August 14Aug 14 Hi everyone, I hope this topic is in the right place and won't bother anyone. I'm pretty new to the ARM world. In very first i would like to thanks all people and the communities who work hard on Armbian. I successfully use a NanoPC T6 Plus / A NanoPi M6 and other forks on some TV Box with no major problems. My curiosity pushed me to try using Armbian on a MinisForum MS-R1, so i bought one and tried to boot up the KDE or Gnome image on it. In the two case, the installation is a fail at the step of launching the desktop environment, it's stuck here. The uefi is up to date with the lastest version (cix_flash_all2_MGP1WSB_20260429.bin20260429). Ubuntu Concept Cix P1 runs correctly - The proprietary Debian image runs very great but it's limited to the Cix 6.6.x kernel I would like to know if anyone else has experienced the same issues with this board. I did search the forum and tried a few things (using different images) but I might have missed something. Thanks in advance for your help. Edited August 14Aug 14 by MetallixX974 Change of the title.
August 15Aug 15 If you tried actual uefi-arm64 image, try these instead: https://armbian.com/boards/cix-acpi
August 15Aug 15 Author @Werner Thanks for the clarification. The cix-acpi KDE image does boot successfully, but Ethernet and Wi-Fi are not detected. So, if I understand correctly, the official images for the MinisForum MS-R1 are designed to work with a specific BIOS version — not just any generic one? I will wait and follow updates, please consider to close this topic, i will comeback later, i know the MinisForum MS-R1 (SkyP1 on "Meigao" motherboard and Cix P1) is again very experimental at this time. Armbian is great, thanks again to everyone who contribute to it.😉
August 16Aug 16 Yes, you need the ARM SystemReady BIOS to use properly https://github.com/minisforum-docs/MS-R1-Docs/blob/main/PlayBook/MS-R1-ARMSystemReady.md
August 16Aug 16 Author @Werner Okay, i I'm starting to understand : -The last bios is cix_flash_all2_MGP1WSB_20260429 -> Not ARM SystemReady BIOS ? That's it ? (It's the last update i flashed). -And the link you mentionned is and older BIOS the cix_flash_all2_MGP1WSB_20260312.bin -> Is ARM SystemReady BIOS ? That's correct ?
August 17Aug 17 Ah okay, didn't notice you did the flashing already. Did not test against the latest bios yet, only the 0312 one. So while unlikely, there could be a regression.
August 19Aug 19 Author Right, no problem. I’ll keep the April BIOS for now since it works fine with Ubuntu Concept Cix P1 If I ever need to test the SystemReady path, I'll consider flashing the March version. Wait and see, as the saying goes 🙃 Thanks again for your help!
August 23Aug 23 Author Hi @Werner, So i have some good news. I managed to install properly the CIX-acpi KDE image : CIX-acpi images Armbian 1) At first, my network is a 2.5G LAN so the network is not functional at the very first boot / installation. Plugged it in a 1Gbit and the link is up. However, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth were still not detected. 2) I ran a full sudo apt update / upgrade The "magic trick" that made all network functions work was: sudo apt install armbian-firmware-full After that, Wi-Fi and BT are fully operational, and it seems to have activated the major ACPI devices. I can even connect my BT audio amplifier. Video acceleration also appears to be working well. ( For example I can take advantage of my 144Hz screen... and 2.5 Gbit LAN is fine... ) So i can connect it my BT audio amplifier. I'm attaching the dmesg debug output in case it can help. dmesg.txt giovanni@cix-acpi:~$ lsmod | column -t Module Size Used by uinput 28672 1 snd_seq_dummy 12288 0 snd_hrtimer 12288 1 snd_seq 98304 7 snd_seq_dummy rfcomm 98304 4 snd_seq_device 16384 1 snd_seq qrtr 45056 2 algif_hash 16384 1 algif_skcipher 12288 1 af_alg 28672 6 algif_hash,algif_skcipher bnep 32768 2 dm_mod 180224 0 bfq 102400 10 sunrpc 696320 1 snd_soc_hdmi_codec 24576 3 optee_rng 12288 0 binfmt_misc 24576 1 zram 53248 2 842_decompress 20480 1 zram 842_compress 24576 1 zram lz4hc_compress 20480 1 zram lz4_compress 24576 1 zram btusb 73728 0 btrtl 32768 1 btusb btintel 69632 1 btusb btbcm 24576 1 btusb btmtk 28672 1 btusb nls_ascii 12288 1 bluetooth 921600 40 btrtl,btmtk,btintel,btbcm,bnep,btusb,rfcomm nls_cp437 16384 1 vfat 24576 1 fat 98304 1 vfat ecdh_generic 16384 2 bluetooth aes_ce_blk 32768 4 aes_ce_cipher 12288 1 aes_ce_blk polyval_ce 12288 0 ghash_ce 20480 0 gf128mul 16384 1 ghash_ce sha3_ce 16384 0 mt7921e 24576 0 mt7921_common 77824 1 mt7921e mt792x_lib 65536 2 mt7921e,mt7921_common mt76_connac_lib 86016 3 mt792x_lib,mt7921e,mt7921_common mt76 147456 4 mt792x_lib,mt7921e,mt7921_common,mt76_connac_lib mac80211 1314816 4 mt792x_lib,mt76,mt7921_common,mt76_connac_lib cfg80211 1159168 4 mt76,mac80211,mt7921_common,mt76_connac_lib snd_hda_codec_alc269 131072 1 snd_hda_scodec_component 20480 1 snd_hda_codec_alc269 rfkill 40960 9 mt7921e,bluetooth,cfg80211 snd_hda_codec_realtek_lib 57344 1 snd_hda_codec_alc269 libarc4 12288 1 mac80211 snd_hda_codec_generic 106496 2 snd_hda_codec_realtek_lib,snd_hda_codec_alc269 ramoops 28672 0 reed_solomon 20480 1 ramoops snd_hda_cix_ipbloq 24576 1 optee 69632 0 snd_hda_codec 184320 4 snd_hda_codec_generic,snd_hda_codec_realtek_lib,snd_hda_codec_alc269,snd_hda_cix_ipbloq ffa_core 20480 1 optee trilin_dpsub 131072 0 snd_hwdep 20480 1 snd_hda_codec tee 45056 2 optee,optee_rng snd_hda_core 135168 5 snd_hda_codec_generic,snd_hda_codec,snd_hda_codec_realtek_lib,snd_hda_codec_alc269,snd_hda_cix_ipbloq snd_soc_sky1_card 24576 0 snd_soc_cdns_i2s_mc 24576 6 drm_display_helper 233472 1 trilin_dpsub snd_soc_rt5682s 90112 0 panthor 176128 42 cec 61440 1 drm_display_helper amvx 344064 0 drm_gpuvm 40960 1 panthor rc_core 65536 1 cec videobuf2_dma_sg 20480 1 amvx linlon_dp 147456 10 snd_soc_core 360448 4 snd_soc_sky1_card,snd_soc_hdmi_codec,snd_soc_cdns_i2s_mc,snd_soc_rt5682s gpu_sched 57344 1 panthor videobuf2_memops 16384 1 videobuf2_dma_sg drm_exec 12288 2 drm_gpuvm,panthor drm_client_lib 12288 1 linlon_dp videobuf2_v4l2 32768 1 amvx drm_shmem_helper 28672 1 panthor drm_dma_helper 24576 2 linlon_dp squashfs 77824 9 videodev 335872 2 videobuf2_v4l2,amvx snd_compress 28672 1 snd_soc_core drm_kms_helper 217088 6 drm_dma_helper,linlon_dp,trilin_dpsub,drm_shmem_helper,drm_display_helper,drm_client_lib snd_pcm_dmaengine 16384 1 snd_soc_core snd_pcm 172032 8 snd_hda_codec,snd_soc_hdmi_codec,snd_compress,snd_soc_core,snd_soc_cdns_i2s_mc,snd_hda_core,snd_soc_rt5682s,snd_pcm_dmaengine videobuf2_common 77824 4 videobuf2_v4l2,videobuf2_dma_sg,amvx,videobuf2_memops snd_timer 45056 3 snd_seq,snd_hrtimer,snd_pcm loop 32768 18 mc 77824 3 videodev,videobuf2_v4l2,videobuf2_common snd 126976 17 snd_hda_codec_generic,snd_seq,snd_seq_device,snd_hwdep,snd_hda_codec,snd_soc_hdmi_codec,snd_timer,snd_hda_codec_realtek_lib,snd_compress,snd_hda_codec_alc269,snd_soc_core,snd_hda_cix_ipbloq,snd_pcm cppc_cpufreq 24576 0 soundcore 16384 1 snd sg 40960 0 joydev 32768 0 evdev 28672 11 i2c_dev 24576 0 efi_pstore 12288 0 configfs 57344 1 efivarfs 24576 0 autofs4 53248 2 btrfs 1888256 0 blake2b_generic 20480 0 xor 12288 1 btrfs xor_neon 16384 1 xor raid6_pq 106496 1 btrfs nvme 53248 0 i2c_hid_acpi 12288 0 sbsa_gwdt 12288 0 i2c_hid 40960 1 i2c_hid_acpi drm 712704 40 gpu_sched,i2c_hid,drm_kms_helper,drm_exec,drm_dma_helper,linlon_dp,drm_gpuvm,trilin_dpsub,drm_shmem_helper,drm_display_helper,drm_client_lib,panthor nvme_core 200704 1 nvme nvme_keyring 20480 1 nvme_core r8169 118784 0 nvme_auth 28672 1 nvme_core hkdf 12288 1 nvme_auth fixed 16384 0 realtek 45056 2 pwm_bl 16384 0 arm_dma350 28672 3 cdns3_pci_wrap 16384 0 sd_mod 73728 2 hid_generic 12288 0 usbhid 77824 0 hid 266240 3 i2c_hid,usbhid,hid_generic uas 28672 2 usb_storage 86016 1 uas scsi_mod 282624 4 sd_mod,usb_storage,uas,sg scsi_common 16384 5 scsi_mod,sd_mod,usb_storage,uas,sg One question: what is the real difference between the MinisForum dedicated section images and these CIX ACPI dedicated section board images? Normally, the MinisForum is considered a standard "UEFI-ACPI" type of computer, right? Thanks, See'ya
August 24Aug 24 4 hours ago, MetallixX974 said: dedicated section images and these CIX ACPI dedicated section board images? I don't understand what you mean with former. All images from https://armbian.com/boards/cix-acpi are using the same firmware and kernel beneath.
August 24Aug 24 6 hours ago, MetallixX974 said: One question: what is the real difference between the MinisForum dedicated section images and these CIX ACPI dedicated section board images? Normally, the MinisForum is considered a standard "UEFI-ACPI" type of computer, right? Are you aware that 1 version of the Cix P1 bootloader/firmware is just crippled in such a way that it got a certification? Other versions of bootloader/firmware might expose more via ACPI and/or DeviceTree, so sort of hybrid. I only know that from BCM2711 and RK3588 EDK2 UEFI what you would get as potential options then (several then). Also one can select vendor or mainline for RK3588. No clue what is possible for Cix P1. But I see many potential options. For RK3588 (and other SoC's) also U-Boot in EFI mode can boot UEFI images, but it seems not a complete spec implementation also depends on what the kernel 'knows' form the specific SoC/platform (what is enabled in .config). I think you should determine for yourself what the computer shall do and based on that, make a selection on what you apply and run to the computer, so everything that is programmable or even HW. Like if for example audio would be very important for you, you might want to add a good quality USB audio stick instead of waiting for on-board audio drivers to mature or something via a speaker in a HDMI monitor.
August 24Aug 24 Author @Werner Sorry, i just meant that any user would naturaly move to MinisForum images downloads and not towards to Cixtech.
August 24Aug 24 Author Hi, @eselarm Thanks for the detailed explanation. I understand that the CIX P1 platform is still evolving and that the choice of firmware depends on the use case. I'll keep your advice in mind—especially about using a USB audio stick if needed. For now, I'm just trying to get the most stable system for everyday use (web, office, light gaming via streaming). I'll stick with the Armbian CIX ACPI image which seems to work well. Thanks again for your insights.
August 24Aug 24 Author Hi, Just make a kernel update to the 6.18.44-current-cix-p1 and i had a DTB interference at the boot, after Grub: So to resolve it : sudo rm -rf /boot/dtb-6.18.44-current-cix-p1 sudo update-initramfs -u -k 6.18.44-current-cix-p1 sudo update-grub sudo reboot See'ya Best Regards.
August 25Aug 25 8 hours ago, MetallixX974 said: /boot/dtb-6.18.44-current-cix-p1 Was this just there as a directory or was and is also package dtb-6.18.44-current-cix-p1 installed? If pure/only ACPI and not something with hybrid DeviceTree, this DTB package should not be there and you better remove it else next kernel update you will have the same issue. Also in latest Linux, the DTBs are in /usr/lib/modules/dtb/ anyway, so for some testing/merging U-Boot and standard PC UEFI firmware, I get them from there (is on a NanoPi-NEO, 32-bit ARM). There is likely a grub customization for Cix-P1 boards so DTB can be loaded, I saw the same for Radxa Q6A. On RPI4, I use UEFI in ACPI mode, so can use the standard method for Debian (or other distro) as on PC's. If ACPI implementation is not good enough for your use-case, then maybe have a closer look at it as I can imagine that you might want to keep the option to boot in DeviceTree mode some time in the future maybe.
August 25Aug 25 Author 10 hours ago, eselarm said: Was this just there as a directory or was and is also package dtb-6.18.44-current-cix-p1 installed? Hi @eselarm, Oh thanks to you, Seems you're right here the culprit! The folder is indeed installed by a package: Since I'm running in pure ACPI mode, this package is unnecessary? Can I removed it safely with : sudo apt remove linux-dtb-current-cix-p1 sudo update-grub Will the system will update without re-installing this package after that ? Thanks again for pointing me in the right direction.
August 25Aug 25 1 hour ago, MetallixX974 said: Will the system will update without re-installing this package after that ? Yes sure, else things are wrong. I removed those linux-dtb packages for my ROCK5B and NanoPi-R6C (both using EDK2 UEFIv1.1 RK3588) already quite some time ago. They use standard grub, no devicetree loading as the one provided in the EDK2 is new enough so all works for what I want with those 2 computers. I also removed it on other installations (ROCK3A, NanoPi-NEO) as those use extlinux bootscript so I can select various kernels and load the dtb just from /usr/lib
August 26Aug 26 Author 22 hours ago, eselarm said: Yes sure, else things are wrong. I removed those linux-dtb packages for my ROCK5B and NanoPi-R6C (both using EDK2 UEFIv1.1 RK3588) already quite some time ago. They use standard grub, no devicetree loading as the one provided in the EDK2 is new enough so all works for what I want with those 2 computers. I also removed it on other installations (ROCK3A, NanoPi-NEO) as those use extlinux bootscript so I can select various kernels and load the dtb just from /usr/lib @eselarm Yes i will look it for my NanoPC T6 Plus, i know i can flash SPInor with the EDK II Uefi, seems interesting 🤔. @Werner To get back to the original discussion, thanks again for all the help. All is now fine 😄 My Armbian setup on the MinisForum MS-R1 has exceeded my expectations; I absolutely love it ! Honestly? Given the current RAM prices, I’m really glad I managed to grab this MinisForum MS-R1 CIX P1 (with its CP8180 and 64 GB of RAM). I got it for a really good price, and as you can see in the screenshot, it runs KDE Plasma beautifully with 64 GB of headroom. It's a beast for homelab tasks! 🤗
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