Speedport 504v Install/Flashing Question

Installing and Using OpenWrt
1

Hello,

i found recently an old Speedport 504v ( https://openwrt.org/toh/t-com/speedport_w_504v ) and saw that i can install OpenWrt on it.
Have everything so far as working (u-boot noninvasive, Backup) and now the next Step is to write the OpenWrt Image to the Device, but there is something unclear.

The Guide says:

Once the image is uploaded, we can write it to the flash chip. For larger image files, it may be necessary to increase the counter 440004. For example, the value 6F0000 is sufficient for a 6.1 MB image.
# cp.b 0x81000000 0xB0040000 440004

What is meant with the Counter 440004 and incraese the Counter for larger Images?
The Guide looks like, it is for an Image [openwrt-lantiq-xway-ARV8539PW22-squashfs.image] from 2015 which has around 4MB, but the latest Image [openwrt-24.10.2-lantiq-xway-arcadyan_arv8539pw22-initramfs-kernel.bin] has around 6,8MB.

What does this Counter?
So i have to find a Counter that fits for the latest Image and what happens if the Counter does not fit with a bigger Image and i try to write the latest Image?

Thanks

2

Not really, you can install an older release, and upgrade to the latest from within OpenWRT.

2 Likes
3

Install an older Release and then doing the upgrade would be a good Solution but preferred Solution would be to write/install the latest Image directly.

cp command link helped me not enough to understand whats going on.

But saw in the Firmware Selector Link, there is a 24.10.4 Release for the Device.
What happens if i would try to write the latest Image with the Settings from the Guide, does it break or stop in the middle of writing with these Settings and brick the Device?

And if i choose the older Release/Upgrade Solution, do i need to use the u-boot Brn and Nor Files from the older release or could i use the ones from the latest 24.10.4 Release?

I know its an old Device but want to prevent to brick it, only because of the age from the Guides.

4

What would happen if you had a disk containing Windows, and didn't copy all of it to a new disk, then tried to boot the new drive ?

But it's not a recommended device, 8/64 isn't enough to run OpenWRT.

5

Ok, understand what happens if it fails or stops.
To the Device, it was there, cost nothing and i wanted to try OpenWrt and there was an Image available, i know its old and saw its not recommended.

For me its unclear where the Counter Value comes from and then there is the Example to increase the Value for Larger Images.

So I have watched the Video from the Guide again ( https://io.pinterjann.is/public/openwrt/spw504v/installation.webm ), and in this Video after the Image Upload is finished , he picks the Counter Value from the C## Total Size = 0x00440004 = 4456452Bytes , to see around at 10min 52sec

So if i Upload the latest Image to the Device, i assume to get this Counter Value for the latest Image from there?

6

yes, you can most likely use a dec-2-hex converter to figure it out.

heed the warning in the wiki through, "latest" might not be the best of ideas.

7

Three issue to be aware of:

  • danube gets very, very little testing (it's old - and anyone who could, upgraded to vr9 (which in turn is also getting old) ages ago), so if it actually works is anyone's guess
  • the OEM partitioning is for a/b-dualbooting, with 3840K each - we're long past that being viable (so the full bootloader replacement is necessary)
  • total usable space (after the bootloader replacement) is 7.68 MB, which is veeeeery tight

So this device isn't really representative for running OpenWrt on 'normal' hardware, the flashing is complex (and the descriptions partially outdated, as things changed), the SOC barely tested and not really meeting minimum system requirements. Testing in a VM or from a USB stick on x86_64 (or looking for something nice on the second hand markets) might be less frustrating.

1 Like
8

Thanks for the Answers and Warnings, sounds awful, thought i can play a little around to get some first impressions with OpenWrt and reuse an old Device before its going to the Dumpster.

That the Descriptions are partially outdated, thats true, had adapt some things to get everything working, but learned alot Stuff by the way, so it was not a completly waste of Time.

But why there are new Images for Devices like the 504v, even there is a Warning like the "Major Release 23 is bricking the device", are they automatically generated?
Because the 24.10.4 is the latest right now, isn't it?
Thought OK, the 23 Release is bricking the Device but there is a 24 Release so its fine and counts only for the 23 Release.

Many confusing Stuff.

I am consider what i am doing with the Device and get a capable one to try OpenWrt.

Thanks

9

I'm guessing, everything later than 22 will probably brick it, due to insufficient flash space.

10

The wiki is entirely user contributed, there is no direct hotline to the developers that way (they probably never got to know about the problems). The images are apparently building (I haven't checked if the size constraints are properly declared to make too large builds fail), so they're part of the releases. At the same time it's not at all clear (or known) if 'only' 23.05.x is affected or also 24.10.x/ main-snapshots, few users, even fewer (or no-) developers using this target (it may very well be that the whole target is broken) - even less this particular device.

If 24.10 or main are still affected, one of two things would need to happen:

  • either a mystical 'someone' debugs and fixes the issue and then submits a pull request with the fixes
  • or a mystical 'someone' at least files a bug, stating the bricking and at least some debugging - as I don't expect that many developers being able to help, a patch disabling the image build for the 504v would speed things up (not in the sense of fixing anything, but preventing future known-broken builds).

Again, I don't have the slightest idea if 24.10 or main are problematic (apart from being pretty short on flash space) - and I'm pretty sure that none of the developers have this particular device and probably not even any danube device anymore, they just do their best to keep it building. I would not be surprised at all if AMAZON SE/ DANUBE and maybe even ARX1xx were broken altogether, due to the lack of -vocal- users and because of their age/ limited system specs. Second hand vr9 devices have been really cheap (many decommissioned ISP routers on the used markets) a decade ago already (still usually low-end specs, especially in terms of flash, RAM and wireless), but still a major improvement relative to their predecessors. So anyone who wanted to use an xDSL capable device, probably upgraded to the better options (bthub5a, some of the supported Fritz!Box models - and those who need VDSL today, find a major upgrade in the ipq40xx based Fritz!Box 7520/ 7530 v1) long time ago. Even few of the vr9 devices are worth keeping (wav300 or other bad wireless, low system specs), so most users concentrate on the small set of the better models.

Disclaimer: I had AMAZON ME devices a long time ago (recycled long ago), while I still own several vr9 devices, I no longer actively use them (ftth obsoleted them for me) - and I'm NOT an OpenWrt developer either.

2 Likes
11

Thanks for the detailed response, interesting to read from someone who has experience and insight into the whole.

12

For Testing Purposes i flashed the Speedport like as descripted in the Guide and Updated with a Sysupgrade to 22.03.7 and it worked.
But also ordered a Cudy WR3000S to get a better look into OpenWrt.

13

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