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Basic Questions⚓︎

Good to Know⚓︎

  • Find an entry in menuconfig/kconfig:

    Open menuconfig and press / to search.
  • Flash an AVM or modified image via the bootloader:

    Run tools/push_firmware; use tools/push_firmware -h for help.
    After a successful build, make push_firmware also works.
  • Flash from a Raspberry Pi:

    Copy the created image to the Raspberry Pi. Download the current
    push_firmware script:
    wget https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Freetz-NG/freetz-ng/master/tools/push_firmware

    Make it executable with chmod +x push_firmware, then run it with
    ./push_firmware ....
  • In-memory image format:

    It is usually no longer needed because push_firmware can flash normal
    images directly.
  • Unpack an image:

    Use tools/fwdu unpack the.image to extract the inner filesystem.
  • Use older modem/DSL driver files:

    Unpack the source image with fwdu. Copy the required files, including
    their directory structure, into a subdirectory of Freetz's addon/
    directory. Enable the new addon through an addon/*.pkg file.
    The required files depend on the device. Examples:
  • For 7490, the complete /lib/modules/dsp_vr9/ directory
  • For 7590, the complete /lib/modules/dsp_vr11/ directory
  • Replace the kernel:

    Avoid this unless you clearly understand why you need it. You will never
    have exactly the kernel expected by AVM; patches or options may be missing.
  • Build kernel modules:
  • If you do not know which module a device requires, attach the device to
    a Linux PC and check it with commands such as dmesg, lsusb, and
    lsmod.
  • Make sure the latest source code for your device is available at
    https://osp.avm.de/ and integrated into Freetz. If it is not, ask AVM
    at fritzbox_info@avm.de.
  • Run make menuconfig and select your FRITZ!Box and FRITZ!OS version.
    Then enable the module as M(odule) with make kernel-menuconfig; use
    / to search.
  • To avoid repeating that configuration every time, you can submit your
    changes in make/linux/configs/freetz/ as a pull request.
  • To copy the module file into the image, select it with make menuconfig.
    If it is not available there, add its name to Kernel modules ->
    Own Modules.
  • Execute files on storage media:

    AVM disables this by default on some storage. To allow it, select the
    Drop noexec for (external) storages patch. Internal storage is always
    executable with Freetz.
  • Execute commands during shutdown or reboot:

    Put an executable script at /tmp/flash/mod/shutdown.
  • Edit read-only files:

    Use wrapper scripts such as vix, vimx, and nanox.
  • Make read-only directories writable:

    Use araw /some/random/path/; it copies the directory to RAM and mounts it
    writable.
  • Change the message of the day:

    Put your own script at /tmp/flash/mod/motd. The MOTD is generated once at
    boot. To update it regularly, run /mod/etc/init.d/rc.mod motd, for
    example through cron.
  • Use the legacy package layout in menuconfig:

    Run make menuconfig-single.
  • Handle Git basics:

    A quick beginner-friendly starting point is https://xkcd.com/1597/.

Practical Advice⚓︎

  1. Start from a minimal, reproducible setup.
  2. Change one thing at a time and keep notes.
  3. Keep recovery files ready before flashing.
  4. Prefer stable package combinations first, then expand.