Installing Slackware on the Pinebook Pro

Please post questions to the Slackware ARM forum.

This tutorial is also available in video form.

The Installation consists of a number of stages:

1. Acquiring all required hardware
2. Downloading and verifying the Slackware assets
3. Writing the Initialisation Bootware to the Micro SD card
4. Setup of the Pinebook Pro hardware
5. Initialising the Pinebook Pro with the Bootware
6. Writing the Slackware Installer to the Micro SD card
7. Booting the Slackware Installer
8. Installing Slackware
9. Completing the installation
10. Booting the Slackware OS
11. OS configuration

From the factory, your PinebookPro contains an eMMC storage module. During the development of Slackware AArch64, it was found that the life span of these storage modules is short which makes them inappropriate for housing an Operating System. Whilst it's possible to use eMMC with Slackware, this documented installation process does not provide a supported path and the eMMC should be removed.

In this section we'll prepare the physical aspects of the Pinebook Pro to receive Slackware Linux. There are seven distinct parts to this phase:

1. Unscrew the case
2. Disable eMMC (and remove storage module)
3. Enable Sound (disabling Serial console)
4. Securely attach NVME to NVME adapter
5. Connect NVME adapter to the main board
6. Securely attach NVME adapter within the Pinebook Pro's case
7. Screw case back together

From the factory, the Pinebook Pro will be provided with an eMMC storage module configured to be enabled. During the development of Slackware AArch64, it was found that the life span of these storage modules is short which makes them inappropriate for housing an Operating System. Whilst it's possible to use eMMC with Slackware, this documented installation process does not provide a supported path and the eMMC must be disabled.

This control switch dictates the usage of the 3.5” audio jack port. However, if you are debugging or developing, you may wish to use the Serial adapter - in which case, set this switch into the 'up' position.

Since this is a laptop, most people will want to enable sound: ensure that the switch is in the 'down' position (as shown in the image)

Insert the NVME storage module into the adapter interface:

Secure the NVME storage module to the adapter with a nut and bolt (ensure that the nut and bolt do not exceed the height of the storage module, otherwise the case won't close!)

Secure the NVME adapter within the Pinebook Pro's case using the three screws:

Connect the NVME adapter ribbon to the Pinebook Pro's motherboard:

The battery bypass cable must be disconnected whilst the battery is attached.

The hardware set up is now complete and should look like this:

The hardware setup is complete.

In this section, we'll prepare the Linux Host Computer to receive and download the Slackware assets required for the installation.

Open a shell on the Linux Host Computer.

We'll download the Slackware Linux distribution into a directory named 'slackware'.

$ cd ## this returns to the root of your home directory
$ mkdir slackware
$ cd slackware

$ pwd
/home/mozes/slackware

The Slackware ARM GPG key will be used to verify the Bootware and Slackware Installation images.

$ curl -sSL https://www.slackware.com/infra/keys/arm/GPG-KEY | gpg --import -

At the time of writing, the only version available is 'current'.

$ SLKVER=current

$ HWM=rk3399_generic

If you are using a mirror server rather than the master Slackware ARM server, set it here. The format is: <hostname>::<rsync module name>

$ SLKSRV=ftp.arm.slackware.com::slackwarearm

The U-Boot Boot Loader that will be installed onto the SPI flash:

$ rsync -PavL $SLKSRV/platform/aarch64/bootware/recovery/rk3399/flash-spi-pinebookpro.img.xz .
$ rsync -PavL $SLKSRV/platform/aarch64/bootware/recovery/rk3399/flash-spi-pinebookpro.img.xz.asc .

The Bootware (recovery/initialisation) images are approximately 400KBytes in size.

$ rsync -PavL $SLKSRV/platform/aarch64/bootware/installer-aio/slackwareaarch64-${SLKVER}/${HWM}.img.xz.asc slkaio.img.xz.asc
$ rsync -PavL $SLKSRV/platform/aarch64/bootware/installer-aio/slackwareaarch64-${SLKVER}/${HWM}.img.xz slkaio.img.xz

The Slackware Installer images are approximately 5 GBytes in size.

$ gpg --verify-files *.asc

The output should be similar to this:

gpg: assuming signed data in `flash-spi-pinebookpro.img.xz'
gpg: Signature made Fri 27 Jan 2023 08:53:24 AM -00 using RSA key ID 1623FC33
gpg: Good signature from "Slackware ARM (Slackware ARM Linux Project) <mozes@slackware.com>"
gpg: WARNING: This key is not certified with a trusted signature!
gpg:          There is no indication that the signature belongs to the owner.
Primary key fingerprint: 36D3 7609 2F12 9B6B 3D59  A517 F7AB B869 1623 FC33
gpg: assuming signed data in `slkaio.img.xz'
gpg: Signature made Thu 19 Jan 2023 08:34:27 PM -00 using RSA key ID 1623FC33
gpg: Good signature from "Slackware ARM (Slackware ARM Linux Project) <mozes@slackware.com>"
gpg: WARNING: This key is not certified with a trusted signature!
gpg:          There is no indication that the signature belongs to the owner.
Primary key fingerprint: 36D3 7609 2F12 9B6B 3D59  A517 F7AB B869 1623 FC33

Slackware stores the U-Boot Boot Loader firmware within the SPI flash of the Hardware Models that use the RK3399 SoC (including the Pinebook Pro, RockPro64 et al).

In this step, we'll write the Boot Loader firmware to the same Micro SD card that will later be used to contain the Slackware Installer, and subsequently the Slackware OS' /boot partition. If you have multiple Micro SD cards available, you may prefer to use separate SD cards; but this document assumes the availability of a single Micro SD card.

On your Host Computer, obtain root:

$ su -   ## Note the hyphen - it's required

Prior to inserting the Micro SD Card into the USB adapter, we need to see what's already present within the OS so that we can easily locate our Micro SD card:

# lsblk -d
NAME MAJ:MIN RM   SIZE RO TYPE MOUNTPOINTS
sda    8:0    0 465.8G  0 disk 

As you can see, this Host Computer there is a single storage device - sda.

Now insert the Micro SD card into your USB Card Reader and connect the adapter to a free USB port on the Host Computer.

# lsblk -d
NAME   MAJ:MIN RM   SIZE RO TYPE MOUNTPOINTS
sda      8:0    0 465.8G  0 disk
sdc      8:32   1    58G  0 disk
sdd      8:48   1     0B  0 disk

As you can see, sdc is 58GBytes in size. This is the Micro SD card (in this example, it's labeled as '64GB' on the exterior of Micro SD card).

If your Micro SD card has existing partitions, you will not see them surfaced in this list - use lsblk -b to view them.

Still as the root user, we'll switch to the home directory into which the the Slackware assets have been downloaded (see earlier steps):

# cd ~mozes/slackware/  ## Replace with the correct directory name 

Write the Bootware Initialisation Image to the device identified as our Micro SD card. You'll then exit the root shell, returning to your usual standard user environment:

# dd if=/dev/zero of=/dev/XXX count=10 bs=1M    ## Replace /dev/XXX with the correct block device (presented above by the lsblk tool) on your Host Computer
# xzcat flash-spi-pinebookpro.img.xz > /dev/XXX  ## Replace /dev/XXX with the correct block device (presented above by the lsblk tool) on your Host Computer
# sync

Now that we've written the Bootware Initialisation Image to the Micro SD card, you need to remove it from the Host Computer.

Perform a sanity check to ensure that the block device list no longer displays the devices we were using. This type of check is essential to ensure that you don't accidentally write to the wrong block storage device.

# lsblk -d
NAME MAJ:MIN RM   SIZE RO TYPE MOUNTPOINTS
sda    8:0    0 465.8G  0 disk 

The block devices assigned to the Micro SD card are no longer present, so we are safe to proceed.

You need to perform this one-time step to flash a Slackware version of the U-Boot Boot Loader to the SPI flash of the Pinebook Pro.

1. Connect the power to the Pinebook Pro
2. Disconnect any peripherals (including the Pinebook Pro docking station) from the Pinebook Pro.
3. Insert the Micro SD card into the Pinebook Pro's Micro SD slot (right hand side, below the 3.5“ audio jack port)
4. Open the lid
5. Power on the Pinebook Pro: hold down the Power button (top right of keyboard) for 3 seconds

After a few seconds, you should see a message appearing on the screen - instructing you that the process will begin in 10 seconds' time, and to release the SPI jumper. In most cases you can simply wait until the process begins.

Once the process completes, hold the power button for approximately 8 seconds. The PinebookPro will power off.

Even if there's an existing distribution that has installed a Boot Loader to the SPI flash, the Slackware Micro SD card Recovery/Initialisation image should boot and work as described above. However, it depends how the boot loader that's currently occupying the SPI flash is configured - it may not boot the SD card. In which case you'll need to bypass the SPI flash.

There is a 'Recovery' button on the Pinebook Pro's main board (requires dissassembling) that will 'mask out' the SPI flash temporarily, thus preventing any Boot Loader stored on the SPI flash from executed.

1. Insert the Slackware Recovery/Initialisation Micro SD card into the Pinebook Pro's Micro SD slot
2. Press and hold 'recovery' button.
3. Quickly press 'reset' button.
4. Release 'recovery' button after about 3 seconds

If this doesn't work, you may need to try a few times or try alternative methods (see below).

This thread on the Slackware ARM LinuxQuestions forum contains instructions to bypass the SPI flash to enable booting the SD Card.

The Pine64 Wiki provides more information about working with the SPI flash and is the source of the instructions for method 1 above.

Now that the Boot Loader has been installed to the PinebookPro's SPI flash, we will install the Slackware Installer image onto the same MicroSD card.

• Remove the MicroSD card from the PinebookPro
• Insert the MicroSD card back into the Host Computer (as in the earlier section)

Now that we have re-inserted the Micro SD Card into the Linux Host Computer, we need to check which block device it has been assigned.

In this guide you'll see that it's the same as previously (which is to be expected, although you must check!)

# lsblk -d
NAME   MAJ:MIN RM   SIZE RO TYPE MOUNTPOINTS
sda      8:0    0 465.8G  0 disk
sdc      8:32   1    58G  0 disk
sdd      8:48   1     0B  0 disk

# cd ~mozes/slackware  ## Replace with the correct directory
# xzcat slkaio.img.xz | dd status=progress bs=4M iflag=fullblock of=/dev/XXX ## Substitute /dev/XXX with the correct block device
# sync

You may now disconnect the USB adapter from the Host Computer and remove the MicroSD card.

Run lsblk again to confirm that the block device assigned to the Micro SD card is no longer present:

# lsblk -d
NAME MAJ:MIN RM   SIZE RO TYPE MOUNTPOINTS
sda    8:0    0 465.8G  0 disk 

# logout

You no longer require the Host Computer.

To proceed, you must have:

• Assembled the PinebookPro as documented above
• Inserted the Micro SD card containing the Slackware Installer into the PinebookPro's MicroSD card slot

If you'd like to encrypt your storage, check the Disk Encryption Guide.

Press the Power Button for aproximately two seconds

After a few seconds, the you will see the following on screen:

It takes several seconds to load and boot the installer, and it may take several seconds more for any further output to appear on the screen.

Once networking has been setup (or timed out), you will be presented with a prompt.

If you have Internet access available, you may wish to sync the date via NTP. If not, you can skip this.

# ntpdate rolex.ripe.net
# hwclock -w

For this installation a basic partitioning scheme will be created.

Open fdisk against the /dev/nvme0n1 block device (which will be your primary storage, and in these instructions is the NVME you screwed inside the laptop in the previous section).

fdisk /dev/nvme0n1

Clear an existing partition table: Press 'o' to clear the partition table

Create the Swap partition:

Type 'n' for new partition:

Type 'p' for primary partition type:

Press ENTER for the 'First sector'

Type '+4G' for the 'Last Sector'/size:

Change the partition type to 'Swap'. Type 't' then hex code '82':

Create the partition for the root filesystem ('/'):

Type 'n' for new partition. Press ENTER to accept the defaults - this will create partition 2 as the maximum size available.

Type 'a' to mark the root partition (number 2) as bootable Type '2' to select partition 2.

Type 'p' to print to view the partition table.

Type 'w' to write the partition table:

fdisk will now exit.

The Installer will configure the Boot Loader and the OS' /etc/fstab automatically:

Press ENTER to say 'Yes'.

If you would like to install from an alternate media source, pick 'No' and you will be presented with options to install over NFS, USB and HTTP amongst others.

Ordinarily you should always say 'Yes' unless you've been directed to do otherwise.

You can now choose the package sets to install. The recommendation is to install everything. A full Slackware installation will occupy approximately 15GB.

Pick the 'terse' option:

The packages will begin installing:

If you plan on using the UART/'Serial' console, you should select 'No' here.

If you plan on exclusively the Pinebook Pro's LCD panel, you should pick 'Yes'.

For most users, selecting 'No' will be fine and enables connecting the serial console later.

If this is the first time you have installed Slackware, you must flash the Boot Loader. The initial Boot Loader flash performed earlier in these instructions typically contains an older version of the Boot Loader, where as the version packaged within the Installer contains the latest tested version.

The Micro SD card is transformed from being the Slackware Installer into the Slackware OS's /boot partition. At this stage, if the installation has worked for you (at certain points in the Slackware installer you are past the point of no return) you can delete the Installer. However, if something has gone wrong you can reset the PinebookPro and reboot the installer without having to re-deploy the Slackware Installer image from your Linux Host Computer.

Generally you should say 'Yes' here.

The Slackware Installer will walk you through the standard Slackware setup. The on-screen instructions will suffice.

It's recommended for the RockPro64 and Pinebook Pro that a larger console font is configured.

The recommended font is 'ter-732b.psf'. This is the font used within the Installer.

This author recommends using XFCE as it's light weight versus KDE.

Generally you'll want to reboot into the OS.

However, if you are planning on setting up RAID or need to customise the Operating System Initial RAM Disk, you should select 'Shell'.

The Slackware OS will be found within '/mnt'. You can use the 'os-initrd-mgr' tool (Video tutorial).

The Slackware Installer will reboot into the Slackware OS.

You may now login as 'root', using the password you set within the installer.

There are a few post-installation configuration tasks to complete.

If Internet access is available to the PineBook Pro, prior to proceeding with any further setup, you may wish to set the time now as a one-off event:

Elevate yourself to root and use ntpdate:

$ su - 
# ntpdate rolex.ripe.net  # or pick your favourite NTP server
# hwclock -w # writes the date to the RTC
# logout

You should add a plebeian (non-root) user using the 'adduser' tool.

This is documented here.

If your PineBook Pro has continuous Internet access, you may wish to configure it to sync time from an Internet NTP Server.

The LCD brightness level is controlled statically during boot. By default it'll set the maximum brightness, which is '4000'. The lowest realistically that this author can read is 1000.

To change the brightness level:

As root, edit the Hardware Model run control configuration file:

# vi /etc/rc.d/rc.platform.conf # or substitute 'vi' for your favourite editor

Within that configuration you'll find examples. Uncomment, set accordingly and reboot.

If you prefer to use a graphical login manager, you can configure the default runlevel as 4:

su - 
sed -i 's?id:3:?id:4:?g' /etc/inittab
reboot

One of the preferred tools to keep your system up to date is slackpkg.

The Slackware Installer image contains a type ext4 partition labeled SLKins_aio-pkgs from which the packages are installed.

root@slackware:~# mount LABEL=SLKins_aio-pkgs /mnt/zip
root@slackware:~# cat /mnt/zip/README.txt 
This file system contains the Slackware repository that is used during the
installation of Slackware.

Once you've booted into your OS you can delete or change this partition if you
wish, or perhaps you might like to retain it for future reference.

root@slackware:~#

If you'd like to customise the Linux Kernel, the easiest way is to follow the HOWTO guide and use the Slackware ARM Kernel build script to create new packages.

Slackware ARM ships with a generic OS InitRD (Operating System Initial RAM Disk - the environment that prepares the machine to boot the Operating System Proper), so as to support a wide range of Hardware Models.

However, this isn't the optimal setup once the Slackware OS has been installed because the generic OS InitRD typically exceeds 250MB, which in some cases can add several seconds to the boot time whilst it's loaded from the SD card.

The os-initrd-mgr (Operating System Initial RAM Disk Manager) tool has an option to synchronize the OS InitRD's Kernel modules with only those presently loaded within the Operating System.

To do this:

$ su -c 'os-initrd-mgr --sync-loaded-kmods' -  # note the final -

This option isn't the default, but you can make it so by following the instructions within /etc/os-initrd-mgr.conf.sample

This way when you upgrade the Kernel packages in the order described above, it'll automatically synchronize the modules.

To suspend, in a console its fast to test by running “loginctl suspend”.

The sleep button works. Upon waking up just tap the power button opening and closing the lid does the same.

Slackware comes with a good base of software applications, but there are plenty more available in the Open Source Ecosystem.

The best way to add new software is to use the build scripts from SlackBuilds.org.

If you'd like to use a UART/Serial console, you'll need to adjust the switch that toggles Sound vs UART (you'll find this annotated in earlier sections of this document), and connect the adapter (details are in the Hardware requirements section above).

You can then connect the USB end of the adapter into your Linux Host Computer, and use the following command.

screen -T screen-256color /dev/ttyUSB0 115200

The Project Roadmap contains the major issues/bugs/feature gaps.

The ARM Trusted Firmware firmware does not support the deep sleep / hibernate functions yet. https://github.com/ARM-software/arm-trusted-firmware/search?q=hibernate

We use the Open Source U-boot firmware, with Trusted Firmware - ARM integration.

Hibernation changes for elogin.conf (once upstream support available)

#AllowHibernation=yes
#AllowSuspendThenHibernate=yes
#AllowHybridSleep=yes
If set those to "no"  they will not show up in the menus of xfce and kde.

Slackware Installer:
- The rk3399 helper script is primed to set resume= within extlinux.conf, once support is available.

Resume points to the swap partition that hibernate uses to save the system and reload the system.
https://docs.slackware.com/howtos:slackware_admin:hibernation?s[]=hibernate

There is an option in the logind.conf to set up hybrid sleep, where sleep then hibernation is activated.

https://forum.manjaro.org/t/hibernate-on-pinebook-pro/18045

The Slackware AArch64 installation boots from the Micro SD card because it's the most portable method (across Hardware Models). However, it'd be ideal if the Pinebook Pro could boot from a partition on the NVME.

This requires mainline U-Boot to support it (no patches!), and some work on the installer to support it. Notes: * Need to consider how the installer handles 'SLKboot' (SD card). Do we need to rename it to SLKinst and handle renaming it again to SLKboot on the PbPro and all other HWMs? Possibly not. Needs more thought

There are a plethora of ARM devices on the market which requires initial R&D and continuous testing. If you'd like to help Slackware support more ARM boards, please check out the documentation explaining how to get involved.

Maintenance of the Slackware ARM port takes not only a lot of time, but also has financial costs such as the on-going use of electricity, Internet hosting and purchasing and maintenance of ARM hardware.

Once you find yourself enjoying using the ARM port of Slackware, please take a few moments to show your appreciation through sponsorship.