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Unfortunately an added challenge of the older SOC (A10, A13 & A20) generation is a limitation of the video engine which can only access the first 256MB of DRAM. I have tested this and found that the system becomes unresponsive as soon as we attempt media playback which confirms this is true. I dont yet know how it works under the hood but probably a similiar mechanism to how the kernel parses the dts in order to know what modules to load during the boot process. Allocation and ranges are set within the memory reserved node. reserved-memory { #address-cells = <1>; #size-cells = <1>; ranges; /* Address must be kept in the lower 256 MiBs of DRAM for VE. */ default-pool { compatible = "shared-dma-pool"; size = <0x6000000>; alloc-ranges = <0x40000000 0x10000000>; reusable; linux,cma-default; }; }; I have also tried increasing via overlay but it seems anything larger than 96MB gets disassociated from the dma pool. The first address that gets allocated is 0x4a000000. Trying via the extraargs method to specify a lower start address fails. Looks like the display buffers take a chunk out of CMA as well. Monitor disconnected: ryan@pcduino2-2:~$ cat /proc/meminfo | grep Cma CmaTotal: 98304 kB CmaFree: 98008 kB Monitor connected: CmaTotal: 98304 kB CmaFree: 89780 kB If I attempt to fast forward, playback falls back to software decoding and I get these errors in the log: [ 596.444060] cma: __cma_alloc: reserved: alloc failed, req-size: 1024 pages, ret: -16 [ 596.444103] cma: number of available pages: [ 596.444110] cma: range 0: 3@109+56@128+64@192+23@2281+8@4344+162@5726+162@7262+162@8798+162@10334+162@11870+162@ 13406+8@15608+8@17656+8@19704+162@21086+162@22622+418@24158 [ 596.444254] cma: [ 596.454008] cma: __cma_alloc: reserved: alloc failed, req-size: 350 pages, ret: -16 [ 596.454045] cma: number of available pages: l: [ 596.454052] cma: range 0: 3@109+56@128+64@192+23@2281+8@4344+162@5726+162@7262+162@8798+162@10334+162@11870+162@ 13406+8@15608+8@17656+8@19704+162@21086+162@22622+418@24158

homeassistant ?

Maybe my firmware build can replace Petitboot?

Exactly Since I don't know the build, I can't make any concrete statements about it. It is also not possible under any circumstances, as the access procedures are far too complex to be meaningfully encoded in the MASK-ROM. As firmware devices, only SPI flash, MMC (eMMC, SD card), and USB with a proprietary protocol are available. This is correct. I just quickly built this version out of curiosity. I was just about to provide the binary artifacts when I quickly took a look at the schematic of your device. If I am not misinterpreting the schematic, your device only allows the fixed SPI-MMC-USB sequence and the forced immediate proprietary USB device. This means that you cannot execute the firmware completely from the microSD card, for example, if there is still a valid firmware signature in a device (SPI, eMMC) that is higher up in the priority list. It is therefore essential that you are familiar with the USB recovery procedure (MASK-ROM-MODE), in case something goes wrong during the firmware experiments with the higher prioritized devices (SPI, eMMC).

Yes I have the heat sink and a thermal pad: Time CPU load %cpu %sys %usr %nice %io %irq Tcpu C.St. 19:42:28 816 MHz 0.00 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 51,6 °C 0/4 19:42:33 816 MHz 0.00 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 50,5 °C 0/4 19:42:38 816 MHz 0.00 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 52,8 °C 0/4 Armbian 23.02.2 Bullseye with Linux 5.15.93-sunxi Ambient temp is quite hot these days it's like maybe 32°C maybe more

https://wiki.kobol.io/helios64/files/psu/YHY_12V_PSU_Specification.pdf

I was able to get the conflicting versions fixed: now:

Getting into kernel development can be daunting. There are layers upon layers of knowledge to master, but no clear roadmap, especially when it comes to debugging drivers or navigating userspace-kernel issues. View the full article

Does anyone know of a compatible image for the MXQ PRO 4K 5G TV Box with Allwinner H3, model Q44_V4.1_20210120? I've searched a lot and only found images compatible up to version V4.0. Since mine is V4.1, I haven't been able to get a successful boot from the SD card. If anyone has any tips, a working image, or experience with this specific model, I’d really appreciate the help!

Providing logs with armbianmonitor -u helps with troubleshooting and significantly raises chances that issue gets addressed.

Hi everyone, I’m experiencing a recurring and very specific issue with my TX2 TV Box, with the following specifications: SoC: Rockchip RK3229 RAM: 2GB DDR3 Storage: NAND flash (not eMMC!) Board: Generic TX2 board 🛑 Main Issue The system shuts down abruptly at exactly 29 minutes and 47 seconds of uptime (i monitoring via htop). It always shuts down at this time. It’s not a clean shutdown or reboot — it behaves as if the power was cut off. No meaningful logs appear in journalctl or dmesg, and the shutdown is instantaneous and silent. 🧪 What I’ve Tried: Disabled idle and sleep functions: Masked systemd-logind Set IdleActionSec=0 and HandlePowerKey=ignore Tried different kernel versions: Legacy: Armbian 22.02.0-trunk Focal legacy 4.4.194 Mainline: Armbian Jammy kernel 5.15 Attempted to disable the watchdog: Boot parameter nowatchdog Kernel parameter rcu_cpu_stall_timeout=0 Created a systemd service to periodically write to /dev/watchdog Tried to remove dw_wdt module (modprobe -r), but it either auto-loads or refuses to unload (watchdog did not stop) Tried building a custom kernel with CONFIG_DW_WATCHDOG=n, but the process failed due to gcc-arm-linux-gnueabi toolchain issues. Used config-rk322x to properly set RAM, NAND, and Wi-Fi chip before first boot + update/upgrade. Tried adding sudo systemctl mask sleep.target suspend.target hibernate.target hybrid-sleep.target ⚠️ Additional Critical Note: The system does not work at all when flashed to eMMC/flash — only boots properly from NAND or SD card. Any image written to internal flash does not boot. Therefore, booting from NAND is required, which may be related to the watchdog being active by default on NAND-based boards. ❓ My Question: Has anyone with a TX2 or RK3229-based NAND board experienced this same issue? Is this a known watchdog timer issue on NAND models? Is there any stable image or device tree overlay known to work for this configuration? Any tips to fully disable the watchdog either via software or kernel patch? Thanks in advance for any help or suggestions!

The defconfigs are also just one piece of the problem here. There are patches getting applied to Sunxi for the Rockchip platform, why? Patches for the Pinephone, why? Last I checked that's not supported in either standard or community. Allwinner on Armbian has also been plagued with Bluetooth issues for years. I would venture to guess this is related to unchecked and unverified patching along with a defconfig that looks like a 5 year old went through and just ticked everything on. You tell me. Who wants to deal with this? Who wants to help fix it? and whom would want to do any work in this muddled up environment.

Device: Opi5-Plus Armbian Image: Armbian_25.5.1_Orangepi5-plus_noble_vendor_6.1.115_kde-neon_desktop.img.xz Upgraded successfully and reboot up with no issue on Wayland session. Operating System: Ubuntu 24.04 KDE Plasma Version: 6.4.3 KDE Frameworks Version: 6.17.0 Qt Version: 6.9.1 Kernel Version: 6.1.115-vendor-rk35xx (64-bit) Graphics Platform: Wayland Processors: 4 × ARM Cortex-A55, 4 × ARM Cortex-A76 Memory: 15.6 GiB of usable RAM Graphics Processor 1: Mali-G610 Graphics Processor 2: Mali-G610 Graphics Processor 3: llvmpipe Product Name: Orange Pi 5 Plus

If it is NAND then you are out of luck as mainline Linux has no support for NAND. If it is eMMC then your dtb would likely need to be modified to support your hardware if it isn't showing up. My guess is that you have NAND.

Do you see all the needed files in the initramfs? Use lsinitramfs -l /boot/initrd... What guide did you use?

Hello, I have a T95 Super with H2+/H3 processor. I've been successful running Armbian in the past on it and even writing to eMMC but am looking for the most updated build I can to burn to the eMMC. I have H3droid running on it after a VERY long install process and many board reburns to fix it. I noticed H3droid has an "Armbian" option in it's rescue menu but there don't seem to be any instructions on how to install with the menu/use it. What is the best new build for this setup? Thank you!

I was extremely excited to read this. My issue currently is that I'm dealing with S805 and H3 builds which had builds dominated by the megalomaniacal user whose name starts with "B" (really not a fan of their behavior but extremely impressive work). For some reason, these builds never come with the install.sh scripts that Amlogic builds normally come with, and I can only write S805 builds to eMMC using builds with the 5.7/3.10 kernel to eMMC because they come with an install.sh. I really want to "finish" the builds by writing them. I'm hoping to use dd to write to the eMMC but it doesn't come up with lsblk at all (except with the 3.10 kernel). Does anyone have any suggestions about how to get around this?

I agree, it would be a small adjustment that is hopefully easy. I don't know how to do it myself but the inbuilt eMMC is definitely not big enough for the kind of files I want to serve from the board. And I apologize, I didn't realize that random people can upload builds like that; I meant that it appeared to be a listed frequently updated board.

Are you twwn on github, @tast ky? As mentioned in the bug tracker, you need to try a different image. Please keep the discussion of run-time issues in the forum. This is where run-time bug triage happens. Until the time one can essentially make a PR with a clear code fix, the forum is where we discuss run-time problems.

Not a problem. Just please do not give up I have 5 units of those waiting for a newer kernel LoL

I'd say try flashing again with a different image, possibly one that worked in one of your other boards. Verify the download and the flash process with checksums.

Yes, your list of questions is a bit long (understatement) and as such comes off demanding. I would say armbian or an SBC is not for you if you require a great amount of handholding and that's the vibe I am getting from your laundry list of questions for everything under the sun. I guess you want to be thorough before taking the plunge, but you need to take armbian with a different attitude, I guess; be happy when it runs, get down to help fixing it when it doesn't. We are NOT selling you a product.

Chromium is not the best for playing videos. Try mplayer or mpv or something alike. I doubt you'll get great performance beyond 720p though. Might not even get it in some cases with 720p? If I wanna use an SBC as a media player, I either use LibreELEC or CoreELEC and don't use Alllwinner, but Amlogic. Good luck.

If you can still return the item for a refund, go ahead and do so. If you can still leave a bad review for this bad seller, go ahead and do so. This person has quite the gall to take your money but send you to us for the costly support. Buy cheap, buy twice.

Hello and welcome to the Armbian community. I have a Banana Pi M2+ that I use as a small 24/7 home server.