forum.pistar.uk

I'll try to make this brief. I have both a Pi-Zero W and Pi-3B. I can easily upgrade the 3B to Pi-Star V4 . So far I have tried 4 different SD cards in the Zero and it will not boot. The same cards and image work 100% in the 3B but never in the Zero. If I put the previous V3 card in the Zero it boots fine. Yes, I gave the Zero plenty of time to boot..as much as 30 minutes. No IP shows up for the Zero with any card on V4 but on V3 it shows up and boots perfectly. I also tried 8gb class 4 and 16gb class 10 cards to see if that was an issue..no Joy. The Zero is about 8 years old. Is there some problem with that vintage? I can live with V3 in the Zero as I only use it mobile. But there has to be some reason for all this. Should I get a new Zero? Any help is appreciated!

Jim K2TL

Well, the Pi Zero was released in late 2015, the Pi Zero W in early 2017, so neither would be 8 years old. I have 3 of the later v1.1 boards and they all work perfectly with Pi-Star v4.1.4 as they did with v3.4.x before it.

I tend to use SanDisk SD cards, I forget exactly what is in my Zeros but they are either 8, 16 or 32GB cards.

I can't see why yours would not boot but I wonder if you might have a dodgy power supply, sometimes this affects Pi boards so I would suggest trying a different one.

Other than that, a new SD card, I would suggest checking the downloaded image file very carefully or loading the card using something like Balena Etcher if you don't already.

HTH

Another thought, did you put a wpa_supplicant.conf file on the card for the Pi Zero? If you didn't it should come up with its own wireless AP instead of connecting to your normal WiFi AP.

Thanks for the reply. I guess I lost track of time..so the Zero is not as old as I thought. However, I am using brand new SD cards..all SanDisk. The zero boots fine from the previous version and card. Nothing I have tried will get it to boot or show an IP. But the same cards and image work perfectly in the 3B.

and yes, I do have wpa_supplicant.conf file on the card. This is maddening!

k2tl wrote: ↑Sun Feb 07, 2021 6:28 pm Thanks for the reply. I guess I lost track of time..so the Zero is not as old as I thought. However, I am using brand new SD cards..all SanDisk. The zero boots fine from the previous version and card. Nothing I have tried will get it to boot or show an IP. But the same cards and image work perfectly in the 3B.

Well, I can only say that I run the same image on my Pi 2B and it's fine on all 4 Pi boards.

If you have the wpa_supplicant.conf file then have a look at the root of the card again after a boot attempt. It will have disappeared if recognised and moved to the /etc/ tree.

These things are maddening, let us know if you find the problem.

G8SEZ wrote: ↑Sun Feb 07, 2021 6:48 pm

k2tl wrote: ↑Sun Feb 07, 2021 6:28 pm Thanks for the reply. I guess I lost track of time..so the Zero is not as old as I thought. However, I am using brand new SD cards..all SanDisk. The zero boots fine from the previous version and card. Nothing I have tried will get it to boot or show an IP. But the same cards and image work perfectly in the 3B.

Well, I can only say that I run the same image on my Pi 2B and it's fine on all 4 Pi boards.

If you have the wpa_supplicant.conf file then have a look at the root of the card again after a boot attempt. It will have disappeared if recognised and moved to the /etc/ tree.

These things are maddening, let us know if you find the problem.

After setting up my sd card I put my in my Pi zero and attempt t boot it up. It does not connect. If I remove the sd card and put it on the reader the supplicant is always gone. Any ideas why?

If the supplicant file is gone then that means that the Pi Zero booted but did not connect to the WiFi.

I don't know why that would be, but note that different WiFi country settings could cause a problem. In the US you have WiFi channels 1-11 on 2.4GHz, in the UK then you also get channels 12 and 13. That shouldn't matter, but just maybe it does.

If you have another device that can search for WiFi then look for the Pi Zero acting as an AP on its own network with IP address 192.168.50.1

HTH

OK..here is what happened. I took your advice and booted the Zero from my 3B ac supply. Bingo!..Booted up. Then I restored the config file. Shut down and rebooted from the battery pack. Works fine! Now why did I need to kick start the Zero from the ac supply? Booted several times now from the battery pack and it is still working just like it always did.
Thanks for the advice. Now if I could only restore my hair I lost in the process.
K2TL

k2tl wrote: ↑Sun Feb 07, 2021 8:15 pm Thanks for the advice. Now if I could only restore my hair I lost in the process.

Old greybeard here, believe me in many ways better gone than bleached.

k2tl wrote: ↑Sun Feb 07, 2021 8:15 pm Now if I could only restore my hair I lost in the process.

Isn't that a planned feature in Pi-Star V5? (Ducks)