Alternative to Dockstar

What are VFM alternative to a Seagate dockstar these days?
The device needs to run debian (or similar) and will be used as 24X7 downloader only.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/20/2014 11:38AM by archat68.

Pogoplug V4/mobile are cheap, and of course, PP02's.

I would say Raspberry Pi is a good choice. The nice thing about it is it has a much larger user base than Dockstar and community to support it. The price is a little bit higher but it also has more functionalities.

WarheadsSE Wrote:
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> Pogoplug V4/mobile are cheap, and of course,
> PP02's.

The problem for V4/mobile is that I am not aware if it is possible to install Debian using the bootstrap method like Dockstar.

twinclouds Wrote:

> The problem for V4/mobile is that I am not aware
> if it is possible to install Debian using the
> bootstrap method like Dockstar.

It should be doable. Except that I don't think we can run Jeff's script for that purpose. You can run Arch Linux ARM script to install a complete system on USB first, and then boots with your own Debian rootfs. IOW, running Arch install to get U-Boot installed only.

-bodhi
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bodhi Wrote:
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> It should be doable.

I need something newbieproof ik ethe Jeff's script :).

Another question is how is the Android based TV sticks compared to RPi? The usage will be 24X7 downloading (maybe) with some browsing on TV.
I was reading that Ubuntu can be installed in the TV sticks.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/21/2014 02:37AM by archat68.

Do not use the "TV sticks" for 24/7 downloading. Really. They aren't designed for that kind of behavior, and generally have shit for external connectivity.

It's REALLY not that hard to make a V4 work. Install the u-boot, write the Debian rootfs/boot partition files, reboot.

I installed Debian on Pogo/mobile. Somehow, it is not that reliable. I may need to install again.
Another problem is that the Pogo/mobile has only one USB. It is usually not enough unless you add a hub.
I have two MK802 sticks. One is "genien" MK802-II, another is one of these knockoffs. The flash image I got from here. The genien one works fine but I cannot do apt-get update on the knockoff one. The flash I used is the only stable one I can find. If there's another good flash image, please let me know. At similar price, I would pickup the Pi instead of the sticks.
The MK808 and similar are also go down in prices. However, I haven't found a stable image yet. Again, if someone had tried one with good experience, please let me know also.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/21/2014 05:18PM by twinclouds.

archat68,

> I need something newbieproof ik ethe Jeff's script
> :).

Currently, the only automated installation is to install Arch Linux. That way you will have a complete system running first. This is to get uBoot installed automatically. Then if you want to run Debian then use a different USB stick to create Debian rootfs, see http://forum.doozan.com/read.php?2,12096.

So yes :) The 2nd step must be done manually. But it is quite simple.

-bodhi
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Bodhi:
Thanks. There's two things you didn't mentioned in your guide. One is if it is to be installed on SD card instead of USB, is there anything additional need to be done. I used to figured it out but forgot about it. For a newbee, it might be important because the mobile has only one USB port. The second one is that you mentioned it is necessary to set the right ArcNumber. It will be helpful to point to the Newbees how to do that. From my experience, a Jeff bootstrap type of file may take too much effort. However, a step-by-step guide will be also very helpful. If you or someone have time, this is an effort other people will really appreciate.

Twinclouds,

Thanks for the feedbacks! Defintely the abbreviated guide was not for newb. I will modify it a bit to mention both, excellent points!

-bodhi
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Bodhi,
Looking forward to see your modified guide. I will test it out once seen it and give you feed back.
- Twinclouds