Cambrionix Command Line Updater User Manual

June 16, 2024
Cambrionix

Cambrionix logo Command Line Updater
User Manual

Introduction

The command line updater is a stand-alone application for host computers connected to supported hardware, that provides the ability to update firmware that is released by Cambrionix. You can also update the firmware using our LiveViewer application which can be downloaded from the below link.
www.cambrionix.com/products/liveviewer
This application simplifies the deployment of firmware, and the update experience whilst minimizing user interaction. This application can also be used to update firmware without the need for installing any software, supporting runtime libraries or changes to the Host operating system.
You can download the command line updater along with the latest User Manual from our website at the below link, https://www.cambrionix.com/firmware
The download is a combined zip file and will have all necessary components for macOS®, Linux® and Microsoft Windows™. This also Includes the latest firmware versions for all products, to see which firmware your hub requires please refer to your product’s user manual.
www.cambrionix.com/product-user-manuals
You will also require a terminal program to be able to run the command line updater. A terminal is a text-based interface to the computer, this is included in most operating systems. You can use any terminal program to run the updater.

Getting started

Once you have downloaded the zipped file onto your host, you need to unzip the file into your deslocation, you will then be able to run the command line updater. Before use you need to connect apower on the hubs that you wish to update, and have them visible on your OS.
If you require more information on connecting the hub please refer to the specific product user manuals.

3.1. Opening a Terminal
Microsoft Windows™
Open a terminal window in the location that you have unzipped the file. For example this can be done by holding down shift and right clicking on the folder and then opening with a terminal program (for example Windows PowerShell).
macOS®
Open a terminal window in the location that you have unzipped the file, this can be done by selecting the folder in finder and then control clicking which will then allow you to open a terminal window at the folders location.
You may need to trust the program on your Mac in order for it to run, you can do this by opening the macOS sub-folder in the command line updater fold and the control clicking on command-lineupdater and selecting open, this will then prompt you to trust
the program which will then allow the command line updater to run.
Linux®
Open a terminal window in the location that you have unzipped the file.

Using the updater

Once you have a terminal window open you can access the command line updater by entering the below command.
./command-line-updater.sh.sh
When you input the command you will receive a response with some information on how to use the updater

Cambrionix Command Line Updater 2.0.0:
–path | The path to look for firmware files, or a
specific firmware file to update the hub
with. The default is to look in current
directory and use the most recent firmware
for each hub.
–serial […] The serial device (such as COM3) of the
Cambrionix hub to update, or specify ‘all’ to
find all hubs and update them. You may
specify multiple serial devices. Without this
option, a list of available hubs will be
shown.
–type What to update (charger | display | proxy |
all). If unspecified, ‘all’ will be assumed.
If a specific file is specified in the –path
option, the type will be assumed from this
file.
–force Update the hub even if the existing firmware
is the latest.
–auto Same as –serial all –type all.

To update all available hubs to the latest firmware (which is supplied within the command line updater zip) you can send the command below, this is the default behaviour .
./command-line-updater.sh.sh –auto
If you wish to force a firmware update to take place, even if the hub already has the firmware on it you can finish the command with the below.
–force
The updater software will require access to the hub, so if you are running any software that is holding the connection to the hub then these will need to be closed or stopped before running the update. If the updater cannot access the serial port it will display an error message explaining this.

4.1. –path (Selecting path to firmware)
The first variable you can add onto the command is path to the intended firmware files. If you wish to use firmware versions that you have stored locally, then you will need to specify the filepath for the folder which contains the firmware files. When you download the command line updater folder from our site this will include the latest versions of the firmware.
The updater will automatically look in the unzipped folder for the firmware that is required for the connected hubs, so if you do not use this variable then that is where the updater will look.
If your firmware files are stored somewhere else on your host system then this will need to be specified in your command, use quotation marks when specifying long filenames or paths with spaces for example:

./command-line-updater.sh.sh –path “C:\ProgramData\Cambrionix\firmware\firmwarefiles”

After you have specified the location of where the firmware files are stored you would like the updater to run the rest of the variables on defaults then you would need to finish the command with the auto command as the below example.
./command-line-updater.sh.sh –path “C:\ProgramData\Cambrionix\firmware\”–auto

If you wish to use firmware versions other than the latest versions these can be downloaded from our website at the below link.
www.cambrionix.com/software-archive

4.2. –serial (Choosing which hub to update)
The second variable that can be added to the command is the hub you wish to update. The way you determine the device will vary depending on the OS you are using. The updater will also scan the USBdevices and can provide a list of all available devices. So if you send the below you will be provided with a list of available hubs.
./command-line-updater.sh

Once you have obtained the hub information for the devices you wish to update you can add them to the command, if you wish to update multiple devices you can put a space between each device, as below.
./command-line-updater.sh –serial com7 com9

If you do not put any other variables in place then the updater software will use the defaults, which is to update to the latest available charging hub firmware.
You can also discover the hubs for each OS by using the following methods.

macOS®
If you host system is using macOS® you can get a list of physical hubs by running the below command

ls /dev/tty.usb
This will return something like the below example.
/dev/tty.usbserial-DN004ANJ

Microsoft Windows™
If your host system is using Microsoft Windows™ then you will need to specify the COM port, the COM port can be found through device manager.
Linux®
If you host system is using Linux® then you can get a list of the hubs by running the below commands.
For the Supersync15 you will need to send the below.

/dev/ttyACM
For all other products you will need to send the below.
/dev/ttyUSB

4.3. –type (Selecting the firmware type)
Some products will use multiple firmwares, in order to update the specific firmwares the type variable must be input. The updater software will default to updating the charger type of firmware, so if this variable is left blank that is how it will default.
The different types can be seen in the table below.

type Description
charger Update the charging hub firmware
display Update the display firmware
proxy Update the proxy firmware (such as motor control)
all Update all firmwares present on a product

An example of updating the motor control software for our ModIT products would look like the below.
To use the default values of all other variables then finish the command with –auto.
./command-line-updater.sh –type proxy –auto

Additional information

5.1. Update stages
When the firmware updates it will run through the below stages. The stage value will be displayed along with a progress bar in the terminal window.

Update stage Description
Connecting Connecting to the hub
Initialising The update is initialising
Erasing Erasing current firmware
Updating New firmware is being installed
Verifying Checking that the firmware has installed correctly
Complete The update has completed
Skipped Firmware update has been skipped on this hub

5.2. Bootloader
The bootloader is a separate piece of firmware which allows the hub to load new firmware and to update it. The bootloader is loaded onto the board when it is manufactured and cannot be changed.
You can view the bootloader version of your hub through our LiveViewer software or by sending the “id” command through the CLI. There is information on the CLI in the user manual which can be downloaded from our website.
www.cambrionix.com/cli

5.3. Errors
There are several reasons why an update may fail to take place, the updater software will relay back why an error has taken place through the terminal.
If there has been an error updating a hubs firmware it may get stuck in bootloader mode, to remedy this you will need to push a further firmware update to the hub to get it back into a usable state.

An example error is below.
COM7: PP15S (000000) Firmware update failed. Device may now be unusable, and may need re-flashing. caused by Device is not responding

5.4. Daisy-chained hubs
Updating daisy-chained hubs simultaneously may fail (or appear to fail) because the updater tool loses connection to the hubs further down the USB tree when the parent hub reboots. In this case you may get a ‘Device is not responding’ error. Re-run the tool for these cases (without the –force option) to verify the state.

Licensing

The use of Command Line Updater is subject to the Cambrionix Licence agreement, the document can be downloaded and viewed using the following link.
 https://downloads.cambrionix.com/documentation/en/Cambrionix-Licence- Agreement.pdf

Use of Trademarks, Registered Trademarks, and other Protected Names and Symbols
This manual may make reference to trademarks, registered trademarks, and other protected names and or symbols of third-party companies not related in any way to Cambrionix. Where they occur these references are for illustrative purposes only and do not represent an endorsement of a product or service by Cambrionix, or an endorsement of the product(s) to which this manual applies by the third-party company in question.
Cambrionix hereby acknowledges that all trademarks, registered trademarks, service marks, and other protected names and /or symbols contained in this manual and related documents are the property of their respective holders
“Mac® and macOS® are trademarks of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries and regions.”
“Intel® and the Intel logo are trademarks of Intel Corporation or its subsidiaries.”
“Thunderbolt™ and the Thunderbolt logo are trademarks of Intel Corporation or its subsidiaries.”
“Android™ is a trademark of Google LLC”
“Chromebook™ is a trademark of Google LLC.”
“iOS™ is a trademark or registered trademark of Apple Inc,in the US and other countries and is used under license.”
“Linux® is the registered trademark of Linus Torvalds in the U.S. and other countries”
“ Microsoft™ and Microsoft Windows™ are trademarks of the Microsoft group of companies.”
“Cambrionix® and the logo are trademarks of Cambrionix Limited.”

Cambrionix logoCambrionix Limited
The Maurice Wilkes Building
Cowley Road
Cambridge CB4 ODS
United Kingdom
+44 (0) 1223 755520
enquiries@cambrionix.com
www.cambrionix.com
Cambrionix Ltd is a company registered in England and Wales
with the company number 06210854
Command Line Updater
© 2023-05 Cambrionix Ltd. All rights reserved.

References

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