RasPlex with Berryboot

I'm working on a project where my Pi will be embedded inside a case and the SD card slot will not be accessible, so I've been investigating BerryBoot as a means of switching operating systems. Rasplex is not yet available on the BerryBoot repo to download and install through the BerryBoot interface, so I tried to convert the .img to the squashfs format BerryBoot uses, as described in this article.

 

I wasn't able to get the conversion to work. I was wondering if anybody else here had been successful in getting RasPlex to work with BerryBoot, or if there was any progress in getting it included in the list of BerryBoot download/install options.

I have the same problem as you unbuntu dont recognise fs numerical convert value. I have the .img rasplex file but i dont know how to make the conversion. If anybody can upload or explain how to convert the .img this will be fine in order to have a dual boot .

hey there, i was just uploading my RasPlex image(that works with BerryBoot). i've extracted SYSTEM out of the image (with 7zip, on a windows machine), it's a file that is on the first partition of the image. that first partition is fat0.fat (i think) It's a different approach than the default Raspberry images, that's why this procedure doesn't work.

Maxnet said this:

It works because SYSTEM is already in the SquahsFS format Berryboot uses internally. :-)

Might add RasPlex to the standard list in a future release.

source: https://github.com/maxnet/berryboot/issues/25

here's my DropBox folder, with some RaspBerry PI images for BerryBoot. i'll try to add more images.

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/7aekawzbd4suh8f/VkyuJ1urmP

With kind regards,

Rikels

Thanks very much, this is a huge help! I'll be trying this tonight.

By the way does anybody know how RasPlex (or Plex Home Theater in general) deals with 4:3 displays? The project I'm working on is a Raspberry Pi inside a Mac Classic with a 800x600 4x3 display, mainly being used as an emulator console, but I thought it would be neat to stream movies to it as well.

By the way does anybody know how RasPlex (or Plex Home Theater in general) deals with 4:3 displays?

Yes, I had reason to test this recently in preparing a RasPlex setup for my brother, who only has a rather old TV set with 4:3 aspect ratio. It doesn't even have HDMI but only a SCART connector, so I had to use the composite video signal from the RPi.

PHT (and thus RasPlex) has no problem scaling videos for a 4:3 screen, though doing this with original proportions of the video content causes black borders for any video not having 4:3 aspect ratio. (The letterbox method.)

The project I'm working on is a Raspberry Pi inside a Mac Classic with a 800x600 4x3 display, mainly being used as an emulator console, but I thought it would be neat to stream movies to it as well.

That should work fine, though you may need to edit the "config.txt" file like I had to do.

If you need to use the composite output, like I did, then pay special attention to the command "hdmi_force_hotplug=1" which occurs not just once but twice in the original "config.txt" of RasPlex. The first one is commented out, making it appear safe for non-HDMI use, except that the other one, closer to the end of the file is NOT commented, thus disabling the composite output as it forces the RPi to use an HDMI resolution. (Even if no HDMI cable is attached.) So you need to comment out that command line as well (or remove it entirely) in order to use the composite video signal.

Best regards: dlanor

http://yakumo.se/rasplex/berryboot-rasplex-0.3.0.img for latest rapslex with berryboot support.

http://yakumo.se/rasplex/berryboot_rasplex-RP-9.9.16.img for latest rapslex with berryboot support.

By the way does anybody know how RasPlex (or Plex Home Theater in general) deals with 4:3 displays? The project I'm working on is a Raspberry Pi inside a Mac Classic with a 800x600 4x3 display, mainly being used as an emulator console, but I thought it would be neat to stream movies to it as well.

Awesome project!  I would love to have one of those working on my desk!

Thanks for all the info, I'm also interested in it. 

The last link is offline, if anybody can upload it again, i'm would be gratefull.

Yes, I had reason to test this recently in preparing a RasPlex setup for my brother, who only has a rather old TV set with 4:3 aspect ratio. It doesn't even have HDMI but only a SCART connector, so I had to use the composite video signal from the RPi.

I'm curious: how did you force the composite output to work? I don't seem to get video out mine.

try this: 

https://github.com/RasPlex/RasPlex/wiki/SD%20TV%20Output

I realize I'm as slow as a tax refund's arrival, but I finally got around to testing this. In a word or two: it didn't seem to work. I first verified that the SD card was working with Rasplex in a Raspberry Pi, using 3.1.

I then inserted the sd card in a Linux machine, and edited the config.txt file with the changes described in the link, using Kate. I saved the changes, closed the file, then opened it again with Kate to verify the changes were there.

I reinstalled the sd card in the Raspberry Pi computer, and installed the HDMI cable, but not the analog cable. To my surprise, the HDMI output was functional! I then powered down, removed the HDMI cable, and inserted the analog cables. No output!

It's as though there was no change at all. Any ideas?

Hmm. Maybe you should try and remark the entire cec section of that file.


Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk

http://yakumo.se/rasplex/berryboot_rasplex-RP-9.9.16.img for latest rapslex with berryboot support.

This looks like just what I need, but I can't figure out how to install it?!?

This looks like just what I need, but I can't figure out how to install it?!?

First off, I don't think you should install an ancient version of RasPlex.
You'd miss several new Plex features when using such an old version.
It's better to use a more current RasPlex version instead.

As for how to install it, you don't. At least not directly.

What you do install, once only, is BerryBoot, which is a generic multiple OS bootloader.
It uses special OS images in the squashfs format to install multiple OS on a single SD card or USB drive.

Once you have installed BerryBoot on the SD card you boot it up, and in its first run you'll have to configure where it is to install the OS images. If you choose SD then the OS images will be installed to other partitions of the same SD card. But if you choose USB then the OS images will be installed to an external USB drive which must be connected for formatting, and which will then be required in all future use of this BerryBoot system.

NB: If you install OS images on USB the SD card will never have anything added, so a very small card will then suffice.
(But it should still have decent Class 10 speed, since you boot some kernel parts from it every time.)

By default BerryBoot offers installation of some OS images from online sources, but by long-click on the menu entry for loading OS you get an extra menu entry for side-loading OS images from a USB drive instead. For this reason you will need to have a USB mouse connected during these configurations (you can add new OS installs any time you boot up BerryBoot).

Even when the installs are intended to run on one USB drive (the one formatted by BerryBoot) you can still install OS images supplied on another USB drive, though you may need a USB hub to keep everything connected simultaneously. I suggest having the primary USB drive (the one to run from in future) connected directly to one of the RPi USB ports, with the other USB devices connected by external USB hub.

The drive used to supply ".img" files for installation (to SD or other USB drive) must be formatted to FAT32.
The images supplied can NOT be those normally flashed to standalone SD cards.
Such images do NOT work with BerryBoot. You need SquashFS images of a special kind.

Fortunately both XBMC and RasPlex versions of the OpenELEC installs for RPi include such a SquashFS image file.

On any installed SD card of RasPlex, or of OpenELEC(XBMC) for RPi there is a file simply named "SYSTEM".
You can take this file as is, copy it to a computer and rename it to whatever you like with a ".img" type extension.
For the most recent RasPlex version I'd use a name like "BB RasPlex 0.4.1.img"
(The "BB" prefix is just to ensure that I never confuse it with a 'full' RasPlex image, for standalone use.)

That file can then be stored on a FAT32 USB drive (together with other such images) to supply install images for BerryBoot.
Note that you can freely mix install sources in your BerryBoot usage.

So you can use different USB drives to supply new images, and also install some images from online (the default choice).

Every time you reboot with the BerryBoot SD card inserted, a boot menu will appear listing your currently installed OS images.
You can then choose whether to start any one of them, or wait for the default to launch, or choose to enter the edit menu.
That edit menu is the one where you can install new OS images or remove old ones, or just edit their names or parameters.

I hope this post has given a better understanding of how BerryBoot works, and how you can use it for RasPlex.

Best regards: dlanor

“but by long-click on the menu entry for loading OS you get an extra menu entry for side-loading OS images from a USB drive”


Perfect! That’s the missing piece I was looking for. And it looks like I can use the .img from my existing RasPlex. Your point raises a question, though; will the BerryBootable RasPlex by as easily update able as the standalone version is?

"but by long-click on the menu entry for loading OS you get an extra menu entry for side-loading OS images from a USB drive"

Perfect! That's the missing piece I was looking for. And it looks like I can use the .img from my existing RasPlex. Your point raises a question, though; will the BerryBootable RasPlex by as easily update able as the standalone version is?

That last remains unknown for a little longer.
In response to another post made today I stated that I will perform such a test and report my results on it later.
This was in another thread of this same subforum, and you can reach it through this link

Best regards: dlanor

I have now performed the test of updating an existing RasPlex version installed for BerryBoot.

The results are posted in the thread linked to in my previous post, so I suggest those interested go there to read it.

Long story short: It worked fine. :)

Best regards: dlanor

@dlanor said:
On any installed SD card of RasPlex, or of OpenELEC(XBMC) for RPi there is a file simply named “SYSTEM”.
You can take this file as is, copy it to a computer and rename it to whatever you like with a “.img” type extension.
For the most recent RasPlex version I’d use a name like “BB RasPlex 0.4.1.img”
(The “BB” prefix is just to ensure that I never confuse it with a ‘full’ RasPlex image, for standalone use.)

That file can then be stored on a FAT32 USB drive (together with other such images) to supply install images for BerryBoot.

this is very old, is it still true? i’m looking at RasPlex-1.6.2