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157 lines
5.2 KiB
Markdown
157 lines
5.2 KiB
Markdown
---
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title: Linksys NSLU2
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layout: default
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created: 2009-08-10 01:41:46 +0200
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updated: 2009-12-06 14:01:10 +0100
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toc: true
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tags:
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- know-how
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- hacking
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- hardware
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- linksys
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- nas
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- storage
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---
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**NSLU2** means *Network Storage Link for USB 2.0 Disk Drives*. Also see [here](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NSLU2).
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Custom firmwares
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================
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The NSLU2 supports different firmwares. The original one is rather outdated. The most used firmwares are:
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* *Unslung* --- an add-on to the original firmware, keeping the web-interface and all standard features
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* *SlugOS/BE* --- a firmware optimized for small devices; using `opkg` and `ipkg` you can install various applications/services
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* *Debian/NSLU2* --- a stripped down Debian linux with all things you know from Debian, but packages are not optimized for small memory devices
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SlugOS/BE
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---------
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### Bad network performance
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My network consists of a WLAN repeater which bridges the network of my neighbor with mine. Access to the Internet is provided
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by a gateway in my neighbor's network. The NSLU2 device has severe problems downloading files from the Internet. All downloads
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stall after a few bytes. Some tests showed that my side of the network works fine but everything behind the WLAN bridge is
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almost unreachable from the NSLU2. All other devices in my network can use the Internet fine.
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My current solution is using [tcpwatch-httpproxy](apt://tcpwatch-httpproxy) on my Desktop-PC and a file `~/.wgetrc` on my NSLU2
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with the contents:
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timeout = 10
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http_proxy = <my IP>:8080
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Debian/NSLU2
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------------
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### Power button for shutdown instead of reboot
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To make pushing the power button shut down the Slug instead of rebooting it, edit the file `/etc/inittab` and replace the
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line
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ca:12345:ctrlaltdel:/sbin/shutdown -t1 -a -r now
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by
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ca:12345:ctrlaltdel:/sbin/shutdown -t1 -a -h now
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Afterwards do a
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telinit q
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### Free memory
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Since ARM packages from Debian are not optimized for small memory footprint, you might want to free up some memory by
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deactivating several services which are not needed.
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#### bash
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To save even more memory, you could replace `bash` by `dash` in your `/etc/passwd` file.
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#### exim4
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Exim4 is a complete mail exchanger. Most people will only need a simple MTA to send some logs to the admin. So
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remove `exim4` and use `ssmtp` instead.
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#### getty
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If you don't have/use the serial console on the NSLU2, you should disable `getty`. Edit the file `/etc/inittab` and
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comment out the following line:
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#T0:23:respawn:/sbin/getty -L ttyS0 115200 linux
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Afterwards do a
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telinit q
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#### ipv6
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If you don't use IPv6, you should blacklist the kernel module to save some more RAM. Add the following line
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to `/etc/modprobe.d/blacklist`:
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blacklist ipv6
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#### sshd
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If you don't use *sshfs* or some other special features of *OpenSSH*, you could replace it by `dropbear`.
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### Emergency firmware
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If your DebianSlug doesn't boot and the root disk is perfectly clean, you might have a firmware problem. To create
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a working firmware, you'll need the files `vmlinuz-2.6.30-2-ixp4xx`, `initrd.img-2.6.30-2-ixp4xx`[^1] and the [di-nslu2.bin](http://www.slug-firmware.net/d-dls.php) (the DebianSlug installer image).
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1. make sure you have installed the packages [slugimage](apt://slugimage) and [devio](apt://devio)
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1. copy the `di-nslu2.bin` to an empty directory and run this:
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slugimage -u -i di-nslu2.bin
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1. now copy the two other files also in that directory
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1. prepare the kernel image: (This will pad the file to 1441760 Bytes and then switch the [Endianess](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Endianess) of the file.)
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dd if=vmlinuz-2.6.30-2-ixp4xx of=vmlinuz-2.6.30-2-ixp4xx.padded ibs=1441760 conv=sync
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devio "<<"vmlinuz-2.6.30-2-ixp4xx.padded > vmlinuz-2.6.30-2-ixp4xx.swapped "xp $,4"
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1. prepare the initrd image:
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dd if=initrd.img-2.6.30-2-ixp4xx of=initrd.img-2.6.30-2-ixp4xx.padded ibs=6291440 conv=sync
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devio "<<"initrd.img-2.6.30-2-ixp4xx.padded > initrd.img-2.6.30-2-ixp4xx.swapped "xp $,4"
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1. now compile the new firmware image:
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slugimage -p -b RedBoot -s SysConf -L apex.bin -k vmlinuz-2.6.30-2-ixp4xx.swapped -r initrd.img-2.6.30-2-ixp4xx.swapped -t Trailer -o debianslug.bin
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Finally you only have to burn the new image to the NSLU2 using [upslug2](apt://upslug2):
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upslug2 -i debianslug.bin
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If you want to make changes to the `initrd`, take a look at [cyrius.com](http://www.cyrius.com/debian/nslu2/repack.html).
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**UPDATE:** Here is a little script which does the above in a more comfortable way. Just throw it into the directory
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together with the `di-nslu2.bin`, the `initrd.img-2.xxx` and `vmlinuz-2.xxx`. Download: [emergencyfw.sh]({{ site.url }}/assets/emergencyfw.sh)
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### Tools
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#### iStat Server
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[iStat](http://bjango.com/apps/istat/) is an app for the *iPhone* to show performance statistics of different machines.
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I compiled their [iStat Server](http://code.google.com/p/istatd/) on my Slug and made a little DEB package.
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Download: [istatd_0.5.4_armel.deb]({{ site.url }}/assets/istatd_0.5.4_armel.deb)
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[^1]: both found in `/boot` on the root partition of the NSLU2-disk
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