iPAQ H3600 Linux Update Instructions -
v0.15
WARNINGS:
If this installation fails then your iPAQ could become
unusable.
This version is less likely than the previous installation processes to
result in an installation failure, as many safety features and bug fixes
have been added. We discovered a serious problem last week, which has been
resolved. All effected units have been updated, except for the one unit
stuck in customs in New Jersy, U.S.A.. If you have not upgraded your boot
loader to version 2.9.5, please do so immediatly.
If you install Linux at this time then you may not return to
WinCE.
Work is underway to enable you to save your WinCE image before
installing an operating system, but at this time implementation is not
complete. WinCE has been successfully restored by nine (9) people on
eleven (11) different iPAQs. The current status of the save / restoration
of WinCE is available at http://www.handhelds.org/projects/wincerestoration.html.
Errata
Requirements:
Installation:
- Plug your iPAQ into the serial port of your Windows machine using a
serial cable.
- Run your terminal emulator on whatever machine can talk to your serial
port with the settings of: 115200 8N1 (115200 baud, 8 bits, No Parity, 1
stop bit) and Flow control: 'None'.
- While booting the iPAQ, in your terminal emulator, hit the space
key on your keyboard on your machine: you should see a
'boot>' prompt. You can type 'help' at the
bootloader at the 'boot>' prompt to get a list of
commands.
- This step is dangerous: make sure you perform it exactly
correctly. At the 'boot>' prompt, type 'load
bootldr', then start an xmodem download of the file bootldr-0000-2.9.5.
A bootldr
tarball corresponding exactly to these boot loader bits is
available.
- Your iPAQ will say "verifying ... done.". The loader
program has a simple sanity check in it to try to ensure that only a
bootloader can get installed into flash at the iPAQ's bootloader's
address.
- At the 'boot>' prompt, type 'load
kernel', then start an xmodem download of the file zImage-2.4.0-test6-rmk5-np2-hh3.
When finished with the download, you will see "Erasing, Writing, Verifying
flash" messages. A
kernel tarball corresponding exactly to these kernel bits is
available.
- At the 'boot>' prompt, type 'load flash
0x100000', then start an xmodem download of the file init-2-40.cramfs.
This takes approximately 2 minutes. When finished with the download, you
will see "Erasing, Writing, Verifying flash" messages.
- At the 'boot>' prompt, type 'load flash
0x200000', then start an xmodem download of the file root-2-40.cramfs.
This takes approximately 5 minutes. When finished with the downlaod, you
will see "Erasing, Writing, Verifying flash" messages.
- At the 'boot>' prompt, type 'load flash
0x500000', then start an xmodem download of the file usr-2-40.cramfs.
This takes approximately 10 minutes. When finished with the downlaod, you
will see "Erasing, Writing, Verifying flash" messages.
- At the 'boot>' prompt, type 'set linuxargs
"noinitrd root=/dev/flash4 init=/linuxrc console=0"'.
- At the 'boot>' prompt, type 'set copy_ramdisk
0x0'
- At the 'boot>' prompt, type 'params
save'.
- At the 'boot>' prompt, type 'boot'.
- At the (none) login: prompt, type 'root'
- At the prompt, type 'mkfs -t ext2 /dev/flash6'
- At the prompt, type 'mount /usr/local'. This will allow you to
use /dev/flash6 as /usr/local for persistent storage. Please note that you
may only make one hundred thousand (100,000) writes to a particular sector
of flash.
Congratulations! You should be up and running.
Note: if you need to get back into the boot loader after you have Linux
running, restart the iPAQ and quickly hit the space bar a few times during the
boot process. You can restart the iPAQ with the Linux command shutdown -r
now.
Please post any questions to linux@handhelds.org. Thank you.
Modified September 13,, 2000 by france@crl.dec.com.
Please send comments on this document to George
France (france@crl.dec.com).