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Manuals/disk_image/manual_etcher_en.md
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Write a FireBee Image to a CF-Card using Balena Etcher (Windows, macOS, Linux)

this little tutorial will guide you on writing a HD-Image containing the FireBee Setup to a Compact Flash Card which is used as a harddisk replacement. Here's how you can do that.

⚠ A word of warning. The entire CF-Card will be erased and overwritten. If you have important files on it, please make a backup first!

Requirements

✔ A CompactFlash (CF) card 16GB or 32GB ✔ CF card reader (USB adapter or built-in reader) ✔ The FireBee Image to be written to the CF card ✔ A computer running Windows, macOS, or Linux ✔ Balena Etcher installed (Download: https://www.balena.io/etcher/)

❗ Please note! Modern CFFAST or CFexpress are not supported and therefore will not work with the FireBee!

1. Download & Install Balena Etcher

Windows

  1. Go to the official Balena Etcher website: 🔗 https://www.balena.io/etcher/
  2. Download the Windows version (.exe file).
  3. Run the installer and follow the instructions.
  4. Once installed, launch Balena Etcher.

macOS

  1. Go to the official Balena Etcher website: 🔗 https://www.balena.io/etcher/

  2. Download the macOS version (.dmg file).

  3. Open the .dmg file and drag the Etcher icon to the Applications folder.

  4. Launch Balena Etcher from the Applications folder.

    ⚠ If you get a security warning, go to System Preferences > Security & Privacy and allow the application to run.

Linux

  1. Go to the official Balena Etcher website: 🔗 https://www.balena.io/etcher/
  2. Download the appropriate package for your system (.deb) for Debian based system or (.rpm) for Red Hat based systems
  3. Install the package you have downloaded previously accordingly to the Etcher Wiki https://github.com/balena-io/etcher#debian-and-ubuntu-based-package-repository-gnulinux-x86x64
  4. Once installed, launch Balena Etcher.

2. Prepare the CompactFlash Card

Windows

  1. Insert the CF card into your card reader.
  2. Check if Windows detects the card:
    • Open File Explorer and check for a new drive (e.g., E:).
    • If the CF card is not detected, open Disk Management (diskmgmt.msc).

macOS

  1. Insert the CF card into your card reader.
  2. Check if the CF card is recognized:
    • Open Disk Utility (Applications > Utilities > Disk Utility).

Linux

  1. Insert the CF card into your card reader.
  2. Check if the CF card is recognized:
    • As long as the card holds a valid FAT32, FAT16 filesystem contains, a File Explorer is opening a new windows and show the content of the drive

3. Write the ISO File to the CF Card Using Balena Etcher

1. Start Balena Etcher

  • Open Balena Etcher on your system.

2. Select the ISO File

  • Click "Flash from file" and select the downloaded FireBee image.

3. Choose the CF Card as the Target

  • Click "Select target" and pick the CompactFlash card from the list.

    ⚠ Be careful not to select the wrong drive, as all data will be erased!

4. Start the Flashing Process

  • Click "Flash!" to begin writing the ISO image to the CF card.
  • Wait for the process to complete (this may take several minutes).

4. Verify & Finalize the Process

✔ Balena Etcher will automatically verify the written data to ensure accuracy. ✔ Once completed, you can safely eject the CF card.

Safely Remove the CF Card

✔ Windows: Click the USB icon in the taskbar and select "Eject". ✔ macOS: Drag the CF card icon to the Trash or click "Eject" in Finder. ✔ Linux: Run one of the following commands according to your system:

  • Open a terminal and type: 
    lsblk
    or 
    fdisk -l
  • Identify the correct device (e.g., /dev/sdb) and the type:
sudo umount /dev/sdX