Linux Docs, Hints, Tips, Tricks and Hacks

[knaar]

Heyo Linux Gurus and Newbies!

Since documentation is very widely spread out, I though I would start a thread to encapsulate any and all information for Linux on the Toshiba e740, e750 and e755 Pocket PCs. But first, let's list some rules:

DO NOT POST PROBLEMS, COMPLAINTS, QUESTIONS ETC IN THIS THREAD -- DOCS, HINTS, TIPS, GUIDES, TUTORIALS, HACKS, NOTES, INFORMATION, ETC. ONLY!!!! POSTERS PROBABLY WON'T LIKE PMS OR EMAILS FOR HELP. PLEASE USE OTHER THREADS FOR HELP!!!

Next, there is NO WARANTEE, NO GAURANTEE, and NO PROMISE that this information will not harm you, your Pocket PC, or your data. Always back up your data to some form of removeable media and remove it from your Pocket PC, or transfer your data to a computer, before trying anything to do with your Pocket PC. Most of the information below won't damage your pocket PC, but if damage occurs, we are in no way responsible for it! USE AT OWN RISK!

That should be about it, PLEASE READ THE ABOVE FIRST BEFORE READING FURTHER!

[knaar]

Heyo Folks!

Okay, here's the "Telnet Method." This will erase all programs and information stored on your e740, e750 or e755. There is no way to make the PDA "sleep" once linux starts, and when you manually cut the power to your device or reset it, windows will start up just like it did when you first bought it, but WITHOUT YOUR DATA! So back it up!

This does not modify the bootloader in any way, and so, in theory, this is SAFE, meaning if your PDA stops working it is probably your fault, or some fluke.

What you need:

-> pdadist.tar.bz2 from http://www.asinkecualo.org/e740/pdadist.tar.bz2
-> zImage_pcmcia from http://www.mnementh.co.uk/e740/zImage_pcmcia
-> linexec.exe from http://www.asinkecualo.org/e740/linexec.exe
-> a e740, e750 or e755 (duh )
-> a desktop PC running LINUX (will NOT work from windows).

What you do:

1. extract the files from pdadist.tar.bz2 using something like this:
# tar xfvj pdadist.tar.bz2

2. change into the pdadist directory like so:
# cd pdadist

3. delete the zImage file
# rm zImage
then move the zImage_pcmcia into this directory and rename it to zImage:
# mv ../zImage_pcmcia ./zImage

4. if (and only if) the PDA you are trying linux on is a e750 or e755, delete the params file and rename the params-750 file to params:
# rm params
# mv params-e750 params

If you do not have a CF card and must use an SD card, then you will actually have to write your own params file, so do the following:
# emacs params &
Then make sure there is no text (erase it all if there is text) then cut and paste the following into it:

----------start---------
\My Documents\zImage
\My Documents\initrd
console=tty0 keepinitrd console=tty0 root=/dev/ram0 init=/boot.sh
-----------end---------

without the start and end markers.

5. okay, here's the tricky part, you need either a card reader, or some method to move files onto your PDA's CF card, or SD card. You need to move the params file, the zImage file, the linexec.exe file and the initrd file onto the PDA. I have a card reader and a CF card, so this is what I did:
# mount -t auto /dev/sda1 /mnt/image/
# cp params /mnt/image/
# cp initrd /mnt/image/
# cp ../linexec.exe /mnt/image/
# cp zImage /mnt/image/
# umount /mnt/image

There are many other methods of getting files onto your PDA from a linux (or windows) box. Perhaps people can post other methods to do this. Make sure the files are stored on a SD or CF card.

6. Make sure the card is inserted into the PDA and/or the files are on it. Now, HARD RESET the device by turning the battery switch on the bottom to the right, wait a few seconds, then back to the left. I think holding power while pressing the reset switch with the stylus does the same thing.

7. Re-initialize windows on the PDA then use File Explorer to find the files on the card you used. Copy the params file into /My Documents/. If you are using an SD card, you will need to move the linexec.exe, initrd and zImage files into /My Documents/ also.

8. Now, SOFT RESET the PDA by pressing the reset switch with the stylus.

9. When windows comes back up, use File Explorer to find linexec.exe (either on the card if you're using CF or in /My Documents/ if you are using SD). Click on it. After a few seconds linux should start spewing text to the screen.

10. When it stops, you should have something saying something about USBNET being up.

11. on you linux box, make sure the PDA is connected via USB, then type the following:
# modprobe usbnet
# ifconfig usb0 10.0.0.1 netmask 255.255.255.0 up
# telnet -e~ 10.0.0.1
Now, you should be logged into the shell on your PDA! Congrads! I included the -e~ option for telnet so that you can type the ~ caracter to get into the telnet prompt should the PDA hang, or you disconnect it before typing exit at the prompt (typing close after typing ~ should exit out of telnet).

12. in the pdadist folder there was a insns file that you may now read. It includes a series of commands required to start GPE on your PDA. The ssh command needs to be modified for your user information, as well as the location of gpe2.tar.gz which was in your pdadist folder. Hopefully you get GPE up and running. The stylus input is rather sticky and I found the calibration to be odd at best. It is by no means easily used yet.

[knaar]

Heyo Folks,

All right, here is the CF method. This is the only method that currently works for people whom do not have access to a linux box, so I'll write all instructions as if you're using a windows 9x/Me/XP machine. Linux users will have to do some interpretation. Note that this method DOES NOT work for me, as pcmcia seems to have a lot of problems finding my CF card for some strange reason. If you end up having the same result with the message "Cannot find gpe.tar.gz!" and a lot of "hda: interrupt lost" messages, then methinks you need to try the telnet method.

Note that this method will not work for a SD Card, no ifs, ands, or buts. There is no linux driver for SD Cards, and not even for MMC cards yet. This ONLY works for CF (Compact Flash) cards.

Also note that this will erase all programs, and information from your Pocket PC's memory, it will be like it was when you bought it. Back up your data first!

What you need:

-> pdadist.tar.bz2 from http://www.asinkecualo.org/e740/pdadist.tar.bz2
-> zImage_pcmcia from http://www.mnementh.co.uk/e740/zImage_pcmcia
-> linexec.exe from http://www.asinkecualo.org/e740/linexec.exe
-> update.exe from http://vexen.ig3.net/pda/update.exe
-> a e740, e750 or e755 (duh )
-> a desktop PC running windows (any version), linux, or have some way of moving files onto a CF card

What to do:

1. extract the files from pdadist.tar.bz2 using WinZip, WinRAR, WinAce, or some extration program that will work on .tar.bz2 files.

2. if (and only if) you have a e750 or e755, then delete the params file, and rename params-750 to params.

3. delete the zImage file and rename the zImage_pcmcia to zImage.

4. you need to apply update.exe to initrd -- you might be able to do this by dragging initrd onto the icon of update.exe and dropping it. If this doesn't work, and you're familiar with the command prompt, then navigate to the folder and type:
> update.exe initrd
If you aren't familiar with the command prompt, you can try making a shortcut with the command line "update.exe initrd". If that still doesn't work, well, maybe someone will help you in another thread.

5. You need to put the zImage, initrd, params and linexec.exe files onto the CF card. Then make a folder on the CF card called linux and put the gpe2.tar.gz file in it (do NOT extract the file). You could do this with a CF card reader, or using active sync.

6. With the CF card in the PDA, you need to perform a HARD RESET -- this is done by flicking the battery switch on the bottom to the right, wait a few seconds, then back to the left. This might also be possible by holding the power button while pressing the reset button with the stylus.

7. Now, on the PDA, use File Explorer to navigate to the CF card, copy the params file by tap-and-hold, then tapping copy. Then navigate to My Documents and paste it there.

8. SOFT RESET the device by using the stylus to press the reset button.

9. Use File Explorer to navigate to the CF card, then click on linexec.exe, in a few seconds linux should start booting up.

Hopefully you eventually get to a GPE desktop. If it fails with the message "cannot find gpe.tar.gz!" or "hda: lost interrupt" then you might be doing something wrong. If you get this message and manage to get it to work, post how you did it in this thread please.

[knaar]

Heyo Folks,

Since I had to modify the initrd in order to get the telnet method to work (since 10.0.0.2 is not a good IP for my PDA to have), I thought I'd post how to do it here. This is only for advanced linux people who have some kind of clue what they are doing. I got this info from the kernel documentation in initrd.txt if you wanna talk to the horse's mouth.

1. you need the pdadist.tar.gz's initrd, since it contains everything needed to boot up linux. You also need a free loopback device for mounting files.

2. first, mount the old initrd, I used /mnt/image, feel free to use whatever you're used to:
# mount -t auto -o loop initrd /mnt/image

3. then you neet to copy all the files from the old initrd:
# mkdir /tmp/pda_initrd
# cp -R /mnt/image/* /tmp/pda_initrd

4. and unmount it
# umount /mnt/image

5. you need to create a file big enough to fit the contents of the old initrd, plus the modifications you make. 7 megs worked out fine for me, I don't suggest too much larger than that if you're going to try to start GPE. If you aren't starting GPE, then the limit is around 32 megs.
# mkdir myinitrd
# cd myinitrd
# dd if=/dev/zero of=initrd bs=7168k count=1

6. Now you need to format it with ext2:
# mke2fs -F -m0 initrd

7. Mount it:
# mount -t auto -o loop initrd /mnt/image

8. And copy all the junk needed from the old initrd:
# cp -R /tmp/pda_initrd/* /mnt/image/

9. Now modify it!... when you're done, unmount it. boot.sh in the root (/mnt/image/) has all the commands that boots up linux. In there is the command to turn on usbnet which I changed to a different IP. There's lots of other things you can do, like loading on linux executables, etc. You could probably even move GPE onto it. Have fun and unmount it when you're done. Then follow the method in previous posts to try it out!

[knaar]

Heyo Folks,

If you get linux running with telnet, there's a way to dump the contents of the screen to the telnet window for easy cut-and-pastage. From the telnet command prompt, type the following:

# cat /dev/vcc/0

The linefeeds are actually enough spaces to make the line spill onto the next for the pda screen, so you'll have to fix it to make it look like it does on the pda, but it'll save you a ton of typing if you want to report bugs. Again, do not post bugs in this thread!

[knaar]

BTW, posting errors or corrections to information in this thread counts as information and is encouraged. If you see a mistake, let me know!