Connect to the reference image

You can use ssh to connect to your image after you have it running on the NXP iMX8QM-MEK.

Because the default SLM file starts an application immediately, you can connect to it using a console connection via the debug port on the board. Ensure that you have the Virtual COM Port (VCP) driver installed on your system, which allows you to connect to a console on the board and see the board's boot sequence. For more information, see the Future Technology Devices International Ltd. (FTDI) website at http://www.ftdichip.com/FTDrivers.htm.

In your console connection, run ifconfig (Linux or macOS) or ipconfig (Windows) to determine the IP address. For example:

# ifconfig
lo0: flags=8049<UP,LOOPBACK,RUNNING,MULTICAST> mtu 33136
        inet 127.0.0.1 netmask 0xff000000
        inet6 ::1 prefixlen 128
        inet6 fe80::1%lo0 prefixlen 64 scopeid 0x1
rt0: flags=8843<UP,BROADCAST,RUNNING,SIMPLEX,MULTICAST> mtu 1500
        capabilities=7<IP4CSUM,TCP4CSUM,UDP4CSUM>
        enabled=0
        address: f4:4d:30:68:40:ee
        media: Ethernet autoselect (1000baseT full-duplex)
        status: active
        inet 10.101.10.100 netmask 0xfffffe00 broadcast 10.101.10.255
        inet6 fe80::f64d:30ff:fe68:40ee%rt0 prefixlen 64 scopeid 0x11
pflog0: flags=0 mtu 33136
#

If this IP address is preserved after a reboot, you can use it to connect to the NXP iMX8QM-MEK using ssh. This may be dependent on the policies you have in place in your network. In some cases, it may be easier to assign a static IP address to your board.
Using a terminal (Linux or macOS) or terminal program such as Tera Term (Windows), use ssh to connect to the IP address previously determined. You can log in using the user ID and password of root. For example:
```
# ssh 10.101.10.100
login as: root
root@10.101.10.100's password:root
#
```

For more information, see the “Installation Notes” chapter of the NXP iMX8QM-MEK BSP User's Guide.