[BPI-R3 Mini] Boot from NAND fails

1715173329 · April 10, 2024, 5:11pm

ImmortalWrt uses the exactly same GPT partition layout as OpenWrt. FYI openwrt/target/linux/mediatek/image/filogic.mk at v23.05.3 · openwrt/openwrt · GitHub

You can run mmc part to print the partition table, then write the firmware to correspond part. See the example provided by @frank-w (thank you).

emmc-bl31-uboot.fip -> fip
initramfs-recovery.itb -> recovery
squashfs-sysupgrade.itb -> production

I can see bl2 failed to load fip. How did you flash the fip?

frank-w · April 10, 2024, 5:18pm

Then fip should be flashed at block 0x3400,right? I though openwrt uses ubi dor fip,but maybe only for nand/nor

kanaka · April 10, 2024, 5:21pm

now I’m trying to record eMMC by analogy

1715173329 · April 10, 2024, 5:22pm

block 0x3400

That’s correct. FYI openwrt/package/boot/uboot-mediatek/patches/442-add-bpi-r3-mini.patch at efa71c532e4778433263626bfff1a40e48f6bdb4 · openwrt/openwrt · GitHub

kanaka · April 10, 2024, 5:40pm

I just downloaded it and recorded it sequentially BL2 and FIP

frank-w · April 10, 2024, 6:07pm

You miss gpt layout when partition is not found

Newer atf (after i created the emmc write section) use search for fip partition instead of fixed offset to get start of fip

Maybe it is enough if you flash the emmc gpt image (3rd in image above) to offset 0x0 of emmc

kanaka · April 10, 2024, 7:00pm

Thanks to you, I have downloaded fip <3 now the next stage my kernel is not loading (I wrote ImmortalWRT)

kanaka · April 10, 2024, 7:27pm

I think I figured it out… I forgot about the instructions

kanaka · April 11, 2024, 6:46am

Yesterday I managed to download ImmortalWRT (fork of OpenWRT) 1-3) I downloaded Gpt, bl2, fip from a flash drive 4) And downloaded inittamfs-recovery via tftp 5) Next, I updated sysupgrade via Luci

It remains to update additional packages today. For some reason, they did not want to update yesterday (“opkg update” does not work, error 6 writes)

tomato · June 13, 2024, 11:08am

You can use the Openwrt SNAPSHOT firmware selector version also. It’s working with just a small fix. It took me a few hours to understand why default images not working and self compiled without any problems. You just have to add the missing airoha-en8811h-firmware packages and “REQUEST BUILD” as shown in the picture.

If not added you will get the PHY failure:

mtk_soc_eth 15100000.ethernet eth0: validation of 2500base-x with support 00000000,00000000,000062e8 and advertisement 00000000,00000000,000062c0 failed: -EINVAL
...
Unable to handle kernel access to user memory outside uaccess routines at virtual address

dangowrt · June 14, 2024, 1:48am

It’s strange that the airoha-en8811h-firmware package is missing because kmod-phy-airoha-en8811h is selected, and that depends on airoha-en8811h-firmware. The problem is probably that in this way it doesn’t end up in the initramfs (=recovery) but only in the production (=squashfs+overlay) image… However, that will not change even if you include airoha-en8811h-firmware in the Firmware Selector…

Euklid · June 28, 2024, 12:59pm

I ran into the same issue today. but still, I can boot from emmc. will read your thread carefully.

Andrei · October 2, 2024, 6:05pm

Hello everyone, I need help, there is a brick. through mtk_uartboot, getting into uboot, I choose to update the firmware, I choose tftp.the address on the computer in the network card of the tftp server is 192.168.1.2. But, all attempts to download from the server end with an error. are there any options to solve the problem?

frank-w · October 2, 2024, 7:32pm

Imho it is easier using usb for loading files to flash

Andrei · October 2, 2024, 7:38pm

I am very far from this, somehow I figured out what I provided. If you can tell me how to do this, tell me, I would appreciate it.

frank-w · October 2, 2024, 8:03pm

In uboot you can use “usb start” and then access it via e.g. “ls usb 0:1” and using “load usb 0:1 $loadaddr file” to load files from it to some memory address (from which it could be written to spi or emmc).

Have not done with openwrt,so cannot tell the complete commands,but stored this link in my wiki

dangowrt · October 9, 2024, 2:12pm

Afaik that’s the only option with the stock version of the bootloader because it lacks the Airoha PHY driver (and firmware).

(Yes, screenshot shows stock loader, not OpenWrt)

starsuni · January 3, 2025, 5:35pm

Hi @kanaka, May I know where can I have the ram_bl2.bin and the ram_fip.bin files? Since I am suffering the same problem. Thanks starsunjn

frank-w · January 3, 2025, 5:46pm

See here:

https://wiki.fw-web.de/doku.php?id=en:bpi-r3mini:start#fix_bricked_boot

You can chainload another uboot or loading openwrt fit (linux kernel,itb) from it

starsuni · January 4, 2025, 6:33am

Thanks @frank-w, I would like to try below from the post since my mac prohibit to execute the mtk_uartboot executable

tftpboot openwrt-mediatek-filogic-bananapi_bpi-r3-mini-snand-factory.bin
mtd erase spi-nand0
mtd write spi-nand0 $loadaddr $filesize

I tried the following:

Config my macbook using 192.168.1.254 on lan
config tftp on mac
switch the jumper to emmc, and make the bpi-r3 mini boot from emmc
boot the u-boot (select exit in the boot menu)
Connect the lan cable to lan port in r3-mini

But the problem is the lan is not connected when tired to load “tftpboot openwrt-mediatek-filogic-bananapi_bpi-r3-mini-snand-factory.bin”, is it the lan driver not yet loaded from the router? Thanks