How To Use Image Manager Plugin on All Spark Receivers

This guide covers installing Image Manager on a Spark SH4 receiver, so you can run multiple images (e.g. PurE2, OpenATV, OpenSPA) side-by-side on one USB stick and use Image Manager itself as a MultiBoot tool to reboot between them.

Credit: based on @ahmed gazye's original tool and tutorial for reviving older Spark boxes like the Alien1/2 — this rewrite aims to be a simpler, more detailed, step-by-step version of the same process.

Preparation: partition a USB stick

1. Get a USB stick (32GB is plenty), plug it into your PC, and partition it in Linux EXT4 format using the free MiniTool Partition Wizard under Windows. Three partitions of 2GB each, plus a fourth partition taking the rest of the space, is enough for 3 images — follow Ahmed's original tutorial instead if you want more than 3.
2. linuxsat-support.com/filebase/file/557/
3. Right-click the USB stick and: delete any existing partitions, create 4 partitions (3 for images + 1 to act as an HDD, as above), and set them all to active.
4. Apply the changes (top-left corner) and wait.
5. linuxsat-support.com/cms/attachment/138127/ linuxsat-support.com/cms/attachment/138128/
6. When done, safely eject the USB stick from your PC and plug it into the SH4 receiver's back USB port.

Mount the USB partitions on the receiver

On PurE2 (shown here as the example image): MENU > pManager > Device Manager > Mount Manager — mount the partitions as shown below.

linuxsat-support.com/cms/attachment/138129/

After any significant change like this, you must reboot — a full restart of the machine, not a start-from-FSTAB.

Get the Image Manager plugin onto your receiver

1. Download the Image Manager ipk file for SH4 receivers (v2.5.5, 64-bit version): https://filezilla-project.org/download.php
2. Connect to your receiver using FileZilla Client (FZC): enter your receiver's IP address (find it in PurE2 via MENU > pManager > Network > General Network Information > Local IP address — it looks like 192.168.x.x), username root, password pure2 (default for PurE2; openspa for OpenSPA, etc.), port 21, then press Quick Connect.
3. Drag and drop the downloaded ipk from your PC (left side of FZC) to the receiver's /tmp folder (right side).
4. linuxsat-support.com/cms/attachment/138136/ linuxsat-support.com/cms/attachment/138135/

Install the Image Manager plugin

On PurE2: MENU > pManager > Software Manager > Install local extensions > Memory /tmp — select the ipk and press the green button to install it.

Prepare your images

1. Download and decompress the images you want to install onto your PC. This example uses PurE2, OpenATV and OpenSPA, with OpenATV v6.3 already installed in the NAND flash.
2. Each decompressed image contains a folder named enigma2 — this is required for USB-stick installation and every image has it. Since multiple images all use the same folder name, rename each one's enigma2 folder to the name of the team that produced it (e.g. the image name) so they don't collide.
3. linuxsat-support.com/cms/attachment/138137/

Move the images onto the receiver

Using FZC, move all 3 renamed image folders into the largest partition on your USB stick — the /hdd partition (partition 4 in this example). You cannot install an image onto the same partition where its files are sitting, so it must go to a different partition than the one where you parked it.

linuxsat-support.com/cms/attachment/138138/

Install images using Image Manager

Install Image Manager into every image you have, so you can reboot between any of them using this one tool.

1. Go to MENU > Plugins > Image Manager to start it.
2. linuxsat-support.com/cms/attachment/138139/
3. Move the cursor right using the > button on your remote to reach "Installing" mode, then move down with the v button to choose the partition you want to install an image to. Press OK to proceed.
4. linuxsat-support.com/cms/attachment/138140/
5. Navigate to the /hdd partition (partition 4 in this example) to find the image you want to install.
6. linuxsat-support.com/cms/attachment/138141/
7. Enter the folder you placed there and choose the image to install.
8. linuxsat-support.com/cms/attachment/138142/
9. Select the image file itself to start installation.
10. linuxsat-support.com/cms/attachment/138143/
11. Confirm by pressing OK.
12. linuxsat-support.com/cms/attachment/138144/
13. Installation starts. Once finished, all 3 images will show as installed:
14. linuxsat-support.com/cms/attachment/138145/ linuxsat-support.com/cms/attachment/138146/ linuxsat-support.com/cms/attachment/138147/

Reboot into a different image

With Image Manager installed in every image, use it to boot between images installed either on the receiver's NAND flash or the USB stick — they'll appear as /dev/sda1, /dev/sda2, /dev/sda3 etc., named however you renamed the folders earlier.

linuxsat-support.com/cms/attachment/138148/

Press OK to reboot to the image of your choice. Done!

https://www.linuxsat-support.c…agemanager-2-5-5-sh4-ipk/