Installing OpenZaurus on a SL-5000D or a SL-5500

There are a number of steps required to perform a successful installation of OpenZaurus.

  1. Download zImage file. rename it to "zImage"
  2. Download initrd file, rename it to initrd.bin
  3. Place both files on your compactflash card
  4. Flash
  5. Put out any Memory Cards and Reboot, have fun

Note: The new 3.5.1 roms are named differently.

http://openzaurus.org/official/unstable/3.5.1/sl5000,sl5500/

Download either the opie-image, gpe-image or the bootstrap jffs file, and rename it to initrd.bin Use the zImages as explained above.

opie-image contains the QT/Embedded based graphical system, gpe-image contains GNOME Palmtop Edition ( http://gpe.handhelds.org ), the bootstrap file is more for basing distributions upon and contains no graphical system.

Step1. Selecting a zImage file

The zImage file contains the Linux kernel used in OpenZaurus.

There are numerous choices of zImage and initrd files available for OpenZaurus. They will be named as follows:

zImage-[5000d|5500]-Xmemory-Ystorage.bin

Where X is the amount of RAM devoted to system memory, and Y (if applicable) is the amount of RAM devoted to storage space. X+Y should equal 64MB for SL5500 owners and 32MB for SL5000D owners.

Download the zImage from the "download" link to the left at http://www.openzaurus.org/

Step 2. Download the initrd

The initrd.bin contains the basic filesystem structure and default programs for OpenZaurus.

Step 3. Place both files on your compactflash card

You will need a compactflash card with atleast 16MB of space available.

Be sure to rename your:

zImage-[5000d|5500]-Xmemory-Ystorage.bin

to just "zImage" and make sure your initrd is named "initrd.bin". Transfer both files to your compactflash card. If you don't have a compactflash reader, you can copy the files to your Zaurus (via Qtopia Desktop, scp, ftp, or whatever method you use for file transfer) and move them onto the compactflash card.

Make sure your files are in the root directory of your flash card. For example, if you copied the files to your Zaurus they will be in /mnt/cf/Documents/Applications/octet-stream. They should be moved to /mnt/cf (use the file manager for this or use the console).

Step 4. Flash

Flashing is the process of replacing the basic information and programs on the Zaurus with new ones (in this case, the kernel and root filesystem). It will remove all files from your Zaurus except those on SD or CompactFlash. This means programs not installed on SD or CompactFlash will not run after the upgrade.

Note: Do NOT flash your Zaurus with a ext2 formatted CF card. Your CF card MUST be formatted as fat16 (mkfs.vfat -F 16 /dev/hda1). All CF cards come formatted as vfat when you buy them, so unless you have reformatted your CF card, there is nothing to worry about.

  1. Make sure all your data is backed up!
  2. Make sure that the AC adapter is connected to the Zaurus and is plugged in.
  3. Move the switch below the battery compartment to "REPLACE BATTERY." Open the battery compartment lid. Make sure you DO NOT take the battery out.
  4. Hold down the "C" and "D" keys on the Zaurus' keyboard and press the "FULL RESET" button located on the lower-right side of the battery compartment.
  5. Both the power and mail lights on the Zaurus should light up once you let go. If they do not light up, try again - you didn't press the combination correctly. If they light up and then turn off after about a second, the zImage and initrd.bin files were not found. Make sure your card is formatted with vfat and the files are in the root of the flash card (not in any subdirectories).
  6. Do not touch anything when the Zaurus is flashing! Do not unplug the power. The flash should take between 3 and 12 minutes for a standard CF card, longer if flashing from a microdrive.
  7. After the green LED goes out, push the "FULL RESET" button in the lower-right side of the battery compartment.
  8. Replace the battery compartment lid and slide the battery replacement switch to "NORMAL OPERATION."
  9. Turn on the Zaurus.

Booting up OpenZaurus for the first time may take a while. So please be patient.