Debian on H2O Aura tutorial

nohandlebars · 04-29-2018, 05:35 PM

I have been working on a Debian chroot with working x-server and am publishing my build scripts here, I see many people asking about this from time to time and while the forums are a great resource they are difficult to search sometimes and the information is often outdated and way beyond most people to apply let alone reverse engineer. To this end I am starting this thread. I am not by any means a programmer and Linux is more of a hobby for me than anything else, I will help where I can but understand that I will probably be using google just as much as you so try and solve as many issues as you can on your own first!

I would like it noted that nearly none of this is my own original work, it has been sourced and repackaged from other mobileread gurus of old. Marek, Ah-, Guang, Snowbody all come to mind, most of the credit goes to them.

Goals
To create and maintain a universal set of scripts to build a Debian chroot with working x-server on as many Kobo models as possible. I will be updating these scripts as and when I can, adding more features, compatibility and fun things (Doom anyone?

)

Known issues
1) This has only been tested on my device, Aura H2O 1st Gen. I have had two people try with on the Glo HD, the chroot works fine from the command line but the binary used to update the e-ink screen does not play nicely with that specific resolution. I am quite certain this can be fixed by editing the source codes in the fb_update folder. Apparently it is something to do with the resolution of the Glo HD not being devisable by 16 or something to that effect.

2) I could not get the standard Linux touch driver to work, it does not end the first touch correctly and while I have a vague idea of where the problem may lie I have not been able to fix it. It currently uses the custom touch driver written by Marek which is fine but if we want multitouch and gestures we either need to get this driver to work with touchegg or fix the standard Linux driver.

3) I started playing around with trying to get this to run from the KSM menu and return there after the chroot is terminated, at the moment I have achieved neither, I have not had the time to pry too deep into this.

For the moment this creates a very bare-bones installation, it is primarily for testing at the moment but the source codes are there and you can add anything you want really. I have been focusing more on actually getting it to work than aesthetics or actual, you know, usability.

What you will need
1) Debian Linux or one of it’s derivatives, Ubuntu or Mint for example. Windows users will need to use either a Live CD or Virtualbox.

2) KSM with telnet or SSH installed on your Kobo.

Instructions
Download the tarball on the link below

Code:

https://mega.nz/#!56xHVRhT!huwDBCAPFfiKr2QFnrTg6sshbeFjqldFuRFxI2tnBx4

Open a terminal and move to the directory where you downloaded the tarball (assuming ~/Downloads)

Code:

cd ~/Downloads

Unzip the tarball

Code:

tar -xvf build_kobo_chroot_vX.X.tar.xz

Move into the directory

Code:

cd build_kobo_chroot_vX.X

If you are using a device with a different resolution

Code:

nano source/fb_update/fast_update.c

Edit the lines

Code:

region.update_region.width = 1430;
region.update_region.height = 1080;

Press cntrl+o to save and then cntrl+x to exit

Code:

nano home/Xvkbd

Edit the line

Code:

xvkbd.windowGeometry: 1080x400+0+998

The 1080 represents the width of the keyboard, the 400 the height and the 998 is it’s y coordinate on the screen, change according to resolution width and preference. Press cntrl+o to save and cntrl+x.

Run image_create_base.sh as super user

Code:

sudo sh image_create_base.sh

You will now be prompted to enter a few details for your base image, the entries below should be fine.

Code:

Set image size in MB: 1000
Set filesystem type: ext3
Set target architecture: armhf
Set Debian release: jessie

This will take a while, go get a coffee or a beer.

Assuming nothing catastrophic happened you should now have a file named armhf_debian_jessie_base.ext3, this is your base image and will be used for all your beautiful creations in the future.

Next we run the script that makes it usable on the Kobo

Code:

sudo sh image_build_system.sh

Again you will be prompted for information on your desired image.

Code:

Set new image name: Whatever your little heart desires.
Set new image size in MB: I wouldn’t go lower than 1500MB, it has to fit on your device though.
Set new image filesystem: ext3
Set user name: Whatever you want
Set user password: Again, whatever you want, just don’t forget it

Time for another coffee or beer. .

Once this is all done you will be left with a folder with the name given above, it contains the image file and all scripts you may need. Copy this onto your devices storage.

Once in KSM move to the "USB" submenu, telnet onto your Kobo from your computer.

Code:

telnet 192.168.2.101

Move into the correct directory.

Code:

cd /mnt/onboard/chrootdirectory

Run the launch_chroot.sh script.

Code:

sh launch_chroot.sh

Once you see the line "starting framebuffer update script" press the "Return" button in KSM, you should see the screen go black, give it a few seconds and it should all be up and running!

Here is a (pretty badly done) video of how to get the framebuffer script to start from within KSM

Code:

https://mega.nz/#!xnxSDahL!9IXTfsOwYzWDNSP1oK0JTjTedyWQTBPVBufDTWn8YQc

I will be uploading some pictures a bit later

Happy hacking!

NH

Elaxon · 04-30-2018, 09:39 PM

Is this permanent or can I decide to revert to KSM whenever?

Does not seem to be working for me H20 Aura

mkdir: can't create directory '/mnt/kobo': File exists
mounting /mnt/onboard/kobo/kobo.ext3 to /mnt/kobo
mounting auxilliaries
bind mounting /dev
bind mounting /dev/pts
bind mounting /proc
bind mounting /sys
copying /etc/ files
killing ksmhome.sh
starting framebuffer update script
starting chroot as elaxon
sudo: unable to resolve host (none)
elaxon@(none):/$ starting xwindow server
hostname: Name or service not known
xauth: (stdin):1: bad display name "(none):1" in "add" command

libudev: udev_has_devtmpfs: name_to_handle_at on /dev: Function not implemented

X.Org X Server 1.16.4
Release Date: 2014-12-20
X Protocol Version 11, Revision 0
Build Operating System: Linux 4.9.0-4-armmp-lpae armv7l Debian
Current Operating System: Linux (none) 2.6.35.3-850-gbc67621+ #3032 PREEMPT Mon Jan 9 13:37:40 CST 2017 armv7l
Kernel command line: console=ttymxc0,115200 rootwait rw quiet lpj=4997120 root=/dev/mmcblk0p1 rootfstype=ext4 hwcfg_p=0x8ffffe00 hwcfg_sz=110 waveform_p=0x8f98b800 waveform_sz=6768096 mem=505M boot_port=2 mx50_1GHz
Build Date: 16 October 2017 09:26:27AM
xorg-server 2:1.16.4-1+deb8u2 (http://www.debian.org/support)
Current version of pixman: 0.32.6
Before reporting problems, check http://wiki.x.org
to make sure that you have the latest version.
Markers: (--) probed, (**) from config file, (==) default setting,
(++) from command line, (!!) notice, (II) informational,
(WW) warning, (EE) error, (NI) not implemented, (??) unknown.
(==) Log file: "/var/log/Xorg.1.log", Time: Tue May 1 03:00:08 2018
(==) Using config file: "/etc/X11/xorg.conf"
(==) Using system config directory "/usr/share/X11/xorg.conf.d"
exporting environment variables
fixing coordinate tranformation matrix
Unable to connect to X server

nohandlebars · 05-02-2018, 02:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Elaxon

Is this permanent or can I decide to revert to KSM whenever?

Does not seem to be working for me H20 Aura

mkdir: can't create directory '/mnt/kobo': File exists
mounting /mnt/onboard/kobo/kobo.ext3 to /mnt/kobo
mounting auxilliaries
bind mounting /dev
bind mounting /dev/pts
bind mounting /proc
bind mounting /sys
copying /etc/ files
killing ksmhome.sh
starting framebuffer update script
starting chroot as elaxon
sudo: unable to resolve host (none)
elaxon@(none):/$ starting xwindow server
hostname: Name or service not known
xauth: (stdin):1: bad display name "(none):1" in "add" command

libudev: udev_has_devtmpfs: name_to_handle_at on /dev: Function not implemented

X.Org X Server 1.16.4
Release Date: 2014-12-20
X Protocol Version 11, Revision 0
Build Operating System: Linux 4.9.0-4-armmp-lpae armv7l Debian
Current Operating System: Linux (none) 2.6.35.3-850-gbc67621+ #3032 PREEMPT Mon Jan 9 13:37:40 CST 2017 armv7l
Kernel command line: console=ttymxc0,115200 rootwait rw quiet lpj=4997120 root=/dev/mmcblk0p1 rootfstype=ext4 hwcfg_p=0x8ffffe00 hwcfg_sz=110 waveform_p=0x8f98b800 waveform_sz=6768096 mem=505M boot_port=2 mx50_1GHz
Build Date: 16 October 2017 09:26:27AM
xorg-server 2:1.16.4-1+deb8u2 (http://www.debian.org/support)
Current version of pixman: 0.32.6
Before reporting problems, check http://wiki.x.org
to make sure that you have the latest version.
Markers: (--) probed, (**) from config file, (==) default setting,
(++) from command line, (!!) notice, (II) informational,
(WW) warning, (EE) error, (NI) not implemented, (??) unknown.
(==) Log file: "/var/log/Xorg.1.log", Time: Tue May 1 03:00:08 2018
(==) Using config file: "/etc/X11/xorg.conf"
(==) Using system config directory "/usr/share/X11/xorg.conf.d"
exporting environment variables
fixing coordinate tranformation matrix
Unable to connect to X server

This is no way permanent, you can simply delete the files whenever you want. You do have to restart your device to get back into KSM though, see number 3 in the Goals section. Are you using an H2O Aura first gen or the 2017 model? There is nothing in your output that suggests it is not working, all those errors are quite normal except the last one but that wouldn't affect the actual xserver from loading, it just means the transformation matrix can't be updated. If you want to fix that error message you can uncomment the following lines in the startx.sh script in the home directory of the chroot.

Code:

#printf "checking which display x is running on\n"
#CURDIS=$(ps -u $(id -u) -o pid= | \
#    while read pid; do
#        cat /proc/$pid/environ 2>/dev/null | tr '\0' '\n' | grep '^DISPLAY=:'
#    done | grep -o ':[0-9]*' | sort -u)
#printf "$CURDIS \n"
printf "exporting environment variables\n"
#export DISPLAY=$CURDIS

And comment the following line

Code:

export DISPLAY=:0

I was using this to get the correct value for the DISPLAY environment variable but it doesn't always work for some reason, the error you are seeing is because I am telling it explicitly that it should be 0 which it usually is but it is not always the case. I will find an elegant solution to this in the future.

I have uploaded a video and linked to it in the first post to see how to get the framebuffer script working from KSM, it is a bit fiddly but basically as long as you press "Return" right after the framebuffer update script starts it should always work.

tshering · 05-02-2018, 03:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nohandlebars

I have uploaded a video and linked to it in the first post to see how to get the framebuffer script working from KSM, it is a bit fiddly but basically as long as you press "Return" right after the framebuffer update script starts it should always work.

Very nice! Could you please explain the reason going into the usb menu and having the Qt application kobomenu run, and only after killing ksmhome.sh and running the frame buffer update script closing the kobomenu application? From your PM I take that it is somehow related to the frame buffer update, but I do not get the point.

Elaxon · 05-02-2018, 05:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tshering

Very nice! Could you please explain the reason going into the usb menu and having the Qt application kobomenu run, and only after killing ksmhome.sh and running the frame buffer update script closing the kobomenu application? From your PM I take that it is somehow related to the frame buffer update, but I do not get the point.

Thank you, I see the video helped me. Yes I am using H20 old model V1 and it does work. I was using telnet through wifi but seems to be no issues with that.

I can see the terminal and the keyboard now like your video. Thanks!

nohandlebars · 05-03-2018, 02:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tshering

Very nice! Could you please explain the reason going into the usb menu and having the Qt application kobomenu run, and only after killing ksmhome.sh and running the frame buffer update script closing the kobomenu application? From your PM I take that it is somehow related to the frame buffer update, but I do not get the point.

There is no particular reason other than this is the method that works reliably, it seems that it is necessary to be in the USB submenu and press "Return" otherwise the framebuffer update script does not draw over KSM. I am not entirely sure why this is the case. I have been looking into the method you outlined in your PM and I think it should be the way to do it but I have not succeeded yet.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Elaxon

Thank you, I see the video helped me. Yes I am using H20 old model V1 and it does work. I was using telnet through wifi but seems to be no issues with that.

I can see the terminal and the keyboard now like your video. Thanks!

No problem! I am glad it worked! Thanks for testing

I will be working on getting it a little less fiddly in the future

markyisri · 05-05-2018, 09:32 AM

Can this work on an Aura Edition 2 or will it need changes?

nohandlebars · 05-07-2018, 12:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by markyisri

Can this work on an Aura Edition 2 or will it need changes?

Only one way to find out

it's not permenant and its not particularly risky, try it and tell us what happens. Will do what I can to troubleshoot.

Quoth · 05-10-2018, 11:45 AM

Sounds interesting.
TBH, "multitouch" is a a bit over-rated, very HW dependant and can be less intuitive. If basic single touch is good, then that would be fine.

I had to look up "KSM". Here is a thread on KSM 9

I think I'd want a 2nd working H2O, as I use my H2O too much to read stuff and proof my own writing.

markyisri · 05-13-2018, 10:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nohandlebars

Only one way to find out

it's not permenant and its not particularly risky, try it and tell us what happens. Will do what I can to troubleshoot.

I will give this a try. How much source code is being compiled, and do your scripts require the machine they're on to be online?

nohandlebars · 05-13-2018, 04:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FrustratedReader

Sounds interesting.
TBH, "multitouch" is a a bit over-rated, very HW dependant and can be less intuitive. If basic single touch is good, then that would be fine.

I had to look up "KSM". Here is a thread on KSM 9

I think I'd want a 2nd working H2O, as I use my H2O too much to read stuff and proof my own writing.

I more want the mutitouch for right click functionality but this can probably be achieved with a long press somehow. I use my device as a reader on a daily basis still, the Debian system is not running all the time and all you have to do is restart it to get back to your "normal" ereader

Quote:

Originally Posted by markyisri

I will give this a try. How much source code is being compiled, and do your scripts require the machine they're on to be online?

There isn't much to actually compile, just the framebuffer update binary and the custom touch driver. You can see this all in the "source" directory. Your Kobo does not need to be online to run the scripts, you do need internet to build them though.

chech · 10-24-2018, 08:51 AM

hello i want install debian on h20 but your mega link talk me bad encription keys it is possible to have a good link thinks a lot

zaoqi · 11-23-2018, 07:54 AM

Can it work without computer?

04-29-2018, 05:35 PM	#1
nohandlebars Member Posts: 16 Karma: 14242 Join Date: Jan 2018 Device: None	Debian on H2O Aura tutorial I have been working on a Debian chroot with working x-server and am publishing my build scripts here, I see many people asking about this from time to time and while the forums are a great resource they are difficult to search sometimes and the information is often outdated and way beyond most people to apply let alone reverse engineer. To this end I am starting this thread. I am not by any means a programmer and Linux is more of a hobby for me than anything else, I will help where I can but understand that I will probably be using google just as much as you so try and solve as many issues as you can on your own first! I would like it noted that nearly none of this is my own original work, it has been sourced and repackaged from other mobileread gurus of old. Marek, Ah-, Guang, Snowbody all come to mind, most of the credit goes to them. Goals To create and maintain a universal set of scripts to build a Debian chroot with working x-server on as many Kobo models as possible. I will be updating these scripts as and when I can, adding more features, compatibility and fun things (Doom anyone? ) Known issues 1) This has only been tested on my device, Aura H2O 1st Gen. I have had two people try with on the Glo HD, the chroot works fine from the command line but the binary used to update the e-ink screen does not play nicely with that specific resolution. I am quite certain this can be fixed by editing the source codes in the fb_update folder. Apparently it is something to do with the resolution of the Glo HD not being devisable by 16 or something to that effect. 2) I could not get the standard Linux touch driver to work, it does not end the first touch correctly and while I have a vague idea of where the problem may lie I have not been able to fix it. It currently uses the custom touch driver written by Marek which is fine but if we want multitouch and gestures we either need to get this driver to work with touchegg or fix the standard Linux driver. 3) I started playing around with trying to get this to run from the KSM menu and return there after the chroot is terminated, at the moment I have achieved neither, I have not had the time to pry too deep into this. For the moment this creates a very bare-bones installation, it is primarily for testing at the moment but the source codes are there and you can add anything you want really. I have been focusing more on actually getting it to work than aesthetics or actual, you know, usability. What you will need 1) Debian Linux or one of it’s derivatives, Ubuntu or Mint for example. Windows users will need to use either a Live CD or Virtualbox. 2) KSM with telnet or SSH installed on your Kobo. Instructions Download the tarball on the link below Code: https://mega.nz/#!56xHVRhT!huwDBCAPFfiKr2QFnrTg6sshbeFjqldFuRFxI2tnBx4 Open a terminal and move to the directory where you downloaded the tarball (assuming ~/Downloads) Code: cd ~/Downloads Unzip the tarball Code: tar -xvf build_kobo_chroot_vX.X.tar.xz Move into the directory Code: cd build_kobo_chroot_vX.X If you are using a device with a different resolution Code: nano source/fb_update/fast_update.c Edit the lines Code: region.update_region.width = 1430; region.update_region.height = 1080; Press cntrl+o to save and then cntrl+x to exit Code: nano home/Xvkbd Edit the line Code: xvkbd.windowGeometry: 1080x400+0+998 The 1080 represents the width of the keyboard, the 400 the height and the 998 is it’s y coordinate on the screen, change according to resolution width and preference. Press cntrl+o to save and cntrl+x. Run image_create_base.sh as super user Code: sudo sh image_create_base.sh You will now be prompted to enter a few details for your base image, the entries below should be fine. Code: Set image size in MB: 1000 Set filesystem type: ext3 Set target architecture: armhf Set Debian release: jessie This will take a while, go get a coffee or a beer. Assuming nothing catastrophic happened you should now have a file named armhf_debian_jessie_base.ext3, this is your base image and will be used for all your beautiful creations in the future. Next we run the script that makes it usable on the Kobo Code: sudo sh image_build_system.sh Again you will be prompted for information on your desired image. Code: Set new image name: Whatever your little heart desires. Set new image size in MB: I wouldn’t go lower than 1500MB, it has to fit on your device though. Set new image filesystem: ext3 Set user name: Whatever you want Set user password: Again, whatever you want, just don’t forget it Time for another coffee or beer. . Once this is all done you will be left with a folder with the name given above, it contains the image file and all scripts you may need. Copy this onto your devices storage. Once in KSM move to the "USB" submenu, telnet onto your Kobo from your computer. Code: telnet 192.168.2.101 Move into the correct directory. Code: cd /mnt/onboard/chrootdirectory Run the launch_chroot.sh script. Code: sh launch_chroot.sh Once you see the line "starting framebuffer update script" press the "Return" button in KSM, you should see the screen go black, give it a few seconds and it should all be up and running! Here is a (pretty badly done) video of how to get the framebuffer script to start from within KSM Code: https://mega.nz/#!xnxSDahL!9IXTfsOwYzWDNSP1oK0JTjTedyWQTBPVBufDTWn8YQc I will be uploading some pictures a bit later Happy hacking! NH Last edited by nohandlebars; 05-02-2018 at 02:35 PM. Reason: Typos

04-30-2018, 09:39 PM	#2
Elaxon Zealot Posts: 100 Karma: 224118 Join Date: Dec 2014 Device: Kobo H20 Aura	Is this permanent or can I decide to revert to KSM whenever? Does not seem to be working for me H20 Aura mkdir: can't create directory '/mnt/kobo': File exists mounting /mnt/onboard/kobo/kobo.ext3 to /mnt/kobo mounting auxilliaries bind mounting /dev bind mounting /dev/pts bind mounting /proc bind mounting /sys copying /etc/ files killing ksmhome.sh starting framebuffer update script starting chroot as elaxon sudo: unable to resolve host (none) elaxon@(none):/$ starting xwindow server hostname: Name or service not known xauth: (stdin):1: bad display name "(none):1" in "add" command libudev: udev_has_devtmpfs: name_to_handle_at on /dev: Function not implemented X.Org X Server 1.16.4 Release Date: 2014-12-20 X Protocol Version 11, Revision 0 Build Operating System: Linux 4.9.0-4-armmp-lpae armv7l Debian Current Operating System: Linux (none) 2.6.35.3-850-gbc67621+ #3032 PREEMPT Mon Jan 9 13:37:40 CST 2017 armv7l Kernel command line: console=ttymxc0,115200 rootwait rw quiet lpj=4997120 root=/dev/mmcblk0p1 rootfstype=ext4 hwcfg_p=0x8ffffe00 hwcfg_sz=110 waveform_p=0x8f98b800 waveform_sz=6768096 mem=505M boot_port=2 mx50_1GHz Build Date: 16 October 2017 09:26:27AM xorg-server 2:1.16.4-1+deb8u2 (http://www.debian.org/support) Current version of pixman: 0.32.6 Before reporting problems, check http://wiki.x.org to make sure that you have the latest version. Markers: (--) probed, (*) from config file, (==) default setting, (++) from command line, (!!) notice, (II) informational, (WW) warning, (EE) error, (NI) not implemented, (??) unknown. (==) Log file: "/var/log/Xorg.1.log", Time: Tue May 1 03:00:08 2018 (==) Using config file: "/etc/X11/xorg.conf" (==) Using system config directory "/usr/share/X11/xorg.conf.d" exporting environment variables fixing coordinate tranformation matrix Unable to connect to X server Last edited by Elaxon; 04-30-2018 at 11:02 PM.*

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