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    PC Engines APU4C4 Experience

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    • stephenw10S
      stephenw10 Netgate Administrator
      last edited by stephenw10

      APU4C4 doesn't seem to be a real part number unless my Google foo has failed me.

      Do you mean APU2C4? Or maybe APU4B4?
      I've never used either personally.

      Steve

      boukeB 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
      • boukeB
        bouke @stephenw10
        last edited by

        We did order the APU4B4 but the distributor suggested the APU4C4. I gave them a call to verify what they meant with APU4C4 and they confirmed that they indeed suggested the APUC4C as we recently ordered the APU3C4 (optimized for LTE). I didn't know the 4C4 existed... but agreed with the 4C4.

        I did take a close look at the 4C4 today and I did notice the SIM slots and the four LAN ports. Quite happy with the choice at the moment. Uptime >5 hours without problems at the moment.

        The APU4C4 is listed in this PDF: https://pcengines.ch/pdf/apu4.pdf
        There isn't yet much more info (indeed).

        1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
        • stephenw10S
          stephenw10 Netgate Administrator
          last edited by

          Ah, OK. Interesting.

          1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
          • boukeB
            bouke
            last edited by

            A small update about my experiment with APU4C4 boards.

            My lab router is up and running 3 days and >3 hours now.
            I am relieved it's running stable and smoothly with BIOS v4.6.8 and pfSense 2.4.4 ☺

            alt text

            I did also speak to my colleagues of technical services. They are running an APU4C4 in production. The did not encounter any problems.

            boukeB 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
            • J
              jasonraymundo31
              last edited by

              what's the difference between apu4b4 vs apu4c4

              boukeB 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
              • boukeB
                bouke @jasonraymundo31
                last edited by

                @knowbe4

                It's an update of the APU4B4:

                • Minimize leakage from V3A to V3 rail (SD card compatibility)
                • Fix USB header J12 pinout.
                • Change SIM switch to FXLA2203, FXLA2204 went EOL.
                • 10 pin LPC header to allow for future TPM option.

                Reference: https://www.pcengines.ch/apu4b4.htm

                1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                • boukeB
                  bouke @bouke
                  last edited by bouke

                  The lab router was running fine for >5 days.

                  I decided to update it from BIOS v4.6.8 to v4.8.0.5.
                  Uptime is >1 day now.

                  My reason to update is that I just want to find out if the latest BIOS version will result in a stable pfSense box (or not).

                  I have got another APU4 running with BIOS v4.6.8 >6 days now. I might update to v4.6.10 when that APU4's uptime is >30 days. I am aiming to run 4.6.10 >90 days and then tag it as stable.

                  Would 90 days be enough to call it stable?

                  1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                  • KOMK
                    KOM
                    last edited by

                    You seem extremely concerned about stability, which is surprising considering your choice of bargain-basement hardware. Nobody can tell you that a platform is stable enough for your needs. That's up to you to decide. If you're really that concerned, buy a second unit and keep it on-hand for emergencies.

                    dotdashD 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                    • dotdashD
                      dotdash @KOM
                      last edited by

                      @kom While inexpensive, PC Engines has a good record for reliability. I've never had trouble with Alix or previous APU versions. Netgate sold PC Engines hardware in the past. I wouldn't consider them bargain-basement hardware. I do agree with your point about keeping spares. I'd test one for a bit, deploy it, only update the bios for some compelling reason, and keep a spare in case something goes wrong.

                      1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                      • stephenw10S
                        stephenw10 Netgate Administrator
                        last edited by

                        Yeah a better point here is why update the BIOS without some very good reason?

                        The most "stable" is going to be the version most other people are running and most people probably never update Coreboot.

                        Simply by updating you're putting yourself in a much smaller group of users running far less tested code. You should have a good reason for doing so.

                        That said I updated my APU(1) to 4.8.0.1 just to test it a few months back and have seen no issues.

                        Steve

                        V 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                        • V
                          VAMike @stephenw10
                          last edited by

                          @stephenw10 said in PC Engines APU4C4 Experience:

                          Yeah a better point here is why update the BIOS without some very good reason?

                          4.8.0.5 enables ECC

                          1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                          • J
                            jasonraymundo31
                            last edited by jasonraymundo31

                            @bouke what's the up-time now? also did you face an issue ?

                            boukeB 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                            • boukeB
                              bouke @jasonraymundo31
                              last edited by

                              @knowbe4 I am glad you asked. The up time is approximately one month. I didn't face any further issues with this board.

                              1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 2
                              • X
                                xparanoik
                                last edited by

                                @BOUKE do you have any more updates for us? Interested in getting rid of my old Supermicro Atom SoC server and building an APU4C4 pfSense box instead. Did you buy just the board or a whole kit with enclosure?

                                boukeB 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                • dotdashD
                                  dotdash
                                  last edited by

                                  I've been getting the APU4C4's in kit form via a US reseller. I had trouble installing until I updated them to the most recent BIOS. I never bothered updating APU1 or APU2 units, but besides some doubled text output during boot, they work fine now.

                                  boukeB 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                  • boukeB
                                    bouke @xparanoik
                                    last edited by

                                    @xparanoik said in PC Engines APU4C4 Experience:

                                    @BOUKE do you have any more updates for us? Interested in getting rid of my old Supermicro Atom SoC server and building an APU4C4 pfSense box instead. Did you buy just the board or a whole kit with enclosure?

                                    Normally I just buy the whole kit: enclosure, board, mSATA SSD (msata16h), power adapter.

                                    I can recommend Meconet if you require a 19" enclosure:
                                    https://shop.meconet.de/meconet-mBOX-case-solutions/19-Inch-cases/for-PC-Engines-260mm/mBOX-19-260mm-for-one-PC-Engines-ALIX-APU-with-4-x-LAN-1-x-serial-1-x-USB-1-x-power-for-external-power-supply::117712.html

                                    But be very specific if you order at Meconet. Always verify your choice by e-mail before ordering! They have a lot of different enclosures.

                                    1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                                    • boukeB
                                      bouke @dotdash
                                      last edited by bouke

                                      @dotdash said in PC Engines APU4C4 Experience:

                                      I've been getting the APU4C4's in kit form via a US reseller. I had trouble installing until I updated them to the most recent BIOS. I never bothered updating APU1 or APU2 units, but besides some doubled text output during boot, they work fine now.

                                      Indeed. You really have to update the BIOS for the APU4 board.
                                      I just update to the newest BIOS version before an APU2/3/4 is being installed for a customer:

                                      • 4.9.0.4
                                      • https://pcengines.github.io/

                                      I have bought two "Flash recovery adapter for apu2/3". The flash recovery adapter also works fine on the APU4 boards (I did verify this by e-mail at PC Engine's support and I did test it myself). So, when you brick a board, you can easily recover it.

                                      1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                                      • G
                                        gtrdriver
                                        last edited by

                                        Hallo

                                        i just got my APU4c4 Board yesterday - installed Pfsense on it - everything works like a Charm.
                                        Then i decided to update Bios of Board for Max stability ...

                                        I Chosse the File "apu4" from https://pcengines.github.io

                                        Update runs fine everything looks good.

                                        After Reboot PFSense wont boot any more - allways run into Kernel Panic (dont know if this is the right word for this issue)

                                        then i tryed to Reinstall Pfsense again - but even if i try to boot from USB Installer i get same Issue

                                        ![alt text](image url)ScreenShot2998.jpg ScreenShot2997.jpg

                                        boukeB stephenw10S 3 Replies Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                        • boukeB
                                          bouke @gtrdriver
                                          last edited by

                                          @gtrdriver Try to downgrade the BIOS. When unsuccessful: use a debricker. These cost a few Euros/Dollars.

                                          https://www.pcengines.ch/spi1a.htm

                                          1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                          • G
                                            gtrdriver
                                            last edited by

                                            Hi

                                            What Version of Bios do you think should i choose ?

                                            fireodoF V 2 Replies Last reply Reply Quote 0
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