[Corrupted official firmware] Radio won't enter the bootloader

New users must post here first and let us know a little bit about yourself.
KF0EYZ
Posts: 3
Joined: Sat Apr 03, 2021 12:20 am

[Corrupted official firmware] Radio won't enter the bootloader

Post by KF0EYZ » Sat Apr 03, 2021 12:32 am

Good Evening!

I am totally new when it comes to Ham radio and am jumping in the deep end starting with a DMR radio. I got a good deal on a Radioddity GD 77 which is quite nice but I have maybe backed myself into a corner while playing around with firmware updates. I first used the official Radioddity software to update the firmware and I ended up with version 4.02.06 I downloaded the OPENGD77 software and was trying to upgrade the to the open firmware and for the life of me I can not get my radio into firmware update mode. I have done everything under the sun to no avail. Any tips tricks or advice? Under device info it does say that I have ROM:Error_01 if that helps.

Sorry for the first post being nothing but bellyaching.

KF0EYZ

VK3KYY
Posts: 7484
Joined: Sat Nov 16, 2019 3:25 am
Location: Melbourne, Australia

Re: [Corrupted official firmware] Radio won't enter the bootloader

Post by VK3KYY » Sat Apr 03, 2021 12:56 am

slondeen wrote:
Sat Apr 03, 2021 12:32 am
I downloaded the OPENGD77 software and was trying to upgrade the to the open firmware and for the life of me I can not get my radio into firmware update mode. I have done everything under the sun to no avail. Any tips tricks or advice? Under device info it does say that I have ROM:Error_01 if that helps.

Sorry for the first post being nothing but bellyaching.

KF0EYZ
Just hold both buttons in on the side of the radio and then turn it on.

The green LED should turn on, but nothing gets displayed on the screen.

Then use the OpenGD77 CPS to install the firmware.

https://github.com/rogerclarkmelbourne/ ... taller.exe

No special driver is needed to update

KF0EYZ
Posts: 3
Joined: Sat Apr 03, 2021 12:20 am

Re: [Corrupted official firmware] Radio won't enter the bootloader

Post by KF0EYZ » Sat Apr 03, 2021 7:14 pm

I do that but it it does not enter firmware update mode. Is there something else you can do to force or reset it?

VK3KYY
Posts: 7484
Joined: Sat Nov 16, 2019 3:25 am
Location: Melbourne, Australia

Re: New To HAM and the GD77

Post by VK3KYY » Sat Apr 03, 2021 8:47 pm

Is the radio new?

The only reason I have see for this is when the program memory in the CPU got partially corrupted.

I guess also if the buttons on the side don't work, would have the same effect.

With the official firmware, you can assign the 2 buttons below the PTT to various functions, so make sure that both of those buttons actually work.


BTW. Which radio do you have?

Some DM-1801 radios have a different bootloader / firmware loader, which doesn't turn on the green LED.

The only way to know that the radio is in upload mode is that the display is blank, but it appears as a USB HID device when you plug it ionto a computer

VK3KYY
Posts: 7484
Joined: Sat Nov 16, 2019 3:25 am
Location: Melbourne, Australia

Re: [Corrupted official firmware] Radio won't enter the bootloader

Post by VK3KYY » Sat Apr 03, 2021 10:34 pm

BTW.

I have changed your login to your callsign as its site policy for people to use their callsign if they have one

KF0EYZ
Posts: 3
Joined: Sat Apr 03, 2021 12:20 am

Re: [Corrupted official firmware] Radio won't enter the bootloader

Post by KF0EYZ » Mon Apr 05, 2021 3:09 am

After talking with the good folks at Radioddity The bootloader corrupted its self and I will have to exchange out that unit to get a new one. Bad luck for me but good to know that I was not going crazy. Thanks you all who responded with advice on the matter.

VK3KYY
Posts: 7484
Joined: Sat Nov 16, 2019 3:25 am
Location: Melbourne, Australia

Re: [Corrupted official firmware] Radio won't enter the bootloader

Post by VK3KYY » Mon Apr 05, 2021 3:58 am

KF0EYZ wrote:
Mon Apr 05, 2021 3:09 am
After talking with the good folks at Radioddity The bootloader corrupted its self and I will have to exchange out that unit to get a new one. Bad luck for me but good to know that I was not going crazy. Thanks you all who responded with advice on the matter.
OK.

If Radioddity weren't willing to give you a new radio, there is a hardware solution to this, but it involves taking the radio to pieces and also buying a hardware programmer.


BTW.

This problem with the bootloader is caused by bad programming in the bootloader.

The developers who programmed the bootloader added a copy protection check system, which checks some bytes in the program ROM of the CPU.

However, due to bugs in the official firmware, those bytes can get overritten or cleared, which results in either it not being possible to enter the bootloader, or in extreme cases the main firmware also not running, as it also has some copy protection code which checks some other memory which also gets overwritten.

I ended up having to create hacked versions of the bootloader, to remove the copy protection, which people had to install using a hardware programmer connected to the main PCB

OE2WHP
Posts: 23
Joined: Thu Apr 29, 2021 7:16 pm

Re: [Corrupted official firmware] Radio won't enter the bootloader

Post by OE2WHP » Thu Apr 29, 2021 8:23 pm

Hi,

I experienced the exact same issue today with my brandnew GD-77. Clicked on the wrong file during fw update (4.2.6 instead 4.3.6) and found myself with a GD-77 that doesn't go into update mode anymore. It shows ROM:error_01 just as yours did.
What I also notices is, that the unlock out of band TX function (SK1+#7) does not work either.

73 Holger

VK3KYY
Posts: 7484
Joined: Sat Nov 16, 2019 3:25 am
Location: Melbourne, Australia

Re: [Corrupted official firmware] Radio won't enter the bootloader

Post by VK3KYY » Thu Apr 29, 2021 10:34 pm

OE2WHP wrote:
Thu Apr 29, 2021 8:23 pm
Hi,

I experienced the exact same issue today with my brandnew GD-77. Clicked on the wrong file during fw update (4.2.6 instead 4.3.6) and found myself with a GD-77 that doesn't go into update mode anymore. It shows ROM:error_01 just as yours did.
What I also notices is, that the unlock out of band TX function (SK1+#7) does not work either.

73 Holger
Holger unfortunatly there are only 2 solutions.

1. If the radio is new and you were updating to another version of the official firmware, contact Radioddity and complain that their firmware broke the radio.
2. If Radioddity won't help, then the only option is to borrow or buy a JLink hardware programmer dongle, and to reflash the entire CPU ROM

Because several other people had the same problem, I have modified the official bootloader so that it works even if the ROM needed to be completely erased.

If Radioddity refuse to help you, then please contact me, and I will email you the "modified" bootloader, and give you details of what hardware you need to buy to program the radio.

You will also need to open the radio and solder to 4 pads on the PCB, but its not very difficult.

OE2WHP
Posts: 23
Joined: Thu Apr 29, 2021 7:16 pm

Re: [Corrupted official firmware] Radio won't enter the bootloader

Post by OE2WHP » Fri Apr 30, 2021 1:14 pm

Roger,

I contacted the seller today. I hope he will handle it as a warranty replacement. Now I'm warned and won't make this mistake again.
If he refuses to replace it, I will gladly get back to you. I already have J-Link laying around somewhere in my shack :-)

Thanks
Holger

Post Reply