rad1o

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====== Troubleshooting ======

//Work in progress!//

===== The display is not showing anything (in sunlight) =====
Make sure to cover the chip of the display with something light tight (permanent marker, dark nail polish etc.).
(This is not an actual light sensor, but open silicon which in the normal use of the display would be covered by a case. Not adding the paint should not damage the display but you won't enjoy it)

===== My badge does nothing / back light does not work =====
Come to the muCCC village and use the flash station to reflash your badge.

If that didn't fix it, try switching the badge off. Before switching it on again, push the joystick to the right (away from DARC) and then switch on the badge.

Another issue might simply be an empty battery, so have a try with recharging.

If you soldered in the SMA connector, you might have shorted the left ground pad to a VCC pad underneath. These two pads which are separated only by a small margin must not be connected.
===== I have connected the rad1o, but it doesn't show up in dmesg or similar =====

[[https://rad1o.badge.events.ccc.de/troubleshooting#how_to_put_the_rad1o_in_hackrf_mode|Switch it to HackRF mode]].

===== I have connected the rad1o, it shows up in dmesg, but gnuradio etc does not connect =====
<code bash>

me@you:~$ hackrf_info 
hackrf_open() failed: HACKRF_ERROR_LIBUSB (-1000)
me@you:~$ modprobe -r hackrf 
me@you:~$ hackrf_info 
Found HackRF board.
xxxxxxxxx....
</code>
If you are running Arch Linux there might be a similar problem but of different origin. The solution is provided within the hackrf-github [[https://github.com/mossmann/hackrf/issues/208|Issue page]].

Make sure that [[#rad1o_usb_disconnects_every_5_seconds_not_usable_at_all|USB autosuspend is disabled]], as the first contact with rad1o after resuming fails, and default autosuspend delay in Linux is pretty short (2 seconds).
===== I've connected the rad1o in Mass Storage Mode, but the filesystem is read only =====

Currently, the only known solution is to do a reflash of the rad1o.

You could give following a try:

- find the mounted partition of you rad1o, check therefor the output of mount (see following example)
  /dev/sdb on /media/you/FE49-AB84

- unmount the partition
  umount /media/you/FE49-AB84
  
- run fsck on that partition
  fschk.vfat -v /dev/sdb
  
- follow the instructions of fsck

- to prevent this happen again, eject the partition properly
  either: umount /dev/sdb
  or: use the eject functionality of your desktop manager

===== FATAL: No supported devices found to pick from. =====

  - Try running hackrf_info and see if your device is found
  - Make sure you started your badge in HKRF-OLD mode.
  - If it is found and you still get the error above, try upgrading your gnuradio package or compile it from source yourself. The latter solved the problem for me.
  - Try to unload the hackrf kernel module ("rmmod hackrf") before starting gnuradio
  - If ''sudo hackrf_info'' works but plain ''hackrf_info'' doesn't, see [[troubleshooting#i_can_t_use_hackrf_without_sudo|I can't use HackRF without sudo]] below, or run ''gksudo gnuradio'' (ugly).

===== I can't use HackRF without sudo =====

If you run HKRF-OLD (not HACKRF), the device registers as idProduct 6089, and you will probably not have this problem. If you're sure that you want to use HACKRF, idProduct is cc15, and both udev and gnuradio have to know about this ID.

udev: move [[https://github.com/rad1o/hackrf/blob/rad1o/host/libhackrf/53-hackrf.rules|53-hackrf.rules]] to /etc/udev/rules.d and do ''/etc/init.d/udev restart''.

gnuradio: <todo>

Make sure
  * the "plugdev" group exists on your system, or pick one that does.
  * the idVendor and idProduct values are the ones shown in dmesg when plugging in the USB.

===== pybombs install gnuradio => "make: target not found" =====

Make sure you did not turn on the generation of documentation, or install `doxygen` through your package manager.

===== How do I put the rad1o into HackRF mode? =====

  - Push the middle button **to the left and hold** it while switching the power on.
  - Select //Exec Firmware//. The bootloader menu shows up:
    * **CAMP** - the camp firmware
    * **HACKRF** - HackRF firmware (badge identifies as USB ID ''1d50:**cc15**'' => probably not recognized by older HackRF software)
    * **TESTAPP**
    * **HKRF-OLD** - HackRF-compatible mode (badge identifies as USB ID ''1d50:**6089**'' => recognized by older HackRF software)
  - Select **HACKRF** or **HKRF-OLD** depending on the type of HackRF software you're going to use.

===== I have a question about the LEDs =====

The [[:leds|LEDs]] section is answering all regular questions that came up.


===== Can I just get the binary somewhere? =====
Yes.

During camp we try to regularly get firmware updates here, keep in mind that it will not always be up to date with the f1rmware repo:

https://github.com/rad1o/binary-cccamp2015

===== I heard some parts may need resoldering =====

Usually no parts need resoldering but we occasionally notice that the following three parts are sometimes not soldered perfectly:
  * USB connector
  * audio connector
  * battery connector
  * IC402 (BGS12SL6) in rare cases (LCD/everything not working, TX too low)

If you experience an error that may relate to any of these three, we recommend a close look at the solder pads of those parts. WARNING: Always unplug the battery when soldering, especially when soldering the battery connector!

===== Why do I have bad FM reception performance =====

Please have in mind that rad1o's internal antenna is tuned for about 2.4 GHz. **This means that it cannot perform eg. in the FM Band (87.5 to 108 MHz). Sorry - but that's physics.** If you need good performance, consider adding an SMA connector and an antenna that is optimized for the specific frequency.

===== What's this big peak in the middle of the spectrum? =====

see https://github.com/mossmann/hackrf/wiki/FAQ#what-is-this-big-spike-in-the-center-of-my-received-spectrum

===== If I rebuild the l0dables I get an error =====

When you build an unmodified of a l0dable and try to run it from the campapp you could get an error like:

l0dable incompat.

To fix this, try rebuilding the campapp and replacing camp.b1n

===== rad1o usb disconnects every 5 seconds / not usable at all =====
 
Symptoms:

  - When you do hackrf_info multiple times you get sometimes hackrf_open() failed: HACKRF_ERROR_LIBUSB (-1000) and sometimes you get Found HackRF board...
  - osmocom_fft fails to find HackRF, does never start
  - dmesg show usb reconnect after every failed attempt to find HackRF board

Reason: usb-autosuspend. manually configured auto-suspend or you may have laptop-mode-tools or tlp (thinkpad powersaving tool)

Solution: disable usb-autosuspend for ids 1d50:cc15 and 1d50:6089
(if your using tlp add USB_BLACKLIST="1d50:cc15 1d50:6089" to /etc/default/tlp)

===== display blinks if turned on, but quickly turns off afterwards. All fine on USB power =====

Your battery is empty. The voltage might be even too low to be recharged.
Try to kickstart the loading process by connecting the read and black cables of the battery to a 3.7V source for about a minute.
Or if you have professional LiPo-charger complaining about voltage being too low, try NiMh mode, until you reach about 3.4V. Then continue loading normally or via a USB.
BE CAREFUL and ask an experienced friend to help you.

===== on/off switch is not working  anymore =====

perhaps you soldert together the two tiny smd resistors next to the lower right WS2812b led. In my case that disables the switch. When i removed the tin it works again.
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