Posts by rkmfl

Poida, thank you.
I had also tested the dummy .ZIP update based on another post in the thread and mine did the same (rebooted and attempted to apply the .ZIP)

Unfortunately that caused a frozen boot. No problem, just one more AmLogic "USB Creation Tool" flash, then on to the next attempt, lol.

I take it by your reply there is no other option, for example, there is no option to flash any LibreELEC builds by the AmLogic flash tool.

Or .. Can the Amlogic Bootcard Maker (which formats an SD as a "bootable" device and is supposed to recover bricked devices) an option? My biggest problem is that I don't have the entire system backup (just recovery.img & btd.img) and the Bootcard Maker requires the full u-boot.bin based on my past attempts.

Ugh .. two days lost to get a $40 box working. How embarrassing!

glenrunciter - this is excellent info, thank you!

Did you also try the S812 MXIII release published in this post, with positive / negative results?

If only I could find any compatible firmware for the CX-S812 (S812-H chip) in .ZIP format, I would use the Amlogic Bootcard Maker to restore from bricked attempts.

Because I've searched dozens of hours and never found anything I can use in conjunction with the Bootcard Maker to create a restore flash, I have never been brave enough to try non-compatible releases as you have done here.

My biggest concern is the WiFi. I'm configuring this for the in-laws (I have also upgraded to s905 boxes myself) and the Kerber version's WiFi is not working good. Are you using a hard-wire LAN or WiFi with that firmware?

Thanks again!

Is there any chance this s812 build would work with the CX-S806 boxes running Amlogic s812 chips?

They're setup as: 2GB RAM, 8GB NAND, 100-Mbps NIC + WiFi is the standard ?6230? (not the Realtek)

Kerber previously had some builds for this box, labeled 806-812, but eventually stopped releasing them.

Thank you in advance!

Thank you both, this is really helpful.

Poida - This box is identical to the Nexbox 95X, and I'm positive it suffers from the same problem. You solution is exactly what I was looking for. The only problem is that I didn't understand what you wrote, lol.

You said you would flash LibreElec to the NAND as your first step. That's what I've been trying to do all along, without luck. I've tried the various options, but none of them have worked. Can you expand just a bit on how you were able to get it to boot into the SD/USB to install LibreElec, without using the reset?

wkchick - I did read about the boot failure being only once, but with everything else I read, I wasn't thinking about it. I wonder how many dozens of attempts where I only tested the first reboot and didn't test it again. Now that you've mentioned that, I will only test 7.0.2.009 from now on, which will save me a lot of time between each test!

Quote from wkchick

One thing I like to mention is which device tree I used for different devices:
Mini MX (1G/8G): gxbb_p200_1G_1Gbit.dtb (sounds strange as specification is 100M only)
Mini MXIII (2G/8G): gxbb_p200_2G_1Gbit_RealtekWiFi.dtb
Mini MXIII II (2G/16G): gxl_p212_2G.dtb

wkchick - Thank you for the reply.
Yes, we're on the same page, I am certain my boxes are standard s905 1g/8g/100-Mbps which can also be confirmed on the PC board markings and the FORESEE NAND. So it is the same as your "Mini MX" as well.

The location of the reset switch definitely is not an issue in my case, it's behind the AV port I'm certain. I can feel the actual click of the switch as I hold it down/release it. Also, upon opening the PC board, I attempted to short the pins to hold it down (just to be sure switches are not defective).

So unfortunately for me, the solution isn't a different location for the switch.

HOWEVER, I have not yet tried the device-tree for the 1-Gig board (being that mine is 100 Mbps). This is a good suggestion, I'll try that as well. Thank you!

Poida - The AV port is the black plastic piece with three metal dots, top-left of the photo. Behind it, you'll notice a small white square. That's the reset switch.

My box claims to be a "Mini MX+" or "T95N" which would technically be an S905X chip. The boot logo is an S905, no mention of the "X". I should have mentioned in the original post that I've tried the dtb.img file for the 905X version as well, dozens of different attempts ... but that did not work either. I was trying to keep the post as straightforward as possible as it was long only with the key points I did included, lol.

For reference, here is a stock photo of my box, which suggests it's an "X" although when I purchased the boxes, they are all listed as S905's (no "X") which matches the boot screen as well.

Here's the sell-sheet / spec page included when I purchased the unit:

If you're interested, I located the original Alibaba link too (bypassing any information that is changed by the American resellers) -- this is my exact box:

Alibaba Mini MX+ s905

mariozo - Thank you for the suggestion.

I apologize, I should have mentioned that I tested this. I've tried past versions, but one of the issues is that @kszac stated that there are issues with the 64-bit builds and we should start with the 32-bit. For that reason I didn't try initially. Later I did try the 7.0.2.009 builds (you mentioned 3.009 but I think you meant 2.009 because 3.009 is not in the FTP). Because they are only published as .img files and not .zip files, I am unable to boot to them (going back to my question on how I can force the box to boot from SD/USB).

bubblegum57 - I did try the Realtek version early-on and I didn't have any luck. However, I've made several changes since then and I don't think I had ever flashed a Realtek .ZIP version. I've tested so many variations, I could be wrong, but I'm going to try that again now and let you know. Thank you!

I'm very shy about posting, always worried I'm going to get slammed for not reading something. For that reason, I always read ... then read again .. and search .. before posting.

In this case, I must be doing something very stupid and I'm missing it. No matter how much I've read, I just can't figure it out.

I apologize in advance if I'm wasting anyone's time with this, but I'm hoping it helps future readers as I've personally spent over 8 hours testing different approaches, without success.

My situation:

• In the past I've run Amlogic s812 boxes using the Amlinux.ru s806-s812 builds. I've installed and updated dozens of times without any issue. In the past, I've done this by booting into recovery using the reset button (or terminal method). Then I manually flash the .ZIP image that I've downloaded from Amlinux.ru. This has always worked on s812 hardware.

• They stopped supporting the s812. Good excuse to upgrade :-). I've purchased several s905 boxes (1GB / 8GB / 100Mbit -- branded "Mini MX" (same hardware as "S95 Pro", Tronsmart MXQ, etc) they boot to an "MBOX" branded Android firmware.

• I discovered @kszac highly rated, custom Amlogic buildtrees and decided to use these the s905 boxes. I thought @kszac's builds would be more customized due to his very well researched buildtrees.
• I've downloaded @kszac's 32 and 64 bit versions to try both, I've downloaded the correct buildtrees (gxbb_p200_1G_100M.dtb as dtb.img) for my boxes, and I've moved the recovery.img over from the original ROM's.

• These s905 boxes do have the reset button behind the AV port. Unfortunately, no amount of pressing that button, no amount of time, will get me into Recovery. I've tested dozens of different methods.

• To enter Recovery, the only thing that has worked so far is issuing a "Reboot Recovery" from a Terminal Emulator

Methods I've used for attempting to enter recovery:

• Hold Reset (on this box it's behind AV port) - tested 50+ different boots, different ROM's, no luck

• Shorting the Reset-switch's pins (in case the switch itself is not triggering properly) - tested a dozen-plus times, no luck

• Use an Andriod Terminal Emulator to Reboot to recovery (or reboot update)- This does boots to the stock-recovery but it will not boot / run the SD version of @kszac's build.

Methods I've attempted to use for install:

• Booting off the SD using Rufus-Built img.gz versions. I cannot get it to run after testing 30+ attempts (32 & 64 bit builds + gxbb_p200_1G_100M.dtb as dtb.img + recovery.img)

• Booting from USB Flash using Rufus-Built img.gz - (same results: cannot get it to boot)

• Booting to a SD prepared with the LibreElec USB Boot Maker, supplying it with @kszac's custom .img.gz - (same results: cannot get it to boot)

• Flashing the .ZIP version directly from recovery (with proper dtb.img and recovery.img in the root). This flashes successfully, but will not boot after flash.

• Using "Backup & Update" app in the Android firmware to specify the .ZIP build

So far, the only working option:
Using terminal emulator to reboot to recovery. Then, flash the .ZIP (because nothing I've tried will allow me to boot to the SD/USB to test without burning a new system image).

The problem is that after booting, the system is simply stuck on the logo image. The only way I can fix this is to flash in AmLogic's "USB Burning Tool" with my original Android firmware. Then try it all over again with a different version.

The only time I ever notice any sort of error, or anything out of the ordinary, is when flashing, I notice that it cannot mount the "/misc" partition to erase it. There is nothing else that indicates anything is wrong.

In summary, I have a couple questions to determine next-steps:

• Is there another way to force this to boot to the SD / USB to run these images without burning the image, considering all the options I've attempted do not work?

• Is there a build I can install using Amlogic's "USB Burning Tool", rather than flashing through Recovery (allow me to test more builds rather than having to re-flash original stock ROM every time)?

I've photographed the PC board for this s905 "Mini MX" 1G / 8G / 100-Mbps (gxbb_p200_1G_100M.dtb) Box: