NXP/Freescale QorIQ and Layerscape SoC support
Platform glue for NXP (formerly Freescale) QorIQ and Layerscape ARM system-on-chip processors such as the LS1028A, LS1046A, LS1088A, and LX2160A. These parts are widely used in networking gear, industrial gateways, and edge servers, and the code provides chip identification, power management, and DPAA2 console plumbing those SoCs need.
recommendation
It should stay in the kernel because NXP still sells these Layerscape processors as active products in 2025 and the code continues to receive routine maintenance upstream, including a 2024 stable-tagged fix in rcpm.c and a 2026 cleanup in guts.c. There is no sign of abandonment or removal pressure, and real shipping hardware depends on it.
repository signals
sources
- lore.kernel.org
`drivers/soc/fsl/guts.c` still received upstream maintenance in 2026 (`soc: fsl: guts: don't access of_root directly`).
- lore.kernel.org
`drivers/soc/fsl/rcpm.c` saw a 2024 bug-fix with `Cc: stable`, showing real maintained deployments rather than abandonment.
- nxp.com
NXP lists the LS1028A Layerscape processor as `Active`, indicating the family covered by this directory is still sold new.
- nxp.com
NXP lists the LX2160A Layerscape processor as `Active`; the page also highlights DPAA2-focused networking use cases and current hardware offerings.
codex reasoning notes (technical)
Shell inspection of local Kconfig/source identified this directory as QorIQ/Layerscape SoC support (`guts`, `rcpm`, `dpaa2-console`) for parts including LS1012A/LS1021A/LS1028A/LS1043A/LS1046A/LS1088A/LS2080A/LX2160A. `lore_activity` was used on `guts.c` and `rcpm.c`; both showed recent non-removal maintenance, and no removal evidence appeared in the sampled lore results. NXP product URLs were obtained via `web.search_query` on `nxp.com` and show current Layerscape parts still marked Active. Because the code serves still-shipping QorIQ/Layerscape platforms and continues to get bug-fix/cleanup traffic, removal/deprecation is not justified.