Making a single device is hard; you have to prepare your hardware, your software, your documentation, and how you’re going to sell it. Once you clear all of those barriers, you stare down a new realm of problems — how do you make the next thousand?

For developers designing products based on Raspberry Pi Compute Module 5, we’ve made that problem space smaller with the new Raspberry Pi Compute Module 5 Programming Jig: a single-head provisioning system that programs your Compute Module 5 with an operating system and security configuration.

Simple, repeatable provisioning

The Programming Jig simplifies the provisioning workflow by taking the bulk of the configuration steps out of your hands; after setting up the jig’s software and connecting the ports you require, all you need to do is insert the Compute Module 5 into the module bay and press the clamp shut. No further interventions are required — the status LED will tell you when the unit has been programmed.

On the back of the Programming Jig, you’ll see a small set of ports, including Ethernet for the jig and the Compute Module 5 you want to program, and a USB programming port to manually update the jig software. There are also two activity LEDs — one for the jig and one for the module — that signal what the devices are doing.

To go even faster, you can connect both the JIG ETH and DUT ETH ports to the same network.

Built around Raspberry Pi OS

To automate many aspects of production — including secure boot implementation, full disk encryption, and bare operating system installation — the Raspberry Pi Compute Module 5 Programming Jig needs capable software. So, we built it around our OS construction tool, rpi-image-gen, and our automated provisioning software, rpi-sb-provisioner.

The jig’s OS ties in to other Raspberry Pi software, notably Raspberry Pi Imager. The recently released v2.0.11 promotes the Compute Module writing functionality to public availability, and this can be used to customise the jig’s OS to your requirements — including configuring Wi-Fi, security, and user settings.

Using the same OS components as our other platforms makes a wide range of customisation scripts and functions available for provisioning purposes. More than that, you also get the benefit of ongoing development and new features in Raspberry Pi OS, Raspberry Pi Connect, and rpi-sb-provisioner.

Available now

The Raspberry Pi Compute Module 5 Programming Jig is priced at $600 and is available to order now through our global network of Approved Resellers.

You can find instructions for the Programming Jig on our documentation page. Our rpi-image-gen and rpi-sb-provisioner tools are available on the Raspberry Pi software sources page.