Recently Adam Boardman and I have managed to integrate the modular kernel for the Gemini PDA into the gemian kernel repository. So, from now on, whenever the kernel gets improved, the modular kernel gets built and the update is available for Debian via apt.

Installing the modular kernel

From now on, the modular kernel for the Gemini PDA can be installed easily using apt:

sudo apt install gemian-modular-kernel

When using the new bootloader the kernel gets flashed to the boot partition automatically. This works because the new bootloader passes the current boot partition’s name to the kernel using the kernel cmdline. The cmdline can be examined with:

cat /proc/cmdline

When using the old bootloader with the Gemini PDA this information is not available to the kernel and consecutively to the operating system, thus one still has to flash the kernel image manually after installing or updating the kernel package. For this one has to carefully decide which boot partition the Linux system is being booted from. Using the wrong partition name can render other installed operating systems unbootable. To recover, flashing the wrongly overwritten boot partition using the flash tool might be necessary. When knowing the boot partition the new kernel can be flashed using dd (the X in bootX has to be replaced with the number of the boot partition) as shown below.

sudo dd if=/usr/share/kernel/linux-boot.img of=/dev/disk/by-partlabel/bootX

After flashing the kernel the either or the other way a reboot is necessary. The boot partition number can be determined from the scatter file that has been used initially to flash the Gemini. Alternatively it can be found out from the key combination that has been used to boot the Gemini. Detailed information on this can be found in the Gemini bootloader documentation.

Building out of tree modules

For building out of tree modules with the Gemini (in example for using USB devices that are not supported with the kernel), in addition to the kernel, the kernel-headers package has to be installed:

sudo apt install gemian-modular-kernel-headers

With the kernel headers and the appropriate build toolchain (gcc, etc.) additional kernel modules can be compiled on the Gemini. Instructions on how to do this can usually be found with the module source.

Some prebuilt modules (iptables mirror target, frandom, 88XXau) for the kernel can be downloaded below:

gemini-modules-extra-3.18.41.tar.gz (5772 downloads )

To use the modules, the downloaded archive has be extracted to the root directory. Afterwards depmod has to be executed:

cd /; sudo tar -xzf /path/to/gemini-modules-extra-3.18.41.tar.gz; sudo depmod

With high probability these modules should still be usable after upgrading the modular kernel to a newer build.

regards
Jürgen

Posted in drivers, gadgets, kernel, linux | No Comments »

Using Debian with the Gemini PDA one can use cut and paste, for example in QTerminal, using the key combinations [Ctrl]+[Shift]+[c] and [Ctrl]+[Shift]+[v]. Unfortunately this did not work using the left Shift key. There is no need to fiddle with the keyboard configuration to fix this, since it is a kernel issue.

Again Adam Boardman has fixed one of the most annoying issues within the Gemini’s Linux kernel. His fix priorizes the mentioned useful keyboard combinations over the ghosted¹ versions. Again this fix is worth another kernel build. As usual, I want to share my kernel build below:

The kernel configuration is unchanged (with respect to the previous article), but included for completeness: gemini-3.18.41+-config.gz (3623 downloads )

For the build, again the updated kernel source the from https://github.com/gemian/gemini-linux-kernel-3.18 has been used.

Again the kernel modules for the iptables MIRROR target (will not be usable with the default iptables version on the Gemini) and frandom are included. This time also the module for the awus1900 and similar usb wifi dongles (88XXau.ko) has been added.

Those who do not want to go through the build themselves can download my prebuild kernel from here:

Kernel Image: linux_boot-gemini-3.18.41+.img (568 downloads )
Modules: modules_firmware-gemini-3.18.41+.tar.gz (1400 downloads )
(the kernel modules in the previous article should still work, however, the new build is included for completeness)

Instructions for flashing the image can be found on: support.planetcom.co.uk. Make sure to use a proper scatter file, in example the one that has been used for the initial flashing. Using the Download only mode of the flash tool is sufficient. Uncheck all partitions but boot (or boot1 or boot2, depending on your boot order). For the boot partition respectively the boot1 or boot2 partition select the downloaded kernel image.

Alternatively you can flash the kernel using dd:

dd if=linux_boot-gemini-3.18.41+.img of=/dev/block/disk/by-partlabel/boot

If Linux is not your primary operating system on the Gemini use boot1 or boot2 instead, depending on your partition layout.

After flashing, copy the modules archive onto your Gemini and extract it in your root directory:

cd /
tar -xzf /path_to/modules_firmware-gemini-3.18.41+.tar.gz

After rebooting the device, cut and paste using the keyboard combinations should work in QTerminal. Currently I am working on getting the modular kernel configuration into the main Gemini kernel. Hopefully we manage to get this done soon. If so, this might have been the last Gemini modular kernel post.

Jürgen

References:
1. oesf.org: keyboard ghosting

Posted in gadgets, kernel, linux | 2 Comments »

A few days ago I have been asked if it is possible to build a driver for the awus1900 Wifi stick for the Gemini PDA. To be honest, I did not know, so I gave it a try.

The awus1900 uses Realtek’s rtl8814au chipset. The Linux driver for this chipset is available at many locations around the net. Most ones, I have tried, have not been compilable against the Gemini’s kernel. The driver at https://github.com/aircrack-ng/rtl8812au has been compilable with some minor modifications against the kernel source used for the kernel in Modular Linux kernel for the Gemini PDA with lid close fix.

First of all some parameters in the Makefile had to be changed to match the Gemini:

• CONFIG_PLATFORM_I386_PC = n (disable x86 build)
• CONFIG_PLATFORM_ARM64_RPI = y (enable arm64 build)

Some more parameters have been enabled for features in the hope that these do not cause problems:

• CONFIG_POWER_SAVING = y
• CONFIG_USB_AUTOSUSPEND = y
• CONFIG_80211W = y

With all these changes the build fails complaining about STATION_INFO_SIGNAL and many more being undeclared. The module’s source expects these defines to be present in the kernel source for kernels below version 4.0. Most probably the Gemini kernel tree is different than other 3.x trees. So the line 23

#if (CFG80211_API_LEVEL >= KERNEL_VERSION(4, 0, 0))

in os_dep/linux/ioctl_cfg80211.c has been replaced with

#ifndef STATION_INFO_SIGNAL

to get the module source build against the Gemini’s kernel. Afterwards it has been possible to cross compile the kernel module by running make:

make ARCH=arm64 KSRC=/path_to_lib_modules_dir/3.18.41+/build

After building the module it can be copied to /lib/modules/3.18.41+/extra/ (or any other proper directory) on the Gemini and used afterwards. For those who do not want to build the module themselves, the binary modules for the kernel shared in the article Modular Linux kernel for the Gemini PDA with lid close fix can be downloaded from here: rtl88XX.zip (3235 downloads )

Regards
Jürgen

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Sometimes, well, quite often, maybe one out of twenty times when closing the lid, the Gemini PDA running Debian did not turn off the screen and go to sleep, because of keys being pressed by the closing screen before the keyboard gets turned off. When one recognized the Gemini getting hot in the pocket already a quarter to a half of the battery juice was lost.

Recently Adam Boardman has fixed this annoying issue within the Gemini’s Linux kernel. His fix disables the keyboard directly upon lid close, rather than waiting for screen blanking via userspace control. Within a few days after the fix I have not noticed the issue anymore. This fix is more than worth another kernel build. Again, I want to share my kernel build below:

The kernel configuration is unchanged (with respect to the previous article), but included for completeness: gemini-3.18.41+-config.gz (3332 downloads )

For the build, again the updated kernel source the from https://github.com/gemian/gemini-linux-kernel-3.18 has been used.

Again the kernel modules for the iptables MIRROR target (will not be usable with the default iptables version on the Gemini) and frandom are included.

Those who do not want to go through the build themselves can download my prebuild kernel from here:

Kernel Image: linux_boot-gemini-3.18.41+.img (381 downloads )
Modules: modules_firmware-gemini-3.18.41+.tar.gz (1139 downloads )
(the kernel modules in the previous article should still work, however, the new build is included for completeness)

Instructions for flashing the image can be found on: support.planetcom.co.uk. Make sure to use a proper scatter file, in example the one that has been used for the initial flashing. Using the Download only mode of the flash tool is sufficient. Uncheck all partitions but boot (or boot1 or boot2, depending on your boot order). For the boot partition respectively the boot1 or boot2 partition select the downloaded kernel image.

Alternatively you can flash the kernel using dd:

dd if=linux_boot-gemini-3.18.41+.img of=/dev/block/disk/by-partlabel/boot

If Linux is not your primary operating system on the Gemini use boot1 or boot2 instead, depending on your partition layout.

After flashing, copy the modules archive onto your Gemini and extract it in your root directory:

cd /
tar -xzf /path_to/modules_firmware-gemini-3.18.41+.tar.gz

After rebooting the device, it should go to sleep reliably after closing the lid.

Jürgen

Posted in gadgets, kernel, linux | 9 Comments »

Recently the fixes in Planet Computers over the air update found their way into the Gemini Linux kernel sources. Thus the Linux kernel binaries I have shared before are a bit outdated now. So I have decided to build another kernel from the newer kernel sources with the following configuration changes with respect to the previous version:

•Enabled CONFIG_TOUCHSCREEN_MTK_SSL_SSD20XX (touchscreen driver for newer Gemini revisions)
•Added aeon_ssd2092_fhd_dsi_solomon to CONFIG_CUSTOM_KERNEL_LCM (use the touchscreen driver)
•Enabled CONFIG_USER_NS (for lxc and snapd)
•Enabled CONFIG_OVERLAY_FS (for lxc and snapd)
•Enabled CONFIG_SQUASHFS (for lxc and snapd)
•Enabled CONFIG_SQUASHFS_XATTR (for lxc and snapd)
•Enabled CONFIG_SQUASHFS_ZLIB (for lxc and snapd)
•Enabled CONFIG_SQUASHFS_XZ (for lxc and snapd)
•Enabled CONFIG_SQUASHFS_LZO (for lxc and snapd)
•Enabled CONFIG_SQUASHFS_LZ4 (for lxc and snapd)
•Enabled CONFIG_CRYPTO_LZ4HC (for lxc and snapd)

The changes and dependencies result in this kernel configuration: gemini-3.18.41+-config.gz (3262 downloads )

For the build, again the updated kernel source the from https://github.com/gemian/gemini-linux-kernel-3.18 has been used.

Again the kernel modules for the iptables MIRROR target (will not be usable with the default iptables version on the Gemini) and frandom have been added.

Those who do not want to go through the build themselves can download my prebuild kernel from here:

Kernel Image: modules_firmware-gemini-3.18.41+.tar.gz (1111 downloads )
Modules: linux_boot-gemini-3.18.41+.img (334 downloads )

Instructions for flashing the image can be found on: support.planetcom.co.uk. Make sure to use a proper scatter file, in example the one that has been used for the initial flashing. Using the Download only mode of the flash tool is sufficient. Uncheck all partitions but boot (or boot1 or boot2, depending on your boot order). For the boot partition respectively the boot1 or boot2 partition select the downloaded kernel image.

Alternatively you can flash the kernel using dd:

dd if=linux_boot-gemini-3.18.41+.img of=/dev/block/disk/by-partlabel/boot

If Linux is not your primary operating system on the Gemini use boot1 or boot2 instead, depending on your partition layout.

After flashing, copy the modules archive onto your Gemini and extract it in your root directory:

cd /
tar -xzf /path_to/modules_firmware-gemini-3.18.41+.tar.gz

After rebooting the device, it should behave somewhat more stable than it did before.

Regards
Jürgen

Posted in gadgets, kernel, linux | No Comments »

The time has come for another modular linux kernel for the Gemini PDA. The linux kernel binaries I have shared before were lacking proper USB pendrive support. Whenever a drive got connected it froze and the device begun behaving strange, in example it has been impossible to open applications afterwards. Furthermore, in the meanwhile the Geminis keyboard ghosting issue got fixed in the updated kernel sources. Thus I have decided to build another kernel with the following changes:

•Enabled modules for more USB devices
•Enabled FB_UDL and DRM_UDL (for displaylink devices)
•Disabled SCSI_MQ_DEFAULT (for getting USB pendrives working again)

The changes and dependencies result in this kernel configuration: gemini-3.18.41+-config.gz (2751 downloads )

For the build, again the updated kernel source the from https://github.com/gemian/gemini-linux-kernel-3.18 has been used.

Again the kernel modules for the iptables MIRROR target (will not be usable with the default iptables version on the Gemini) and frandom have been added.

Those who do not want to go through the build themselves can download my prebuild kernel from here:

Kernel Image: modules_firmware-gemini-3.18.41+.tar.gz (1082 downloads )
Modules: linux_boot-gemini-3.18.41+.img (451 downloads )

Instructions for flashing the image can be found on: support.planetcom.co.uk. Make sure to use a proper scatter file, in example the one that has been used for the initial flashing. Using the Download only mode of the flash tool is sufficient. Uncheck all partitions but linux_boot (or boot if you boot into linux as default). For the linux_boot respectively the boot partition select the downloaded kernel image. With newer scatter files the boot partition names have changed to boot, boot1 and boot2. Select the appropriate  one for your Gemini.

Alternatively you can flash the kernel using dd:

dd if=linux_boot-gemini-3.18.41+.img of=/dev/block/disk/by-partlabel/boot

If Linux is not your primary operating system on the Gemini use boot1 or boot2 instead, depending on your partition layout.

After flashing, copy the modules archive onto your Gemini and extract it in your root directory:

cd /
tar -xzf /path_to/modules_firmware-gemini-3.18.41+.tar.gz

After rebooting the device, USB pendrives and other SCSI like devices like HDDs and DVD drives/burners should work again when attached to the Geminis USB ports.

Regards
Jürgen

Posted in gadgets, kernel, linux | 4 Comments »

The linux kernel binary I have shared in the article Modular Linux kernel for the Gemini PDA turned out to lack some important features, like not supporting the ethernet port of the Planet Computers USB hub. Thus a second version of the kernel had to be built.

In addition to the original changes, the following changes to the kernel configuration have been performed:

•Enabled modules for more USB devices
•Disabled CONFIG_MTK_CPU_HOTPLUG_DEBUG_0 (for less pollution in dmesg)
•Disabled CONFIG_MTK_CPU_HOTPLUG_DEBUG_3 (for less pollution in dmesg)
•Enabled  CONFIG_RCU_FAST_NO_HZ (for improved energy efficiency)
•Enabled CONFIG_RCU_BOOST (for better performance)

Originally I intended to also disable CONFIG_MTK_CPU_HOTPLUG_DEBUG_2, but then the build fails with an error regarding a static struct declaration.

The changes result in this kernel configuration: gemini-3.18.41+-config.gz (3393 downloads )

For the build, the updated kernel source the from https://github.com/gemian/gemini-linux-kernel-3.18 with the fix for the Bluetooth vulnerability cve-2017-1000251 has been used.

Again the kernel modules for the iptables MIRROR target (will not be usable with the default iptables version on the Gemini) and frandom have been added.

Those who do not want to go through the build themselves can download my prebuild kernel from here:

Kernel Image: linux_boot-gemini-3.18.41+.img (464 downloads )
Modules: modules_firmware-gemini-3.18.41+.tar.gz (1044 downloads )

Downloads outdated, new version at: Another improved modular Linux kernel for the Gemini PDA

Instructions for flashing the image can be found on: support.planetcom.co.uk. Make sure to use the same scatter file that has been used for the initial flashing. Using the Download only mode of the flash tool is sufficient. Uncheck all partitions but linux_boot (or boot if you boot into linux as default). For the linux_boot respectively the boot partition select the downloaded kernel image. With newer scatter files the boot partition names have changed to boot, boot1 and boot2. Select the appropiate  one for your Gemini.

Alternatively you can flash the kernel using dd:

dd if=linux_boot-gemini-3.18.41+.img of=/dev/block/disk/by-partlabel/boot

If Linux is not your primary operating system on the Gemini use boot1 or boot2 instead, depending on your partition layout.

After flashing, copy the modules archive onto your Gemini and extract it in your root directory:

cd /
tar -xzf /path_to/modules_firmware-gemini-3.18.41+.tar.gz

After rebooting the device some more USB peripherals, including the ethernet port of the Planet Computers hub, should work.

Regards
Jürgen

Posted in gadgets, kernel, linux | No Comments »