[Glitch]

I have written a dummyproof installation guide for XBMC Live on the ASRock ION-330HT for my own blog. All the information in this installation guide was gathered right here on the XBMC forums but it's scattered in various topics and/or written without keeping in mind that a lot of us are technically challenged. This installation guide puts it all together with detailed step by step instructions ment for those who are inexperienced with Linux. Perhaps it's also useful to members of this community.

If you have anything to contribute please let me know by replying. I'd be glad to make this guide as complete as possible.

Setup
This guide will create the following setup:

• Yes: ASRock ION330-HT with XBMC Live 9.11 Camelot installed on the HDD
  
• Yes: Driver for internal IR receiver installed and the remote is working.
  
• Yes: Wake up from power-down by remote
  
• Yes: Video and audio through HDMI
  
• Yes: Navigation sounds within XBMC
  
• No: Wake up from suspend by remote, this is a common issue
  
• Uncertain: Wireless internet, I don't use it myself and havent tested it
  

Before you can start the installation you will have to hook up the ION-330HT to your television by HDMI and connect a keyboard to one of the USB ports of the ION-330HT. For a complete installation you will also need to have network access so please connect your system to your network using an ethernet cable.

Installation of XBMC

• Download the XBMC Live version, extract the iso file from the archive and burn the image to a CD-RW or DVD.
  
• Insert the burned disc in the disc drive and boot from CD. You might need to change the boot order in the BIOS and select the disc drive as first boot device. You can enter the BIOS by pressing F2 at startup.
  
• After booting the XBMC Live CD select the option 'Install XBMC Live to the hard drive'
  
• Follow the installation steps. There is no real need to change any of the default installation settings. I decided to create a separate /home partition in the harddisk manager but this is not really needed if you don't know what you are doing. As username and password set them both to: xbmc (even though the installer thinks this password is to short).
  
• After the installation is finished remove the disc and restart the system. XBMC will be started up automatically. Once started up you can walk through the configuration settings menu of XBMC using your keyboard to configure everything to your own preferences. Best is to jump ahead and install the drivers for the internal IR receiver so you can use the remote to configure everything from your couch.
  

Installing the driver for the internal IR receiver
Out of the box the internal IR receiver does not work because the drivers are not included within the underlaying operating system of XBMC Live version 9.11, this OS is a Linux distribution called Ubuntu version 9.10. If you want the remote to work without the use of an external USB receiver you will need to install these drivers by hand. This however can be tricky for inexperienced users so beware. This step requires the ION-330HT to be connected to your home network so it can be accessed using your computer.

• To install the driver we need to access the underlaying operating system. This is done using a protocol called SSH. A good and free SSH client is called Putty and can be found here. Download and install it.
  
• In Putty you will need to create a new session using the host address (IP address) and the username and password you entered during installation (both xbmc if you followed this guide). If you don't know the IP address of your ION-330HT, it can be found within XBMC. Press right when standing on the system settings and select system information. Under network you will see your IP address.
  
• When you open the connection you will need to enter your username and password again. When logged in enter the following commands to download and install the driver:
  
  Code:

  sudo –s
  Enter your password again and continue with the following commands.
  
  Code:

  apt-get install wget
  Code:

  wget http://tinyurl.com/cir-driver-ion330ht
  Code:

  dpkg -i ir-driver-ion330ht.deb
• Agree with the installation of the new package. On the first screen of the installer select the option 'Nuvoton Transceivers/Remotes' and on the second screen keep the setting on 'None'.
  
• After the installation is finished you must reboot your ION-330HT to load the driver. You can do this by typing the command:
  Code:

  reboot

Your connection will be broken as the system reboots. After reboot the driver for the IR receiver (version 1.01) is loaded and you can start using the supplied remote. Wake up after power-down will also work now. This is the default shutdown setting in XBMC. Changing this suspend unfortunately doesnt work. Your remote wont respond after waking up, this is a common issue. Check back here from time to time, I'll post a solution if it becomes available.

Fixing audio over HDMI for playback
Out of the box the audio playback does not work over HDMI. For this to work we need to change the audio settings in XBMC. Go the the settings menu and the audio settings and set these to the following:

Code:

Audio output                 = Digital
AC3 compatible receiver         = Unchecked
DTS compatibe receiver             = Unchecked
Audio output device             = hdmi
Passthrough output device         = hdmi
Downmix multichannel audio to stereo     = Checked

With the settings above the audio is being output through HDMI. If you use an audio-video receiver you might want to check to test with the checkbox a little but the settings above should be your starting point.

Fixing navigation sound in XBMC
The fix described above will ensure audio playback over HDMI for movies, music, etc. but there still aren’t any navigation sounds in XBMC. For this to work a configuration file has to be added to the installation of XBMC. Again open an SSH session as described in step 1 and 2 of installing the driver for the IR receiver. Once connected enter the following commands:

Code:

sudo -s

Enter your password and continue with the following commands:

Code:

nano /etc/asound.conf

This will open a text editor where you need to type in the following text:

Code:

pcm.!default {
  type plug
   slave {
       pcm "hdmi"
   }
}

Then hit ctrl + x and confirm saving the file. Once done you should reboot for the changes to take effect. You can do this by typing the command:

Code:

reboot

Your connection will be broken as the system reboots. After reboot the navigation sounds in XBMC should be working.

Your ASrock ION-330HT with XBMC is now ready to be used. There is still a lot to configure within XBMC itself. Please refer the XBMC Wiki for more information. If you have any questions about this guide please use the comment system. I'll do my best to help you out.

[Fjerpje]

Great Howto, I've got it all up and running with the ubuntu GUI but i still need that remote working when it wakens up form suspend. II'm also having the Asrock 330HT and using the orginal remote that comes with the Asrock. I don't know why Ubuntu terminates the LIRC driver after wakeup.

[graysky]

You should create a wiki page for your guide - probably get more exposure there than buried in a support forum.

[henrikyo]

Great guide, i have a question though, can anyone answer how i can add rapier theme to xbmc live, i cant understand how to add it to the skins in xbmc live.

[RockerNJ]

Great guide, i have a question though, can anyone answer how i can add rapier theme to xbmc live, i cant understand how to add it to the skins in xbmc live.

You can just sftp it from another machine with something like Filezilla.

[henrikyo]

where do u enter username/pass in putty, before you login. I can only enter hostname (ip adress) tearing my hair out cause i cant find password/username login

if i only use xbmc ip adress, i just get connection refused :/ help so much appreciated! dunno whats wrong

also; when trying to install this drivers on another pc with full ubuntu 9.10, i get this

hroksvaag@Henrik:~$ dpkg -i ir-driver-ion330ht
dpkg: error processing ir-driver-ion330ht (--install):
cannot access archive: No such file or directory

bah, i get so mad, why is it so that i cannot access my xbmc, i just get connection refused all the time, im on wired network, both the xbmc and the ion 330ht, and when trying to install the drivers on a full ubuntu install, i just get "cannot access archive; no such file or directory"

[Fjerpje]

Here is a script that worked for me with the remote/resume part: http://forum.xbmc.org/showthread.php?tid=66796

[marathont]

If I turn on my asrock before my I turn my TV on I do not get any picture. Im not sure if it has something to do with my TV hdmi handshake or problem with xbmc.

Anyone else have this problem ?

[M3Evolution]

Excellent guide, just what I was looking for to get the remote working.

I found that at this stage though:

Code:

dpkg -i ir-driver-ion330ht

I got the error mentioned above. Adding .deb seemed to get it working:

Code:

dpkg -i ir-driver-ion330ht.deb

[Fjerpje]

Here is a script that worked for me with the remote/resume part: http://forum.xbmc.org/showthread.php?tid=66796

This script does work for XBMC when you wake up your system after you put it in suspend mode. However, the LIRC receiver than seems to react at the IR signals coming from the TV. If you place your Asrock away from the signals,you can use the suspend mode flawlessly.

For example if i connect my Asrock to a secondary computer screen upstairs in the main bedroom, the Asrock remote works perfectly after suspend, and XBMC is totally controleable via the remote. But as soon as i connect my Asrock ION 330HT to the TV screen in the living room downstairs, the Asrock 330HT will reboot as soon as you put it in suspend mode. This is caused by the IR signals coming from the TV. It seems that some sort of signal at the same frequency is wakening up your Asrock from suspend mode.

I do not know if this can be changed or not. Or if the frequency of the LIRC receiver can be set to a another ratio. This has something to do with the Asrock 1.0.1 driver i presume. Some people already tried to contact Asrock about this issue. But they say it cannot be the external IR signals wakening up the Asrock. I think that's bullshit

[Solarisphere]

Thank you so much for doing this. We definitely need an idiot proof thread on the setup of such a popular box. I had to sift through 20+ pages of bickering, snippets of code, and off topic crap to find what I needed. And that was just in one of the threads. I've got a few things you might want to add though:

- there is a custom ISO with a bunch of tweaks made specifically for the ION330HT here
- a useful/related links section
eg.
a similar guide
the complete history of the ION330HT IR remote drivers in linux

- an answer to the following post (I can see it being a common question):

Great guide, i have a question though, can anyone answer how i can add rapier theme to xbmc live, i cant understand how to add it to the skins in xbmc live.

Places > Connect to Server... and choose SSH from the dropdown list. Then put xbmc in under username and connect. This will let you access the whole filesystem in nautilus, but you can't edit password protected files. This will give you GUI access to the /home/xbmc/.xbmc/skin/ folder where the skins are installed. You can drag and drop them from your main computer to there. It will also let you edit .xml files and do other tweaks that don't require superuser priveleges (entering sudo in the command line).

where do u enter username/pass in putty, before you login. I can only enter hostname (ip adress) tearing my hair out cause i cant find password/username login

if i only use xbmc ip adress, i just get connection refused :/ help so much appreciated! dunno whats wrong

also; when trying to install this drivers on another pc with full ubuntu 9.10, i get this

hroksvaag@Henrik:~$ dpkg -i ir-driver-ion330ht
dpkg: error processing ir-driver-ion330ht (--install):
cannot access archive: No such file or directory

bah, i get so mad, why is it so that i cannot access my xbmc, i just get connection refused all the time, im on wired network, both the xbmc and the ion 330ht, and when trying to install the drivers on a full ubuntu install, i just get "cannot access archive; no such file or directory"

Do you have openssh-client installed? Have you double checked that you're using the correct IP address? Could it be that you're using the wrong port (the default 22 worked for me)?

When I try to log in via putty I just have to enter the IP address of the ION330 and click open. A terminal pops up and then I enter the username and password.

You could also try Places > Connect to Server... and choose SSH from the dropdown list. Then put xbmc in under username and connect. This will let you access the whole filesystem in nautilus, but you can't edit password protected files. There is no way to enter the root password that I'm aware of.

[Glitch]

where do u enter username/pass in putty, before you login. I can only enter hostname (ip adress) tearing my hair out cause i cant find password/username login

if i only use xbmc ip adress, i just get connection refused :/ help so much appreciated! dunno whats wrong

also; when trying to install this drivers on another pc with full ubuntu 9.10, i get this

hroksvaag@Henrik:~$ dpkg -i ir-driver-ion330ht
dpkg: error processing ir-driver-ion330ht (--install):
cannot access archive: No such file or directory

About Putty, you can enter the username / password once your are connected to the machine. If the connection is refused you might wanna check the IP and port you are connecting to. About the error for installing the IR drivers, there was a typ-o in the guide which I just fixed.

Excellent guide, just what I was looking for to get the remote working.

I found that at this stage though:

Code:

dpkg -i ir-driver-ion330ht

I got the error mentioned above. Adding .deb seemed to get it working:

Code:

dpkg -i ir-driver-ion330ht.deb

Thanx, I fixed this typ-o.

If I turn on my asrock before my I turn my TV on I do not get any picture. Im not sure if it has something to do with my TV hdmi handshake or problem with xbmc.

Anyone else have this problem ?

No problems here. Could it be that your TV isn't set to the right HDMI input channel if the ION-330 is turned on before the TV?

[marathont]

About Putty, you can enter the username / password once your are connected to the machine. If the connection is refused you might wanna check the IP and port you are connecting to. About the error for installing the IR drivers, there was a typ-o in the guide which I just fixed.

Thanx, I fixed this typ-o.


No problems here. Could it be that your TV isn't set to the right HDMI input channel if the ION-330 is turned on before the TV?

I have to switch to the correct hdmi input, before i power on the asrock. Otherwise when I do switch to the asrock hdmi input, I just get a black screen and have to restart the asrock.

I think I saw other people with this problem, and they edited something in xorg.conf, but I cannot find it now.

[circle_]

I've tried to install the ir drivers a couple of times now but keep getting an error:

dpkg -i ir-driver-ion330ht.deb
(Reading database ... 25734 files and directories currently installed.)
Preparing to replace lirc-nct677x 1.0.1-ubuntu9.10 (using ir-driver-ion330ht.deb) ...
Unpacking replacement lirc-nct677x ...
dpkg: dependency problems prevent configuration of lirc-nct677x:
lirc-nct677x depends on dkms; however:
Package dkms is not installed.
dpkg: error processing lirc-nct677x (--install):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
Errors were encountered while processing:
lirc-nct677x


It appears package dkms is not installed. Anyone know how I can get that?
I tried "apt-get -f install dkms" but it was a complete guess and did not work.

I really appreciate any help.
<--- linux noob :/

[The Spirit]

hi.
thanks for this great guide.
but one thing, how can i access the on screen display via the remote.
i found no button to do this.
thanks