[Tuto] [EN/FR] Install/Installer nBoot + ControlX (+Linux)

[tristandeveloper]

Nclock. I have TI nspire HW-B. I hacked it to run cas on it. I wanted to install nclock and use it on the startup. But my nspire just loop restarting. I have OS 4.4.0.538 patched with cas patcher.

[critor]

Sorry, the mini clock isn't compatible with OS versions 4 and above.

[critor]

ControlX has just been updated to version 5.0.3 with support for both OS 4.5.3 and Ndless 4.5.3 :
archives_voir.php?id=652778

So if you still own a compatible TI-Nspire CX (revision W from 2015 October and older), you can now auto-install Ndless on each reboot with the latest CX OS version (the 4.5.3 update being mandatory for some exams).

Due to the limitation with the payload size, I had to disable support for some of the oldest OS versions again : 3.2.3, 3.2.4 and 3.9.0.461.
If you're still using these versions and don't want to update for some reason, then you'll have to modify the Makefile and rebuild ControlX.

[unilock]

Great work! I can confirm that nBoot + ControlX is working on my TI-Nspire CX with OS 4.5.3.14 (P-0515V), along with Ndless auto-install, which I am very grateful for (nSonic is a life saver).

However, I must have messed up by accidentally installing OS 4.5.0 or 4.5.3 without ControlX enabled (to patch out Boot2 install), or something beyond that, as ControlX won't automatically boot the OS 4.4.0 Boot2 I have stored in ExtenD; rather, it automatically tries to boot the OS 4.5.0 Boot2 stored in Boot2, which it can't patch for obvious reasons.
I have to manually load the former by holding [ctrl] on boot, selecting [4], and selecting [1]. Any ideas on how to fix this? I was thinking of flashing the OS 4.4.0 Boot2 to my calculator's Boot2 partition manually, but I don't think pairing it with a OS 4.5.0 Boot1.5 would be a good idea.
I can provide pictures of BtMg later, if need be.

[unilock]

Here's a screenshot of BtMg:

Note that I manually flashed the BOOT2 in EXTND to 4.4.0; it was originally 4.0.3 (as the guide (mistakenly?) links), but I figured I should update it to sate my constant need to be on the bleeding edge. Maybe that's part of the problem? Although ControlX boots fine with it anyway...

[critor]

Hi.

For now I don't understand why ControlX doesn't automatically find the better Boot2 4.4.
I don't have such issue here with the latest version, but I'll be sure to check with different calculators and with your setup, thanks for sharing the picture.

For the moment, how about setting Boot2 4.4 as your default boot image ?

1. hold during a reset to access the ControlX boot menu
2. type to access your ExtendeD partition
3. hold and press to set the 1st image in your ExtendeD partition (Boot2 4.4) as your default boot image
4. type to reboot

If it doesn't work, please share a picture of your ControlX boot menu.
And currently, are you running a CAS or non-CAS OS ? Thanks.

[unilock]

For the moment, how about setting Boot2 4.4 as your default boot image ?

That works, thanks! I was trying to get that setup before, but didn't realize that you had to type [4] before [ctrl] to boot an image in ExtendeD by default. I was typing [ctrl] -> [4] -> [1], which ultimately set default = {1}.
I'm using a non-CAS OS, v4.5.3.14.

[critor]

Perfect then, thank you very much for confirming.

[unilock]

Hey folks, I have a bit of an issue with my TI-Nspire CX (P-0515V) with ControlX 5.0.3 and OS v4.5.3.14 installed.

I was going to charge my calculator the other day (notably, it was fully powered down, as I have it set to "hibernate" after one day), and when I plugged it in, it started booting. However, once it got to "preparing file system", it froze for a few seconds, then showed "System Error" with a warning sign beneath the text. This had never happened before.

I tried to get the RS232 log, but my soldering skills are... subpar. If someone would like to send me one of those fancy RS232 dock connectors that I could slide in, that would be nice...

I tried to delete the OS from maintenance mode, as well. Notably, I first had to disable ControlX ("CTRL" on boot -> "X" to switch to DIAGS boot -> "0" to restart) to be able to boot to maintenance mode, as it wouldn't start with ControlX enabled. Unfortunately, after a few seconds of the loading bar, I got the same "System Error" message. Another reboot ran the same as before; the "System Error" message again appearing once it got to "preparing file system".

I'm afraid to uninstall ControlX, as then I would have no way to potentially "unbrick" my calculator. I'm also afraid to do a full system format from maintenance mode, because I have many documents on my calculator that I never backed up. Lesson learned there, I suppose.

My uneducated thought is that the overclocking from ControlX conflicted with the underclocking present while the calculator is plugged in and charging, causing the filesystem to go all wonky and corrupt itself. Hopefully that's not the case, though, as I'd like to get my files off of my calculator before going to more extreme measures...

Any ideas on what I should do?

EDIT: Well, charging my calculator from the "hibernation" state works fine on my other TI-Nspire CX (P-0211A) with ControlX 5.0.2 and OS v4.5.0.1180 installed, so perhaps my calculator just magically softbricked itself.

[critor]

ControlX has nothing to do with a "sytem error". Such errors are rare but they do happen, even without ControlX.

In those cases you just need to fully erase the OS through the maintenance menu, sometimes to reformat the file system, and then reinstall the OS.

You don't need to disable ControlX to be able to reach the maintenance menu. The maintenance boot combo is exactly the same. Just hold the 3 keys, reset and wait, that's all.