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      /  Got to kick the uboot update failure habit
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thinkchip 
Got to kick the uboot update failure habit
Posted on 4-Oct-2015 4:37:05
#1 ]
Super Member
Joined: 26-Mar-2004
Posts: 1183
From: Salt Lake City, Utah, USA

I have this very expensive lump of circuitry called an AmigaOne 500. Even when it's working right it doesn't do much. I've had two uboot update failures. When this happens ACube sends me a new uboot chip. I've never been too impressed with their customer service. One thing they're amazingly adept at is picking the slowest rowboat making it's way across the Pacific Ocean on its way to my ill-fated computer. I'm sure ACube thinks I'm to blame for goofing up the update so many times. They think that at least I'm not able to do more damage if the chip is in Outer Mongolia. I bought an Amiga 1000 in 1984 and the best Amiga service was in 1984 and has been going downhill ever since. I expect it to reach rock bottom in the near future.

Last edited by thinkchip on 04-Oct-2015 at 04:44 AM.

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pavlor 
Re: Got to kick the uboot update failure habit
Posted on 4-Oct-2015 7:44:01
#2 ]
Elite Member
Joined: 10-Jul-2005
Posts: 9578
From: Unknown

@thinkchip

Quote:
I bought an Amiga 1000 in 1984 and the best Amiga service was in 1984 and has been going downhill ever since.


Time machine?


To be more serious, if you have so many problems with your computer, try to sell it. You still can get most of your money back.

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duga 
Re: Got to kick the uboot update failure habit
Posted on 4-Oct-2015 8:41:53
#3 ]
Regular Member
Joined: 1-May-2012
Posts: 227
From: Unknown

@thinkchip

Please tell us how you're making the update and at which point it fails.

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Hypex 
Re: Got to kick the uboot update failure habit
Posted on 4-Oct-2015 12:28:08
#4 ]
Elite Member
Joined: 6-May-2007
Posts: 11180
From: Greensborough, Australia

@thinkchip

How does the updater work? Do you have to overwrite a USB stick or boot off a CD? Is it automatic boot with no cryptic commands to enter? I ask as in the "AmigaOne" days it was mostly setup like that. But without a fail safe dual boot rom you will always be at risk. For this reason I've avoided updating my XE with a newer UBoot because I have no ground beneath if breaks.

In the Sam machines I have seen one go dead that was the result of the UBoot chip slipping out of place ever so slightly. Pushing the chip in fixed that. But when your machine was working, how did it not do much?

Given you need another rom perhaps order two so you have a backup. What would be good is if there was an Amiga person near by who had a rom burner to put your two bricked chips to use. Since having two dead chips and two replacements is not very efficient. It would be good to revive two dead chips. Can ACube fix them I wonder?

I'm not sure if a Sam can be booted up, UBoot chips swapped out and written too. If UBoot copies itself to ram so the updater wouldn't directly call rom chip routines that would be a possibility. But of course swapping rom chips this way would be risky with the power on. The XE has a firmware updater on the Workbench but to my knowledge it was never used. Nit for public machines. If the Sam has it then that could possibly also be used to update it since when AmigaOS is running UBoot is dead. But it would need exact hardware and I suspect the Sam doesn't have it.

Now if you got an Amiga in 1984 you must have had a pre-release model that would surely be buggy. I know of one case where the purchaser had to offer the nearest Commodore HQ hard cash in front of their face and a whole set up and shipping cost around $10,000!

As to Amiga going downhill, well I don't think a belated Amiga knockoff called the AmigaOne counts, since it isn't a real Amiga.

Last edited by Hypex on 04-Oct-2015 at 01:01 PM.

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thinkchip 
Re: Got to kick the uboot update failure habit
Posted on 4-Oct-2015 13:58:54
#5 ]
Super Member
Joined: 26-Mar-2004
Posts: 1183
From: Salt Lake City, Utah, USA

@thread

If I ever dare attempt another uboot update, I plan to remove any added hardware like the video card first. Probably giving the chip a little push to be sure it's firmly socketed would be a good idea. A spare uboot would probably good. Where do I get one?

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thinkchip 
Re: Got to kick the uboot update failure habit
Posted on 7-Nov-2015 2:00:23
#6 ]
Super Member
Joined: 26-Mar-2004
Posts: 1183
From: Salt Lake City, Utah, USA

@thread

I was sort of sarcastic about acube's customer service. That was before I found out how bad it really is. I was told in their first email on the 7th of August that they would get an eeprom out "as soon as possible". Three months after my initial contact I finally emailed and asked how much longer "as soon as possible" was going to take. I was told that he(?) forgot. So why does a tech company rely on memory to keep track of orders and repairs? Is that what really happened? Who knows how much longer it will take now? I don't know what I did to get on their bad side. Maybe just needing customer service was all it took. I know one thing for sure: I will never update uboot again (as if there would be any updates anyway) and I will never try to get any more customer service from acube or buy any more of the products. To think I threw over a thousand dollars down that Italian marble toilet.

Last edited by thinkchip on 07-Nov-2015 at 02:03 AM.

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thinkchip 
Re: Got to kick the uboot update failure habit
Posted on 25-Nov-2015 18:06:32
#7 ]
Super Member
Joined: 26-Mar-2004
Posts: 1183
From: Salt Lake City, Utah, USA

@thinkchip

I finally got the chip and replaced it without a lot of trouble. But it doesn't activate my USB keyboard (which is the only kind you can use with a A1-500) until Workbench loads up. Slightly annoying. But something I can handle. Or not. It's probably a uboot variable that I'll have to set with setvar. It would be nice to have a uboot utility like the micro has.

Anyway I owe Acube a great big "thank you".

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bennymee 
Re: Got to kick the uboot update failure habit
Posted on 25-Nov-2015 19:11:22
#8 ]
Cult Member
Joined: 19-Aug-2003
Posts: 696
From: Netherlands

@thinkchip

Usb keyboards and mice should work out of the box.

Maybe you should reset all your uboot- variables?

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jabirulo 
Re: Got to kick the uboot update failure habit
Posted on 25-Nov-2015 19:45:58
#9 ]
Regular Member
Joined: 20-Jun-2004
Posts: 370
From: Donosti (GUIPUZCOA)

@thinkchip

AFAIK, latest UBoot has some issues with some USB keyboards not working fine under Uboot (but OK under AmigaOS/WB). I have one of such keyboards that UBoot doesn't like but under AmigaOS/WB works fine such keyboard.

Acube is working on a UBoot fix.

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thinkchip 
Re: Got to kick the uboot update failure habit
Posted on 25-Nov-2015 19:54:22
#10 ]
Super Member
Joined: 26-Mar-2004
Posts: 1183
From: Salt Lake City, Utah, USA

@bennymee

So is there another way to reset your uboot variables than to reflash your uboot? Or are you saying to check each variable and change it back to the original value (if you know what it is)? This would be a good time to print out all the uboot variables (or redirect the output to a file if I can remember how to do that) since I just got a fresh chip from Acube.

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cha05e90 
Re: Got to kick the uboot update failure habit
Posted on 25-Nov-2015 20:15:04
#11 ]
Super Member
Joined: 18-Apr-2009
Posts: 1275
From: Germany

@thinkchip

nvgetvar

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bennymee 
Re: Got to kick the uboot update failure habit
Posted on 25-Nov-2015 20:15:33
#12 ]
Cult Member
Joined: 19-Aug-2003
Posts: 696
From: Netherlands

@thinkchip

Jabirulo says the firmware gives problems with USB...


I don't use the newest firmware on my Amigaone, every random keyboard or (wireless) mouse I ever used seems to work fine.

Last edited by bennymee on 25-Nov-2015 at 08:17 PM.

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elwood 
Re: Got to kick the uboot update failure habit
Posted on 25-Nov-2015 20:56:01
#13 ]
Elite Member
Joined: 17-Sep-2003
Posts: 3428
From: Lyon, France

@thinkchip

Quote:
would be a good time to print out all the uboot variables (or redirect the output to a file if I can remember how to do that)


From OS4: nvgetvar >myfile

From Uboot and a serial cable connected to another computer:
setenv stdout serial
printenv
reset


But now, do not update Uboot. You have the latest version so there is no need to screw it once more

Last edited by elwood on 25-Nov-2015 at 08:59 PM.
Last edited by elwood on 25-Nov-2015 at 08:56 PM.

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Sam460 1.10 Ghz
AmigaOS 4 betatester
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salass00 
Re: Got to kick the uboot update failure habit
Posted on 26-Nov-2015 14:18:26
#14 ]
Elite Member
Joined: 31-Oct-2003
Posts: 2707
From: Finland

@thinkchip

I'm going to need to switch the eeprom in my Sam460 system as well.

Since you've already done it how did you manage to get the old chip out? There doesn't seem to be much to grab on to pull it out...

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Rose 
Re: Got to kick the uboot update failure habit
Posted on 26-Nov-2015 14:31:20
#15 ]
Cult Member
Joined: 5-Nov-2009
Posts: 982
From: Unknown

@salass00

Quote:

salass00 wrote:
@thinkchip

I'm going to need to switch the eeprom in my Sam460 system as well.

Since you've already done it how did you manage to get the old chip out? There doesn't seem to be much to grab on to pull it out...


To play safe you can get something like this.

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thinkchip 
Re: Got to kick the uboot update failure habit
Posted on 26-Nov-2015 15:48:30
#16 ]
Super Member
Joined: 26-Mar-2004
Posts: 1183
From: Salt Lake City, Utah, USA

@salass00

I bent a paperclip in an L shape and slipped it under the corner of the chip. I wouldn't try to pry it. If you crack the socket the whole motherboard could be toast. Or you could buy a chip puller if you pull a lot of chips. I've cracked at least one socket messing with old Commodore computers. This one is tiny compared to them.

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salass00 
Re: Got to kick the uboot update failure habit
Posted on 26-Nov-2015 16:09:55
#17 ]
Elite Member
Joined: 31-Oct-2003
Posts: 2707
From: Finland

@thinkchip

Quote:

I bent a paperclip in an L shape and slipped it under the corner of the chip.


Thanks! Using this method I was able to remove the old eeprom chip very easily and then it was just a matter of pushing the new one into place and my Sam460 is working again.

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salass00 
Re: Got to kick the uboot update failure habit
Posted on 26-Nov-2015 16:31:28
#18 ]
Elite Member
Joined: 31-Oct-2003
Posts: 2707
From: Finland

@jabirulo

Quote:

AFAIK, latest UBoot has some issues with some USB keyboards not working fine under Uboot (but OK under AmigaOS/WB). I have one of such keyboards that UBoot doesn't like but under AmigaOS/WB works fine such keyboard.


I seem to have the same problem here now as well. Annoyingly this means that I can no longer easily switch between booting my public and beta system installations .

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Hypex 
Re: Got to kick the uboot update failure habit
Posted on 27-Nov-2015 14:08:49
#19 ]
Elite Member
Joined: 6-May-2007
Posts: 11180
From: Greensborough, Australia

@thinkchip

Well glad your system is working and now I see how it doesn't do much. It seems typical that you have the latest update and the USB is broken. Historically the Sam series has always had USB problems. Perhaps it really does follow down the family line of the AmigaOne's! A friend with Sam 440EP then Flex was always losing USB input devices. The mouse used to go dead a lot and you needed to pull it out then plug back it in. The USB hardware may have had a bug and I recall one of the USB drivers, maybe USB 1.1, had to be disabled in OS4. Something like that.

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thinkchip 
Re: Got to kick the uboot update failure habit
Posted on 27-Nov-2015 14:39:14
#20 ]
Super Member
Joined: 26-Mar-2004
Posts: 1183
From: Salt Lake City, Utah, USA

@salass00

I'm not too happy that there may be another uboot update. If I ever try another update I will remove all added hardware and be sure all chips are firmly in their sockets first. I don't understand how something like this could get past quality control.

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