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Recommended Approach: Use Containerized Weston
Based on Torizon’s architecture and best practices, the recommended approach for adding Wayland/Weston graphics support is to use the provided Weston containers rather than building Weston directly into the base image (1).
Why Containers Are Preferred
The default choice for Graphic User Interface (GUI) in Torizon is to use the Wayland protocol (1). Torizon provides a container with the Weston compositor and clear instructions about how to run it (1). This approach offers several advantages:
- Separation of concerns: Graphics components run in isolated containers
- Easier maintenance: No need to modify core system files
- Better security: Container isolation
- Simplified updates: Update graphics stack independently
Using the Provided Weston Container
Toradex provides pre-built Weston containers that you can use directly (2). Here’s how to set up a basic Weston container using Docker Compose:
services:
weston:
image: torizon/weston:4
# Required to get udev events from host udevd via netlink
network_mode: host
volumes:
- type: bind
source: /tmp
target: /tmp
- type: bind
source: /dev
target: /dev
- type: bind
source: /run/udev
target: /run/udev
cap_add:
- CAP_SYS_TTY_CONFIG
# Add device access rights through cgroup...
device_cgroup_rules:
# ... for tty0
- 'c 4:0 rmw'
# ... for tty7
- 'c 4:7 rmw'
# ... for /dev/input devices
- 'c 13:* rmw'
(2)
GUI Framework Configuration
Many commonly used GUI-toolkits support Wayland as a rendering back end. Usually, you need to set an environment variable that configures rendering mode (1).
| Toolkit |
Env setting |
| GTK3 |
GDK_BACKEND=“wayland” |
| Qt5 |
QT_QPA_PLATFORM=“wayland” |
| SDL2 |
SDL_VIDEODRIVER=“wayland” |
| (1) |
|
Alternative: Custom Image Approach
If you absolutely need to build Weston into the base image, consider creating a custom recipe that properly handles the user/group requirements without modifying the core meta-layer files. However, this approach goes against Torizon’s container-first philosophy and may complicate future updates.
Next Steps
- Try the containerized approach first: Use the provided Weston containers
- Configure your application: Set appropriate environment variables for your GUI toolkit
- Test thoroughly: Ensure your application works correctly with the containerized Weston
This container-based approach aligns with Torizon’s design principles and eliminates the need to fork meta-layers or modify core system files.
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