Official FutureBit Apollo BTC Software/Image and Support thread

[dwight-satx]

Asking again because I looked at the forum messages and couldn't find anyone else that asked this question but is it possible to add the SBC to a Standard Unit to make it a Full Node?  Which SBC is it?

[heslo]

Asking again because I looked at the forum messages and couldn't find anyone else that asked this question but is it possible to add the SBC to a Standard Unit to make it a Full Node?  Which SBC is it?

I'm sure it's possible; the board that is in there currently is an Orange Pi

[crypto_curious]

Asking again because I looked at the forum messages and couldn't find anyone else that asked this question but is it possible to add the SBC to a Standard Unit to make it a Full Node?  Which SBC is it?

What is SBC? Single Board computer? Of course you can. You can install whatever you want under the skirt of standard miner, as long as it fits. But you have to use USB cable between Apollo miner and your custom SBC, as jstefanop uses proprietary GPIO connection protocol in Full node miner, so you can't use GPIO pins.

If you are planning to use exactly the same SBC - OrangePi 4 - this is possible. Full node and standard miner are exactly the same, one just has Orange Pi4 via GPIO and NVMe installed and other one doesn't. And full unit has different one side panel to accommodate HDMI and the likes on OrangePi.
I know as I replanted OrangePi successfully from one full node unit to standard unit, because USB port on standard unit was broken off when I opened the box!     So I removed OrangePi and bits and installed in that standard unit, making it a full node. It works, miner now works via GPIO not via USB port which was broken. Didn't wanted to claim warranty to jstefanop team and waste a month time, it was not worth it when I was already almost certain that it would work. And it did. Former full node is now stripped standard miner and it works as a slave to upgraded master miner.  

[chrisism]

Looks like my node needs to have its drive upgraded since I only have 12.2% remaining as the blockchain consumes 421.23 GB.  Can anyone provide me with some guidance as to what drive to purchase and perhaps some instructions on how to set it up?

Many thanks,
-C

EDIT: I found https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5340015.msg57091052#msg57091052 at the beginning of this thread.  Is that all there is?  I'm assuming I need to wait a bit for the blockchain to reload or use a cloner.  Still a little unclear.

[heslo]

Looks like my node needs to have its drive upgraded since I only have 12.2% remaining as the blockchain consumes 421.23 GB.  Can anyone provide me with some guidance as to what drive to purchase and perhaps some instructions on how to set it up?

Many thanks,
-C

EDIT: I found https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5340015.msg57091052#msg57091052 at the beginning of this thread.  Is that all there is?  I'm assuming I need to wait a bit for the blockchain to reload or use a cloner.  Still a little unclear.

Literally swap them out. You can clone the data so you don't have to resync the blockchain but if you have a decent internet connection I'd just let it go redownloading everything from scratch

[chrisism]

Literally swap them out. You can clone the data so you don't have to resync the blockchain but if you have a decent internet connection I'd just let it go redownloading everything from scratch

Hey, thanks.  I have gigabit service to the house and I believe my initial sync took a few days.  I can get the ssd for $89.  The cloning device adds another $100 to the bill - and I only received my miner last month.  I don't need to format or anything?  I was under the impression that the image needed to be installed first.

[jstefanop]

Literally swap them out. You can clone the data so you don't have to resync the blockchain but if you have a decent internet connection I'd just let it go redownloading everything from scratch

Hey, thanks.  I have gigabit service to the house and I believe my initial sync took a few days.  I can get the ssd for $89.  The cloning device adds another $100 to the bill - and I only received my miner last month.  I don't need to format or anything?  I was under the impression that the image needed to be installed first.

Just reflash the image to stock state, then put the freshly imaged SD card and new SSD and it will auto formate and set everything up. Well have a button in settings that does this instead of needed to reflash in the next update.

[heslo]

Literally swap them out. You can clone the data so you don't have to resync the blockchain but if you have a decent internet connection I'd just let it go redownloading everything from scratch

Hey, thanks.  I have gigabit service to the house and I believe my initial sync took a few days.  I can get the ssd for $89.  The cloning device adds another $100 to the bill - and I only received my miner last month.  I don't need to format or anything?  I was under the impression that the image needed to be installed first.

Just reflash the image to stock state, then put the freshly imaged SD card and new SSD and it will auto formate and set everything up. Well have a button in settings that does this instead of needed to reflash in the next update.

Any update on that new release mate? Been a bit quiet on that front for a while, would love some little teaser

[chrisism]

Literally swap them out. You can clone the data so you don't have to resync the blockchain but if you have a decent internet connection I'd just let it go redownloading everything from scratch

Hey, thanks.  I have gigabit service to the house and I believe my initial sync took a few days.  I can get the ssd for $89.  The cloning device adds another $100 to the bill - and I only received my miner last month.  I don't need to format or anything?  I was under the impression that the image needed to be installed first.

Just reflash the image to stock state, then put the freshly imaged SD card and new SSD and it will auto formate and set everything up. Well have a button in settings that does this instead of needed to reflash in the next update.

Well, reflashed the SD with the appropriate image using Balena Etcher.  Installed new SSD and re-inserted SD.  Put power to the unit and it appears to have booted and the indicator light is flashing at the proper cadence.  I am currently unable to access the dashboard or SSH in to the IP.  Is there a considerable wait time for the dash to reappear as the new drive is being formatted?

[crypto_curious]

Literally swap them out. You can clone the data so you don't have to resync the blockchain but if you have a decent internet connection I'd just let it go redownloading everything from scratch

Hey, thanks.  I have gigabit service to the house and I believe my initial sync took a few days.  I can get the ssd for $89.  The cloning device adds another $100 to the bill - and I only received my miner last month.  I don't need to format or anything?  I was under the impression that the image needed to be installed first.

Just reflash the image to stock state, then put the freshly imaged SD card and new SSD and it will auto formate and set everything up. Well have a button in settings that does this instead of needed to reflash in the next update.

Well, reflashed the SD with the appropriate image using Balena Etcher.  Installed new SSD and re-inserted SD.  Put power to the unit and it appears to have booted and the indicator light is flashing at the proper cadence.  I am currently unable to access the dashboard or SSH in to the IP.  Is there a considerable wait time for the dash to reappear as the new drive is being formatted?

IP might have changed. Did you get IP from router? Same, or new IP? If it reports as online and active in your router, you should be able to connect it immediately.

[chrisism]

Literally swap them out. You can clone the data so you don't have to resync the blockchain but if you have a decent internet connection I'd just let it go redownloading everything from scratch

Hey, thanks.  I have gigabit service to the house and I believe my initial sync took a few days.  I can get the ssd for $89.  The cloning device adds another $100 to the bill - and I only received my miner last month.  I don't need to format or anything?  I was under the impression that the image needed to be installed first.

Just reflash the image to stock state, then put the freshly imaged SD card and new SSD and it will auto formate and set everything up. Well have a button in settings that does this instead of needed to reflash in the next update.

Well, reflashed the SD with the appropriate image using Balena Etcher.  Installed new SSD and re-inserted SD.  Put power to the unit and it appears to have booted and the indicator light is flashing at the proper cadence.  I am currently unable to access the dashboard or SSH in to the IP.  Is there a considerable wait time for the dash to reappear as the new drive is being formatted?

IP might have changed. Did you get IP from router? Same, or new IP? If it reports as online and active in your router, you should be able to connect it immediately.

That was it.  I had a static IP assigned via Wifi.  I just got in via Ethernet.  Thanks for the reply.

[chrisism]

I restored my configuration from a backup.  The node is up and downloading the blockchain.  The miner is up, but inactive and the original pool information seems to be stuck in the settings, despite changing to my new one.  Any ideas?  Thanks!

[dwood443]

I restored my configuration from a backup.  The node is up and downloading the blockchain.  The miner is up, but inactive and the original pool information seems to be stuck in the settings, despite changing to my new one.  Any ideas?  Thanks!

Try restarting in the miner software. Seems a hard restart sometimes does not restart right

[chrisism]

I restored my configuration from a backup.  The node is up and downloading the blockchain.  The miner is up, but inactive and the original pool information seems to be stuck in the settings, despite changing to my new one.  Any ideas?  Thanks!

Try restarting in the miner software. Seems a hard restart sometimes does not restart right

That did it, thank you.  I'll let it run in eco mode until the chain syncs-up.

[crypto_curious]

I restored my configuration from a backup.  The node is up and downloading the blockchain.  The miner is up, but inactive and the original pool information seems to be stuck in the settings, despite changing to my new one.  Any ideas?  Thanks!

Try restarting in the miner software. Seems a hard restart sometimes does not restart right

That did it, thank you.  I'll let it run in eco mode until the chain syncs-up.

You can run in Turbo mode immediately. Bitcoin Node synchronizing has nothing to do with miner itself, it's just more CPU time on OrangePi 4. Miner process itself use barely any CPU time and RAM, regardless of Eco or Turbo mode.

[jstefanop]

I restored my configuration from a backup.  The node is up and downloading the blockchain.  The miner is up, but inactive and the original pool information seems to be stuck in the settings, despite changing to my new one.  Any ideas?  Thanks!

Try restarting in the miner software. Seems a hard restart sometimes does not restart right

That did it, thank you.  I'll let it run in eco mode until the chain syncs-up.

You can run in Turbo mode immediately. Bitcoin Node synchronizing has nothing to do with miner itself, it's just more CPU time on OrangePi 4. Miner process itself use barely any CPU time and RAM, regardless of Eco or Turbo mode.

Problem of running turbo while syncing is not CPU bottleneck, its thermals. The CPU could overheat and shutdown if its running at 100% while syncing, and the hashboard is in turbo mode.

[mrbillishere]

I restored my configuration from a backup.  The node is up and downloading the blockchain.  The miner is up, but inactive and the original pool information seems to be stuck in the settings, despite changing to my new one.  Any ideas?  Thanks!

Try restarting in the miner software. Seems a hard restart sometimes does not restart right

That did it, thank you.  I'll let it run in eco mode until the chain syncs-up.

To upgrade to a larger M.2 SSD without an enclosure, I first got a second SD card and imaged it using the resources from the first post. That was more of a precaution than a necessity.

Then, since my node was fully in sync on the original SSD, before I replaced the M.2 SSD I use the full node's file manager app to connect to a valid SMB file-share target on my home network and copied the node's data-files to it. It's way faster copying ~400 GB of data on your home network than it is to wait for the node to re-sync from scratch. Then I shut everything off and replaced both the SD card and the M.2 SSD. Upon bootup the OS formats the M.2 and starts to sync the node, which will take days. So, that's the time to stop the node, reconnect to the file-share and copy the data-files you backed up onto the new SSD, overwriting whatever the node just recently created with what we know to be complete data files. Then all ya have to do is re-start the node and it'll sync any changes that occurred while you were working on the full unit. That'll take minutes, as opposed to days.

HTH

[crypto_curious]

I restored my configuration from a backup.  The node is up and downloading the blockchain.  The miner is up, but inactive and the original pool information seems to be stuck in the settings, despite changing to my new one.  Any ideas?  Thanks!

Try restarting in the miner software. Seems a hard restart sometimes does not restart right

That did it, thank you.  I'll let it run in eco mode until the chain syncs-up.

You can run in Turbo mode immediately. Bitcoin Node synchronizing has nothing to do with miner itself, it's just more CPU time on OrangePi 4. Miner process itself use barely any CPU time and RAM, regardless of Eco or Turbo mode.

Problem of running turbo while syncing is not CPU bottleneck, its thermals. The CPU could overheat and shutdown if its running at 100% while syncing, and the hashboard is in turbo mode.

That's a serious problem with the device then. You are saying we can't run desktop computer in the device at 100% while Turbo mode is on in the miner part. What if YouTube is on for a few minutes and CPU spikes to 100%, or any other more CPU intensive task is running, not just bitcoin node but anything else, it means sudden shutdown? I'd say that's a bit unacceptable. For anyone who don't know how to mitigate this, device should be returned for a repair.
I noticed this flaw, and fixed it somewhat by raising Orange Pi 4 fan voltage from 3.3 to 5V where it should have been running from the start - fan is rated at 5V but have been slowed down artificially. And that's unnecessary, because tiny OrangePi fan at 5V is still quieter than bigger top miner exhaust fan.

[NotFuzzyWarm]

...
Problem of running turbo while syncing is not CPU bottleneck, its thermals. The CPU could overheat and shutdown if its running at 100% while syncing, and the hashboard is in turbo mode.

That's a serious problem with the device then. You are saying we can't run desktop computer in the device at 100% while Turbo mode is on in the miner part. What if YouTube is on for a few minutes and CPU spikes to 100%, or any other more CPU intensive task is running, not just bitcoin node but anything else, it means sudden shutdown?
...

Um, these are miners and a dedicated BTC node -- not a desktop computer! The computer part is designed to be just an embedded controller and as a BTC node which normally are rather light CPU usage operations but more to the point they are also to a good extent time-sensitive. It is not intended for streaming video, gaming, or anything else which can/will as you noted steal critical CPU cycles from the main operations... The miner & node work as intended and are not flawed in respect to what they are designed to do..

[crypto_curious]

...
Problem of running turbo while syncing is not CPU bottleneck, its thermals. The CPU could overheat and shutdown if its running at 100% while syncing, and the hashboard is in turbo mode.

That's a serious problem with the device then. You are saying we can't run desktop computer in the device at 100% while Turbo mode is on in the miner part. What if YouTube is on for a few minutes and CPU spikes to 100%, or any other more CPU intensive task is running, not just bitcoin node but anything else, it means sudden shutdown?
...

Um, these are miners and a dedicated BTC node -- not a desktop computer! The computer part is designed to be just an embedded controller and as a BTC node which normally are rather light CPU usage operations but more to the point they are also to a good extent time-sensitive. It is not intended for streaming video, gaming, or anything else which can/will as you noted steal critical CPU cycles from the main operations... The miner & node work as intended and are not flawed in respect to what they are designed to do..

Sorry that's where you are wrong - they are advertised as such.

"FutureBit Apollo BTC is the world’s first vertically integrated platform brining the full power of Bitcoin and it’s mining infrastructure in a small, quiet, easy to use desktop device designed for everyday people."

"PRE-ORDER: Apollo BTC - A Bitcoin ASIC Miner and Desktop Class Computer running a Full Node and Much More!"

Desktop Class Computer. Looks pretty clear to me.

Also:

"We did this with our optimized PCB design that has carefully placed all 44 hash cores underneath our custom cold-forged aluminum induction heatsink, which draws up to 200 Watts of heat away from the device with our new nearly silent 25mm fan. This results in the Apollo BTC in Turbo Mode being just as quiet as the Apollo LTC in Eco Mode!"

"Can be used as a full Desktop computer with a monitor keyboard and mouse (not included), or through our Web UI"

Nowhere it says you can't run Apollo BTC in Turbo Mode and actually use that Desktop Class Computer at the same time because it will shutdown. Therefore, shutting entire device because you actually use it as advertised (Turbo Mode + Desktop use, or Turbo Mode + Bitcoin Node syncing) is a factory defect. I resolved defect in my unit myself (rewired small fan back to 5V supply), but I can imagine surprise of many less experienced enthusiasts who wake up to see their brand new miner, set to Turbo Mode, dead cold in the morning, because it has shutdown during normal as-advertised operation. Or even more disappointment when a customer would actually try to use that Desktop Class Computer for a minute and it would shutdown suddenly. And before you ask - Turbo Mode is one of advertised operation modes, nowhere it says it's overclocking, no warranty, or causes shutdown/overheating/do not use etc.. It's just listed there as one of the modes for people to use.
No offence to jstefanop and team - I love this device because I can workaround problems, but these are just facts.