OLPC Firmware q5a04

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OLPC Firmware Release q5a04

Works on XO-3 only.

• Can boot with USB keyboard attached
• WLAN works with WEP and WPA authentication

Download	q5a04.rom
Build date time	2012-01-07 23:32:16
Source revision	2804
EC version	5.0.2.01
CForth version	313d7516
Wireless firmware version	Libertas thinfirm 9.0.7.p2

Changes since q5a03

Open Firmware

• svn 2803 - Long EDI timeout
• svn 2800 - Flattened device tree support - off by default but can be turned on with use-fdt
• svn 2798 - OFW can now read, but not write, EXT4 filesystems.
• svn 2795 - fixed a delayed-action filesystem bug, see trac #11349
• svn 2792 - trac #11563 - fixed longstanding problem with Unix timestamp conversion routines - leap year adjustment was badly broken.
• svn 2790 - trac #11547 - Fixed problem with Linux not booting when a USB keyboard is attached.
• svn 2798 - exc7200 touchscreen driver - made the X and Y axis inversion controllable by a "TI" mfg-data tag, by default not inverted, to handle the fact that the real XO touchscreen is not inverted, but a few of the development touchscreens are inverted.
• svn 2784, 2783, 2782, 2780 - various WiFi fixes so that WEP and WPA authentication now work.

CForth

• 377f3a5 2012-01-03 OLPC XO-3 - Interact with CForth if a character is typed on the serial port within 200 ms of startup.
• effd887 2012-01-02 OLPC XO-1.75 and XO-3.0 - Added watchdog timer support.
• ab7cf93 2012-01-02 OLPC XO-1.75 and XO-3.0 - Added "bye" and "power-off" commands.
• 332b6bd 2012-01-02 fix, report watchdog restarts
• f550eeb 2011-12-21 when driving low, force clock to 0 before setting gpio to output
• 14ebb88 2011-12-16 don't say we've fetched the host command until we've done so
• f3d7a55 2011-12-15 variable rename, for clarity
• de194ec 2011-12-15 prevent spurious timeout indications
• 6959040 2011-12-15 ignore data that doesn't start with a start bit
• 44688f2 2011-12-15 really prevent downstream commands while bit-banging
• a07ed46 2011-12-14 Revert "enhance validity checks on received ps/2 data"
• 4d4be93 2012-01-02 Omnibus change of l@ and l! to io@ and io@.
• a7ef580 2011-12-14 fix problems with booting when SoC is 53C or higher

EC

• Ask Richard

WLAN

• none

Which Firmware Do You Have?

The best method for finding out what firmware version you have on a laptop depends on whether the laptop is secured or not, and what operating state it is in.

Unsecured Laptop

Obtain the Ok prompt, the firmware version is displayed in the startup banner, thus:

 OLPC ..., ... memory installed, ..., S/N SHF7250024D
 OpenFirmware  q5a04 ...   EC Firmware Ver:...
               ^^^^^

You can also obtain the built date:

 ok .built

This is the date and time that this image of the firmware was built by the release engineer.

Secured Laptop

Power up the laptop with the ✓ (check mark) game button held down. You will be asked to Release the game keys to continue. Release the ✓ (check mark) game button and watch carefully. For a short time the startup banner will be displayed, like this:

 OLPC ..., ... memory installed, ..., S/N SHF7250024D
 OpenFirmware  q5a04 ...   EC Firmware Ver:...
               ^^^^^

Alternatively, if the laptop is already booted, go to the Sugar home view, click on the icon at the centre of the screen and select "My Settings" then "About my Computer." The firmware version is displayed there.

Alternatively, in the Terminal activity or a text console, type:

 cat /proc/device-tree/openprom/model

or

 cat /ofw/openprom/model

With certain older firmware versions, if the operating system will not start, and the laptop is secured, you will not be able to obtain the firmware version using the above methods, so our recommendation is to go ahead and upgrade anyway. The procedure is safe and will not do anything if you already have up-to-date firmware.

Installation

When installing new firmware, you must have a well-charged battery and the AC adapter plugged in. The firmware update code will not proceed otherwise. Possible error messages are:

error message	how to fix
AC not present	plug in the power cord, check the battery LED is on, then try again.
No external power	plug in the power cord, check the battery LED is on, then try again,
No battery	plug in the battery, check the latches, then try again, or try another battery,
Battery low	allow more time for the battery to charge, then try again, or try another battery.

Unsecured Laptop

This section is for unsecured laptops. Most XO-1.5 and XO-1.75 laptops are unsecured. Most developer XO laptops are unsecured. To unsecure your laptop, follow the instructions at Activation and Developer Keys.

You may install using either:

• a USB drive or SD card,
• the laptop's internal drive,
• a network.

Choose one.

Using a USB drive or SD card

• download the firmware from http://dev.laptop.org/pub/firmware/q5a04/q5a04.rom and save it to a USB drive or SD card,

• shutdown the laptop,

• check the battery is inserted and locked,

• check that the power cord is in place and the battery indicator is green,

• insert the USB drive or SD card,

• turn on the laptop, and get to the 'ok' prompt. See Ok for more detail. You should see:

ok

• if the downloaded file is on a USB drive, type:

 flash u:\q5a04.rom

• if the downloaded file is on an external SD card:

 flash sd:\boot\q5a04.rom

• wait for the laptop to reboot itself,

• remove the USB drive or SD card.

(Expert users may remove the USB drive after the message "Got firmware" ... at this stage the file has been read and closed.)

Using the laptop internal drive

An alternate method is to download the firmware file to the laptop internal drive and then install from the internal drive.

• start the laptop,

• connect to a wireless or wired network,

• start the Terminal Activity and type:

su
cd /versions/boot/current/boot/
wget http://dev.laptop.org/pub/firmware/q5a04/q5a04.rom

• shutdown the laptop,

• check the battery is inserted and locked,

• check that the power cord is in place and the battery indicator is green,

• turn on the laptop, and get to the 'ok' prompt. See Ok for more detail. You should see:

ok

• if the downloaded file is on an XO-1, type:

flash n:\boot\q5a04.rom

• if the file is on the internal SD card of an XO-1.5 or XO-1.75:

flash int:\boot\q5a04.rom

Using a network

You will need a compatible USB to ethernet adapter, or an open or WEP wireless access point, connected to the internet.

• shutdown the laptop,

• check the battery is inserted and locked,

• check that the power cord is in place and the battery indicator is green,

• turn on the laptop, and get to the 'ok' prompt. See Ok for more detail. You should see:

ok

• if using wireless, type the essid of the wireless network:

essid mynetwork

• if using a WPA wireless access point, type the WPA key for the network:

wpa passphrase

• type the flash command using the download link above, but change all slash characters so they are backwards, for example:

flash http:\\dev.laptop.org\pub\firmware\q5a04\q5a04.rom

Secured Laptop

Secured laptops can only use flash firmware that has been signed. All mass-production machines had the latest firmware at the time of manufacture.

Upgrading firmware describes how to upgrade to a newer signed firmware release.

See also

• Cheat codes for information about how game buttons control startup options.