Noob needs a little help getting started

guruatds

Hello,

I bought a Qotom Q355G4 box for the purpose of installing pfsense. This was a barebone purchase from Ali Express.
I did install the memory of 8GB and a SATA 256 GB SSD storage.

How do I access the box. Granted the storage is blank.
Should I go the route of installing pfsense from a USB stick?

I connected the HDMI port to my TV and powered up the box. Nothing shows up on the screen. I was expecting some message like from the BIOS.

Should I just jump right in with the install of s/w?

Regards

guru

Derelict

If you can't even get a display working you will have to contact the manufacturer for assistance with that.

After that, https://doc.pfsense.org/index.php/Installing_pfSense

guruatds

Great. Thanks.

Update: I had an issue in my set up. Did not turn on the audio receiver which was feeding hdmi signals to my tv. Duh!!!

I have now installed pfsense on to the device.

Thanks again.

pr4499

Hey @guruatds

256gb SSD for pfsense is massive. Next time try to get a 16gb SSD to save you money. Perhaps you can sell your 256 on eBay or something.

Did you end up getting everything else set up okay?

Kind Regards,
Peter Richardson

guruatds

Peter,

Thanks for checking. Yes I got pfsense installed. The SSD was something I had removed from an ASUS laptop. The laptop mb was damaged due to a water spill. It was not worth trying to fix it. Memory and SSD were from this laptop.

But I ran into a unique issue. May be you or other can help and share some specifics. The unit quit working a day later. I checked the power supply output and it was fluctuating between 8V and 15V constantly. I tried another power supply which was like 15V with the same ampere rating of 5A and that would power up the unit. I quickly shut it off worrying if that would damage the unit. So I am now looking to replace the power supply for 12V with 5A rating. The thing I still need to figure out is the size of the connector that connects to the unit and find it on Amazon or at a local electronics store (Fry's). What is the power rating that I should look for? the original one does not list the power output. Would a 50W or 60W suffice? Don't want to damage the unit.

I would also like to see a picture of the motherboard. Specifically the SATA connector. I was mulling the idea of sending the entire MB back to the supplier and in the process, removed the SATA connector cables, the data portion of the cable fits in one direction only. The power portion of the SATA cable came off with the base from the motherboard exposing the pins. I think it is a 2 peice, one that is attached to the MB and the one that is part of the cable and goes in only one direction. Since it came off with the base plug, now I am unable to determine the polarity. If anyone can point me to a link that shows the picture of the MB showing the SATA cable side that is greatly appreciated. Hope what I am saying makes sense.

jahonix

When I google for your box I get this as second hit:
https://sc01.alicdn.com/kf/HTB1blnaNXXXXXa6aXXXq6xXFXXXQ/200858034/HTB1blnaNXXXXXa6aXXXq6xXFXXXQ.jpg
That's probably an image of your board, right?

And looking at a similar item on Aliex I found:
Power Adapter: 12V 3A
DC Jack: 5.5mm, 2.5mm

That's a 36W PSU and your CPU has a TDP of 15W. That should be sufficient. 5A would be plenty.

Out of pure interest: what kept you from finding these infos yourself?

guruatds

Thanks Chris for the information.

I was hoping to get a picture of the motherboard with the SATA cable installed. That helps me in making sure the polarity of the connector is rightly place. In the picture you shared the power to the SATA cable is right above the yellow SATA data connector. It is white / off-white in color. In my situation, that came off the MB and I am trying to put it the right way. In a ideal situation the white / off-white connector is part of the MB. In my situation it came off the mother board exposing the bare pins.

There was a thread in this forum which had detailed pictures of the inside of the Qotom box. I cannot seem to find that thread. Someone had posted pictures showing the details.

I wanted confirmation on the power calculation. I googled some more and found that P=V X I. So the original power supply that came in with the box is 12V at 5A which equates to 60W of power. Thank you for the information about the DC jack size. That is helpful.

Have you messaged Qotom yet? They will ship you a replacement power supply for free..

guruatds

Did not want to wait. I did procure one locally at Fry's Electronics. Did not want to wait for shipping and delivery.

jahonix

@guruatds:

… the power to the SATA cable is right above the yellow SATA data connector. It is white / off-white in color.

There are numbers in the picture for a reason.
You're talking about #13, right?
You clearly see the cut-out of the connector base facing to the outside of the board. Either refit it that way or imagine it being there. Then your power connector will fit only one way, no guessing involved.

@guruatds:

There was a thread in this forum which had detailed pictures of the inside of the Qotom box.

Probably this one which johnkeates started (but I'm definitely too lazy to read through 45 pages to find you a picture…):
https://forum.pfsense.org/index.php?topic=132528.0

guruatds

@jahonix:

There are numbers in the picture for a reason.
You're talking about #13, right?
You clearly see the cut-out of the connector base facing to the outside of the board. Either refit it that way or imagine it being there. Then your power connector will fit only one way, no guessing involved.

Thank you for the information. Really appreciated.