HybridKangXau – Apad iRobot Custom Firmware

Installation

• For Apad iRobot Batch 2 (includes Apad iRobot M. It’s the one with the front camera) only! I have no way of your fixing mistake if you screwed up!

• IF YOU WERE SUPPLIED WITH A 9V CHARGER, DO NOT FLASH THE STANDARD VERSION, BECAUSE YOU HAVE A BATCH 3 Apad iRobot!

• 警告。9Vの充電器モデルのApadは、このファームウェアに書き換えてはいけません

• Please read ‘Caution’ section before flashing (read more)
• First Boot Will Take Time!

• Latest version is v1.3.3, English startup only. There are 4 versions of 1.3.2, so be sure to read more to figure out which one you want:

• Standard (English)
• CHS (Chinese Simplified), 中文版本，带有多个IME，手机电视
• Arabic (English with Arabic Support, description here)
• JP (Japanese, really just starts in Japanese and has preinstalled Simeji. No significant differences otherwise)  日本語版。はじめから日本語で表示され、Simejiがプリインストールされています。 重要な違いはそれ以外ありません。

Skydrive DOWNLOAD

Use this tool to flash to your device from HiApad.com

Links are Down

Coming by to say that all my links have been taken down with Microsoft’s changes in the SkyDrive service. I still have some of these files on my hard drive, but I am not really motivated to upload them at this point because of my slow upload connection and the fact that RK2808 devices have been completely deprecated by RK2818.

Otherwise, I am hanging out at AndroidTablets.net as a moderator with my Huwaei ideos S7

Inactivity

Since my Apad iRobot (RK2808 APAD) broke, I have not been updating this blog.

I have since been contributing to the community at AndroidTablets.net. I do have a HSG X5A now, but it was good enough out of the box that I did not the need to modify it extensively.

1.3.3 Reuploaded

There was a problem the uploaded ROM 1.3.3. The files that are there now are good to go.

HKX1.3.3 – Useable Android 1.5

(Reupload 11:50 PM ET)

Version bump with minimal changes to the system image. Stability and performance should be significantly better.

Download here

Details
I also do not recommend the use of a task killer with this ROM.

Addition of Android’s lowmemorykiller driver and aufs (Alternate union fs) to allow for writes to /system (branched to /data/sysrw). Removed the use of the swap partition, which was a bad idea anyway.

Root
I was not able to make the update.img rooted. However, you can root the ROM yourself by installing Superuser.apk (included) and reperforming chmod on the su binaries in the ROM.

Then perform the following:
adb shell
rm /system/bin/su
busybox cp /system/xbin/su /system/bin/su
chmod 06755 /system/bin/su
chmod 06755 /system/xbin/su

Titanium Backup rooted and working under HKX1.33.

Fully Writeable /system using aufs kernel module

Not going into too much details, but this enables writes to the /system partition using aufs (Another Union Filesystem). This isn’t useful for everyone, but this was one of the major pitfalls of the cramfs implementation on the RK2808 platform. It might be useful for ROM development for some.

Compiled kernel module: http://www.multiupload.com/0YC6CHCQPZ
aufs.ko

* * *

Then use something like:
busybox mkdir -p /data/sysrw
busybox mount -t aufs -o br=/data/sysrw=rw:/system=ro none /system

* * *

To compile yourself, download the A7HT kernel source code

Use CVS to get aufs25 from SF

Modify fs/aufs25/misc.c and remove the ‘if statements’ around ‘#if LINUX_VERSION_CODE < KERNEL_VERSION(2, 6, 26)' to enable empty_zero_page workaround for PPC (also required for ARM).

Compile aufs kernel module to A7HT source

(if '~/Android/rk2808 ' is where you put the kernel source, make KDIR=~/Android/rk2808 -f local.mk)

References:
xda http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=7774874
aufsv1 http://aufs.sourceforge.net/

HKX1.3.2 Test ROM with Android lowmemorykiller driver compiled, swap disabled

(Download removed and changes merged to 1.3.3)

This is a test ROM for the Rockchip RK2808 Apad, with lowmemorykiller module compiled. With these changes, Android should be faster and more stable. Task killers should also no longer be necessary. However, I do not have such a good understanding of Android that I verify this.

ROM modders can just use this boot.img, or find the lowmemorykiller kernel module under /modules in the boot.img

I am not sure if I will continue to work on ROMs, but this is just a test ROM.

The kernel source was acquired from Archos for the Archos 7 Home Tablet. I compiled using the existing .config, and compiled the low memory killer driver as a kernel module.

The only changes were done to the ‘boot.img’. The rest of the ROM is the same. You will not be able to notice any changes to the ROM until you run either ‘lsmod’ or ‘busybox free’ to show that the modules loaded or the memory status of the device.

I thought this was supposed to be one of the major downfalls of the Android implementation of the Apad iRobot. I don’t understand Linux very well, so I would have tried compiling this from Android git sooner than this had I previously known.

I am not sure what consequences this has in terms of performance.

Formatting Internal Flash Storage

This is a step-by-step pictorial guide of how you can reformat the internal storage of your Rockchip based Android device.

This is particularly and issue with my ROM, because it uses a different partition layout than the factory image, and leaves the /flash (or wherever it is mounted) unformatted and unusable.

Simply follow these steps reformat the drive.

HybridKangXau 1.3.2

The USB mounting problem that was in 1.3.1 is now. Maybe I messed it up. Anyhow, I tested it and it works now.

No other changes from1.3.1.

Got Google Contacts sync to work thanks to knightdominion @ ArchosFans

I’ll update the Arabic version too.

I’m pulling 1.3.1 from my download space so no one downloads it. Reverted also to 0630 kernel.

Links are now coming up!

On another note, since my touchscreen is broken, I had no way of testing of Explorer (RockExplorer) actually shows the contents of the USB. You might have to install EStrong’s File Manager yourself.

I am not really changing much to make the so called Japanese version. Most of the interfaces have been translated already. But I have not heard back from Japanese users. I think some are using myROM, but I don’t speak enough Japanese to ask.

HybridKangXau 1.3.1

Released an update to HybridKangXau. Minor update. Just bringing it closer to completion.

Sorry USB not working

Changes include:

• tweaks to memory system
• faster Launcher
• updated to 0706 kernel
• Working boot animation

Only 2 versions until there is a request for it.

English is the standard version, and CN is the Simplified Chinese version.

For Red LED Apad iRobot

(I have also updated a blue LED Apad iRobot ROM, but since I don’t have one I can’t test it. Same link, Chinese only)

HybridKangXau1.3JP Apad(iRobot)用日本語版カスタムファームウェア

Thanks to Taira for translate

HybridKangXau 1.3

Apad(iRobot)バッチ2用

日本語版カスタムファームウェア

ダウンロードリンク：
Skydrive

アップデートツール:
HiApad RKtool

アップデートの仕方は、このお借りした動画をご覧下さい：

アプリケーション集:
Skydrive