Debian Helium Miners

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⚠️ WARNING: Use these images at your own risk. They have been tested and confirmed working on the author's own hardware, but there is no guarantee they will work the same way on every device or revision. Flashing custom firmware can brick your miner — proceed with caution, and always keep a backup of your original image if possible.

Do NOT attempt to update the kernel on these images.

Debian Bookworm on Kernel 6.x for various Helium (IoT/Rockchip) miner hardware.

This project provides prebuilt Debian Bookworm images and flashing instructions for a range of Helium miner devices based on Rockchip SoCs.

Supported Devices

Miner	SoC	SD Boot Support	Boot Method	Image Download	Loader File	Tutorial	Notes
Bobcat G280	PX30	✅ Yes	SD Card	Download	—	—
Bobcat G285	RK3566	✅ Yes	SD Card	Download	—	—
Bobcat G29x	RK3566	❌ No	Internal eMMC	Download	Loader	290 / 295
Panther X2/MerryIOT	RK3566	✅ Yes	SD Card / Internal eMMC	Download	Loader	Tutorial
Linxdot LD1001	RK3566	❌ No	Internal eMMC	Download	Loader	Tutorial	Board Specific, see tutorial
Nebra RockPi	RK3399	✅ Yes	Internal eMMC	Download	—	Tutorial	SD Boot-write to EMMC, see tutorial
Heltec HT-M2808	RK3328	❌ No	Internal eMMC	Download	Loader	Tutorial

Note: Devices with "Internal eMMC" as their boot method must be flashed using RKDeveloptool/RKDevTool.exe with the corresponding loader file above.

Default Credentials

All devices ship with the following default SSH login:

Field	Value
Username	root
Password	1234

Security Note: Change the default password immediately after first boot with passwd.

Requirements

• Host PC running Linux, macOS, or Windows
• microSD card (8GB minimum) for SD-boot devices
• USB-A to USB-C (or applicable) cable for eMMC flashing
• balenaEtcher or dd for writing SD images
• RKDeveloptool for eMMC flashing

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SD Card Boot Instructions

Applies to: Bobcat G280, Bobcat G285, Panther X2, Nebra RockPi

1. Download the appropriate image for your device from the Releases page.
2. Decompress the image if it is archived (e.g. .img.xz):

   xz -d <imagename>.img.xz

3. Identify your SD card device node:

   lsblk

Be certain you select the correct device (e.g. /dev/sdX or /dev/mmcblkX) — writing to the wrong disk will destroy data. 4. Write the image to the SD card:

   sudo dd if=<imagename>.img of=/dev/sdX bs=4M status=progress conv=fsync

5. Once complete, safely eject the card:

   sudo eject /dev/sdX

6. Insert the SD card into the miner and power it on. The device should boot directly from the SD card.

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eMMC Flashing Instructions (Bobcat 29x)

1. Install RKDeveloptool

git clone https://github.com/rockchip-linux/rkdeveloptool.git
cd rkdeveloptool
autoreconf -i
./configure
make
sudo make install

2. Enter Maskrom/Loader Mode

1. Power off the miner completely and disconnect the power supply.
2. Hold the recovery/maskrom button (or short the required pins per device documentation).
3. Connect the USB cable to the host PC while continuing to hold the button.
4. Apply power to the miner while still holding the button, then release after ~2–3 seconds.

3. Verify Device Detection

sudo rkdeveloptool ld

You should see the device listed as Maskrom or Loader mode.

4. Flash the Loader (if required)

sudo rkdeveloptool db <loader_file>.bin

5. Write the Image to eMMC

sudo rkdeveloptool wl 0 BobcatBookworm29x.img

6. Reset and Boot

sudo rkdeveloptool rd

Disconnect the USB cable and power-cycle the miner normally. It should boot Debian Bookworm from the internal eMMC.

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Troubleshooting

Issue	Possible Cause	Fix
Device not detected by rkdeveloptool ld	Not in maskrom mode	Retry the button/timing sequence in step 2
SD card not booting	Card not written correctly, or SD boot fused off	Re-write image; confirm device supports SD boot per the table above
Flash fails partway through eMMC write	Bad USB cable or port	Use a rated USB-C data cable and a direct (non-hub) USB port