount of NetXDuo memory pool size @ 1536 * 100, that's 150KB of valuable RAM.

Alec

[JGUIT.1]

Thanks for this first feedback Alec! 

I cannot test with http easily now so I do https only. I do small get, put and post with no problem (up to 1KB tested ok).

I have a "small" memory pool for the moment, I should try to increase probably to check (already tried to increase stack sizes, play with thread priorities etc)

150KB is huge yes. But now this remind me a question I had several months ago on a totally different configuration, on zephyr, where I needed to increase the heap size of mbedtls a lot, up to 100KB: https://github.com/zephyrproject-rtos/zephyr/discussions/65093 so maybe it s required but I still consider this is a lot of RAM ....

I will check also my netxduo driver, I m using the one from Microsoft, I need to test the one from ST. I will probably also test my application on a different nucleo board with Ethernet instead of wifi, to compare results.

We keep in touch here!

Joel

[JGUIT.1]

One more point: are you using the threadx and netxduo port from ST or the mainline repositories from eclipse-threadx ? I m using the mainline repositories on my side, version 6.4.0.

[Alec Davis 2021]

With the H7 I was initially testing with 6.2.1 from ST, then Microsoft suggested I try 6.3.0, I had to copy mailine netxduo github code over existing files, refer  Microsoft: Could you update your source code to 6.3.0 

So no I haven't tried 6.4.0

ST has not updated the packs for F4 F7 read the following thread.

Please advise when azrtos packs for F4 F7 and H7 a... - STMicroelectronics Community 

response from ST: I can confirm that X-CUBE-AZRTOS-H7 and X-CUBE-AZRTOS-F4 will be updated to support AzureRTOS 6.3.0 but not in the near future

I have no idea what ST's roadmap is.

ST has abandoned LWIP. Azrtos/ThreadX seems to be going down the same path.

threadx.io commits so far are mainly text changes from Azure RTOS to Threadx.

[JGUIT.1]

Hello Alec

For your information I managed to get it working here with my B-L4S5I-IOT01A board. Downloading a 1MB file from an HTTPS server.

The modifications I made:

- netxduo pool size increased a lot, I haven't tried to optimize for the moment. Current definitions are the following:

#define NETX_PACKET_COUNT  128
#define NETX_PACKET_SIZE   1200 // Set the default value to 1200 since WIFI payload size (ES_WIFI_PAYLOAD_SIZE) is 1200
#define NETX_POOL_SIZE     ((NETX_PACKET_SIZE + sizeof(NX_PACKET)) * NETX_PACKET_COUNT)

- Update of the firmware in my wifi module (specific to my board)

- Handling of errors currently very basic (need to improve) as discussed on github https://github.com/eclipse-threadx/netxduo/issues/261

Looks fine for me :)

As a remember, I'm using threadx and netxduo 6.4.0 from https://github.com/eclipse-threadx

The netxduo driver is from https://github.com/eclipse-threadx/getting-started/tree/master/STMicroelectronics/B-L4S5I-IOT01A/lib/netx_driver.

Hope you will find solutions for you!

Joel