Related
Will it be possible to boot from external USB flash or hdd?
Seems xoom already support bootloader unlocking - details here - http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=967065&page=2
Will it be possible to do the same with a500
Bump this...I'm thinking about getting one.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA Premium App
Just thinking, that now when we can flash custom roms. Would it be possible to code grub like bootmanager?
I know its not the same layout.but...the nook color is able to boot into different Roms ect. While holding the n while booting.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA Premium App
Im no expert but the a500 doesn't have an unlocked bootloader so until someone can crack it (if that's even possible) or Acer unlocks it we're sol in this dept. At least that's what I've garnered from reading these forums
Sent from my Acer Iconia Tab A500 using XDA Premium App
You can flash custom kernel with custom ramdisk instead of recovery and force the external root device in the command line.. Although that kinda sucks. I'm booting my test system from external micro sd card now (will release sources a bit later, need to push a lot of traffic) but I want to port uboot though.
sp3dev said:
You can flash custom kernel with custom ramdisk instead of recovery and force the external root device in the command line.. Although that kinda sucks. I'm booting my test system from external micro sd card now (will release sources a bit later, need to push a lot of traffic) but I want to port uboot though.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Will be great if you can reveal bit more details. I'm looking into booting ubuntu or other distro without sacrificing the existing android system.
I'm still not sure do we have 2 kernels one in the main boot and one for recovery or we have one kernel that gets different rootfs - either normal boot or recovery
Will be happy if someone can clarify a bit more onto this.
yodor said:
Will be great if you can reveal bit more details. I'm looking into booting ubuntu or other distro without sacrificing the existing android system.
I'm still not sure do we have 2 kernels one in the main boot and one for recovery or we have one kernel that gets different rootfs - either normal boot or recovery
Will be happy if someone can clarify a bit more onto this.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My kernel tree is here - https://github.com/astarasikov/iconia-gnu-kernel
My plan is to port iconia to chromium tree and possibly integrate into mainline tree and get rid of proprietary stuff (i.e., make camera work via v4l2)
Right now, the framebuffer, mmc card and usb host are working and I'm struggling to make usb client and touchscreen to work with mainline drivers
And yes - we have two kernels, 'normal' and recovery. So we can ditch recovery and put our custom kernel there. Sure that's not good - ideally we should port uboot and repartition internal storage to install linux there but we need to get basic hardware working first
sp3dev said:
My kernel tree is here - https://github.com/astarasikov/iconia-gnu-kernel
My plan is to port iconia to chromium tree and possibly integrate into mainline tree and get rid of proprietary stuff (i.e., make camera work via v4l2)
Right now, the framebuffer, mmc card and usb host are working and I'm struggling to make usb client and touchscreen to work with mainline drivers
And yes - we have two kernels, 'normal' and recovery. So we can ditch recovery and put our custom kernel there. Sure that's not good - ideally we should port uboot and repartition internal storage to install linux there but we need to get basic hardware working first
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Great thinking. Thank you for your hard work.
So is it not possible to install second boot loader in the recovery area like u-boot or lilo, that will give us ability to boot further from external hdd or usb flash or else.
In other words, we have locked boot loader but can it be tricked like if it is loading a recovery kernel and in turn it loads other bootloader on top?
Ok, got something to brag about. The kernel in git has now usb client (cdc ethernet) and touchscreen (sic!) working. GNU/Linux is coming to our place
So, let's get linux installed natively on our Iconia.
As some of you I have been working on porting Iconia to chromeos 2.6.38 kernel (to get rid of Acer crappy moron-written drivers (well.. nothing personal, but most code written for commercial embedded devices is a pile of crap and you have to rewrite everything to update kernel or integrate upstream))
For now, I have hardcoded the kernel command line in the boot config to boot off /dev/mmcblk1p2 (that is, you must create ext4 (this is also hardcoded.. uhh)) second primary partition on your sd card with the root fs). For now, until all hardware is working fine and userland is ready, let's boot off micro sd. We don't have nvflash yet so let's leave repartitioning internal storage aside.
Flash the kernel image instead of boot.img to LNX or instead of recovery to SOS. And make sure to write your UID in a secure place before messing with the device - this is the only way to flash your device if you have checksum errors (you should contact sc2k in that case). Okay, even if you eff up here, there is still a way to get UID from a brick so take it easy. But if you do screw it, be prepared to work hard and use some command-line tools.
You should be able to use any armel rootfs. For X11, use fbdev driver and evdev for touchscreen.
For the proprietary NVIDIA accellerated drivers for X11, OpenGL ES and OpenMAX, download the nvidia-tegra package from AC100 PPA https://launchpad.net/~ac100/+archive/ppa (probably you have to manually download using this link http://ppa.launchpad.net/ac100/ppa/...dia-tegra_12-0ubuntu1~alpha1monson6_armel.deb as the package didn't show in aptitude for me after adding to sources.list.. or i was doing sth wrong) or the tarball from nvidia. A newer package of tegra drivers is available at https://launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/nvidia-graphics-drivers-tegra. You may just add an alternative to mesa EGL/GLES library path via update-alternatives to always use nvidia libs.
precompiled kernel image [15 August 2012]
http://www.mediafire.com/?p32l949n2s7la43
xorg.conf
http://pastebin.com/0a6T6c18
Here is some video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NlGHZ5VTAr8
And now - we need developers, developers, developers.
The git is https://github.com/astarasikov/iconia-gnu-kernel
The main branch is chromeos-2.6.38 that is more stable. The 3.0 branch is unstable (network traffic causes virtual memory trashing).
For now, the following stuff works
-Panel/framebuffer/backlight
-Touchscreen
-Internal eMMC
-microSD slot
-usb gadget
-usb host
-gpio keys/buttons [rotation switch acts as wifi/bluetooth power blocker. iirc, left position disables wireless, right - enables]
-charger
-battery
-shutdown
-LEDs
-bcm4329 wifi (don't forget to copy bcm4329-fullmac-4.bin to /lib/firmware/brcm and nvram.txt from android's /system/etc to the same dir as bcm4329-fullmac-4.txt) [causes lockups with 3.0 kernel]
-nct1008 temperature sensor for cpu throttling
-sound. external speakers and headphones.
-bcm4329 bluetooth. accessible at 115200 on /dev/ttyHS2. Look at http://htc-linux.org/wiki/index.php?title=Ubuntu/Leo/Bluetooth to get it running at higher speeds with proprietary firmware patches (hcd files from android)
-suspend. Although will probably drain a bit more power than android because mmc power is not disabled (due to a race condition in kernel. and because we have rootfs on micro sd). Two glitches are: sometimes, the device freezes for several seconds after suspend (will test later if playing with wifi clock fixes it) and fonts get corrupted after suspend if using proprietary nvidia X11 driver. [suspend works in 2.6.38 only]
-kxtf9 accelerometer
-mpu3050 gyroscope
-ak8975 magnetometer
The following stuff is broken or not implemented at all
-hdmi video. May be working but no one has tested. hdmi audio is not implemented.
-light sensor
-video cameras, focus, torch.
-gps. To turn on the chip, it should be enough to enable gpio 203 via sysfs. Unfortunately it uses the proprietary MEIF protocol which can probably be obtained from Nokia under NDA. And I don't feel like disassembling the whole megabyte of the gps daemon
-3G. I don't have the modem in my iconia. So I don't care. But should be easy to add.
And one notice for those who want to join in. I don't care if hardware works properly. I want 'beautiful' code. That is, please, when you make patches to add functionality, do not follow the path of corporate coders and do not invent custom interfaces and sysfs hacks. Use rfkill for bt/3g power control, for example. And don't be selfish - please share your patches and userland stuff.
TODO:
-fix framebuffer issues (no console till X boots, X fonts and window decorations get corrupted after suspend with proprietary drivers) it kinda works.
-video camera
-port meego or build the list of good software in ubuntu for handling sensors, virtual keyboard etc
I'm not currently working on the project and don't have the device anymore. Feel free to PM me if you need help with some tegra hackery
good job...
Hi sp3dev,
Cooooool, you rock
Thanks
FANTASTIC WORK!!!!
Guys... I'm not so clued up on the bootloader here, but is dual boot possible with this setup?
"so I guess I need to switch distro to try out this cool stuff"
What distro are you considering switching to?
tholmewood said:
FANTASTIC WORK!!!!
Guys... I'm not so clued up on the bootloader here, but is dual boot possible with this setup?
"so I guess I need to switch distro to try out this cool stuff"
What distro are you considering switching to?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, dual boot is possible - the android is in internal memory, our stuff is on micro sd card. It should be possible to even dual boot from internal memory, but not right now
I am switching to ubuntu because it has a lot of packages prebuilt
sp3dev said:
Yes, dual boot is possible - the android is in internal memory, our stuff is on micro sd card. It should be possible to even dual boot from internal memory, but not right now
I am switching to ubuntu because it has a lot of packages prebuilt
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Man I cant wait to get Netbook Remix dual booting on this badboy... Living the dream I tell ya...
Thanks again
Would booting a distro from say the usb work?
Sent from my HTC HD2 using XDA Premium App
M..N said:
Would booting a distro from say the usb work?
Sent from my HTC HD2 using XDA Premium App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I see no reason why not. But you'd have to hardcode the uuid of the boot partition in kernel command line or build a ram disk. Anyway having to use a heavy and power consuming external storage sounds like an extremely stupid and useless idea
what about Gentoo?
This is great! i would love a dual boot. and ubuntu! i just got done reading that the asus got this and was like. i want it now. now we almost have it keep up the great work!
sp3dev said:
I see no reason why not. But you'd have to hardcode the uuid of the boot partition in kernel command line or build a ram disk. Anyway having to use a heavy and power consuming external storage sounds like an extremely stupid and useless idea
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not even from a USB flash drive? Wouldn't it be the same as say booting it from a microsd card?
Sent from my A500 using XDA Premium App
Have Anyone seen this LINK?
Hope it can help!
OrionBG said:
Have Anyone seen this LINK?
Hope it can help!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That sounds like the place to start!
Thanks
Thanks man you really rock !
I cant wait to try it out. Hope you will continue working onto this.
can you share the steps after compiling the kernel ?
I would like to try with different kernels but I'm still not confident on how to do this.
If I use dd if=zImage of=/dev/mmcblk00p1
will this effectively boot this kernel after pressing power and vol- keys ?
Hello, do you think that Dvb t is possible if Linux is running on the acer?
yodor said:
can you share the steps after compiling the kernel ?
I would like to try with different kernels but I'm still not confident on how to do this.
If I use dd if=zImage of=/dev/mmcblk00p1
will this effectively boot this kernel after pressing power and vol- keys ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No.. You need to build boot image with android's mkbootimg and flash instead of recovery. And then, mkfs.ext4 on your sd card on partition mmcblk1p2 and untar rootfs there
Thanks man, this is really getting clear to me now.
I'm going to try and post results here. I will love to try and see how arch, fedora and ubuntu will run on A500.
http://dev.gentoo.org/~armin76/arm/tegra2/install.xml
There are two apps in the Android market that will install either Ubuntu or Backtrack for you- they are not native installs though I can confirm they perform well even if it is chroot and I can also confirm they work on the iconia great! Search ubuntu installer or backtrsck5 linux install in the mmarket....
(I wasn't really sure if this might fit into "Development", so I put it here, maybe a mod will move it, if it's a dev topic )
Anyways, here we go, I DUALBOOTED two different, independant ROMs on the S2
Video of dualboot in action: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l9-V_6Ua_D0
** THIS IS NOT (YET) COMPATIBLE **
** WITH ICS (ANDROID 4.0.x) ROMS! **
-- this goes for custom ROMs as well as stock ROMs --
Icey Sammich compatibility will be added once Sammy released their ICS kernel sources.
!!! There now is an app for more convinient and easy setup of the dualboot !!!
(04.11.2011) DualBoot setup app v2.00: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=19049047&postcount=94
(12.12.2011) App has been updated to 2.51, lot's of good new stuff! >> Free Version -- Donate Version <<
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
First off:
This is only a little experiment I did like "c'mon, has to be possible" - this is NOT (at least yet) tweaked for usability and anything the like, just a humble experiment.
That said, don't flame me if things are rather complexicated to do this ATM.
Maybe I'll come up with a more userfriendly way of setting this up, maybe someone else does, maybe no one does.
Also now that I found a base on what to do, there might be different ways (more easy ones maybe) to set this up, I'll keep toying around with it.
But let's cut to the chase, shall we
So, how was this set up? I'll give a brief rundown of what I did:
I edited a few .rc files in the initramfs of the kernel to make it actually perform a full boot when recovery mode was triggered and to fire up recovery mode when in battery-charging mode.
I also edited a few mounts in the boot .rc for the 2nd OS (in "recovery" mode) to use different partitions for /system and /data, so that we'd end up with really independant installs.
What partitions did I missuse for that:
partition 12 (mostly unused, only when installing a stock ROM AFAIK) for /system - that's a neat choice IMO as p12 is 512MB in size, just as p9 where /system usually sits on
partition 7 (which is usually /cache) for /data
gives us only 100MB of user data space, but for now that's OK, as said, it's only an experiment on how such a thing could be done.
with the original partition for /cache "gone", I mounted a tmpfs for it.
So the OS still has a usable /cache
Then I set up the two OSes:
(dualboot kernel not yet flashed)
Launchprep part 1:
I made a CWM backup of my normal installation I was running (stock XXKG6 at the time).
I installed DevNull-Test AOSP as to it's instructions
Some su'ed voodoo via a terminal while having the 2nd OS (the DevNull AOSP one, in this case) installed - best done in recovery mode via ADB:
rm -Rf /cache/*
cp -Rp /data/* /cache/
dd if=/dev/block/mmcblk0p9 of=/dev/block/mmcblk0p12 bs=4096
That did "set up" the 2nd OS to where it's supposed to go.
Launchprep part 2:
Then, "advanced restore" of the backup made a few minutes earlier:
- boot
- system
- data
Reboot
At this point OS #1 is running again and OS #2 is sitting in hiding, prepared to roll - so, let's roll:
Flashed the modified "dualboot kernel" (via an App or Odin or magic, doesn't matter).
---> DONE <---
reached the point to where everything works as shown in the video.
As said above already, yes it needs some manual work to set it up, yes there's a lot of things that might not work, yes there are other/better ways to set it up.
It's only a humble experiment - lot's of space for improvement.
Maybe you like it - for those who do, I wanted to share this
Attached to this post you find the modified kernel I used, it's based on my v1.20 custom kernel (see sig) but with the above mentioned changes.
I've seen the video m8, this is totally different approach, ur giving this device a new dimension. love u "in a straight way" hahaa
there currently an app called Bootmanager which also handle up to quadruple booting. But sadly currently only support HTC phones.
http://www.appbrain.com/app/bootmanager/com.drx2.bootmanager
well, one can hope!
Thanks OP this is an awesome concept! Very happy to see you posted it with a video! and nice boot animation!
sunwee said:
there currently an app called Bootmanager which also handle up to quadruple booting. But sadly currently only support HTC phones.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, that's the thing.... that app is HTC only.... but we have Samsung S-II and want dualboot as well.
I'm already brainstorming on how to enhance the actual usability of this, i.e. flashing a 2nd OS directely to it's place instead of first installing it to the main system partition. But there is problems when /data is not mounted to the original partition, at least stock doesn't like it on initial boot.... well, well....
That is great. Going to use this for sure. This should be in development for sure.
Congratulations already.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk
This is impressive bro sure will use it
but i want to ask one thing
SD card needed for this or not ?
That would be really cool (and definitely should goes to original development). Does it work with CM7/MIUI + custom rom?
vikas776 said:
SD card needed for this or not ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, so far this completely works with all internal storage.
But I have a few ideas I have yet to try to get mounted from other places - like images in /sdcard for example (I *so* hope that'll work.... )
Hi
Does this kernel include any of the Hellcat kernel tweaks or are they work in progress.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk
Tricky103 said:
Does this kernel include any of the Hellcat kernel tweaks or are they work in progress.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I made this build based on my v1.20 custom kernel, so it has everthing that one has - plus the touchfix already
exactly what i was hoping for.
great job - pls continue your work
Hi i tried this with instanity rom last night. When I use the three buttons to boot it just sits there not booting. My guess is the kernel is not compatible. Unless I made a mistake somewhere.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk
Hm, yah, might be that the kernel isn't fully compatible with that ROM, what kernel does the ROM usually use?
Did you boot it up fully at least once before copying /data to /cache ?
Yes I did fully boot up. But his kernel didn't have advanced activated in recovery so I flashed your kernel and moved the cache okay. But it said /data not found when I ran the 2nd command line.
I will flash aosp later. I like that rom.
I am not sure what kernel nitr8 uses. I think it is his own, Insane.tar would you like it to see if they can work together.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk
Tricky103 said:
But it said /data not found when I ran the 2nd command line.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hm, yeah, that sounds like something didn't work.... make sure you run those commands as root, i.e. "su" as very first command (I'll add that to the first post).
Give me a direct link to the ROM and I'll try it.
Make take a few days though as I'm away from my computer a lot because of work the next two days, but I'll try once time permits.
Well yeah, and this still is in highly experimental stage, if I (or someone else) should ever get this to more stable and reliable state, I'll make an easy to use installer/setup tool
But I got a few other ideas on setting it up I have to try first....
http://goo.gl/2uZCh
This is the complete rom. Only 47mb. I thought you would like the whole rom
Tricky103 said:
Hi
Does this kernel include any of the Hellcat kernel tweaks or are they work in progress.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
May be someday WINDOWS Mo 7 and Android on our sweet beast
Hi
I tried again with Aosp Dev-null. I still get this error "cp: can't stat '/data/*': No such file or directory "
after running this command line " cp -Rp /data/* /cache/ "
Any Ideas ?
It still doesn't boot if I press 3 button it brings up the boot logo and then black screens until it boots to the 1st partition.
Thanks for the link, will download and try as soon as time permits.
Also, try this command sequence, I got an idea what the issue maybe might be, give it a shot:
Code:
su
rm -Rf /cache/*
busybox cp -Rp /data/* /cache/
dd if=/dev/block/mmcblk0p9 of=/dev/block/mmcblk0p12 bs=4096
(use "busybox cp" instead of plain "cp", maybe it helps)
And some update on my ongoing thoughts for those interested:
- got an idea on how to make a more easy to use App for prepping and setting up the dualboot environment
- managed to do a neat thing I didn't really think it would work: issued a "mount" command and the OS thought it was mounting a partition of the internal flash (/dev/block/mmcblk0p12 in this test, but was testing for later on actually doing it with p9 - you might see where I'm headed here ) but instead of the partition it actually mounted from an .img file! (loopback)
i.e. "mount /dev/block/mmcblk0p12 /somedir" actually mounted "/somepath/someimage.img" to "/somedir" instead of the partition from /dev/block/... (you just gotta love Linux and it's flexible way of handling things....)
NOW, imagine /dev/block/mmcblk0p9 (the partition carrying the system) and p10 (data) being (kinda) transparently mounted from an IMAGE FILE
I "only" have to find a way to sneak this in before init starts mounting stuff.
If there's a way to do THAT.... unlimited multiboot from OS images, anyone?
(so far this is kinda dreaming, but would be cool to get it working )
**DEV ONLY**
Acer released ICS kernel sources for A200. Like HC sources, it seems to support picasso board as well.
Tried to compil with config from leaked kernel. Had to fix a build issue, but all went fine.
ATM It doesn't boot, and dunno why. I tried to enable console to check what's wrong without success.
picasso and picasso_e config are really closed.
Maybe someone can do some magic with this =)
Kernel sources : http://global-download.acer.com/GDF...AB&Step3=A200&OS=a08&LC=fr&BC=Acer&SC=EMEA_13
ICS A500 Config : http://minus.com/memdYnyCy#3 - http://pastebin.com/CfErz5cz
vache said:
**DEV ONLY**
Acer released ICS kernel sources for A200. Like HC sources, it seems to support picasso board as well.
Tried to compil with config from leaked kernel. Had to fix a build issue, but all went fine.
ATM It doesn't boot, and dunno why. I tried to enable console to check what's wrong without success.
picasso and picasso_e config are really closed.
Maybe someone can do some magic with this =)
Kernel sources : http://global-download.acer.com/GDF...AB&Step3=A200&OS=a08&LC=fr&BC=Acer&SC=EMEA_13
ICS A500 Config : http://minus.com/memdYnyCy#3 - http://pastebin.com/CfErz5cz
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I had the same idea yesterday. There were some drivers missing missing im moving from HC and atmel touch yas529 compass and some camera drivers need work to compile. Also the memory carveout will need to be changed to boot on orig bootloader.
vache said:
**DEV ONLY**
Acer released ICS kernel sources for A200. Like HC sources, it seems to support picasso board as well.
Tried to compil with config from leaked kernel. Had to fix a build issue, but all went fine.
ATM It doesn't boot, and dunno why. I tried to enable console to check what's wrong without success.
picasso and picasso_e config are really closed.
Maybe someone can do some magic with this =)
Kernel sources : http://global-download.acer.com/GDF...AB&Step3=A200&OS=a08&LC=fr&BC=Acer&SC=EMEA_13
ICS A500 Config : http://minus.com/memdYnyCy#3 - http://pastebin.com/CfErz5cz
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
if you dont mind me asking... how did you get past the build issue? im getting a mess of errors....
EDIT:
got it. nvm. (shows how much a few weeks of research and learning gets me )
Sorry, wrong place. Delete Post.
has anyone had any luck getting this to boot? i cant get anything out of it :/ no adb no nothing. ideas?
EDIT:
just an observation, the size of this kernel after its compiled is aprox. 3.3 mb, where as the kernel in the leaked copy is aprox. 3.4 mb. which reinforces my belief that something is missing here. which seeing as it is not our "official" source would make sense... going to keep researching.
okay, so i got it to compile, and i got it to sort of boot. it turns on, after the acer screen all it does is display garbage on the screen, nothing useful, just random pixels then reboots. still no adb. it also appears to begin the boot sequence as it looks like its reading my flashdrive the exact same way it does with a normal boot. im going to mess with the video driver libs, and use ones that are designed for this kernel and report back. if anyone thinks they can help let me know, or post here.
EDIT:
i think the garbage is normal with the old bootloader. i hope some of the stuff im posting is helpful lol
Grrr,,
Well on the unlocked bootloader the kernel sorta boots:
However I'm running into the following:
Code:
[ 1.131021] Unpacking initramfs...
[ 1.146564] Initramfs unpacking failed: uncompression error
This then followed by much more errors that Init can't be found/executed and an automatic reboot.
(FYI I have the stock ICS kernel in a recovery image that I used to read out the last_kmsg of my kernels attempt to boot)
This issue came up both with a patched a200 and a510 kernel (with the stock ICS config as a template).. so something is up.. did they change the location of the initrc image?
all versions of code I have say (for Tegra2):
Code:
zreladdr-$(CONFIG_ARCH_TEGRA_2x_SOC) := 0x00008000
params_phys-$(CONFIG_ARCH_TEGRA_2x_SOC) := 0x00000100
initrd_phys-$(CONFIG_ARCH_TEGRA_2x_SOC) := 0x00800000
from: arch/arm/mach-tegra/Makefile.boot
(I know my code may be missing some drivers and camera is not quite initializing correctly.. but nothing related to init.. and besides a camera init warning nothing went wrong up too that point. I expect Init to be read, particuarly since the bootloader ought to have loaded the ramdisk into ram .. we are just de-compressing the cpio archive.. The uncompression error seems like a generic message for something unexpected reading the gzip data.. thus I wonder if it was just loaded elsewhere)
Edit:
Still lost..
The ramdisk is being loaded.. and position not static but passed into the kernel by the bootloader:
parse_tag_initrd2: 0x05000000,0x161e0e (an added debug string)
The first few bytes of the file are correct and the length is right.. but the CRC32 dosn't check out.. so something is overwrittiing it... seems odd that far into ram.
being slightly curious, I looked at the URL and changed the Step3=A200 to Step3=A500, got a download, don't know if its the same though..
Step3=A500&OS=a08&LC=fr&BC=Acer&SC=EMEA_13
LC = looks like the language - maybe change this to eng.. maybe its possible to get the correct download by altering the URL..
http://global-download.acer.com/GDF...AB&Step3=A500&OS=a08&LC=fr&BC=Acer&SC=EMEA_13
kiwi_mat said:
being slightly curious, I looked at the URL and changed the Step3=A200 to Step3=A500, got a download, don't know if its the same though..
Step3=A500&OS=a08&LC=fr&BC=Acer&SC=EMEA_13
LC = looks like the language - maybe change this to eng.. maybe its possible to get the correct download by altering the URL..
http://global-download.acer.com/GDF...AB&Step3=A500&OS=a08&LC=fr&BC=Acer&SC=EMEA_13
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
it old kernel source 4.0.3 for A200 (dating 21.02.2012)
ready...
set...
GO
http://global-download.acer.com/GDFiles/Document/App.%20Guide/App.%20Guide_Acer_1.0_A_A.zip?acerid=634729317909661533&Step1=Tablet&Step2=ICONIA%20TAB&Step3=A500&OS=a08&LC=en&BC=Acer&SC=AAP_9
compiled the following from the supplied defconfigs for testing purposes, flash at your own risk:
picasso_defconfig-signed.zip
picasso_e_defconfig-signed.zip
vangogh_defconfig-signed.zip
waydownsouth said:
On your marks...
Get set...
GO
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
And after waiting 5h longer my local mirror at last had the file.
Github
I hate dealing with kernels w/o full git history.. since asking acer for their git tree probably won't achieve results:
I've integrated the code on top of a nvidia tegra sample git repository (to re-add git history) and uploaded the source to my github:
https://github.com/ezterry/AcerTabKernel
Tag: A500_ICS_4.0.3_OfficialDrop is identical to the code in the acer ZIP
(actually master also is at the time of this writing, but bits and pieces of my own hackery may be added to that)
Feel free to clone to your own projects (or use github as a download mirror)
Quick Test
I did a quick test, took the config.gz from ICS, and built the kernel, (then re-patched with my script for system r/w) just to make sure the kernel we had could be re-created, appears to have booted my A500 Public Recovery Image without incident.
Code:
[email protected]:/ # [email protected]:~$ adb shell
~ # uname -a
Linux localhost 2.6.39.4+ #1 SMP PREEMPT Sun May 20 02:06:41 EDT 2012 armv7l GNU/Linux
~ # cat /proc/version
Linux version 2.6.39.4+ ([email protected]) (gcc version 4.4.3 (GCC) ) #1 SMP PREEMPT Sun May 20 02:06:41 EDT 2012
also checked the picasso_defconfig with the config in the stock rom:
Code:
[email protected]:/usr-vm/android/aosp/acer-kernel/kernel$ diff .config arch/arm/configs/picasso_defconfig
4d3
< # Thu Mar 29 22:57:19 2012
1337d1335
< # CONFIG_TOUCHSCREEN_CYPRESS is not set
2826c2824
< CONFIG_ACER_SECURE_MOUNT=y
---
> # CONFIG_ACER_SECURE_MOUNT is not set
so only change is CONFIG_ACER_SECURE_MOUNT was added to the stock rom (meaning we don't need to configure it out (or rum the hack script I've been running) to allow system remount.
Building crash course
I'll keep this short since its 3:20AM and I know most reading this thread have built an android kernel before but here is the crash course: (remember this uses linux to build)
Have an android build tree or my Public Recovery tree on your computer
add the arm toolchain to your path
eg: export PATH=<path/to/android/tree/root>/prebuilt/linux-x86/toolchain/arm-eabi-4.4.3/bin:$PATH
change directory into where you extracted the kernel code (or cloned it into)
run:
export ARCH=arm;export CROSS_COMPILE=arm-eabi-;export KERNEL_DIR=`pwd`
run 'make picasso_defconfig' to get acer's default .config (or fetch your own template)
if you want to re-configure parts of the kernel run 'make menuconfig'
to build run 'make -j5' (where 5 ought to be the number of cores in your computer +1)
This generates the zImage that is then placed in the boot.img with mkbootimg
to get modules prepared for install run 'make modules_install INSTALL_MOD_PATH=./build'
This will set up modules as if installed on your linux box in a ./build sub directory these are then manually installed into the rom
----
Ok now with this update its well past my bedtime.. I'll poke more when I am awake
waydownsouth said:
ready...
set...
GO
http://global-download.acer.com/GDF... TAB&Step3=A500&OS=a08&LC=en&BC=Acer&SC=AAP_9
compiled the following from the supplied defconfigs for testing purposes, flash at your own risk:
picasso_defconfig-signed.zip
picasso_e_defconfig-signed.zip
vangogh_defconfig-signed.zip
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Looks like Acer figured you out. The file is no longer available at that address. I get a 404 error.
Sent from my A500 using XDA Premium HD app
BakaNeko59 said:
Looks like Acer figured you out. The file is no longer available at that address. I get a 404 error.
Sent from my A500 using XDA Premium HD app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Works just fine for me. Are you running an ad blocker?
amphi66 said:
Works just fine for me. Are you running an ad blocker?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not all of the Acer download mirrors got the file at the same time.. so its possible some are not synced yet.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2
waydownsouth said:
ready...
set...
GO
http://global-download.acer.com/GDF... TAB&Step3=A500&OS=a08&LC=en&BC=Acer&SC=AAP_9
compiled the following from the supplied defconfigs for testing purposes, flash at your own risk:
picasso_defconfig-signed.zip
picasso_e_defconfig-signed.zip
vangogh_defconfig-signed.zip
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Put it into a boot.img flashed it with the modules and running nice (no need to use the systemRW hack) , any OC posible for next release ? (a500)
Will do more testing ................
ezterry said:
Not all of the Acer download mirrors got the file at the same time.. so its possible some are not synced yet.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It already shows in here as well: http://support.acer.com/product/default.aspx?modelId=3851
Is it just me or when you use self compiled kernel cpufreq doesn't work well?
Skrilax_CZ said:
Is it just me or when you use self compiled kernel cpufreq doesn't work well?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not here , I only used the zImage and put it together with the ramdisk I use for my tweaked kernel and it is very smooth with almost no browser glitches , in fact I didn't have any today.
I got the highest score with this one 2740 quadrant .
I also didn't use the modules , I used the stock one from Acer , I did notice a little performance drop using the modules that came with the kernel waydownsouth build so I switch to the stock ones from the Acer 1.031.00 release.
Skrilax_CZ said:
Is it just me or when you use self compiled kernel cpufreq doesn't work well?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No problem here..
and even now a test build with overclock:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=26432810&postcount=4
(richardtrip's patches merged cleanly once i found them..)
Still not sure what to do about the initrd issue some people are having with my recovery.. (any insight into the logic in these bootloaders about how it loads the ramdisk into ram?)
Do you happen to have a mirror or another address for the Acer source to download the single file? I still get a 404 error on three different systems and two different browsers (including my tab itself) when I try http://global-download.acer.com/GDFiles/Document/App. Guide/App. Guide_Acer_1.0_A_A.zip.
Thanks
UPDATE: I discontinued work for this tablet model, due to the lack of NEON support for the Nvidia Tegra 2 CPU used in this model. Any existing work I uploaded will remain online, but I won't be uploading anything new. I'm also considering selling my tablet to anyone interested.
I have become successful with getting postmarketOS to run on this tablet for the past 2 months, running mainline Linux (5.8.0 as of this writing). This allows us to use this tablet model for a little longer, without getting stuck on older Linux kernel versions.
postmarketOS is an experimental, touch-optimized and pre-configured Alpine Linux. It can be installed on smartphones and other devices.
About postmarketOS, from their homepage:
We are sick of not receiving updates shortly after buying new phones. Sick of the walled gardens deeply integrated into Android and iOS. That's why we are developing a sustainable, privacy and security focused free software mobile OS that is modeled after traditional Linux distributions. With privilege separation in mind. Let's keep our devices useful and safe until they physically break!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wiki page for this tablet: https://wiki.postmarketos.org/wiki/Acer_Iconia_Tab_A500_(acer-picasso)
Most features should work, except for the camera and 3D acceleration. Wi-Fi and Bluetooth work only if the non-free firmware is chosen to be installed.
How to install:
Follow the installation guide at https://wiki.postmarketos.org/wiki/Installation_guide, where theses specifics have to be specified when requested (this device is now in upstream pmaports):
Vendor: acer
Device code-name: picasso
Install non-free Wi-Fi + Bluetooth firmware: y
Only the mainline kernel is available for installation now, as downstream kernels no longer successfully compile. The user interface may be freely selected, as long as it is not one that requires 3D acceleration. To use KDE Plasma 5, add these lines to /etc/security/pam_env.conf:
Code:
QT_IM_MODULE=qtvirtualkeyboard
QT_QUICK_BACKEND=software
LIBGL_ALWAYS_SOFTWARE=1
Next, run the following commands in succession, after each one finishes, assuming the working directory contains the pmbootstrap.py script:
Code:
> ./pmbootstrap.py build device-acer-picasso
> ./pmbootstrap.py build firmware-acer-picasso
> ./pmbootstrap.py build linux-postmarketos-grate
From here on out, the generated chroot can be either installed to the eMMC, or a microSD card that must be inserted at or before boot time (the latter method allows for dual-booting Android already installed to the eMMC, although it can be directly accessed from the Linux system). The boot partition always has to be flashed to the eMMC in fastboot mode, as it is not possible to boot directly off of a microSD card.
If installing to the eMMC, run
Code:
> ./pmbootstrap.py install
> ./pmbootstrap.py flasher flash_kernel --partition secboot
> ./pmbootstrap.py flasher flash_rootfs
(optional) > ./pmbootstrap.py flasher boot
If installing to a microSD card, run
Code:
> ./pmbootstrap.py install --sdcard [path to the device for installation]
> ./pmbootstrap.py flasher flash_kernel --partition secboot
Depending on what user interface was chosen earlier in the installation process, there may not be enough packages installed to get a fully-loaded GUI. Besides the built-in Wi-Fi, it is also possible to use a USB ethernet adapter, or connect to another computer with a micro-USB cable and get RNDIS access that enables using SSH to the tablet.
Using another distro in place of postmarketOS
Advanced: Using another distro in place of postmarketOS
It is possible, if using the microSD card method, to use a different distro instead of postmarketOS, for those who want more software OOTB. I use the Ubuntu MATE rootfs from https://ubuntu-mate.org/ports/raspberry-pi/ as my daily driver, but other distros may take more effort to get working. Glibc limitations no longer apply, as the kernel version is no longer stuck at 3.1.0 (unlike with my earlier attempts). Carefully follow the instructions listed below, or the resulting system will become unbootable:
Use losetup or GNOME Disks (Utility) to mount the image in read-write mode.
Run GParted with the loop image and the target microSD card as the arguments.
Copy only the larger rootfs partition to the microSD card. Resize as necessary to get it to fit on the target microSD card.
Make sure on the target microSD card the boot partition is named 'pmOS_boot' and the rootfs 'pmOS_root'. The initramfs is hard-coded to search for partitions with these names by default for microSD cards. The loop image is not needed after this point, and can be safely detached.
On the copied rootfs, edit /etc/fstab to reflect the partition layout. To get access to Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, copy the kernel modules and firmware from the pmOS rootfs on the host system to the microSD rootfs.
Let me know if something wasn't understood from my instructions, or more clarification is needed. The instructions here can be somewhat overwhelming for those who have less Linux experience, but at least we're not forced to stay on old distro versions anymore.
Premade Linux images
I finally have managed to create a premade image to make the installation process easier for other people, especially for those who don't want to go through the hassle of compiling software. Every image I make can be found at https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1pMqaS5GaM6N9TAKlNGQZWCG8UTiRn4pK?usp=sharing.
For all images:
Kernel version: 5.15.0-rc4
Includes all compiled kernel modules from postmarketOS builds, plus nonfree firmware enabled.
The postmarketOS splash screen will appear, although the underlying OS differs based the image used.
Images available:
Ubuntu MATE 20.04.1 (ubuntu-mate-20.04.1-desktop-armhf+acer-picasso.img.xz) (size: 1.3 GiB):
Based on 'ubuntu-mate-20.04.1-desktop-armhf+raspi.img.xz', available from https://ubuntu-mate.org/ports/raspberry-pi/
Underlying OS is Ubuntu 20.04.1, which is supported for 5 years until April 2025. However, Ubuntu MATE officially has support only until April 2023.
Requires at least an 8 GB or greater size microSD card (the image is 5.6 GiB decompressed).
The setup screen will open upon the first successful boot, where a username and password have to be set.
Most extra packages for the Raspberry Pi family of computers have been removed, including the kernels.
The battery icon in MATE cannot be enabled graphically, as the preferences window has been patched to permanently hide such an option (as the Raspberry Pis lack native battery support); instead run the command
Code:
gsettings set org.mate.power-manager icon-policy 'always'
to manually enable it.
The PPA at https://launchpad.net/~grate-driver/+archive/ubuntu/ppa is pre-configured to be accessed. Most packages from this repository, including the opentegra driver, come preinstalled. They currently are enough to get 2D acceleration working, but not for 3D acceleration.
Except for what has been mentioned above, any packages shipped may have to be updated once an internet connection is established.
Arch Linux ARM (ArchLinuxARM-armv7-latest+acer-picasso.img.xz) (size: 576.6 MiB):
Based on 'ArchLinuxARM-armv7-latest.tar.gz', available from https://archlinuxarm.org/about/downloads
Rolling release distro often with the latest versions of most packages. More recent software can be acquired at a small expense of instability.
Requires at least an 2 GB or greater size microSD card (the image is 1.9 GiB decompressed). Larger size is recommended for installing more packages.
To login into system:
Login as the default user alarm with the password alarm.
The default root password is root.
Initially command-line only; contains no desktop environment installed.
Use any image writing program with these images. If such a program does not support XZ compression, the image needs to be extracted instead, and that has to be used.
I hope the images will proves useful to some people. Let me know if any issue pops up during usage of this image!
hey Worldblender,
I have flashed the premade file you shared to an sdcard but I'm unsure as to how to boot into it?
tehno said:
hey Worldblender,
I have flashed the premade file you shared to an sdcard but I'm unsure as to how to boot into it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The instructions were written assuming that the user has already flashed the custom bootloader as described here: https://forum.xda-developers.com/iconia-a500/a500-2019-2020-t4039271. Sorry for not making this clear anywhere, but that custom bootloader, along with flashing the boot image found in the first partition named "pmOS_boot" to either boot or secboot using fastboot, should get you set up to boot the SD card image.
Hi Worldblender,
Nice to see you work on this legacy device.
I definitely don't want to use android or can use it anymore on this tablet.
Nice to see some linux flavor being ported to it.
I had a look a the dedicated page on postmarketos.
Can you confirm the only GUI availbale as for now is the one called "Weston" ?
Or is MATE also working (from the screenshot) ?
Weston seem very basic, MATE more friendly.
How about performance ?
I'm considering reusing it to display a grafana dashboard in firefox for instance, maybe more if performance isn't too bad.
Worldblender said:
The instructions were written assuming that the user has already flashed the custom bootloader as described here: https://forum.xda-developers.com/iconia-a500/a500-2019-2020-t4039271. Sorry for not making this clear anywhere, but that custom bootloader, along with flashing the boot image found in the first partition named "pmOS_boot" to either boot or secboot using fastboot, should get you set up to boot the SD card image.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you Worldblender for your work in writing up instructions and compiling the image too.
However, I'm still a bit lost as to what to do with your Ubuntu Mate image.
I've gotten the TWRP bootloader installed onto my Acer A500 tablet, but whether I use Rufus to expand your image onto an SD card, or just copy the compressed image onto the SD card, the [ Install ] does not see any images inside of the drive. Am I supposed to decompress your image in Windows and use the 0.img and 1.img in place of the nvflash's boot.img and recovery.img?
While I can see the two partitions in Ubuntu, I'm equally lost as to what to do with them, and how to get it onto the tablet.
coluwyvurne said:
Thank you Worldblender for your work in writing up instructions and compiling the image too.
However, I'm still a bit lost as to what to do with your Ubuntu Mate image.
I've gotten the TWRP bootloader installed onto my Acer A500 tablet, but whether I use Rufus to expand your image onto an SD card, or just copy the compressed image onto the SD card, the [ Install ] does not see any images inside of the drive. Am I supposed to decompress your image in Windows and use the 0.img and 1.img in place of the nvflash's boot.img and recovery.img?
While I can see the two partitions in Ubuntu, I'm equally lost as to what to do with them, and how to get it onto the tablet.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wait for me to give out an update to the image, as there likely has been a new kernel version released that I would like to have updated first.
TWRP will not be used at all for this installation process, as the image is too big to flash with fastboot. Just flash the image to a microSD card, as the boot image that will be flashed will automatically pick it up shortly after booting. The only thing that does have to be flashed is the boot.img, which can be found in the first partition, and you will be only using fastboot for this process, not anything else.
I released a new version of the premade Ubuntu MATE image just now, named 'ubuntu-mate-20.04.1-desktop-armhf+acer-picasso.img.xz'. The following changes have been made since the last image:
Kernel version upgraded to 5.10.1-rc1
Based on Ubuntu MATE 20.04.1
Everything that changed since the beta1 image
Other than these changes, there are no other differences that can be noticed right away.
Direct link: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1mr-7e29KJYeagJju0Yo1qUpT2YRb61AR/view?usp=sharing
Many thanks for your work. I've entered today this forum just curious about something new and found this!
Second life for this old machine!
For those with problems installing, I've flashed precompiled image using balenaEtcher into the sdcard.
Then, extracted .xz image, extracted .img, then extracted 0.img and copied boot file from there. After that, renamed the file to boot.img and flashed it with fastboot.
As I've the old modified skrillex bootloader, the command is fastboot flash secboot boot.img.
It boots and works well for now!
Worldblender said:
[*] Add the PPA at https://launchpad.net/~grate-driver/+archive/ubuntu/ppa to get access to updated video drivers. They currently are enough to get 2D acceleration working, but not for 3D acceleration.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
@Worldblender
Hi, i apt updated after adding grate-driver ppa, it seems it broken xorg because X don't start anymore
Can you detail how to proceed ?
pheex79 said:
@Worldblender
Hi, i apt updated after adding grate-driver ppa, it seems it broken xorg because X don't start anymore
Can you detail how to proceed ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you still switch to a virtual terminal with Ctrl-Alt-[F1-F7]? You will need a USB keyboard to do this. Then try, after logging in with your username and password:
Code:
systemctl stop lightdm
startx
If startx does not bring something up, could you try running journalctl, and show me any log entries relating to lightdm?
If that still fails, you can try (if ppa-purge is not installed, install that first)
Code:
ppa-purge ppa:grate-driver/ppa
@Worldblender
one binary missing but i think this error is present before adding ppa
"/sbin/prime-switch: 22: /usr/bin/gpu-manager: not found"
Xorg log:
Require OpenGL version 2.1 or later
modeset(0): Failed to initialize glamor at ScreenInit() time
pheex79 said:
@Worldblender
one binary missing but i think this error is present before adding ppa
"/sbin/prime-switch: 22: /usr/bin/gpu-manager: not found"
Xorg log:
Require OpenGL version 2.1 or later
modeset(0): Failed to initialize glamor at ScreenInit() time
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I never received such an error, but the specific package you must install is xserver-xorg-video-opentegra. No other Nvidia driver is going to work.
Worldblender said:
I never received such an error, but the specific package you must install is xserver-xorg-video-opentegra. No other Nvidia driver is going to work.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It works ! Thank you
xserver-xorg-video-opentegra was not installed
when adding ppa grate i only did an "apt upgrade" cmd i thought all grate items were installed (a few are installed when upgrading apt)
Nice work thank you so much.
Is there any chance for Manjaro arm? Or is it limited to debian based distros?
Note that after following the instructions for installing the Ubuntu MATE image from @Worldblender from a starting point of just the stock image, I have Ubuntu MATE installed on the external SD card and no OS installed on the eMMC because it was wiped during the bootloader replacement. Reading back through the posts suggests this is by design.
@Worldblender, so I'm very new at rooting devices, and have a little experience with Ubuntu but feel pretty lost. Any chance you could hook me up with a step by step install of the Nov2 image (unless you've put together another new version) from a stock(not rooted or anything) A500? I apologize if I overlooked something.
Edit: I got it working after doing this thing called reading, I definitely overlooked some things after reading closer. For someone else that might find themselves in my shoes here's what I did.
I followed this link: https://forum.xda-developers.com/iconia-a500/a500-2019-2020-t4039271 to get the bootloader installed
and then followed @whylly 's instructions:
whylly said:
For those with problems installing, I've flashed precompiled image using balenaEtcher into the sdcard.
Then, extracted .xz image, extracted .img, then extracted 0.img and copied boot file from there. After that, renamed the file to boot.img and flashed it with fastboot.
As I've the old modified skrillex bootloader, the command is fastboot flash secboot boot.img.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi there ! I have an iconia a500, rooted with lightspeed 4.8. Can I install this and then make it switch to Khali linux ? My ultimate objective is to get Khali on this tablet. I've worked my way down from ver 2.5x linuxdeploy all the way down to 2.0 lol So I'm thinking maybe if I apply your OS it will update the Kernal from 4.0.3 to 5 yes ? (That's a big jump for linuxdeploy) then I can apt-get khalifull ? Am I off base would this work ? Unless you have an image already of course in which case pleaaaaaaaaaaaaaase I'll pay for the bloody thing if I have to I've been pulling my hair out for days. Tried frikkin everything.
Unless anybody has a better method of course in which case feel free to suggest. If I have to make the image from scratch so be it
EDIT: UGhhhhhh after days of troubleshooting, I got to linuxdeploy2.0-1.16 installed kali (the native one on the app not from the repository as that gives kernel too old once you get the install working). Managed to term in and tried to start lxde, failed because lxde doesn't exist (sigh) tried to apt-get... kernel too old. game over sigh
Unless someone has a workaround I don't think it's possible to get Khali on a500.
Sound work?