Frequently Asked Questions
From RedPost/Kit/Documentation
[edit] How do I get to a shell/terminal window?
Boot the Kit normally; once Firefox has loaded, right click and turn off "Full screen." You can also alt-click the Firefox window and move it to the side, exposing the Desktop underneath. On the desktop, right-click and browse the menu to open a shell.
[edit] How can I remotely manage my Kit?
At this point, again for security, VNC/SSH are not turned on by default.
If you want ssh you should run:
/etc/init.d/sshd start
You'll want to add that to the /opt/bootlocal.sh initscript so you don't have to do it every time you boot the kit. (See Saving Changes in DSL for how to make changes stick once you reboot.) You'll also want to set a root password on the box.
There is a VNC extension for DSL as well here, but we haven't tested it.
[edit] Why doesn't my MiniPC power on?
There's a BIOS setting under "Power management" -- it's the last setting on the list (hit the delete key upon booting to enter the BIOS). It allows you to set the state the MiniPC returns to after losing power.
[edit] Why is there no physical on/off switch?
This is actually a design decision. While on one hand it does feel barbaric, on the other hand, these signs/photo frames are more of an appliance, not a computer. You can hardwire the screen to a light switch...or just unplug it, or put it on a $9 appliance timer. The other reason not to have a switch is security -- if a sign is in a public place, no one can just turn it on/off.
[edit] I don't want my Kit on all the time...how do I schedule it to turn on/off when I want it to?
Eventually, this will be a configurable option in the redpost.conf file...but for now, we recommend buying a $10 appliance timer (make sure it takes a 3 prong plug) at your local hardware store.
[edit] Why does it take so long to boot?
The MiniPC uses a 200Mhz processor with 128 MB of integrated memory...needless to say, it's not a speed demon. This is part of why it doesn't cost over $1,000. Once it's booted, it does well for what it does, which is display web pages and JPEG photos.
[edit] Can I get Flash working with Firefox?
You can, but the MiniPC is too slow to be able to do anything with Flash.
[edit] All I'm seeing is a RedPost/Kit screen after booting...how do I get to a shell?
You're most likely not getting a network connection or have your redpost.conf file configured incorrectly. Try hitting the "D" key in Firefox to bring up a debug window, which may or may not be helpful. Next, alt-click the browser window (which has no menu, status, or scroll bars turned on when it is in Full Screen mode) and drag it to the side. Now you can right-click the X desktop to access applications, shell, etc.
[edit] My wifi isn't working...how do I troubleshoot?
First, from a root shell, run:
iwconfig
If you can't see the MAC address of the router nor the ESSID that you set in the redpost.conf file, try setting the ESSID manually (don't use the quotes):
iwconfig wlan0 essid "my_routers_essid"
You can also try adjusting the wifi settings in your redpost.conf (in the /cdrom/ directory) and then run the following to reload network settings without having to reboot:
/opt/network_init.sh
[edit] I'm using WPA, do i need to enter in redpost.conf the full 64 character PSK hex key or can I use a string?
You can use just a string.
[edit] How do I find out if my wifi router is using TKIP or CCMP/AES?
You can either log into your router's admin interface to find out, or run this command:
wpa_supplicant -Dwext -ieth1 -c/etc/wpa_supplicant.conf
Trying to associate with 00:11:50:35:49:e7 (SSID='magicnet' freq=0 MHz)
Associated with 00:11:50:35:49:e7
WPA: Key negotiation completed with 00:11:50:35:49:e7 [PTK=TKIP GTK=TKIP]
[edit] Once I'm booted into DSL, I can't seem to find all the files on the USB drive, where are they?
They're in the /cdrom directory.
[edit] I took all the cords out of my Kit and now can't fit them back in, especially the 5V adapter. Where does it go?
As pictured, the prongs of the adapter have to stick up beyond the edge of the LCD screen. The rest of the cords can be twist-tied down along the left hand side of the back of the Kit.
[edit] I opened up my redpost.conf file in Windows and now my Kit won't boot. Why?
You probably saved your redpost.conf file with Windows encoding. You need to save it as a UNIX file. Don't use Wordpad, use a text editor that gives you the option of what text encoding to use.
[edit] I'm loading images using the local source_type option and the Kit gets to a certain image and then just stops. What's going on?
Because of the MiniPC's limited memory, we recomend that you resize your images to 1280x1024 (or close thereto). This allows for faster display and reduces the strain on the CPU considerably.
(thanks to Marc for this tip) From Linux, run this command to resize images:
mogrify -resize 1280x1024 *
[edit] I'm getting a weird "kernel: attempt to access beyond end of device" error message...what's going on?
(again thanks to Marc for this solution)
There are few answers to this problem, but basically some byte pattern on the key's original formatting seems to trigger ADFS. This is a pretty common problem. See this link for more info. Two solutions:
- Turn off CONFIG_ACORN_PARTITION in the kernel, rebuild, reboot
- Wipe the USB thumbdrive (dd if=/dev/zero) and recreate clean partitions and FS on top of it
[edit] What's the Root Password
(from DSL wiki, Local Startup Documentation)
Each system requires some command to be run as the administrator. In DSL, such user is called root. To get root privileges to run a specific command, just precede the command with the word sudo (e.g., sudo dsl-hdinstall). To become the super user, then use the command sudo su. You should not run your system habitually as root.
