Embedded Go
- Go course
- Expert
- Lesson 28/34
- 4 min
Learn Go's use in embedded systems.
Go on embedded Linux
On embedded Linux systems such as a Raspberry Pi, a router or an industrial device, Go is very handy: a single static binary, no dependencies, easy cross-compiling.
CGO_ENABLED=0 GOOS=linux GOARCH=arm GOARM=7 go build -ldflags="-s -w" -o sensor
scp sensor pi@cihaz:/usr/local/bin/-ldflags="-s -w" shrinks the binary by dropping symbol and debug information.
Talking to hardware
On Linux hardware often looks like a file: GPIO, I²C and sensors are read under /sys or /dev. Pure-Go libraries such as periph.io wrap them. With limited memory, setting GOMEMLIMIT and avoiding needless goroutines matter.
b, _ := os.ReadFile("/sys/class/thermal/thermal_zone0/temp")
// "48312\n" → 48.3 °CPractice Parse temperature
Convert the text "48312\n" read from a sensor file to a number with strings.TrimSpace and strconv.Atoi, divide by 1000 for Celsius and print it with %.1f.
Starter code
package main
import (
"fmt"
"strconv"
"strings"
)
func main() {
// buraya yaz
}Sample solution
package main
import (
"fmt"
"strconv"
"strings"
)
func main() {
ham := "48312\n"
n, err := strconv.Atoi(strings.TrimSpace(ham))
if err != nil {
fmt.Println(err)
return
}
fmt.Printf("%.1f\n", float64(n)/1000)
}Expected output
48.3
Questions and answers
Review the lesson questions together with their answers. To test yourself, solve the lesson interactively.
1 Which variable is added for 32-bit ARMv7?
- GOARM=7 Correct answer
- GOARCH=arm64
- GOAMD64=v3
- GOOS=arm
Explanation: GOARCH=arm selects 32-bit ARM; GOARM sets which ARM version to generate code for.
2 Shrink the binary
go build -ldflags="____" -o sensorgo build -ldflags="-s -w" -o sensorExplanation: -s drops the symbol table and -w drops DWARF debug information.
3 Setting and purpose
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
GOARCH=arm |
32-bit ARM |
GOARM=7 |
ARMv7 code |
-ldflags="-s -w" |
Smaller binary |
/sys/class |
Hardware files |