One more update: I think I’ve found a golden path that seems to work. It goes as follows and any deviation results in a failure:
- set ESP32 into bootloader mode (reset while holding down BOOT button)
- compile and upload the project using PIO Upload task
- reset ESP32 so that it runs the uploaded code
- run PIO Debug (skip pre-Debug) task
I am in the process of adding removed code back and testing it to see where it breaks again to confirm the use of GPIOs 12-14 was indeed the culprit.