Hi i have mac os and axon board, blue light keeps on so i wanna update new os. What are the steps from macbook pro to axon, please provide step by step
Best regards
Hi,
Thank you for reaching out.
You can flash a new Ubuntu OS onto your Vicharak Axon board from your MacBook Pro using the open-source rkdeveloptool utility.
Please follow the instructions below.
Step 1: Download the required files
Before proceeding, download the following files onto your MacBook:
1. Ubuntu 24.04 RAW image
https://downloads.vicharak.in/vicharak-axon/ubuntu/24_noble/
2. RK3588 SPL Loader
https://downloads.vicharak.in/vicharak-axon/rk3588_spl_loader_v1.14.113.bin
After downloading, extract the Ubuntu archive to obtain the .img file.
Step 2: Install rkdeveloptool on macOS
Open Terminal on your MacBook and install the required dependencies using Homebrew:
brew install automake autoconf libusb pkg-config
Clone and build rkdeveloptool:
git clone https://github.com/rockchip-linux/rkdeveloptool
cd rkdeveloptool
autoreconf -i
./configure
make
GitHub repository:
Step 3: Put Axon into MaskROM mode
- Connect your Axon board to your MacBook using a USB-C data cable.
- Press and hold the BOOT button on the Axon board.
- While holding the BOOT button, press the RESET button 2–3 times.
- Release the buttons.
Now verify that the board is detected:
./rkdeveloptool ld
The device should appear in MaskROM mode.
For additional guidance, refer to the official Vicharak flashing documentation:
https://docs.vicharak.in/vicharak_sbcs/axon/axon-linux/linux-usage-guide/linux-axon-upgrade-tool/
Step 4: Flash the Ubuntu image
First, navigate to the directory containing the downloaded SPL loader and extracted Ubuntu image, or provide their full file paths in the commands below.
Load the RK3588 SPL loader:
./rkdeveloptool db /path/to/rk3588_spl_loader_v1.14.113.bin
Next, flash the extracted image onto the eMMC:
./rkdeveloptool wl 0 /path/to/ubuntu-raw.img
Replace /path/to/ubuntu-raw.img with the actual path and filename of your extracted Ubuntu image.
Warning: Flashing the image will overwrite the existing operating system and data stored on the board’s eMMC. Please back up any important data before proceeding.
Wait until the flashing process completes successfully.
Step 5: Reboot the Axon board
After flashing completes, execute:
./rkdeveloptool rd
Alternatively, reset the board manually.
The Axon should now boot into the newly installed Ubuntu operating system.
During the first boot, the board may reboot automatically while completing its initial configuration. Please do not disconnect the power supply during this process.
Additional documentation
For more detailed flashing instructions, troubleshooting, and information about MaskROM mode, please refer to the official Vicharak documentation:
Vicharak Axon Linux Upgrade and Flashing Guide
https://docs.vicharak.in/vicharak_sbcs/axon/axon-linux/linux-usage-guide/linux-axon-upgrade-tool/
Please refer specifically to the “Flash RAW image in Axon” section. The documentation uses Rockchip’s Linux upgrade_tool, while the instructions above use the open-source rkdeveloptool utility for macOS.
If you encounter any errors or the board is not detected in MaskROM mode, please share the terminal output with us so we can assist you further.
Best regards,
Vicharak Support Team
macbook@Macbooks-MacBook-Pro rkdeveloptool % sudo ./rkdeveloptool db …/Downloads/rk3588_spl_loader_v1.14.113.bin
Password:
Downloading bootloader failed!
macbook@Macbooks-MacBook-Pro rkdeveloptool % sudo ./rkdeveloptool db …/Downloads/rk3588_spl_loader_v1.14.113.bin
Downloading bootloader succeeded.
macbook@Macbooks-MacBook-Pro rkdeveloptool % sudo ./rkdeveloptool ld
DevNo=1 Vid=0x2207,Pid=0x350b,LocationID=1403 Maskrom
macbook@Macbooks-MacBook-Pro rkdeveloptool % sudo ./rkdeveloptool wl 0 …/Downloads/V2.0.1_vicharak_axon_6.1_03072026-ubuntu-noble-24.04-raw.img
Write LBA failed!
macbook@Macbooks-MacBook-Pro rkdeveloptool %
macbook@Macbooks-MacBook-Pro rkdeveloptool % sudo ./rkdeveloptool cs 1
Change Storage failed! Storage 1 is not available.
macbook@Macbooks-MacBook-Pro rkdeveloptool % sudo ./rkdeveloptool rfi
Flash Info:
Manufacturer: SAMSUNG, value=00
Flash Size: 0 MB
Flash Size: 0 Sectors
Block Size: 512 KB
Page Size: 2 KB
ECC Bits: 0
Access Time: 40
Flash CS:
macbook@Macbooks-MacBook-Pro rkdeveloptool % sudo ./rkdeveloptool wl 0 …/Downloads/V2.0.1_vicharak_axon_6.1_03072026-ubuntu-noble-24.04-raw.img
Write LBA failed!
macbook@Macbooks-MacBook-Pro rkdeveloptool % sudo ./rkdeveloptool ppt
Partition Info(GPT)
NO LBA Name
00 00004000 uboot
01 00006000 misc
02 00008000 boot
03 00108000 recovery
04 00198000 userdata
05 00218000 rootfs
macbook@Macbooks-MacBook-Pro rkdeveloptool % sudo ./rkdeveloptool rl 0 8192 /tmp/emmc_test.bin
Read LBA to file (100%)
macbook@Macbooks-MacBook-Pro rkdeveloptool % ls -lh /tmp/emmc_test.bin
-rw-r–r-- 1 root wheel 4.0M 8 Oct 14:20 /tmp/emmc_test.bin
macbook@Macbooks-MacBook-Pro rkdeveloptool % dd if=/dev/zero of=/tmp/write_test.bin bs=512 count=8192
8192+0 records in
8192+0 records out
4194304 bytes transferred in 0.049741 secs (84322872 bytes/sec)
macbook@Macbooks-MacBook-Pro rkdeveloptool % sudo ./rkdeveloptool wl 32768 /tmp/write_test.bin
Write LBA failed!
macbook@Macbooks-MacBook-Pro rkdeveloptool % /tmp/emmc_test.bin
zsh: permission denied: /tmp/emmc_test.bin
macbook@Macbooks-MacBook-Pro rkdeveloptool % sudo /tmp/emmc_test.bin
sudo: /tmp/emmc_test.bin: command not found
macbook@Macbooks-MacBook-Pro rkdeveloptool % sudo ./rkdeveloptool rl 32768 8192 /tmp/emmc_test2.bin
Read LBA to file (100%)
macbook@Macbooks-MacBook-Pro rkdeveloptool % sudo ./rkdeveloptool rcb
Capability:3F 07 00 00 00 00 00 00
Direct LBA: enabled
Vendor Storage: enabled
First 4m Access: enabled
Read LBA: enabled
Read Com Log: enabled
Read IDB Config: enabled
Read Secure Mode: enabled
New IDB: enabled
macbook@Macbooks-MacBook-Pro rkdeveloptool % sudo ./rkdeveloptool rfi
Flash Info:
Manufacturer: SAMSUNG, value=00
Flash Size: 0 MB
Flash Size: 0 Sectors
Block Size: 512 KB
Page Size: 2 KB
ECC Bits: 0
Access Time: 40
Flash CS:
macbook@Macbooks-MacBook-Pro rkdeveloptool % sudo ./rkdeveloptool cs 1
Change Storage failed! Storage 1 is not available.
macbook@Macbooks-MacBook-Pro rkdeveloptool % sudo ./rkdeveloptool td
Test Device OK.
macbook@Macbooks-MacBook-Pro rkdeveloptool % sudo ./rkdeveloptool td
sudo ./rkdeveloptool ul …/Downloads/rk3588_spl_loader_v1.14.113.bin
sudo ./rkdeveloptool ld
sudo ./rkdeveloptool rfi
Test Device OK.
Upgrading loader failed!
DevNo=1 Vid=0x2207,Pid=0x350b,LocationID=1403 Maskrom
Flash Info:
Manufacturer: SAMSUNG, value=00
Flash Size: 0 MB
Flash Size: 0 Sectors
Block Size: 512 KB
Page Size: 2 KB
ECC Bits: 0
Access Time: 40
Flash CS:
macbook@Macbooks-MacBook-Pro rkdeveloptool % git clone GitHub - vicharak-in/Linux_Upgrade_Tool: // Rockchip Upgrade Tool for flashing images to Linux · GitHub
cd Linux_Upgrade_Tool
Cloning into ‘Linux_Upgrade_Tool’…
remote: Enumerating objects: 5, done.
remote: Counting objects: 100% (5/5), done.
remote: Compressing objects: 100% (5/5), done.
remote: Total 5 (delta 0), reused 5 (delta 0), pack-reused 0 (from 0)
Receiving objects: 100% (5/5), 1.20 MiB | 4.08 MiB/s, done.
macbook@Macbooks-MacBook-Pro Linux_Upgrade_Tool % sudo ./upgrade_tool ld
./upgrade_tool: ./upgrade_tool: cannot execute binary file
macbook@Macbooks-MacBook-Pro Linux_Upgrade_Tool % sudo ./upgrade_tool ld
./upgrade_tool: ./upgrade_tool: cannot execute binary file
macbook@Macbooks-MacBook-Pro Linux_Upgrade_Tool % sudo ./upgrade_tool db rk3588_spl_loader_v1.14.113.bin
./upgrade_tool: ./upgrade_tool: cannot execute binary file
macbook@Macbooks-MacBook-Pro Linux_Upgrade_Tool %