Install Canoeboot on Acer G43T-AM3


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acer_g43t-am3
Specifications
Manufacturer Acer
Name G43T-AM3
Released 2009
Chipset G43
CPU LGA 775, Core 2 Duo & Quad
Graphics GMA X4500
Memory 8GB DDR3 SODIMMs (4x2GB)
Architecture x86-64-v1
Original boot firmware Acer BIOS
Intel ME/AMD PSP Present, Fully removable
Flash chip SOP-8 2MiB

Get the ROM image

Download from release

Build from source

For one only:

./mk -b coreboot acer_g43t_am3_2mb_bios

To build it to use both flash chips:

./mk -b coreboot acer_g43t_am3_16mb_bios

Internal/Software Flashing

It might be necessary to specify the chip type; MX25L1605D/MX25L1608D/MX25L1673E is the correct one, not MX25L1605.

Follow the guide to backup and flash directly from OS / using the SPI_ROM1 header.

External/Hardware Flashing

Turn the board off and leave it plugged in with the psu on and then use a programmer WITHOUT the 3.3v connected to flash.

Another way is through the SPI_ROM1 header while the board is off and disconnected from power, HOLD# and WP# must be pulled high (to VCC) to be able to flash the chip.

It might be necessary to specify the chip type; MX25L1605D/MX25L1608D/MX25L1673E is the correct one, not MX25L1605.

After choosing 1 way from above, check the hw-flashing guide before moving onto the next step below.

Flash it: (With rpi-pico as an example, edit the line if needed.)

flashprog -p serprog:dev=/dev/ttyACM0,spispeed=16M -w filename.rom

Networking:

https://superuser.com/questions/1104537/how-to-repair-the-checksum-of-the-non-volatile-memory-nvm-of-intel-ethernet-co/1106641#1106641

This page has some guidance on how to either correct the checksum (in GbE config) or skip checksum validation in Linux, to get the onboard NIC working. Although it’s talking about different hardware, the steps should be the same.

TODO: factory BIOS on this board works fine with the onboard NIC. study what that is doing

DDR3 memory with 512Mx8 chips (G43 limitation), 4x4GB sticks (works, but showed a single bit error within one pass of Memtest86+ 5.01)

Expanded_Specifications

acer_g43t-am3
Specifications
Manufacturer Acer
Name/Variant G43t-AM3
Released 2009
Chipset Intel G43
CPU LGA775, Intel Core 2
Graphics GMA X4500
Audio Realtek ALC888S
Memory DDR3 SODIMMs (max 8 GB, 4x2GB)
Networking Intel 82567V-2
Expansion Slots PCIe gen. 2; x16, x1, 2x PCI
Storage connectors 6x SATA II
Other Connectors Headers; Audio, 4x dual USB 2.0, SCOM
I/O Ports on Back PS/2 Mouse+Keyboard, VGA, HDMI, 4x USB 2.0, Firewire (IEEE 1394), RJ-45 1GbE (Ethernet)

Markdown file for this page: https://canoeboot.org/docs/install/acer_g43t-am3.md

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Canoeboot is discontinued. A new project was created: RBoot project, a fully free UEFI firmware distribution based on coreboot. RBoot is Canoeboot continued under a new name, with the same maintainer. The canoeboot website and release sources shall be preserved for historical purposes.