Getting started
Hardware, firmware and the agent.
Flash brings your board design, firmware, datasheets and bench tools into one workflow, with an agent that works across all of them.
What you can do
Design hardware and firmware together
Draw the schematic, lay out the PCB and write the firmware in one project in Flash IDE.
Understand a project
Map the design, code, components and datasheets before changing anything.
Make a verified change
Review a change, build the firmware and verify its behavior on the board.
Debug on the hardware
Attach a debugger, read serial output and test device protocols with the agent.
Ground every answer
Decisions come from your datasheets and schematic, with the page or net cited.
Work in your tool
Flash IDE, Flash CLI or VS Code, on the same project and history.
Built for hardware and firmware engineers
Hardware + firmware
You design the board and write its code
Flash IDE keeps the schematic, PCB and firmware in one project, and the agent keeps them consistent: pins, nets, datasheets and drivers.
Firmware
You write the code for someone else’s board
Start from your repository in any Flash tool. Open the board design in Flash IDE or VS Code to check a pinout or a net, even if you never edit it.
All you need is your project: firmware, a hardware design, or both.
How Flash works
Every task combines three things, explained in Core concepts.
What Flash knows
Your hardware design, firmware, FLASH.md, components and datasheets, plus the conversation you are in.
How the work gets done
A mode for how the agent works, and your approvals for what it may do.
What really happened
Builds, programming, debugger state and serial output from the board.
What Flash works with
| Area | Supported |
|---|---|
| Hardware design | Schematic, PCB and BOM: edit in Flash IDE, view in VS Code, query from the CLI. Compatible with KiCad projects |
| Build systems | ESP-IDF, PlatformIO, Zephyr (west), Arduino CLI, CMake, Make and STM32CubeIDE projects |
| Programming | esptool, STM32CubeProgrammer, st-flash, J-Link, probe-rs, OpenOCD, nRF Util, picotool, avrdude and more |
| Debugging | GDB through OpenOCD, SEGGER J-Link, probe-rs or pyOCD, with ST-LINK, J-Link, CMSIS-DAP and built-in USB-JTAG probes |
| Observation | Serial, SEGGER RTT, SWO, MQTT and Bluetooth LE |
Details in Supported debug tools; boards and parts in the hardware catalog.
Get started
Flash IDE, Flash for VS Code or Flash CLI: which one fits your work.
QuickstartInstall Flash in your tool and take a first change onto the board.
Hardware and firmware togetherHow Flash IDE connects the design and the code.
Find your way through the docs
Modes, sessions, approvals, memory, hardware knowledge and verification.
Debug and observeDebugger, serial, RTT, MQTT and Bluetooth LE, and the tools behind them.
GuidesSet up your tool, follow the BMI270 tutorial or bring in an existing project.
HardwareSupported boards, MCUs and peripherals.
ReferenceCommands, terminal usage and keyboard shortcuts.
Get help
Type /help in Flash, or contact Flash support with your tool, target and the result you expected.