R5560-B DAQ Update Packet

Software update for an R5560 DAQ board of variant B (Zynq 7035) that is already installed and running. The packet refreshes the applications of the DAQ board (system manager and ADC initialisation daemons), the x5560 web dashboard, the unified nibridge SDK bridge, Resource Explorer and the default MCA firmware. It is uploaded to the DAQ board from its web dashboard, manually or with the online update (FOTA), and is applied by the board at the next reboot.

Compatibility

Each Zynq board of an R5560 rack has its own update packet. Choose the packet by board and variant:

The variant of a board is shown on its Device Status page (model and variant). Every DAQ board of a rack is updated individually, on its own dashboard.

What's in this package

R5560_B_DAQ_Update.DQSU 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 board 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 R5560_B_DAQ_Update.DQSU from NI Packages (only for the manual procedure; FOTA downloads it for you).
2. Open the Device Status page of the DAQ board and check that it is an R5560 of variant B. The dashboard cannot check product and variant of a packet in this format: installing the packet of another variant or product puts the wrong firmware and applications on the board.
3. Plan a reboot of the DAQ board: running acquisitions are interrupted.

Manual upload from the web dashboard

1. Open the dashboard of the DAQ board, in one of two ways:
   • from the base board: open http://<base-ip>/ (or https://), go to Rack and open the tab of the DAQ slot. The badge shows Direct (the browser reaches the DAQ Ethernet address) or via base; via base (PPP 115 kbit/s) means a very slow link, so connect the DAQ Ethernet port first if possible;
   • directly at the Ethernet address of the DAQ: http://<daq-ip>/ or https://<daq-ip>/.
2. Log in. On a rack the login of the base is valid on every board. At the first login with the factory default password the dashboard asks you to set a new password.
3. Go to Device Update. In Manual update click Choose an update file or drop it here and select R5560_B_DAQ_Update.DQSU.
4. The board 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. Over the PPP link of the rack the dashboard warns about the transfer time; 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 DAQ board (administrator): Reboot button on the Device Update page of the DAQ, or on the base dashboard the Reboot menu entry Reboot DAQ for its slot; a power cycle of the rack also applies the update.

Online update (FOTA)

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

1. Open the DAQ 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 goes through Download, SHA-256 verification and Upload to the device, then shows "Update uploaded and verified: it is applied at the next reboot." A checksum error stops the procedure and nothing is staged.
4. Reboot the DAQ board as in step 7 above.

The update server address and the on/off switch are in Update server settings on the same page (administrator).

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 versions of Dashboard, Software, Operating system and Device daemon.
3. On Firmware the file MCA.niu is listed; on Applications Resource Explorer is available. If another firmware is active and you want the default MCA firmware, select MCA.niu, click Install and reboot the board.

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 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.

Boards with an older operating system

On boards whose operating system does not yet start the x5560 dashboard, the packet installs it but the existing web interface stays in use (the script does not move it away from port 80). The full dashboard becomes active with an operating system image that includes it (r5560-b-daq-image). The upload procedure described above refers to the x5560 dashboard.

Requirements

• An R5560 DAQ board of variant B running its PetaLinux 2019.2 DAQ operating system.
• A computer whose browser reaches the DAQ board (Ethernet address) or the base board of the rack; 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 unless the rack CA (downloadable from the base dashboard) or a custom certificate is trusted; 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.
• On the board, the packet does not carry a version header, so Last result shows no version. The Software version on Device Status is read from sys_version.json, which this packet sets to 2023-03-07: it does not show the release number of the packet.

Related packages

Known limitations and notes

• The packet uses the legacy unsigned format: product, variant and signature cannot be verified by the board before installation. Always check the file name against the board variant.
• 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 board 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 board 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.
• Through the base proxy over the PPP link (about 11 KB/s) the upload takes a long time: connect the DAQ Ethernet port whenever possible.

Source and support

• Development repository: https://gitlab.lanni/nuclear-instruments/prodotti/x5560/fw-sw/r5560/r5560-b-daq-update-packet
• For support contact Nuclear Instruments / CAEN support.