Installing Armbian on Amlogic S905w Android TV Box (Tanix TX3 Mini)
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- Опубликовано: 8 сен 2024
- #Linux #RaspberryPiAlternative #SingleBoardComputer
Full steps can be found at i12bretro.gith...
I love the idea of the Raspberry Pi, but there are some cheaper alternative single board computers that offer a similar experience for a fraction of the cost. While the community support isn't quite what it is for the Pi, there are a ton of projects you can accomplish on the cheap with these little hidden gems. Keep an eye on AliExpress and Amazon and you can find SBC's sporting quad core ARM process with 2-4 GB of RAM for under $30, including a power supply and IR remote control.
The box used in this video is a Tanix TX3 Mini I picked up on eBay for $22 shipped. It sports a Quad Core Amlogic S905w @ 2GHz and 2 GB of DDR3 RAM.
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Things You Will Need
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- A microSD card at least 8 GB amzn.to/36CpShC | amzn.to/3CXJngt | amzn.to/3JqyxSP
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Downloads and Flashing to MicroSD
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01. Download Armbian forum.armbian.... | drive.google.c... | drive.google.c...
02. Download Balena Etcher www.balena.io/...
03. Run Balena Etcher
04. Burn Armbian image to microSD card
05. Safely remove microSD and re-insert
06. Ignore/close the Windows dialogs to format the inserted microSD card
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Configure MicroSD Card for Armbian
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01. Open the readable partition of the microSD card in Explorer
02. Rename the appropriate file from below to u-boot.ext on the root of the SD card
u-boot-s905 (for s905)
u-boot-s905x-s912 (for s905x and s912)
u-boot-s905x2-s922 (for s905x2 and s922)
03. Edit /extlinux/extlinux.conf in a text editor
a. Comment out rk-3399 lines by adding #
b. Uncomment aml s9xx FDT and APPEND lines by removing #
c. Update the FDT line to point to a working .dtb file for your device
aml s9xxx
#FDT /dtb/amlogic/meson-g12a-x96-max-no-cvbs.dtb
#FDT /dtb/amlogic/meson-g12b-ugoos-am6-no-cvbs.dtb
#FDT /dtb/amlogic/meson-g12b-odroid-n2.dtb
FDT /dtb/amlogic/meson-gxl-s905w-p281.dtb
APPEND=root=LABEL=ROOTFS rootflags=data=writeback rw console=ttyAML0,115200n8 console=tty0 no_console_suspend consoleblank=0 fsck.fix=yes fsck.repair=yes net.ifnames=0
d. Save
e. Close
09. Safely remove microSD
10. Insert microSD card to Android TV box
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Booting to Armbian for the First Time
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01. Plug the power adapter into the Android TV box
02. If the device has never booted from external storage before the stock Android OS will load
03. In Android, navigate to the application drawer ≫ Run Update & Backup
04. Select Local ≫ Navigate to the microSD card ≫ aml_autoscript.zip
05. Select Update
06. The system will reboot twice and should then begin booting Armbian from the microSD card
07. You should see the Armbian terminal running startup scripts
08. When prompted, input a new root password
09. Confirm the new root password
10. When prompted, input a username
11. Input a password for the new user
12. Confirm the password for the new user
13. Follow any additional the prompts
14. Armbian will boot into the desktop environment
Special thanks to the developers and forum members over at armbian.com for making this possible
Connect with me and others ###
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This video help me a lot in the proccess . Thanks a lot
Glad to hear it, enjoy!
1.34 my extlinux file looks different , I'm trying to do the same but armbian doesn't launch what should I do ?
after i Select Local - Navigate to the microSD card - aml_autoscript.zip
then Select Update my tv box shutting down after show boot on my tv box but it not show the Armbian terminal running startup scripts on my screen.what problem on me?Pls help me boss
Hello Mate, I'm having problem while updating as it shows "E: signature verification failed" and then the installation abort!
Can you help me out?
did you managed to fix it? im having the same error for installing batocera
Finalllyyyy
Greetings . I have tv box Ugoos am6 b plus with s922x processor , i have done everything like you show , except different uboot file and without changing extlinux file - it already has required dtb file . But after rebooting nothing happens , just like if you reboot without any sd card . What do I miss or do wrong ?
On my MXQ Pro 4K when I go into the Update app, I cant navigate to the aml zip, it just gives me a list of files and I cant navigate to the sd card.
Maybe try a different SD card. You should at least be able to it
wonderfull, very helpfull. Thank you. will you create a tutorial when ARMBIAN be updated?
Is there a specific update you are wanting? They seem to do rolling releases and have Debian 10 and 11 and Ubuntu Focal
@@i12bretro I was working with armbian eoan, but its support was descontinued. I would just like that you make a tutorial if a focal support is descontinued.
@@i12bretro Hello sir, I tried to update and upgrade this version but it does not find repos, so it does not to boot. I found that it's a new version kinetic, have you tried to install it ? or how is your x96 woriking?
Hello. I followed your guide and successfully installed Armbian on my box, the very same of this video. However, I have a few issues.
I can't set up the time properly. My country hasn't had daylight savings since 2 years ago and as such I'm one hour behind. Other apps show the time as 5 hours ahead.
I can't install apps, seems the repos are broken or missing.
And finally, booting up the device with any USB connected causes a crash and boot loop.
Anything I can do? Thanks in advance.
You're timing is great, I was just messing with Armbian on my Tx3 mini this morning. I didn't have any issues with time or pulling updates with apt. Can you confirm you have a connection to the internet (ie can you ping armbian.com)? Once I connected online my time was automatically synced. You can specify your timezone by running sudo armbian-config then selecting Personal > Timezone.
Thanks!!!
You're welcome
Sir please help me I have Tx3mini 2gb 8gb I installed arambian using your step by step tutorial it's working perfectly but it's showing Ram 1 gb only plz give me any suggestions I m waiting for your reply
can't install on x96 mini :(
Thanks for the video, it is pretty straightforward. However, were you able to make wifi work with this box? Thanks.
No, I wasn't able to get wifi working with this box. You can try flashing different Armbian releases to see if any of them work, but the few I tested did not
@@i12bretro witch armbian release support wifi ??
T95 S2 (s905w 2/16, Android 7.1)
it doesn't work for me, there is no "Update & Backup" app, there is one called LOCAL&BACKUP, it scan all device for scripts, I select "aml_autoscript.zip". Device reboots, for a while I read "installing update" and then the android robot logo with a simpe message "error". Thanks for any suggestions
I'm not sure. You can try the "toothpick method", holding the reset button while plugging in power to the TV box. I've had some success with it, but it's not the easiest method.
@@i12bretro Ok pressing reset button and installing from stock recovery I have this error "failed to map file". tomorrow I will do other tests, thanks
No, you don't install anything from recovery. Holding the reset button while powering on is supposed to have it try booting to the SD card
Hi, great videos! thanks. Just one question: I can see from your other videos that you have a Sunvell T95x but you don´t have a video (as far I could see) installing Armbian on it. I have the T95x myself and I did it succesfully following your other videos but it seems that video drivers are not working well on the T95x (it works but no way to change resolution). Also wifi does not work but that is easy to fix with a USB adapter. Any idea on the Armbian video drivers for the T95x? Thanks in advance.
I have a video coming for installing Armbian 20.10 on the T95x. I believe it had the ability to change resolutions. I've found that trying the Debian and Ubuntu builds can yield different results. For instance, I've had better luck with wifi working on the Ubuntu builds. I'm not sure if that coincidence or not
@@i12bretro Thanks!. Manjaro looks good on it too. Looking forward for your next videos. Cheers.
@@i12bretro there are proprietary non-free drivers so that's why it works better on Ubuntu
when i flash de micro sd i dont get the same files as you. I dont have any u-boot Do ypu know where i can find it? Tx
Did you try the Google Drive link in the description? It's the exact file I flashed
I have a problem that hangs on the boot when I connected the Internet cable, the code went and hung in what broblem
Not sure, I've never had that problem
Can you help me to activate the ip manually? In the installation it does not appear even putting the network cable at the beginning of the installation.
Plug it in before powering on the TV box. Or you can try running sudo systemctl restart networking after you've plugged it in
Hi, I have also the TX3 Mini with Armbian installed on eMMC, but with the 20.10 Armbian has random freezes while booting. What board model do you have? Thanks!
TX3 mini-A. I've never installed to eMMC
@@i12bretro You can install it on eMMC if you execute as root the script located at /root/install-aml.sh. The advantage is that is much faster than sd card and the TV Box works standalone. You can see the board version if you open the TV Box (is printed on the board)
@@robertoenr is it safe to do so? i have read on armbians forum that processors s905* doesnt support install on emmc. -> "Note: It is not possible to install into emmc on boxes with the s905 cpu (s905x, s905w, s905x2, etc however should all be supported)." i cant link it, as youtube autodelete my comment.
I do not have audio in the HDMI, I already configured pulseaudio so that the HDMI was the sound output but nothing, what can I do?
There are a lot of posts about this on the Armbian forum. I came across this suggestion. I have not tested it myself, but seems worth a shot
ruclips.net/video/ywLIuP0C5Jk/видео.html
Is there anyway to get better video playback in armbian?
It's very much dependent on the exact hardware in your TV box. I've never spent a great deal of time investigating, but I'd suggest looking on the Armbian forum for your exact GPU to see if you can find any tweaks to improve GPU performance
forum.armbian.com/
hi tks for the video, its a great help, now how can i conect to wifi?
I wasn't able to get wifi working. You can try different dtb files or different Armbian builds to see if there's a working combination
hello, i need help. I have a box with an IK316 chip, but I can't find any img for it. Please I need help. thank you
Never heard of that chip before
Tried this and was successfully booting a buster lite image. However, MAC address changes every boot and it has two IP address all the time. Any fixes?
Not that I'm aware of
Hi, thanks for the tutorial, could you help me? I have a recently purchased TX3 Mini and I tried to install it following your steps, but when I boot it shows an error "Kernel panic - not syncing: Asynchronous SError Interrupt", I've tried everything with other images, and still the error always happens, do you know what it could be? Thanks!
Can you verify the SoC in your box is a s905w? You can also try writing to a different SD card to see if that's causing the problem. Lastly, you can try a different device tree (.dtb) file
Not runing RK3368 tv box i68
Good afternoon! Thank you so much for the great material!! Tell me, please, I have the firmware on my tanix tx9s from Slimbox and there is no item in it (or I did not find it) by " Run Update & Backup". Where can I find it? There is no "Run Update" in the device information & Backup". Thanks!!
Sometimes it's hidden in settings > about > system update
@@i12bretro Thanks for the tip, I double-checked everything again. =))) But it's not there =(
Can you post a link to your TV box?
Let me see if I can pull the apk from mine. It'll be a a few hours before I have time to look, but I'll get back to you
@@i12bretro I think I found her. The firmware developer had it hidden not there =) Yes, it looks like this is it, since I have two lines including boot/ aml/autoscript.zip How do you think this is it?
Thank you, seems to work on my device.
It's possible to install permanently on the device overwriting the android system?
It's possible. Do so at your own risk and make sure you have a way to revert to Android if something goes wrong. ruclips.net/video/3hTXgf8iIJ4/видео.html
Hi, what offered the best experience for you? Armbian or manjaro? Thanks
I prefer Debian/Ubuntu, so I use Armbian
X96 mini stays like this
(error server ip not set)
some help please
i.postimg.cc/ncqLtS7d/no-boot.jpg
the wifi is working for me on tanix tx3 max s905w but Bluetooth is not working any fixes?
I've not had luck with any of my devices and Bluetooth working
how to install wine???????
cool thanks for video, so how to install eMMC?
There's a video coming on how to do it. Look in the /root directory and there are install scripts specific to different SoCs
Good Day master,
Do you know what are the commands to become a root user? I want to change the date and install things through the console and it gives me an error.
"sudo: /etc/sudo.conf is owned by uid 1023, should be 0"
What distro are you using and are there other users that use the device?
@@i12bretro i am using Armbian 20.10 bullseye and I literally just installed it on my TV box, only when I want to use sudo commands I get that error.
You might want to reflash it then. Probably easier than fighting with where the permissions got messed up
@@i12bretro its working man, thank you
Awesome, glad to hear it!
Hello sir. I try to connect via remote desktop, but I noticed that it's too slow. May yoy help to fix this? Please.
You could try dropping the bit rate of the rdp connection from the client side to see if it helps. I'm not aware of any other options
@@i12bretro BTW, I restarted some times, and it ran so fluent once. I don't know what's the reason.
Thank you for your answers.
cannot setup simplefb: node not found
I'm not sure what simplefb is. Is it available compiled for arm64?
Hi! I have some questions. Will it overwrite my android os?
And will it work if i use a USB flash drive instead of an sd card?
and dose the remote work?
It won't overwrite your Android OS, it runs off the SD card. You can just power down, remove the SD card, and power back on to return to Android. I've never tried off USB, hut I've seen in the forums some people have done it. It may depend on the hardware though. The remote will depend on the hardware. I've never messed with the remote inside Armbian, but there's an option to try to enable the IR receiver in armbian config
@@i12bretro It works. But the wifi(SSV6051 WIFI chip) and AUX port doesn't work.
I wanted to upgrade the android from 7 to 9 but i heard some people have wifi(SSV6051 WIFI chip) issues with it.
Hello. I have followed the steps in the tutorial, but when installing it through the Run Update & Backup app, when restarting it gives an error. I have also tried to install the zip file from the recovery and it gives error. What I can do?
What's the error and what make and model is your TV box?
@@i12bretro its a TX3 mini. Error "failed to map file"
Interesting. I'd suggest re-writing Armbian to the SD card and following the steps again to set the .dtb and rename u-boot.ext.
@@i12bretro I got this problem too and re-write Armbian many time but still the same error. Any suggestion please?
I have exactly a same problem. Did you fixed it?
my device has 2gb of ram but armbian only shows 1gb
Try different .dtb files
wifi not working
well 😊 if you can find the wifi drivers and gpu drivers for this tv box it will be cool
Thanks you
I made the wifi work by plugging a second usb adapter into the x96 mini tvbox. But that's not a good solution. I try to understand how to compile the kernel to add modules for wifi and gpu. Unfortunately, I'm not an expert yet.
u-boot-s905 rename -> u-boot.ext, not u-boot-s905x because tx3 mini use chip s905w
This is what I was basing using the s905x u-boot on:
Amlogic S905W - A low cost variant of the S905X, it supports video decoding only up to 4K@30fp
thanks, do you have driver for wifi chip rtl8723as?
No, sorry I do not
hello, is it on ugoos s905x4, if not, when will you do it?
I don't have a s905x4 device to test on
I have MXQ 4K Amlogic S905W, 2GB ram, P281 board. I can't get it to work, It wont boot. I've tried S905 and s905X-s912 as u-boot.ext
Should be the s905x-s912. I was just playing with my TX3 Mini for a different video yesterday, so it definitely can work. Maybe try different p281 .dtb files
@@i12bretro I'll try. I have noticed that TX3 Mini settings do not apply for my MXQ 4K, when i was installing atvXperience something always didn't work, either home button or back button. Also picture had this reddish haze, when background was white. I've installed generic atvXperience image and it work fine, well mostly. Picture is fine, but when i hold home or any other button i can't see open apps. Also every time i press mouse button, voice search opens 😂
Is it possible your box isn't a s905w chip?
@@i12bretro Who knows with these chinese boxes, but i think it is. I bought it when corona started but i never used it, i bought it for my mom, she was out of job, so i bought it so she can watch movies etc. but she never used it, when i first turned it on it seemed fine and i left it sit. But after a year or so, i've started tinker with it, it was awful, RUclips was stuttering and freezing, Plex was stuttering and freezing, at first i tought i was bad chip or overheating or something, but when i put Libreelec on it, it worked fine. It streamed from my Plex server perfectly. So i've installed atvXperience based on Android 7, as original firmware was on Android 7, it was a little better, but still sucked, and i left it for another year to gather dust. Few days ago i've started to tinker with it again, i've installed atvXperience based on Android 9, so far it seems fine, RUclips doesn't stutter or frezze.
That's awesome, glad you're getting some use out of it. Hopefully you can get Armbian running on it as it opens up a ton of new uses for it
Hello my friend, great video. I bought this version on amazon and by mistake they sent the new TX3 Mini Plus wich has a s905w2, is there anyway we can flash armbian? i tried so many dbt with no success. Thanks in advance
You can search on the Armbian forum to see. This is honestly the first time I've heard of the s905w2
@@i12bretro sent the box back and got the correct one (i think) but cant install armbian, i tried using both usb pen and sd card and i always get the error "Failed to map file" when trying to start, any thoughts on that? thanks in advance
@@i12bretro just saw on another comment that you have the same box version as i do Tx3 Mini - A
The problem with these boxes is just because the model is the same doesn't mean the components are. I haven't seen that error before so I'm not sure where the issue is
@@i12bretro do you mind checking behind the box the first 7 letters?
mine are CS905W2
thats why i think they sent me again a box with this processor i mentioned before S905w2
Can i run it on amlogic s905w2?
No, that's a newer SOC, so it won't work
sir please how to install armbian in tx3 mini 1gb 8gb nand ((I INSTALLED ON SDCARD WORKING GOOD BUT I WANT TO INSTALL IN INBUILT MEMOTY PLZ TELL ME ) THANKS IN ADVANCE
Here's the process. Do so at your own risk
ruclips.net/video/3hTXgf8iIJ4/видео.html
@@i12bretro sir i try this in tx3 mini 1gb ram 8gb rom but not working but 2gb and 16gb woll install perfect
I'm not sure of any other way to do it
Followed this with the tx3 mini dtb file for the tx3 max and it worked. I haven't fully tested it but it looks like there's no wifi and the poor front screen is stuck displaying boot all the time.
After booting for the first time I can't use sudo due to permission problems. Then, when I use su - I get wrong password for some reason.
Wifi is spotty on all of these boxes. Seems to depend on how well the wifi chip inside the box is supported in Linux. I've seen fixes mentioned for the front LED on some devices, but it doesn't bother me so I've never attempted to get it working
Anything I should specifically look for, for the permission problems I ended up encountering?
Maybe try reflashing or a different SD card.
@@i12bretro reflashed it, this time I used the non mini dtb and made sure to have an ethernet cable on, all's well now.
Glad to hear it!
it says loading kernel and then my tv goes to no signal
Maybe try different .dtb files
@@i12bretro which ones do you think i should use
I don't know, it depends on the exact TV box that you have and the hardware it is running on
@@i12bretro it is a S950W based tv box. Doesn't have any brand/manufacturer name
sir i installed "Armbian_20.10_Arm-64_focal_current_5.9.0_desktop.img" from your tutorial
its working perfectly but i want to upgrade latest current version of 2022
version jammy edge please guide me to upgrade from Terminal command
I haven't tested it, but you can try this. Make sure you have a backup in case something breaks
www.linuxtechi.com/upgrade-ubuntu-20-04-to-ubuntu-22-04/
is there a way to do this without pc?
You might be able to use an android app to write the image to an SD card. I've never tried it
work on my x96mini. but dont work wifi and ethernet
Try different .dtb files. Wifi has only worked for me on two devices, but I've always been able to get ethernet working
@@i12bretro Please, which hardware box worked wifi ?
Bluetooth not working 😭 . Please help me
Bluetooth and wifi weren't working for me either. You can try different builds to see if any of them get things working better
@@i12bretro I have a tutorial article but I do not understand reading. My wifi was working fine. Bluetooth I don't understand
can it be used with Tanix mini3+ ?
No, that user a different newer SoC
Hi,
Does it support rk3128?
I don't believe so forum.armbian.com/topic/12162-single-armbian-image-for-rk-aml-aw-aarch64-armv8/
How install in internal memory? Thank you!
Make sure you have a backup on the Android ROM just in case it fails or you want to revert
ruclips.net/video/3hTXgf8iIJ4/видео.html
@@i12bretro don't work! I have a tx3 mini ,version 1.3, and think don't use emmc, how i do now? Thank you so much!
I'm not sure. I've tested this on 2 devices and both worked so I never dug any deeper
@@i12bretrothis tx3 mine, is NAND flash and don't work! thank you for you help-me!
SIR PLEASE MAKE VIDEO ON HOW TO INSTALL UBUNTU MINT ON TX3MINI THANKS FOR ADVANCED
Great idea, I'll see if it's possible
Unfortunately Ububtu Mint doesn't support ARM64 at the moment
Thanks for your reply sir and your valuable time
hi, I'm from Vietnam, do you use Facebook?
No, not a fan of Facebook
My s905w hangs at "random: crng init done"
Hmm, you could try a different .dtb file, refresh the SD card or try a different SD card. It sounds like you got it to boot, just can't get to a login screen?
@@i12bretro exactly, I actually boot from usb, maybe a different one could work. I could boot most dtb's for the s905* just couldn't get to a login shell
Interesting
Help me
Does wifi work?
It depends on the hardware in your box. One of mine worked, the other didn't.
X96 Mini working?
If it's an Amlogic S905w box it should work
files are remove can give another links
Added additional download links to the video description, one for Ubuntu Focal and one for Debian Bullseye
@@i12bretro thanks
I have Tanix TX3 mini-A 2GB/16GB, wifi chip SSV6XXX (this information from the AIDA64), following your instruction. However, the installation always stop at the error:
Waiting for root file system...
Begin: Running /scripts/local-block ... done
Gave up waiting for root file system device: Common problems:
- Boot args (cat /proc/cmdline)
- Check rootdelay= (did the system wait long enough?)
- Missing modules (cat /proc/modules; ls /dev)
ALERT! LABEL=ROOTFS does not exist. Dropping to a shell!
(initramfs) [ 184.355986] random: crng init done
Spending days but still the same result.
Could you please let me know how to fix it?
Can you verify your box has an Amlogic S905w? I think there are some TX3's that have a S912
@@i12bretro I doubt that it is S905, not S905w (because AIDA64 showed me that). Then what should I do?
Does AIDA show 4 cores or 8?
@@i12bretro It showed 4 cores, Machine: armv8l, ABI: armeabi-v7a, Board: gxl_p281_1g
So it does appear to be a s905w. The s912 variant is 8 cores, and p281 is the s905w. I'd try redoing all the steps. Re-download Armbian and reflash. Somewhere it seems like the flash failed
What is the Password?
You should have been prompted to create a new password. In older builds it was root/1234