DT5560 Update Packet

Software update for a DT5560 desktop digitizer (Zynq 7030) that is already installed and running. The packet refreshes the display and system manager application, the USB network setup, the x5560 web dashboard, the unified nibridge SDK bridge, Resource Explorer and the default MCA firmware. It is uploaded from the web dashboard of the DT5560, manually or with the online update (FOTA), and is applied by the instrument at the next reboot.

Compatibility

This packet is for the DT5560 only; R5560 and R5560SE boards have their own update packets. It does not update the Intel MAX10 FPGA of the DT5560 base board: that firmware has its own field update, DT5560_Update_Base_Fw.RPD in the package dt5560-max10-base-firmware.

The dashboard of the DT5560 reports the model as DT5560SE on the Device Status page.

What's in this package

Despite the .NIU extension, DT5560_Update.NIU is not an FPGA firmware package: it is a gzip-compressed tar archive (legacy update format, without a signed header) that contains an update/ folder and the installation script run_update.sh. At the next boot the instrument installs the following files on its data partition (/mnt/sdcard):

After copying, the script sets the permissions of the data partition, then deletes the update/ folder and itself.

How to install

Before you start

1. Download DT5560_Update.NIU from NI Packages (only for the manual procedure; FOTA downloads it for you).
2. Plan a reboot of the DT5560: running acquisitions are interrupted.

Manual upload from the web dashboard

1. Open the dashboard of the DT5560 in a browser: http://<dt5560-ip>/ or https://<dt5560-ip>/.
2. Log in. At the first login with the factory default password the dashboard asks you to set a new password.
3. Go to Device Update (not Firmware: the Firmware page accepts only FPGA firmware packages and refuses this file). In Manual update click Choose an update file or drop it here and select DT5560_Update.NIU.
4. The instrument reads the beginning of the file and shows Type Legacy update (unsigned) and Format legacy (no header), with the warning to install it only if it comes from a trusted source. Packets downloaded from NI Packages are such a source.
5. Click Upload and stage and confirm. Do not close the page during the transfer.
6. The page shows Update uploaded and verified. and the packet under Staged update, with the note "The update is applied at the next reboot. Do not turn off the device until the procedure ends." An administrator can still remove it with Discard staged update.
7. Reboot the DT5560: Reboot button (administrator) or a power cycle. Do not switch the instrument off while it is starting up after the update.

Online update (FOTA)

The browser, not the instrument, contacts the update server https://downloads.nuclearinstruments.eu: the DT5560 does not need Internet access, the computer running the browser does.

1. Open the dashboard and go to Device Update (steps 1 to 3 above).
2. In Online update (FOTA) click Check for updates. The card shows the available release with its name, version and Changelog.
3. Click Download and install. The browser downloads the packet, verifies its SHA-256 and uploads it to the instrument. A checksum error stops the procedure and nothing is staged.
4. Reboot the DT5560 as in step 7 above.

Check the result

1. After the reboot open Device Update: Last result shows the Time and the Result (success or failed, with the Error text). The Version field stays empty for this packet format.
2. On Device Status check the Dashboard version.
3. On Firmware the file MCA.niu is listed. If another firmware is active and you want the default MCA firmware, select MCA.niu, click Install and reboot the instrument.

What is preserved

The installation script only copies the files listed above. Everything else on the data partition is kept: dashboard settings and accounts, network and analog settings, other firmware files in the firmware folder and user data. Files with the same name are replaced: in particular MCA.niu and the nibridge configuration /mnt/sdcard/software/config/nibridge.conf, so local changes to that file must be applied again after the update.

The packet does not change the operating system, the boot files, the ADC initialisation program, the display logo or the MAX10 base firmware.

Instruments with an older operating system

On instruments whose operating system does not yet start the x5560 dashboard, the packet installs it but the existing web interface stays in use: the built-in web server keeps port 80 and the previous DT5560 SDK bridge is installed instead of the unified nibridge. The full dashboard becomes active with an operating system image that includes it (dt5560-image). On such instruments upload the packet with the update function of the existing web interface.

Requirements

• A DT5560 running its PetaLinux 2019.2 operating system.
• A computer whose browser reaches the DT5560 over the network; for FOTA the same computer must also reach https://downloads.nuclearinstruments.eu.
• A dashboard account: any logged-in user can upload and stage the packet; rebooting from the dashboard and discarding a staged update require the administrator account (root).
• The security option Require signed updates (Security page) must be off: when it is on, unsigned and legacy packets such as this one are refused.
• With HTTPS the browser shows a certificate warning for the self-signed certificate of the instrument unless a custom certificate is installed on the Security page; plain HTTP also works.

Versioning and releases

• Releases are tagged with the date format YYYY.MM.DD.NN, for example 2026.10.11.00.
• The changelog (CHANGELOG.md) is shown on NI Packages with each release.
• Release channel on this portal: stable.
• The packet does not carry a version header, so Last result shows no version, and the packet does not change the Software version shown on Device Status. The Dashboard version on Device Status is the version of the dashboard installed by the packet.

Related packages

Known limitations and notes

• The packet uses the legacy unsigned format: the instrument cannot verify product and signature before installation. Install only DT5560_Update.NIU files obtained from NI Packages.
• The packet is refused while Require signed updates is enabled.
• The update does not refresh the factory copy of the data partition kept on the boot partition. If the instrument ever has to rebuild its data partition from that copy, it returns to the software of its production image: install the packet again.
• Because the Software version shown by the instrument does not change with this packet, the online update may keep proposing the latest release after it has been installed; use Last result to confirm the installation.

Source and support

• Development repository: https://gitlab.lanni/nuclear-instruments/prodotti/x5560/fw-sw/dt5560/dt5560-update-packet
• For support contact Nuclear Instruments / CAEN support.