Making a custom SD image of BBB's eMMC

I’d like to help a fellow BBB user by sending him a disk image of my working BBB configuration for him to install on his own BBB.

However, I’m not sure how to copy my BBB’s eMMC. I was hoping that it would be as simple as using dd to copy my BBB’s entire 2GB eMMC into some .img.xz file. But then I found this article:

http://blog.logikonlabs.com/how-to-create-a-custom-microsd-card-image-for-the-beaglebone-black/

It’s a long procedure. Is this the correct method for creating an image of an entire BBB configuration, suitable for copying to another BBB?

Thanks,
Justin

There is a much easier way if you are running the Debian image from BB.org there is a script that is already on your bone. Steps are as follows:

  • Boot master BBB with no SD card in

  • Insert SD card

  • Log in (e.g. with serial terminal, SSH etc.) and run sudo /opt/scripts/tools/eMMC/beaglebone-black-make-microSD-flasher-from-eMMC.sh (you may have to cd /opt/scripts and git pull before this.) LEDs will flash in sequence whilst SD card is being written.

  • When the LEDs stop and the script terminates, remove the SD card.

  • Insert SD card into new BBB then power on.

  • eMMC will be flashed; LEDs on new BBB will flash in sequence until complete.

   - Boot master BBB with no SD card in
   - Insert SD card
   - Log in (e.g. with serial terminal, SSH etc.) and run sudo
   /opt/scripts/tools/eMMC/beaglebone-black-make-microSD-flasher-from-eMMC.sh
   (you may have to cd /opt/scripts and git pull before this.) LEDs will flash
   in sequence whilst SD card is being written.
   - When the LEDs stop and the script terminates, remove the SD card.
   - Insert SD card into new BBB then power on.
   - eMMC will be flashed; LEDs on new BBB will flash in sequence until
   complete.

This sounds like what I'm looking for, thanks.

Follow-up: Is there an easy way to modify this procedure so the new BBB
simply boots from the SD card instead of wiping out its eMMC with the image
on the SD card?

Thanks,
Justin

downloading and writing a flasher image to the sdcard.

For example here you will notice two different H tags for two of the same type of image:

http://elinux.org/Beagleboard:BeagleBoneBlack_Debian#Jessie_Snapshot_iot

Jessie Snapshot iot#### Flasher: (iot) (All BeagleBone Variants)

Get prebuilt image:

wget [https://rcn-ee.com/rootfs/bb.org/testing/2017-02-12/iot/BBB-blank-debian-8.7-iot-armhf-2017-02-12-4gb.img.xz](https://rcn-ee.com/rootfs/bb.org/testing/2017-02-12/iot/BBB-blank-debian-8.7-iot-armhf-2017-02-12-4gb.img.xz)

Versus:

microSD/Standalone: (iot) (All BeagleBone Variants)

Get prebuilt image:

wget [https://rcn-ee.com/rootfs/bb.org/testing/2017-02-12/iot/bone-debian-8.7-iot-armhf-2017-02-12-4gb.img.xz](https://rcn-ee.com/rootfs/bb.org/testing/2017-02-12/iot/bone-debian-8.7-iot-armhf-2017-02-12-4gb.img.xz)

Read the “bolded” (H tag ) description. The first is a flasher image, the second is a standalone image. This is of course just an example, you may,or may not want an IoT type image. There are also “lxqt”, and “console” type images.

Mount the SD with the resulting copy of your eMMC, then edit the file /boot/uEnv.txt

If the following line is commented, the SD card will NOT autoflash:
#cmdline=init=/opt/scripts/tools/eMMC/init-eMMC-flasher-v3.sh

Uncomment the line and it will auto-flash on boot time.

Daniel

El divendres, 10 març de 2017 18:24:18 UTC+1, Justin Pearson va escriure:

Thank you Daniel!
-Jusitn

This doesn’t seem to work for me. Setup:

  • Beaglebone black (Element14 “industrial” version… really really similar)
  • Debian 7.9 with the kernel upgrade to 3.8.13-bone84
  • SanDick 8 GB microSD card FAT32 formatted from Win32DiskImager (running on Win10-64)

With the same hardware, debian distro, and microSD card I’m usually able to load debian from the microSD or flash from the microSD using a flasher image.

When I try running beaglebone-black-make-microSD-flasher-from-eMMC.sh the script appears to run, but the resulting microSD card fails in these two ways:

  • Windows doesn’t recognize any data in the “Beaglebone” volume, but does recognize the volume
  • Nothing I try will make the flash image write to a different, identical beaglebone
    Thoughts? Thanks!

what shows up on the serial port when you try running with that newly
created microSD card..

Regards,

Failed flash attempt NOT pressing S2 2018-06-11.txt (3.54 KB)

Failed flash attempt pressing S2 2018-06-11.txt (3.54 KB)

from:

/bin/sh: can't access tty; job control turned off
(initramfs)

Run:

dmesg | grep mmc

but your running 3.8.13-bone79 so i'm pretty sure we know the result of ^...

Regards,

Okay, thanks.