FriendlyElec NanoPi R5S for Geeks

FriendlyElec NanoPi R5S for Geeks, Extensive-time period audience of this web site will know I’ve reviewed Numerous FriendlyArm/FriendlyElec boards in the previous but factors have been silent for some time now (Covid won’t have aided).

FriendlyElec NanoPi R5S

Nicely, it seems like they are back again with a BANG – new WiKi website and a new board. I have the boxed variation and I’m likely to place you to their site for the in-depth details… meanwhile I’m quite interested to have just one of these in my hands – while I’m unsure why they dispatched me an adaptor – European in – Chinese out.. supplied that I’m in Spain….

Disregarding the adaptor, the FriendlyElec NanoPi R5S boxed appears at initially glance like the R4S – but it is very little like it. This board scores points quickly as it has a PD power connector which requires 5, 9 or 12v – i.e. the output of a USB-C PD ability supply. Proper now it is sitting on my bench, plugged into power and that’s it. 1 of the four rear leds is flashing (sys) – the other individuals are WAN, 1 and 2. And here’s the WIKI. When I related electrical power to the device and HDMI (the unit supports 4K60p movie) – the console arrived up wth LOGIN… which is in the WIKI. Login is root and password is password. FriendlyWrt is set up by default applying the inside eMMC – you can of training course set up a wide range of optional operating techniques making use of an SD (or if you like an SSD but you only have a pair of USB-3 connectors (one is utilized for keyboard already except you go in headless.

I realised quickly that LUCI is installed and I set up NANO employing a plugged in keyboard and community lead plugged into the WAN connector.

So on first setup it looks all is properly. I gained the 2GB, not 4GB unit and RAM is not upgradeable (2GB could limit Android 12 which need to before long be offered), it is even so doable to set up an internal M2 SSD (I identified a 128GB unit on Amazon for €24) and of program there is 8GB eMMC constructed in (jogging the default OpenWRT) and you could use an SD. FriendlyElec NanoPi R5S have verified you are unable to Start out the unit from an extra interior M2SSD.

In short it appears to be like FriendlyElec NanoPi R5S have developed a unit with anything for anyone – see their webpage over for total spec. I could rant on for several hours about the alternatives but I favor to chat about stuff I’ve really analyzed and ideal now that is just finding the standard OpenWrt functioning together with LUCI, SSH…. NANO editor… Looking at the selling prices some men and women are charging for Raspberry Pi 4 appropriate now, this does in fact glance like a great buy except you have to have RPi compatibility.

It’s possible when they announce availability of Android 12 for the device, they’ll also offer the 4GB design. In the meantime I’m significantly tempted to acquire an M2 SSD (just a tiny one particular, it’s possible 32GB) to go inside, 8GB internal eMMC is great but a tad modest for the likes of Ubuntu, Debian and so forth. but it is great for OpenWrt (FriendlyWrt) and we have experienced Great pleasurable this afternoon enjoying with FriendlyElec NanoPi R5S.

From the commence – terminal with a keep track of and keyboard, to LUCI to an SSH session. The colors of the latter had been uninteresting white but my pal Antonio (Mr Shark quickly set that appropriate – see below ZSH and powerlevel10k operating on the FriendlyElec NanoPi R5S and exhibiting in an SSH session in Mobaxterm on my Computer).

and in Powershell on Home windows 11…

Just a swift observe: Like the R4S before it (and that is where the similarity ends), the FriendlyElec NanoPi R5S gets pretty very hot in operation – so not a good thought to set everything on top of it.

I pointed out Lots of eMMC and RAM left.

Though I’m listed here, the link to ZSH took me off on a tangent. Unwell of uninteresting Linux LS? Desire anything that lists data files with distinct colors for directories etcetera. ? Checkout EXA.

exa --very long

And after customising FriendlyWrt on the eMMC it happened to me I really should have built a backup first… but a swift trip to the FriendlyElec NanoPi R5S WiKi and I had an image file for SD – I place that impression on to a handy 8GB microSD applying BalenaEtcher on the Personal computer, inserted the SD into the 5S with the electrical power off – rebooted and I was up and managing with a fresh FriendlyWrt 🙂 Uncomplicated-peasy. It would seem that in FriendlyWrt LUCI menu, beneath Procedure, eMMC equipment it is straightforward to tranfer that again to eMMC – not that I want to ideal now, but good to know.

Ideal now there is a FriendlyCore to use as properly, with Android coming shortly.

I just downloaded the FriendlyCore file for SD from in this article (7GB) and again with Balena Etcher flashed it on to an SD (a 32GB I experienced useful) and booted the FriendlyElec NanoPi R5S from it. Using MobaxTerm on my Computer system, I SSH’d into it for starters as root (default password fa) and then as person pi (default password pi). No complications – up coming I need to have to come across out what I can do with this – Ubuntu 20.04.1 LTS. This is all really quick – but then I got the dazzling concept of making sure the desktop was put in – it was not (effectively, it is referred to as Core I guess) so I went for that….

sudo apt-get put in -y ubuntu-desktop

60+ minutes later – continue to unpacking – I feel the entire kitchen sink is getting set up – I do hope this is not going to fail correct at the end….

Web page soon after webpage right after website page – 65 minutes ..building symlinks – that sounded good……. but no.. most likely not the fault of this unit – I think I just picked a poor source for graphical desktop interface? Command prompt and SSH accessibility for FriendlyElec NanoPi R5S Ubuntu performs flawlessly. In graphical interface, I bought almost nothing originally. I then wiped the graphical interface and begun once more – with MATE graphical desktop. Fairly considerably wonderful apart from for now irritating.

So I last but not least received the graphical interface extra but with an error I could not determine out – so I picked one more SD and Balena Etcher was not obtaining it – so I grabbed Raspberry Pi Imager on my Computer (I know, nothing to do with Raspberry Pi but I figured it was worth a check out and in any circumstance, RPi Imager is WAY more rapidly than Balena Etcher – exelika.com

No additional than 99% – an additional vibrant concept down the pan. Could I be just owning poor luck – a bad SD? FriendlyElec NanoPi R5S… verifying.. it hadn’t stopped immediately after all. It turns out that Raspberry Pi Imager may perhaps be more rapidly at flashing but it is definitely no more quickly at verifying SDs.

Hours later and plenty of get the job done to start from scratch and install Ubuntu (sure) and then the graphical interface (no) – I was left with a graphical screen insisting on my FriendlyElec NanoPi R5S password which I under no circumstances changed from “pi” and can get no even further. If Ubuntu with desktop is your aim – I simply simply cannot confirm that it performs. If you want a router with OpenWrt, that is an additional matter…..

Update: I received CINNAMON Desktop working after setting up with this:

sudo apt install cinnamon-desktop-ecosystem

by booting from command line method then using:

startx

to go into the graphical desktop – performs flawlessly but Slowly but surely and I have 1 remaining situation – just after a whilst the graphical display screen occasions out – and asks for username and password – person is pi but it will not settle for the default password – I require to prevent that happening. On the WiKI there is an Android 12 for use on USB and another for flashing to the inner eMMC – even so 2 tries to download the 900+MB USB Android from the WiKi resulted in obtain failures.

Verdict so significantly? Very good potential but requires extra assistance on program FriendlyElec NanoPi R5S.