Changing flash drives - how to avoid problems?

[TheLyppardMan]

I decided to change the two USB flash drives for one larger drive (which is supposed to be faster), but after uninstalling my amtm scripts and swapping over the flash drives, I found it wasn't compatible. But that was only the start of my troubles. As soon as I tried to use either of the previous flash drives, the CPU on all four cores of my RT-AX88U went crazy and showed no signs of settling down, until I dismounted them. I tried everything I could think of, e.g., formatting to NTFS on my computer, then to Ext4 on the router (for the scripts drive), but every time I tried, the CPU problem came back. I also tried reformatting the jffs but that didn't resolve things either, so I decided to do a factory reset and start from scratch (groan). That seemed to clear the problem, until I made one little tweak to the router name and then the problem kicked off again. I had almost resigned myself to not being able to use the flash drives, having spend about 5-6 hours struggling with this when one last attempt resolved the problem (no idea why). So my question is, what is the best way to swap a flash drive without ending up techno hell like I've experienced today?

 

[L&LD]

What I would have done while the router was working as expected:

• Save a copy of the JFFS partition (via the GUI).
• Save a copy of the USB drive containing the Entware, the swap file, and the scripts.
  • Better yet, in addition to the above step, simply remove them (Safely, via the GUI) and put them away and don't plug them into anything else (these are now your primary backup).
• Disable scripts on the JFFS partition in the Administration, System tab. Make sure to click 'Apply' at the bottom of the page.
• Format the JFFS partition on the next boot, make sure to click 'Apply' again at the bottom of the page.
• Reboot the router with the USB drives removed three times in the next 10 to 15 minutes, waiting 5 to 10 minutes between each reboot.
• Format the new USB drive/SSD in a PC to NTFS format.
• Enable the scripts on the JFFS partition.
• Insert the USB drive in the router and proceed to format it using Ext4 w/journaling.
• After it has rebooted, create a 2GB swap file on the router.
• Enable the DC (disk check) script.
• Reboot the router and check the dcl (disk check log) for errors.
• At this point, I would be installing the scripts you want, in this general order (not all of them, of course).

Order of installing popular scripts | SmallNetBuilder Forums

 

[Svenskmat]

Can you let us know why the reason for:

• Reboot the router with the USB drives removed three times in the next 10 to 15 minutes, waiting 5 to 10 minutes between each reboot.

Thanks

 

[L&LD]

After the first reboot, the JFFS partition is formatted.

At the second reboot, (5 minutes after it has booted up), the router finishes any cleanup/maintenance it needs to do with the newly created JFFS.

After the third reboot, (5 to 10 minutes after it has booted up again), the router should be fully 'up' and stable, ready to be used.

When I rush these steps, I always end up doing them over again to have a stable router.

 

[Svenskmat]

Thanks for the detailed explanation! I never would have figured these as the reasons, but makes total sense.

 

[AntonK]

After the first reboot, the JFFS partition is formatted.

At the second reboot, (5 minutes after it has booted up), the router finishes any cleanup/maintenance it needs to do with the newly created JFFS.

After the third reboot, (5 to 10 minutes after it has booted up again), the router should be fully 'up' and stable, ready to be used.

When I rush these steps, I always end up doing them over again to have a stable router.

Sounds a little like Voodoo, but if it works...

 

[L&LD]

Unless Asus tells us exactly what is going on, these are my best guesses. Voodoo or not, it works for me.

 

[TheLyppardMan]

Thank you so much for this detailed procedure L&LD. I'll bookmark this thread for future reference and maybe save a local pdf backup as well, just in case (paranoia is starting to set in, LOL).

 

[TheLyppardMan]

Just a couple of additional questions if I may. If I wanted to revert to using the original flash drive or restore from that flash drive to a brand new flash drive, how would I go about that?

 

[martinr]

Thank you so much for this detailed procedure L&LD. I'll bookmark this thread for future reference and maybe save a local pdf backup as well, just in case (paranoia is starting to set in, LOL).

I like to print out my various L&LD guides for those rare occasions when I might want to add a note, and to ensure I have access to the information if I mess up Internet access. (I keep checking Amazon in case The L&LD Ultimate Compendium of Guides gets published.)

 

[pl4tin]

I like to print out my various L&LD guides for those rare occasions when I might want to add a note, and to ensure I have access to the information if I mess up Internet access. (I keep checking Amazon in case The L&LD Ultimate Compendium of Guides gets published.)

In that case, I will buy one

 

[L&LD]

@TheLyppardMan if you wanted to revert to the original flash drive and you kept it intact/unused? I would format the JFFS partition on the next boot, restore the backup you had made, and then simply plug in the USB drive that was used with that corresponding backup.

I would not suggest flashing a backup from one drive to another. Sure, you can find other guides that work (if I attempted it, I would do it using Macrium Reflect free edition), but it is just as fast and infinitely better to just install the scripts you use 'fresh' and in order too.

 

[TheLyppardMan]

Thanks L&LD - I've now got comprehensive advice/instructions so no excuse to mess things up

 

[cdlight]

After the first reboot, the JFFS partition is formatted.

At the second reboot, (5 minutes after it has booted up), the router finishes any cleanup/maintenance it needs to do with the newly created JFFS.

After the third reboot, (5 to 10 minutes after it has booted up again), the router should be fully 'up' and stable, ready to be used.

When I rush these steps, I always end up doing them over again to have a stable router.

I'm fairly new to this forum and have been following your nuclear reset procedures when flashing new firmware, although as AntonK said, the three reboot process has seemed a bit like "voodoo." Thank you for the explanation and for your guides!