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Happy accident but temperature is off.

NeoNeo
in Repetier-Firmware
Did I trash my bootloader? 

Monoprice Makerselect V2, Melzi  V3.5

I purchased the printer new in April. When I first tried Repetier I thought it said it needed to fix a setting so I naively clicked ok. 

Well I think it overwrote the Wanhao firmware because M115 reads:
I was surprised but guessed I had stumbled on to upgrade - so I carried on. A happy accident.

I've used the printer quite a bit and figured out the temp setting might be off. Using a industrial temperature probe I can see the temperature is about 35 degrees low, bed and nozzle. For instance PLA prints nicely at 235.  Research led me to understand I needed to tweak the thermistor table setting through the configuration tool. 

Using the reconfigured Reptier Firmware Files I complied in IDE 1.6.4 and tried an upload. Even though I can talk to the firmware through IDE Serial Monitor, the upload runs for hours without completing.  Did I trash my bootloader by blindly installing the Repetier firmware?

Comments

  • RepetierRepetier
    Uploading should be done within some minutes. If you use normal arduino upload you should not be able to kill bootloader since some chip flags normally protect it from overwriting (if installed correctly from vendor).

    One problem with Melzi is the limited flash amount. I think 128kb is now normal. Firmware can be bigger (check arduino) so that you may need to disable some features to fit it in memory. Also it is sanguino compatible I think so you need sanguino - arduino extension and their uploader. Having no Melzi I can not say much about that problem.
  • NeoNeo
    Is it possible to quiry the Repetier firmware if a boot loader is present? Like M115 but for the loader?
  • RepetierRepetier
    No. Firmware does not see if it was called after a bootloader was started or directly. And since there is common way to detect this a query is not possible.
  • NeoNeo
    Repetier said:
    One problem with Melzi is the limited flash amount. I think 128kb is now normal. Firmware can be bigger (check arduino) so that you may need to disable some features to fit it in memory. Also it is sanguino compatible I think so you need sanguino - arduino extension and their uploader. Having no Melzi I can not say much about that problem.
    IDE message looks like I have room:

    • "Sketch uses 120,824 bytes (92%) of program storage space. Maximum is 130,048 bytes. Global variables use 4,342 bytes (26%) of dynamic memory, leaving 12,042 bytes for local variables. Maximum is 16,384 bytes."
  • RepetierRepetier
    Also I do not believe the 130048 bytes. 128K = 131072 minus protected area - 4096 or 8192 for bootloader. Assuming 4K for bootloader it should fit without overwriting the bootloader if possible. Bootloader sits at maximum end of memory while program is on the start.
  • NeoNeo
    I have a couple of suggestions:
    1. Make the Host's helpful option to update the firmware default to off. It is the first thing that popped up on the initial use or Repetier. Make it harder to alter the board code. While well intentioned it was a pit into which I naively fell. 
    2. Use a disclaimer that forces one to understand the magnitude and agree to the change, thereby alerting the uninformed to stop and consider. 
    3. Have the Host make a backup of some type prior to performing any firmware alterations. One will eventually have to learn how to use the backup but at least they will have it. 
    4. If possible alter an "undo" as in update but don't commit to the EEPROM. 
    5. If Host can so easily update the firmware, make Host also offer an option to update the same firmware once the user has tweaked the files off-line. 
    6. Download and store the files on the user's PC, those which the Host will use to update the firmware. 
    It is a great product, and thank you for it but consider the ignorance of the user and make it a little more bullet proof. Not a complaint, just a suggestion to make it an even better partner with the user. 
  • RepetierRepetier
    What host are you using? Our host can not update firmware and I'm not aware that we tell users to update. So maybe you are talking about the Wanaho host?
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