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Linux cryptographic acceleration on an i.MX 6 depends on the exact SoC, kernel or vendor BSP, and workload. CAAM and DCP are distinct hardware paths—not interchangeable names or a universal recipe—and an accelerator’s presence does not mean that every application uses it automatically. Verify the driver, registered algorithms, and selected implementation on the target system before relying on acceleration.
What “cryptographic acceleration” means in Linux
The Linux Crypto API is the kernel boundary through which kernel consumers request cryptographic operations. Those operations may be provided by software implementations or by hardware drivers. For hardware acceleration to matter to a workload, the target kernel must support and register the relevant implementation, and the workload must reach it through an interface that uses it.
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This is not evidence that an arbitrary userspace program transparently switches to an i.MX 6 accelerator. A userspace application may use a cryptographic library and its own implementation path; whether that path reaches a kernel interface or hardware driver must be checked for that application and build. The Linux 6.1 Crypto API documentation describes the framework, not compatibility for a particular board or vendor kernel.
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CAAM and DCP are different hardware paths
| Path | What the cited documentation establishes | What still needs target-specific verification |
|---|---|---|
| CAAM | NXP’s i.MX 6 Linux Reference Manual, Rev. L3.14.28_1.0.0-ga (March 2015), describes CAAM job-ring handling and asynchronous interfaces to the Linux scatterlist Crypto API for common block ciphers, authentication-encryption, and hashes, as well as an HWRNG interface. | Whether the exact SoC, board, kernel/BSP, configuration, and device-tree integration support and probe the required driver; which algorithms are registered and selected; and measured performance for the workload. |
| DCP | Linux 6.13 trusted/encrypted keys documentation treats DCP as separate from CAAM and points to the driver at drivers/crypto/mxs-dcp.c, with i.MX6ULL as an example. |
Whether the deployed kernel and exact board expose the required DCP functionality, which algorithms are available, and how the workload reaches the driver. |
| Software Crypto API implementation | The Linux Crypto API framework allows kernel consumers to use cryptographic implementations; the implementation may be software or hardware. | Which implementation the target kernel registers and selects for the operation, and how its measured performance compares with the hardware path. |
The NXP manual is useful architectural evidence for the BSP version it documents. It dates to 2015 and is not a current support matrix for mainline Linux or every downstream kernel. Likewise, the Linux 6.13 DCP and trusted-key notes should be checked against the kernel actually deployed.
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How to verify acceleration on a board
There is no universal configuration recipe established for every i.MX 6 part. Use the following checks for the precise SoC, board, and software image you intend to ship:
- Identify the hardware and software. Record the exact SoC variant and board revision, Linux kernel version, and vendor BSP release. Do not infer a CAAM setup from i.MX6ULL DCP documentation, or the reverse.
- Check integration and configuration. Confirm that the relevant driver and algorithm support are present in the target kernel configuration, and that the board’s device tree and required clock or power integration match that driver. The available documentation does not establish a universal option list or device-tree recipe.
- Check boot-time probe evidence. Inspect kernel boot logs for successful initialization of the expected driver and hardware resources. A driver in the source tree or a configuration option alone does not show that the target device probed successfully.
- Check runtime algorithm registration and selection. Establish which algorithms the running kernel exposes and which implementation a representative operation actually selects. An available algorithm is not, by itself, proof that a particular workload uses the accelerator.
- Test the real workload. If performance matters, compare software and hardware paths on the same board, kernel, algorithm, mode, and build. Use the payload sizes and distribution representative of production; the cited sources supply no benchmark or universal speedup figure.
Keep acceleration separate from trusted-key claims
Accelerating bulk encryption or hashing and providing a trust source for keys are different properties. Linux 6.13 trusted/encrypted keys documentation says that CAAM-backed trusted keys rely on NXP High Assurance Boot (HAB) for platform integrity and describes the CAAM interface as vendor-specific. Those conditions matter to the security assumptions of a trusted-key design; they do not establish bulk-crypto performance or make every CAAM use a trusted-key operation.
The same documentation says DCP does not provide a dedicated RNG interface. An i.MX6ULL-class system may have a separate hardware RNG that can seed the kernel random-number generator, but that is a distinct source and must be verified on the actual system. Do not attribute RNG functionality to DCP merely because DCP provides other cryptographic functions.
Choose a path against the deployment, not the family name
Before selecting an implementation, compare the exact SoC security block, kernel or BSP version and maintenance state, algorithm and mode coverage, synchronous or asynchronous behavior, and API used by the workload. Also establish the RNG source, device-tree and probe status, any trusted-key assumptions, and measured performance for intended payload sizes. The cited documentation does not provide a complete per-variant algorithm table or comparative benchmark, so those are target validation tasks rather than safe assumptions.
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