dan_189

I'm wanting to update my PCM 3.1 to the latest version 2.7 (for mine) from 2.0 - it's never been updated. I am a bit hesitant to update it as the dealership have mentioned that they do occasionally end up in a update loop...

Kari where is the hard drive located? Is it inside the PCM unit? I.e. did you physically take the hard drive out of the unit and format it? Just trying to get an understanding of the process in case things go wrong... Is there any benefit to updating it other than being able to install the latest maps (for me again the latest maps are from 2018) so better than 2010!

Any assistance would be much appreciated

gheorghe

i put here the movie of my installer and if u know what is the trick to skip boot loop
i put here description
i will format hdd un linux and try again

https://www45.zippyshare.com/v/fBY5GlaV/file.html

kari

Looking at the video, your install failed during the update of the HDD module similar to mine though not at the exact location. Your update failed while copying the .placeholder file to the log directory while mine failed a couple of steps further down. This failure to me indicates a corruption of that particular filesystem in the HDD

Fixing the corruption is a fairly intrusive process and one runs the risk of bricking the system, so while i took the risk and tailored scripts to resolve the specific issue i faced, its not something that can just be reused. You can try replacing the hard disk with a new hard disk of the same spec - i read somewhere that the update automatically resets a new disk. While i was exploring this avenue as an alternative when i faced the issue, i personally never tried it and cannot confirm that it actually works . You will likely get an old disk of the same/similar spec from ebay or aliexpress or pull one off a broken PCM system - those disk capacities are no longer manufactured - my understanding is that many of the newer or larger capacity disks may not be compatible with the PCM system). Note that with a new disk, you will lose the navigation and will need the dealer to reinstall the maps.

I can however suggest a way that initially got me out of this loop and I got back most of the functionality (navigation and a few other bits did not work but radio/cd etc worked..) and this approach does not involve any custom scripting or coding. Will PM the steps to you...

kari

PCM3.1 systems either have version 3.xx or 4.xx
Software version 2.0 is for a PCM3 system and not PCM3.1 as far as i know and the latest (or last) version was 2.47 and not 2.7... I do not have much knowledge of the PCM3.0 system though its possibly similar to PCM3.1

if you are on PCM3 version 2.0 and want to move to 2.47 it is possible i think there are additional features (from posts i saw in other fora) but for the other versions (3.xx/4.xx) , the software updates are mainly for bug fixes. I was not able to find any list of fixes anywhere. Updates do have an element of risk as i ran into this situation though many have been able to update smoothly.

The hard disk for the PCM 3.1 is is a 'compartment' on the3 surface/side of the PCM unit but you will have to dismount the PCM3.1 system to access the hard disk.. search for T8G 9632 on the fccid.io site or google it. it has internal/external images of the 3.1 system ...

BillN

Hi Kari,

I am in pretty much exact same place as above. Can you pls PM me the steps to get out
of the loop without custom scripting and coding?

Thanks!
Bill

kari

Posting on the forum this seems to be a recurring problem. My suggestion would be to replace the HDD with another SSD or new HDD once you get out of the emergency loop. There is another thread on Rennlist that provides detail on how to replace the existing HDD .

The steps assume your earlier version of the software was 4.xx and you were trying to get to 4.76 or 4.75 and the problem is with your HDD because of which you got into an emergency loop - this is a quick way to get back at least the basic pcm functionality (Radio/CD etc.. but you will notice some other functionality being sluggish because of the corrupt HDD filesystem and your navigation screens if you use the native pcm3.1 navigation will be blank as the clean up hdd script cleans up some rendering files that are updated later on). But getting any functionality back is better than looking at an emergency update screen!

Step 1: Copy the entire contents of the firmware update CD (wkd95280017/wkd95280016) to a USB stick. (I tried with a Kingston USB stick first but it did not work and then tired with a new Lexar 16GB and old Sony 2GB USB stick and both of those worked).
Step 2: Browse the files in the USB stick with a computer. Look for a file that ends with the name xxxxxRDW400.def (This is likely region specific) - you do not have to navigate through any of the sub-folders (For earlier versions of the PCM system, you will have to pick up the respective .def file - so for the PCM systems with 3.x software, one would look at xxxxRDW300.def etc..). If your computer does not show file extensions, just find the file ending in xxxxRDW400
Step3: Open this file in wordpad or notepad and go to the end of the file where you will see a CONTROL section. Within that section you will see 4 blocks of STARTUPDATE.. ENDUPDATE command sequences. Find the one relevant to your system. From the video it is PCME02XX1221 but double check this for your specific case..
Step4: Remove the 2 lines beginning with the module that is failing. In your case , remove the 2 lines that start with UPDATE PCM31HDD.... and UPDATE PCM31CFG.... from the specific block you identified in previous step and save the file (So, in your case, you will only have the 3 lines for PCM31EMR, PCM31IOC and PCM31APP in this updated block for PCME02XX1221)
Step 5: Double check that the file is saved correctly and that you have not inadvertently deleted or modified anything else and now use the USB stick instead of CD to resume update in your Porsche. The update will continue and you will get out of the emergency loop

Post back on the forum on how it goes...

BillN

Thanks! Makes sense. I looked over the files and this should bypass the
HDD portion and I am optimistic to get out of the Emergency screen, even
though its a work around while I figure out the HDD fix.

kari

The HDD issue could be software (corrupt partition/filesystem) or hardware (bad sectors/blocks) related or both.
- In my case, it was software related -one of the partitions was corrupt and i was able to 'format' i.e.remake that particular filesystem and subsequently reinstall the entire update disk to get back full functionality but took a while. I had to resort to custom scripts and a bit of trial and error with a risk of bricking my system
- The HDD replacement options seems to have worked for others who faced similar problems. See thread: https://rennlist.com/forums/audio-and-video-forum/1166469-upgraded-pcm-3-1-hard-drive-to-ssd.html

It may be good to have a backup copy of the HDD or SSD once everything is working just in case... and I plan to do it soon as well....

kari

Continuing from the my previous post above and another post I made in the HDD to SSD clone thread, this information is for those of you trying to resolve the problem of a blue emergency update screen or a constantly restarting PCM3.1 due to a faulty HDD (A common scenario for the blue emergency screen is running the update disk when the PCM3.1 HDD has known or unknown faults (bad sectors/partition corruption..) or an inability to run the update disk once you get into the blue screen for some other reason that is subsequently fixed..)

NOTE: you could get a blue emergency update screen or a constantly restarting system for other reasons as well (faulty board or internal PCM system memory, loose connectors etc..) and this post does not cover those aspects - only a faulty HDD which seems to be a more frequent occurrence..

What you will need:
1. The PCM3.1 update disk WKD95280017/16/15 (check out post 25 in thread https://rennlist.com/forums/991/1055...l#post16428326 for an iso image)
- It does not matter what your current 4.xx sub-version is, the one ending with 17 takes you to 4.76/ one ending in 16 takes you to 4.75 and others to earlier versions
2. A replacement SATA HDD or SSD (minimum 100GB HDD or 120GB SSD 2.5 inch 'laptop size') [Note: Early PCM3.x systems use a PATA/IDE 40GB HDD - while process is similar the actual partition details were shared by thigobr - link to that post is at the end]
- The recommended drives are industrial/automotive SSDs/HDDs especially if you are in regions with extremes of climate (These disks have SMART capability with better min/max operating temps - Say, a HDD/SSD does not support extreme cold, it may not operate effectively till the vehicle warms up or shut down suddenly if it gets too cold ...industrial/automotive drives support a wider range of operating temperatures. However, those are expensive or difficult to find - check the specs of the disks you buy.
- I went with a regular Kingston A400 120GB for now and others have used PNY.. I think any SATA HDD/SDD of any size more than 100GB will likely work. But note that based on what I know so far adding more SSD space does not equate to more jukebox space.. more space will only provide some more redundancy for the SSD (extends SSD usability in the really long term.... hence the recommendation to go for a min of 120GB SSD - 240 or more would be overkill in my view)
3. Clonezilla or another disk cloning and partitioning tool
- I used Clonezilla (Thanks to Jslo's post on the SSD thread) I chose it because it is free and does not have to be installed on a computer - one can just make a Clonezilla bootable USB or CD/DVD and use it.. others may prefer another disk cloning tool but some of the steps here are not about cloning but about partitioning a new disk..
- the other benefit is that Clonezilla has fdisk built in and that can be used for partitioning (option 3)...so secure a tool you are comfortable with that allows you to build partitions in case cloning fails

What are the options in my view:
1) If you do not have a replacement HDD/SSD handy, Post #21 in this thread (https://rennlist.com/forums/cayenne-...l#post16510863) works and will get you out of the blue screen but the HDD remains faulty. Depending on where the HDD fault lies, your system may still continue to reboot/behave sluggishly or crash during specific operations but you may be lucky like me and regain the functionality you need atleast for the immediate future (If you do not continue to face the rebooting issue, you will most likely have a working Radio and CD player. Other audio options may work too but there could be problems with one or more of : navigating the PCM screens, Navigation/maps, cameras/park assist and Jukebox.)

2) Clone your HDD to SSD or another HDD - If you are not able to use Clonezilla, explore other options like shipping the faulty HDD to an expert to make a good clone or try other cloning software. If you want to restore your existing maps/navigation data or jukebox media, an error free clone of the disk or at least the 2 large partitions on the disk is essential (See thread: https://rennlist.com/forums/audio-and-video-forum/1166469-upgraded-pcm-3-1-hard-drive-to-ssd.html and there is a complete discussion on this topic. )
Some tips:
a. Use sector-to-sector i.e dd method to create your new disk. This is a good way to get back to fully working navigation and also get back any media on your jukebox. You can use Clonezilla or another cloning tool but you need to do a disk-disk clone with the sector-to-sector option...
b. if your HDD has more significant damage and a disk-disk clone fails, try to make local images of the individual partitions on the disk using partition-to-image, especially the 2 large partitions which I think are for your maps and jukebox media. If there are no errors in taking images of these 2 large partitions, then they can be potentially used later ..see next option (option 3)
c. Any error during the image or restore process on the 2 large partitions would mean that those partitions have issues (or the cloning process failed) and you may not be able to get back navigation or the audio files you have in the jukebox depending on the partition with the error. The smaller partitions are restored by the PCM3.1update disk, so i wouldn't worry about those too much in this situation. Any navigation/chrono and other licenses are the same as before - you won't lose them but you lose the data (so if you had navigation and during cloning, the maps partition cannot be restored properly, there will be no map files for the system to use; if the jukebox partition has errors you may not be able to get the songs or other audio files you had previously loaded into the jukebox..) In this case, till you find a way to recover those partitions, a good option to get a working system is the same as described in Option 3 below.

3) If your current HDD is completely dead or has extensive damage and any attempt at cloning the entire disk without errors fails, then the next set of steps will get you back to a fully functional system with an empty jukebox (if you had one) but there will be no Maps/Navi. This option is better than requesting copies of someone else's disk drive (from the posts I've seen so far this does not bring back maps anyway - I have no idea if maps are locked to a vin or not but even if they are not, the version of the maps on the disk has to be compatible with the license key coded in the PCM..otherwise the maps wont work anyway...) - so this will get you going if you do not plan to restore the Navi or atleast for the short term till as you explore other options to recover your map data or jukebox files (for cases where the map/jukebox partitions can be cloned separately but the other partitions are faulty causing a full HDD clone to fail)
- NOTE: There will be a 'loading navi' message instead when you try to view maps but everything else you had earlier should work - Based on my current understanding, if you wants the maps working, a trip to to the dealer to reload the map files (mainly labor to run a set of DVDs they have for the specific version of the maps one is licensed for) should be sufficient or you can buy a new key and have the latest maps installed. (the dealer may actually recommend this unless you already had the latest map updates before HDD failure)

Steps to recreate the partition table/map in cases of a badly damaged HDD which still responds to Clonezilla commands:
If you are comfortable with Clonezilla, you can follow the steps in this post from @thewilde to just copy the partition map/table over rather than manually building the partitions: https://rennlist.com/forums/cayenne-...l#post16874136
Just be careful - running the commands using the wrong disk identifiers can mess up your computer or other disks!

Steps to setup partitions on a new SSD/HDD using Clonezilla if the old HDD is completely toast:
- Review the list of fdisk options on the net: you can use this link or any other one to understand fdisk commands: http://www.linuxandubuntu.com/home/f...tions-in-linux
- Connect your new SSD or HDD to your PC/laptop (you can use a SATA - USB connector or a SATA USB external drive enclosure) and boot with Clonezilla (USB or CD/DVD) -
- Choose the option to get to the command prompt and type sudo fdisk /dev/sd<drive letter> . The drive letter identifies the specific disk. WARNING: Be sure to connect to the correct SSD/HDD - you can easily corrupt your laptop/desktop if you were to accidentally connect to that drive instead - so make sure of the drive letter.
- delete all partitions on your replacement HDD/ SSD (you will lose all data - so be doubly sure that you are using fdisk on the right disk) and then
- use the 'o' option in fdisk to create a new blank partition table for 'dos'
- Then create new partitions 1-6 on the SSD using the 'n' option and each time enter the start and end sector numbers below. also set the partition ID as you create the partition using the 't' option (4d, 4e, 4f...). You will likely have issues entering some start numbers (ex: when i tried to create the first partition with sector 63 it did not allow that and forced a default of 2048 - continue with default of 2048 in such a case but ensure that the end sector matches with the list below. I think i faced this with the extended partitions as well - so this is applicable to any partition where you face this error with the start sector
- once you have created all 6 partitions with exact End Sector numbers and Partition IDs, enter the fdisk expert mode (x) and here you can update the start sector back to 63 and so on ... exit the expert mode using 'r' option once done
- Ensure that the listing of the partition table is an exact match with the list below except for the Device drive letter and use the 'w' command to save the changes. So, all the start and end sectors should match and the sector size (Sectors column) should also match - the types and IDs should also match.
- Ensure you have saved all changes with the 'w' option.
- You now have a PCM3.1 partitioned disk - you can always exit fdisk and then return to double check that the listing is exactly the same - any mismatch could cause the PCM update disk to fail so double checking helps
- if all the partitions are fine, then plug the SSD back into the PCM and resume your update from the blue screen. (or re-run the entire update disk if you don't have a blue screen).
- You should now get back a fully working system except for Navi and you will have a jukebox as before (it will be empty and you have to load your audio files again)

If you were able to make clean images of the large partitions (partitions 3 and/or 6) mentioned in Option 2 -then you can restore just those partitions to the corresponding newly created partitions on the SSD before plugging the SSD back into the PCM to resume the update. If there are no errors in restoring those images, then you will likely be able to get the maps or jukebox media back as well...

----------------------------------
The Device drive letter (Ex: The 'd' in /dev/sdd in the list below) is specific on the number of disks connected to the system - so in your case this could be /dev/sdb or /dev/sdc etc.. be sure to connect to the right disk before making changes!

Disk type dos

Device Boot Start End Sectors Size ID Type
/dev/sdd1 * 63 4209029 4208967 2G 4d QNX4.x
/dev/sdd2 4209030 6313544 2104515 1G 4e QNX4.x 2nd part
/dev/sdd3 6313545 109081349 102767805 49G 4f QNX4.x 3rd part
/dev/sdd4 109081350 195366464 86285115 41.1G 5 Extended
/dev/sdd5 109081413 111185864 2104452 1G 50 Ontrack DM
/dev/sdd6 111185928 195366464 84180537 40.1G 51 Ontrack DM6 Aux1

NOTE: This is common information that anyone can gather from a working or partially working HDD using any disk partition tool and i got this while cloning my drive for backup - so this is open information
-----------------------------------------------------

For the earlier models of PCM3.x having an IDE/PATA HDD (40GB HDD), the drive sectors can be found in the following post:
https://rennlist.com/forums/cayenne-...l#post16692168

BillN

See below details (updated post as of 7:44pm)

Bill N

BillN

This new hard drive / drive partition option outlined from Kari works! Solved my main problem, Thanks Kari! I say main problem of reboot and Emergency screen.

My problem was the reboot every 3-4 minutes. Took it into dealer to do an update (before I found this thread that is what others said might help). Since root cause was the HDD it crashed out of their update when it try's to add files to the HDD, leaving the unit in "Emergency Mode" as shown in pics above. Dealer said, sorry and I can replace the PCM unit for $3750 installed (could not even return to me in the same condition I took it to them - music but reboot every 3-4 min).

Lots of tinkering before I found this thread, but I'll distill it to the facts I do know that would have helped me if just coming to this thread -

1. Replaced the HDD with a new BLANK one - tried all kinds of formats. Â Update still crashed when writing files to HDD (stays in Emergency mode)

2. Remove the HDD altogether and run update - crashes at exactly the same point as #1 (stays in Emergency mode). Â

3. Another discussion with a guy in UK - OS for the unit is Neutrino (QNX) - after research a bit its an robust "industrial" system deployed in many car computer

Conclusion -

Taking a new disk and following the instructions below to create the partitions with start and end points. Â Then run update disk to the end and it works! Â Out of the emergency loop and everything I tried so far works except NAV. Â Nav is locked to the unit with VIN that you need to program at dealer and is costly per what I heard. Â since I have yet to clone my old HDD. Â Doing a clone or at least saving the partition data per Kari is my next goal to get back Nav. Â For me though I use iphone so the NAV is good to have but not 100%. But for price of the car, I do want working Nav.

For fun ... now that I am more knowledgeable and out of Emergency mode I put back in the old one and it went back to the 3-4 min reboot, and Nav hangs there as well. clearly pointing back to HDD. Also noticed that on the old one with HDD issue, the Jukebox option did not show up. but on the new one with working HDD and partitions setup, Jukebox shows up. Only difference is old vs. new HDD.

So for me - 3-4 minute reboot cycle solve, music & jukebox restored ... best of all - out of emergency mode. Onward to fix my Nav issue sans dealer intervention

Bill N

dan_189

Thanks for the write up!

Just to confirm i'm guessing the HDD is built into the PCM unit?

Also I think SSD are less susceptible to weather as there aren't any moving parts, or it might just be vibration, can't remember

kari

Yes, a HDD is built into the PCM3.1 - its a 2.5 inch 100GB automotive SATA. The OEM one was a Toshiba MK1060GSC - its under a panel that you can see if were to slide the PCM3.1 unit out (you dont have to disconnect any cables, just slide the unit 80 or 90% out and you can see the panel on the top..) Yes, SSDs are less susceptible to vibration but in terms of weather both HDDs and SSDs come with operating temperature ranges, so an automotive or industrial one may be more suitable for extremes...

dan_189

Thanks for the confirmation - have you noticed any performance improvement with the the SSD HD vs the old one?

Also it would be good to just take a backup of the HD just in case it stops working.

kari

Didn't notice any difference in the load time for the maps on startup but searching for POIs and calculating routes seems a little faster. (or maybe I'm imagining it)

If you have a fully working HDD and your cloning process results in no errors, then you don't even need an update disk. Just take the current HDD, clone it to a SSD and plug the SSD back in...