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📡 Running HIL Tests with GitHub Actions

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Welcome to the Hardware-in-the-Loop (HIL) CI/CD tutorial project!
This repository contains materials, documentation, source code, and examples used in a video tutorial series about running real embedded hardware tests using GitHub Actions.

🎥 Video series playlist:
https://www.youtube.com/@MyEmbeddedWay/playlists

📁 Repository Structure -> TBD

.
├── .github/      
│   └── workflows/              # GitHub Actions automation pipelines
├── docs/                       # MkDocs documentation source
├── hw/                         # Hardware configurations for example project
├── lib/                        # External librarioes used in example project
├── src/                        # Example project source code
├── test/
│   ├── _config_scripts/        # Config scripts for running all project targers
│   ├── template/               # Uint tests module tempate
│   ├── unity/                  # Unity frameowrk
│   ├── hil_tests/              # hil tests folder
│   └── peripheras_config.yaml  # py-micro-hil framework cofiguration file
└── README.md                   # You're here 🙂

🚀 What You Will Learn

This repository teaches you how to:

  • 🛠 Set up a Raspberry Pi HIL Test Server
  • 🔌 Connect Raspberry Pi to ST-Link and the target MCU
  • 🧪 Write automated HIL tests using py-micro-hil
  • ⚙️ Install applications from sources
  • 🤖 Run real hardware tests inside GitHub Actions
  • 📦 Publish test artifacts & logs

📚 Documentation

All documentation lives inside the docs/ directory and is published automatically to the project’s GitHub Pages site: https://niwciu.github.io/GHA_HIL/

▶ HIL Fundamentals

  • What is HIL?
  • Why use HIL in CI/CD?
  • Hardware & software requirements

▶ Raspberry Pi HIL Server Setup

  • OS installation
  • Installing stlink
  • Installing py-micro-hil
  • Lighttpd setup
  • Connecting RPi to your microcontroller

▶ Writing HIL Tests - working with test framework

  • Python API basics
  • Example test scripts
  • Fixtures & test structure
  • Debugging common issues

▶ GitHub Actions Integration

  • Workflow structure explained
  • Flashing firmware automatically
  • Running py-micro-hil tests remotely
  • Collecting logs & artifacts

▶ Example Project

  • Minimal firmware
  • HIL test suite
  • Full CI pipeline

🔧 Requirements

Hardware

  • Raspberry Pi 3/4/5
  • ST-Link V2/V3
  • Target microcontroller (STM32 recommended)
  • Cables & power supply

Software

  • Raspberry Pi imager - https://www.raspberrypi.com/software/
  • GCC / G++ / CMake / lighttpd
  • stlink - https://github.com/stlink-org/stlink
  • py-micro-hil - https://pypi.org/project/py-micro-hil/
  • GitHub Actions runner (self-hosted)

▶ Quick Start

TBD

🧪 Example GitHub Actions Workflow

TBD

🗂️ Roadmap

  • Publish MkDocs website
  • Documentation update
  • Framework test and update
  • Framework documentation update
  • Provide YAML workflow templates

🤝 Contributing

PRs and suggestions are welcome!
Feel free to open an issue if you want new topics covered.

📜 License

MIT or any license you choose.

🎉 Your HIL CI/CD environment is now ready to build!

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