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  • Author Author: fvan
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Gizmo2: Installing SSD and Ubuntu

fvan

Previous posts:

 

 

Introduction

 

Using a Live USB Stick, I failed to install Ubuntu (or Xubuntu, tried both) to the microSD card of the GIZMO 2. The installation would finish successfully, but afterwards it was impossible to boot from it. So I bought a 32GB mSATA SSD for testing ...

 

 

Live USB Stick

 

Creating the Live USB stick was the easy part.

 

First, I downloaded the Ubuntu Desktop version *.iso from their website: Download Ubuntu Desktop | Download | Ubuntu

Then, I "burned" the *.iso file on a USB stick, as if it were a CD. These are the steps I performed:

 

1) list the available disks to ensure the correct one is used

Fredericks-Air:Downloads fvan1$ sudo diskUtil list

/dev/disk0
   #:                       TYPE NAME                    SIZE       IDENTIFIER
   0:      GUID_partition_scheme                        *251.0 GB   disk0
   1:                        EFI EFI                     209.7 MB   disk0s1
   2:          Apple_CoreStorage                         250.1 GB   disk0s2
   3:                 Apple_Boot Recovery HD             650.0 MB   disk0s3
/dev/disk1
   #:                       TYPE NAME                    SIZE       IDENTIFIER
   0:                  Apple_HFS Macintosh HD           *249.8 GB   disk1
                                 Logical Volume on disk0s2
                                 5642627E-CEC4-458D-AB8D-376EF3FB568C
                                 Unencrypted
/dev/disk2
   #:                       TYPE NAME                    SIZE       IDENTIFIER
   0:     FDisk_partition_scheme                        *8.0 GB     disk2
   1:                 DOS_FAT_32 UNTITLED                8.0 GB     disk2s1

 

2) unmount the disk to be used

Fredericks-Air:Downloads fvan1$ sudo diskUtil unmountDisk /dev/disk2

Unmount of all volumes on disk2 was successful

 

3) write the *.iso file to the disk

Fredericks-Air:Downloads fvan1$ sudo dd if=ubuntu-14.04.1-desktop-amd64.iso of=/dev/disk2 bs=1

1028653056+0 records in
1028653056+0 records out
1028653056 bytes transferred in 2770.850314 secs (371241 bytes/sec)

 

Everything went well, and I now had a bootable Ubuntu USB stick.

 

mSATA SSD

 

Physical Installation

 

As mentioned in the introduction, I bought a 32GB for testing. No mounting screws were provided with the SSD or the Gizmo2, so I improvised a little image

imageimageimage

 

The SSD needs to be inserted at an angle and then pulled down to be mounted in parallel to the Gizmo2.

 

SSD Detection

 

By default, the Gizmo2 should boot from the SSD. Using "F12" at startup, you can then select another boot option.

 

But for some reason, mine booted directly off the USB stick. I didn't realise it at that moment, so I proceeded with the Ubuntu installation wizard. Only briefly though, as it was stating there was not enough space to install. For some reason, the SSD was not detected. Why?

 

I started going through the user guide again, thinking I might have to do something to switch between miniPCIe or mSATA mode and found the following:

image

Should I conclude my SSD is non-compliant ?

 

Modification

 

In an attempt to get my SSD detected, I decided to go ahead and remove resistor "R1". The resistor is clearly indicated on the board with a white arrow pointing to it.

The resistor is tiny! I've never worked with something so tiny before, so it was a bit scary to do. I heated up the soldering iron, put a little bit of extra solder to get everything hot, and the resistor came loose very easily. Pfiew!

 

Took some pictures to give you an idea of just how small the resistor is (the USB microscope I got for Christmas finally came in handy!):

imageimageimage

 

Software Installation

 

With the resistor removed, I booted the Gizmo2 keeping my fingers crossed while pressing "F12". And there it was ... the SSD was detected!

imageimageimage

 

Using the installation wizard, Ubuntu was installed successfully on the SSD and I was able to boot from it (unlike the microSD card). Hooray!

 

Conclusion

 

A little bit trickier than expected, but I finally got my SSD detected and managed to install a different operating system on it.

 

I would suggest following improvements though:

  • to have a little jumper to enable/disable resistor "R1" instead of having to solder/desolder it
  • include some mounting screws for miniPCIe/mSATA devices

 

On to the next adventure with the Gizmo2!

Parents

  • Glad you got it working, unlucky with the SSD,  mine is an Intel 530 Series SSDMCEAW120A401 120 GB and works fine with the R1 installed. I agree a jumper on R1 is a good idea.   I initially started with a cable tie holding the SSD it in place but I have now printed some M2 spacers and M2 nut holders.

    You can just see the nut holders in the picture below.  The enclosure is about done, just adding the power and reset buttons...  will be posting details soon.

    image

  • in reply to bwelsby

    Hi Brian,

     

    Trust you are well.

     

    Are you saying with Intel 530 Series SSDMCEAW120A401 120 GB you did not have to remove R1 resister.  Did it work perfectly? I want to install Ubuntu on my Gizmo 2 using mSATA SSD.

     

    In the user guide it suggests

     

    Gizmo 2 User Guide

     

    image

     

    What is the gold finger pin43 on mSATA card? The reason I am asking I don't want to remove R1 resister from the board.  It is very tricky and messy...!

     

    Please help.

     

    Thanks

     

    Ehsan

  • in reply to bwelsby

    Hello Brain,

     

    You recommended IntelRegistered Solid-State Drive 530 (mini-SATA). It is £64.99 120GB.  http://www.amazon.co.uk/Intel-530-Series-120-Msata/dp/B00G9JN3NC .  I found Kingston 60GB mSATA Solid State Drive http://www.amazon.co.uk/Kingston-mSATA-Solid-State-Drive/dp/B00DHWE3G0/ref=pd_sim_computers_7?ie=UTF8&refRID=0QD0QNT0DT6… on Amazon which is £34.99, 64GB not bad...  However, I couldn't find the full specifications http://www.kingston.com/datasheets/sms200s3_us.pdf of the product.  I tried to look at Kingston website but couldn't find "Serial ATA Power Pin Definitions" to see whether Pin43 NC or Not Connected.


    I wonder whether Kingston 60GB mSATA be compatible with Gizmo 2.


    If you could help please it will be much appreciated...


    Thanks


    Ehsan

  • in reply to Former Member

    Hi Ehsan,

     

    If you're based in Europe, you could just try it via an Internet purchase, since you can return it (contract selling regulations in the UK) if it doesn't function without the resistor modification. Most (all?) consumer SSDs are not going to state on their product page/datasheet if they are compliant or not (since most consumers just care about capacity and some other general details), so it requires trial-and-error, and this could help others too; do please report back if you identify drives that require or do not require the modification, so others can make use of the information too.

    I can confirm that the Samsung 840 EVO functions without any modification.

  • in reply to Former Member

    yes as says not all manufacturers provide full details. An email to their tech support may help though.  I have been searching for notebooks that have a similar dual function connector and maybe ( don't take my word for this ) the Lenovo Y460 looks like it does and some suppliers say the Kingston drive is compatible with it.

     

    We have said that it would've been better if Gizmosphere had made R1 a removable jumper but failing that a list of known compatible / incompatible drives would be good.

  • in reply to shabaz

    Hi Shabaz,

     

    Thanks for you post.  I will definitely let element community know whether Kingston 60GB mSATA Solid State Drive is compatible with Gizmo 2 without taking the resister R1 out from the board.  Of course I can always return the SSD if it doesn't work.  I was just trying to avoid that...


    I have got another question please.


    Did you experience any problems with the pre-installed OS on its 4GB micro SD card which comes with the board?  It is not user friendly at all, those icons are so irritating!  And for some reason it doesn't recognise my mouse now.  I can see there is power but I can't see the cursor moving on the screen.  I got my Gizmo 2 just couple of days ago.  With excitement I powered it straight away and that time my Apple keyboard did not work now my Logitech mouse doesn't work either.


    I was very upset... I thought there is something wrong with the board but I tried booting Kali Linux/Ubuntu using my bootable USB drive and it worked perfectly alright (mouse and the keyboard).  By the way I connected my USB 2.0 (Kali Linux/Ubuntu) to USB 3.0 jack on the board.


    Any suggestions.


    Thanks


  • in reply to bwelsby

    Thanks Brain,

     

    I will try writing to Kingston and will keep the community posted.  Or I might buy it anyway as I can always return it if it doesn't work... Yes, it could have been much much better if Gizmosphere could have provided the list of compatible / incompatible SSD drives.

    Everyone is not expected to be good with soldering!

     

    Thanks again! image

Comment
  • in reply to bwelsby

    Thanks Brain,

     

    I will try writing to Kingston and will keep the community posted.  Or I might buy it anyway as I can always return it if it doesn't work... Yes, it could have been much much better if Gizmosphere could have provided the list of compatible / incompatible SSD drives.

    Everyone is not expected to be good with soldering!

     

    Thanks again! image

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