USB stick Recovery failure

[vincent.jooris 14]

Hello,

I know that on the HC2, the USB recovery Stick is used for :

• storing the backups we generate from the HC2
• as hardware verification to validate the box (to prevent frauduleuse reproduction of the box)
• storing the image to be used in recovery mode.
• ...

Without this USB stck, the HC2 can not work (I do understand that).

 

Now my concern is that if this USB stick is broken, I've to send the whole box back to Poland, via DHL, at a cost of +/- 100€ to replace a defective USB stock of 5 € ...

 

Shouldn't it be possible that if we have a broken USB stick,

Fibaro Poland :

• send a new USB stick via mail
• connect to our box in SSH to modify the box configuration, so it can works with this new USB stick instead of the old one ?

The benefit for Fibaro would be :

• reduce cost : no need to manage incoming box, send it back,  ...
• a pleased customer

The benefit for us would be :

• reduce cost : if the box in under warranty, no cost; if guaranty expired not the returning costs of 100€
• fast issue resolution : just the time to send a new USB stick
• we are pleased with the Fibaro support and we will buy more Fibaro products

[nicohi 19]

Yes, we could add that this original recovery key is a very poor quality usb stick, more and more persons have this problem, it is not possible to continu to send back box to Poland...

[SpikeB 0]

Why is it not possible to remotely support a new image for that specific HC2.

 

At this moment Fibaro is not contacting me, second my HC2 is worthless at this moment.

 

Can you work with the HC2 without that crapy USB disk.

 

 

Made a new case by Fibaro (Case Notification for #37667), so it will not be forgotten.

[Ucciogenerale 2]

Great! I recently joned this club of FIbaro broken sticks.

 

I won't spend any cent to send mack my HC just to have a new 4GB key for backup.

I am doing backup of LUA code and all the rest using the Krikroff tool, that's all.

 

What is really disappointing is that in Fibaro, even at the top level, no one is really interested to sort out this mess and lack of reliability that is evidently quite common on the units.

[fi-bar-oh 47]

I agree totally this should be priority! I would categorise this as more important than a new doorbell, gesture panel or knob at ces! This is real peoples homes on the line here... Totally unfair! They need to grab the ticket for this and fix it asap before the list of victims grows any further!

[Guest spazpeker]

I had to send mine back to poland a couple of years ago

[SpikeB 0]

I agree totally this should be priority! I would categorise this as more important than a new doorbell, gesture panel or knob at ces! This is real peoples homes on the line here... Totally unfair! They need to grab the ticket for this and fix it asap before the list of victims grows any further!

 +1

 

I am waiting for over a week now, I have 2 really simple questions ( Case Notification for #37553 ) to be answered,

I have customers which want to have domotica, but I am not sure if Fibaro is the right partner, when the support is so slow or really not communicate.

[Joacim 11]

Not that it helps but have you tried calling them?

[Bamsefar 13]

I know that Raspberry Pi Zero can act as a USB memory stick, we can develop a stand alone solution?

[Joacim 11]

@bamsefar

I like your thinking. But I do not understand it. Could you give an outline or a pseudo explanation of the idea? Surely your not suggesting to develop a standalone zwave hardware? - which may be simpler than emulate a usb-stick? But if I remember correctly I believe you have one of the most extensive insight into the HC2 hardware outside the company so if you think it could be done?

[1152 33]

Great! I recently joned this club of FIbaro broken sticks.

 

I won't spend any cent to send mack my HC just to have a new 4GB key for backup.

I am doing backup of LUA code and all the rest using the Krikroff tool, that's all.

 

What is really disappointing is that in Fibaro, even at the top level, no one is really interested to sort out this mess and lack of reliability that is evidently quite common on the units.

 

Broken sticks is apparently just a function of time and units sold. You got the owners that are in the club, and those waiting to join. (Some of us already have multiple memberships...)

[Bamsefar 13]

I like your thinking. But I do not understand it. Could you give an outline or a pseudo explanation of the idea? Surely your not suggesting to develop a standalone zwave hardware? - which may be simpler than emulate a usb-stick? But if I remember correctly I believe you have one of the most extensive insight into the HC2 hardware outside the company so if you think it could be done?

 

It's a standard Intel m-itx motherboard that Fibaro uses (unfortunately Fibaro missed to secure the cooling of the Intel Atom CPU). It's only got a specific board into a expansion slot - other than that the hardware is standard of the shelf - noting fancy at all.

 

So in short:

 

My thought is to have the USB replaced by a "USB mass storage device" but not a normal memory stick, a computer based so that one can arrange for cloud (dropbox) connection for the backups. The only part I have not investigated into is the files and if they are cryptobased or something. The procedure in how to "move" metadata and backups are unclear currently - I guess I could figure that out if I needed to...

 

The Raspberry PI Zero has a USB that can be set to emulate a USB Mass Storage Device, in other words it can act like a USB memory. Now the PI Zero has a number of other limitations so I think we need to look on something else. Something like BeagleBone I guess. The hard part is to find a cheap CPU board that allows to program the USB to act like a USB Memory Stick (it's not a USB host as normal computers USB ports are, we need a well "USB client" if you understand what I mean), then program it with some easy phyton or something, and connect it with WiFi / Ethernet to gain cloud functions.

 

I guess one might be able to use a Sandisk USB / WiFi memory stick - the last one I think can be used in a computer and as WiFi at the same time - however I have not check if that is possible. There will be a write protection challenge here

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Any way the idea is to get logic's in between USB memory and HC2 USB port....

 

Oh by the way, one can (or Could, I used it on my 3.590 a while back) use a SATA disk direct connected to the HC2 motherboard instead of the USB drive - however I consider that to be an advanced solution not to be used if you do not know what you are doing...

 

Another thing that might be interesting to check is the battery backup on the motherboard, one will notice this if one connects a monitor - and the clock will always go wrong if one get's that kind of problem. The battery is only good for 3-5 years. However the battery and the USB memory problem are most likely two different things, I guess...

[Joacim 11]

I suppose all the forum mods are on holiday and all the fibaro guys on ces won't wake up for another 10h. Are you saying it is possible to clone the usb-stick? I suppose that would be enough for most concerned users in this thread.

[Bamsefar 13]

Yes I have already cloned my USB memory stick!

[vincent.jooris 14]

yes to clone the USB stick you "just" have to flash the firmware with the information the box expect to receive.

[Igy 23]

Yes I have already cloned my USB memory stick!

Is there any step by step manual how to do that the way the new stick willbe recognized by HC2?

[robmac 173]

yes to clone the USB stick you "just" have to flash the firmware with the information the box expect to receive.

Are you sure you can use it?

 

How did you change the DUID of the new USB device to match the old devices DUID as I suspect that is what is tied to your HC2? I thought they were one time writable,

 

Edit: 09/01/2016

 

 

I have had a couple of pm on this pointing out the French and Swedish sites that have good guides on how to copy the contents of your USB. Well done guys for posting them.

 

This has been recommended on here by a lot of people (but any how to guides get zapped) over the years. Now there are a lot of people who have recovered onto the ORIGINAL USB with full functionality. With any other USB device some functionality is lost.

 

Sadly some functions are still locked to the original paired USB device.

 

I just wish FIBARO would deliver new versions of these functions so we can all be confident that we can back up our devices and recover easily.

 

Robert

[Tekvibes 7]

+1

[1152 33]

Amazing how slow Fibaro is. 2016 and still such an week and arcane back up solution

[Billias 1]

I am so happy to announce

I found a solution to the USB stick failure......

 

As it is the second time! in less than a year I am just so creative.. when I spend some extra bucks. Instead of posting the device back to Fibaro, I just fixed it

 

I bought another devices, from competitors. without USB stick issues.

 

(Waiting for my possible BAN)

 

Good bye people! see you around

 

[tinman 1,070]

Sadly some functions are still locked to the original paired USB device.

 

 

this is why we started some time ago an "Fibaro Emergency Service", where we basically not cloning the USB stick, but (let's call that) migrating data from e.g. broken USB sticks or HC2 memory into brand new HC2. This give us no restriction/locks what so ever, 100% working replacement. Sure, it costs money, but imagine how much time/money costs to re-add e.g. 100+ devices/scenes.