<norton>
There is a "sata" target. This could mean that U-boot can only boot Linux from SATA, but cannot itself be placed on SATA.
<norton>
I have Linux installed on SATA SSD. What I want is to boot without SD Card. I don't have NOR SPI flash, I don't have eMMC flash. I have 4 GB NAND flash.So I need to either install U-boot directly on SATA, or install it in NAND.
<DC-IRC>
[Discord] <viraniac> If you run armbian-install, theoretically you should see a section for "Install/Update the bootloader on MTD Flash". I am saying theoretically as I can see it in the code but I don't have a working device with nand to test the same.
<DC-IRC>
[Discord] <viraniac> yes, it should work with those images
<norton>
Keep in mind that this 4 GB NAND module is optional. Does Armbian detect model's variant and apply needed .dtb based on that?
<norton>
Cause .dtb could be for version without NAND, and I wouldn't see any NAND memory available
<DC-IRC>
[Discord] <viraniac> Please just give it a try. Whether it will work or not you will come to know. If it doesn't detect your nand, run armbian-config > system > hardware (not sure if that is the correct option) to try enabling any nand related overlays
<DC-IRC>
[Discord] <viraniac> we don't have the device, hence its up to you to find out. only thing we know is someone added it and it builds. Thats what community support means. Only getting a successful build is whats known. Whether it works or not thats only person having the device can tell
<norton>
I'm flashing it right now
<norton>
armbian-install doesn't have nand option
<norton>
I enabled nand in System -> Hardware, still no such option and no /dev/nand in lsblk
<DC-IRC>
[Discord] <Werner> NAND was supported with 3.4.y only. Since those stone-age kernel has been abandoned years ago NAND can no longer be written. At least not without modifications which there is no interested in doing research for.
<DC-IRC>
[Discord] <tenkawa42> Yeah nand is going to be tough... there are nand "modules".. but they are not typicly on board storage like flash for running the os
<DC-IRC>
[Discord] <tenkawa42> That did not really gain much ground in the sbc space
<norton>
I don't want to run OS from it
<norton>
Only U-boot
<norton>
So how do I get 3.4 kernel on Armbian system? It's stated in the wiki, I sent a screenshot. > NAND was supported with 3.4 only
<DC-IRC>
[Discord] <Werner> you can dig archive for very old images
<DC-IRC>
[Discord] <tenkawa42> What does the "kernel" have to do with u-boot?
<DC-IRC>
[Discord] <tenkawa42> the OS isn't u-boot
<norton>
Can you give me link to the archive?
<norton>
tenkawa42, we need to have access to /dev/nand to write U-boot there
<DC-IRC>
[Discord] <tenkawa42> no you don't... you use the gpio and tftp
<DC-IRC>
[Discord] <Werner> archive.armbian.com
<DC-IRC>
[Discord] <tenkawa42> (unless of course you don't have the cables)
<norton>
Werner, the oldest there is 5.10 kernel
<norton>
tenkawa42, I don't
<norton>
tenkawa42, I already have a system with /dev/nand support. but it's not from Armbian, so no `armbian-install` script.
<norton>
and it's 3.4 kernel, yea
<DC-IRC>
[Discord] <tenkawa42> bummer.. yeah that will be a showstopper (same one I have at the moment for debugging a uart problem on a new connector until my local shop gets the new connector type in)
<DC-IRC>
[Discord] <viraniac> what os is it based on? is it based on debian?
<DC-IRC>
[Discord] <viraniac> is that swd connector on pi5 you are talking about?
<DC-IRC>
[Discord] <tenkawa42> yeah the debug probe
<DC-IRC>
[Discord] <tenkawa42> my local shop is out and I really hate gpio ports
<norton>
yes it is. It's old image from Olimex, they don't support it but it works.
<DC-IRC>
[Discord] <viraniac> lol. try enabling uart1, it might get the uart output back on gpio
<DC-IRC>
[Discord] <tenkawa42> it will but I have very twitchy hands
<DC-IRC>
[Discord] <tenkawa42> and this will be nice for other machines if I can get one
<DC-IRC>
[Discord] <tenkawa42> I have 3 RPI5's I'm going to need to debug
<DC-IRC>
[Discord] <tenkawa42> lol
<DC-IRC>
[Discord] <viraniac> norton: in that case theretically you can download u-boot and armbian-bsp-cli package on armbian system, install or extract them on vendor os and use armbian install to install on nand
<DC-IRC>
[Discord] <viraniac> all you hae to do is use `apt-get download <packagename>` command to download those deb files. You can get the exact package name by grepping output of `dpkg -l`
<norton>
virniac, I wonder if that's really what the wiki suggests. and won't there be problems due to different versions? i take new packages and put them on a very old system, you think that will work?
<DC-IRC>
[Discord] <viraniac> thats not what wiki suggests, but you are not exactly the scenario covered by wiki. In general armbian supports what comes on boards. Addons are generally not supported
<DC-IRC>
[Discord] <viraniac> I didn't wrote that thing, I haven't read that thing so I can tell what that mean 😉
<DC-IRC>
[Discord] <viraniac> can tell -> can't tell
<norton>
but you say it's not exactly my scenario, then which one is it?
<norton>
and we probably should ask the person who wrote it in the Wiki
<DC-IRC>
[Discord] <viraniac> I don't understand why you are afraid of experimenting stuff and ask so many questions
<DC-IRC>
[Discord] <Werner> armbian-install can - in theory - write OS to NAND IF there is a 3.4.y kernel running. However since - as mentioned - this kernel is no longer build-able in the framework it stays theory.
<norton>
i'm experimenting right now
<DC-IRC>
[Discord] <viraniac> Try to have some adventure
<norton>
and asking stuff at the same time
<norton>
got these packages: armbian-bsp-cli-micro-current_23.11.1_armhf.deb linux-u-boot-micro-current_23.11.1_armhf.deb u-boot-sunxi_2022.01+dfsg-2ubuntu2.5_armhf.deb u-boot-tools_2022.01+dfsg-2ubuntu2.5_armhf.deb
<DC-IRC>
[Discord] <viraniac> you need atleast armbian-bsp-cli-micro-current_23.11.1_armhf.deb linux-u-boot-micro-current_23.11.1_armhf.deb install u-boot-tools from your vendor os debian version
<norton>
Oh that's good, decided to download these too to be sure.
<norton>
installed them
<norton>
with `dpkg -i`. now `apt-get install -f` says:
<norton>
sh: 1: /usr/lib/armbian/armbian-apt-updates: not found
<norton>
E: Problem executing scripts DPkg::Post-Invoke '/usr/lib/armbian/armbian-apt-updates'
<DC-IRC>
[Discord] <viraniac> I am assuming this OS installation is done only for installing u-boot on nand. If so, it doesn't matter what apt says as long as you are able to run armbian-install and use it to install u-boot on the nand. The OS you are going to replace anyways, right?
<DC-IRC>
[Discord] <viraniac> So just see if you are able to execute armbian-install
<DC-IRC>
[Discord] <viraniac> Also you didn't had to install those packages, you could have just extracted them with `dpkg-deb -x <deb_file> /`
<DC-IRC>
[Discord] <viraniac> Anycase, it doesn't matter if its a single purpose throw away installation