A question from a beginner: how do I install it to use it for the first time? Should I use a flash drive and Rufus, or is there another way? I didn't quite understand, and I couldn't find any clear information.

Use Armbian Imager to create SDcard with curent Release.

Connect HDMI Monitor and USB Keyboard.

Put Sdcard into sdcard Slot and Power the Box. 

Follow instruction on Monitor

I tried installing it to the internal eMMC memory, and now it won't boot. It looks like it'll have to stay on the SD card—or is there a way to install it? 

On 6/29/2026 at 8:40 AM, SuLorde said:

now it won't boot

You are not the 1st to do this:

 

Let me explain the problem first.

 

The CPU itself, without any storage attached, has a built-in U-Boot.
However, this U-Boot does not initialize video output, so you won't be able to see it on an HDMI screen. (The good news is that it usually initializes the serial port.)
This U-Boot reads environmental data from a data blob on the MMC (usually within the first 10 MB of the disk).
This environmental data tells the U-Boot the sequence of commands needed for the MMC/USB U-Boot to boot.
Once the MMC/USB U-Boot boots, you get video output.

The problem is that you deleted the data blob containing the environmental data from the MMC, so the CPU's U-Boot does nothing. It just loops, saying that it found no device to boot.

 

If you have a serial adapter, it is possible to interact with this CPU U-Boot. Pressing Ctrl+C (in a terminal that does not intercept Ctrl+C—my advice is to use PuTTY, even on Linux) should stop whatever it is doing.
By interacting with this CPU U-Boot, you can instruct it how to boot your MMC or USB U-Boot.
However, you will have to do this manually every time you boot.

 

To fix the issue, you need to restore that data blob containing the properties to its specific location on the MMC.
I don't know where it starts or what format it uses, so I was unable to recreate one from scratch.
My way of fixing this was to find a backup of the original MMC and restore the first GB.

 

So, did you make a backup? If yes, you can restore it with some serial magic.
If you did not make a backup, you can search for one or ask someone who has one. (check that this thread for the other guy's solution)

 

Hi again,

I previously reported here that Wi-Fi was not working on my X88 Pro 13 hardware revision 1.7. Since then, I have successfully tested
transferring Armbian from a microSD card to the internal eMMC. I added the tested x88pro-install-emmc script and installation instructions here:

 

https://github.com/nepnepnep/x88pro/tree/emmc-install

https://github.com/nepnepnep/x88pro/tree/emmc-install/userpatches/overlay/usr/local/sbin

 

The script preserves the factory first-stage bootloader (idbloader), because the generic Armbian RK3528 idbloader caused unstable DDR
initialization and random boot failures on my box.

It writes only Armbian's second-stage u-boot.itb, creates new boot and root filesystems, and copies the running microSD system to eMMC.

After installation, my revision 1.7 box successfully boots Armbian directly from eMMC with the microSD card removed.

If anyone has the same device, especially PCB revision 1.7, please try it and share your results.

 

IMPORTANT: Make as many backups as possible before trying this!

 

Installing to eMMC destroys the existing Android partitions and data. Make a complete dump of the original Android firmware and eMMC
first. Also make sure that you know how to recover the device through Maskrom mode using rkdeveloptool.

The backup automatically created by the script contains only the boot area and partition table. It is not a complete Android backup.

Please run the safe, non-destructive check first:

sudo x88pro-install-emmc --dry-run

Only proceed with the installation if all detected devices and proposed changes are correct:

sudo x88pro-install-emmc

I am also still investigating Wi-Fi on my revision 1.7 board. Unfortunately, I did not back up its original Android firmware before overwriting it.

 

Could someone with the same PCB revision and Wi-Fi hardware please share either:

1. The original Android DTB/device tree from revision 1.7; or, preferably,
2. A complete dump or original factory Android firmware for this exact board revision.

A dump from a device with the same Wi-Fi hardware would be especially useful. It would help me determine the correct Wi-Fi configuration and get Wi-Fi working under Armbian. I would be very grateful for any help. Thank you!

Edited August 9Aug 9 by serovan

@serovan Thank you for contributing. The script now makes it possible to run the operating system from the integrated eMMC.

You can download the latest OTA-Android update for the X88pro13 box at: 

https://boxput.notion.site/X88-Series-Fireware-6f707e5e9b06413aac2df3dc291e67aa

Useing Binwalk  detects and xtract several DTB files; one of them should be the correct one for version 1.7. Is it possible for you to open the device and take a photo of the version 1.7 board? Which Wi-Fi chip is installed?

I might be able to modify the Wi-Fi driver.

Many thanks for this script, everything ok 👍(provided you have binutils installed, which was not the case on my minimal image). I am still struggling to get wifi working on my V1.1 board with the generated rk3528-x88pro.dtb ( works well with hinlink-ht2.dtb)