Piaware keeps crashing

[abcd567]

@jimMerk2

Result of adding a drop-in service file for bias-tee

 

Click on Screenshot to See Larger Size

 

[jimMerk2]

One final thing on cmdline.txt file – how do you know what parameters can be put in that file? Where is this documented? Specifically how do you know that usbcore.autosuspend=-1 can be put in that file? Thanks.

[abcd567]

@jimMerk2

One final thing on cmdline.txt file – how do you know what parameters can be put in that file? Where is this documented? Specifically how do you know that usbcore.autosuspend=-1 can be put in that file?

I do not know any of these things. I know only what AI told me, and I have already posted it

 

[jimMerk2]

@abcd567
I wasn’t referring to “you” specifically, but just in general, how does anyone know what parameters can be put into cmdline.txt file?

[dvsvejk]

cmdline.txt is Raspberry Pi’s version of GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX in a system that uses Grub. Both accomplish the same thing - passing parameters to the kernel when booting up.

Yes, there is a list of what can be entered. It is maintained by kernel.org and is freaking massive. Maybe Linus Torvalds knows all of them, but I sure do not.

The kernel’s command-line parameters — The Linux Kernel documentation

[abcd567]

@jimMerk2

how does anyone know what parameters can be put into cmdline.txt file?

From GitHub
raspi-documentation/configuration/cmdline-txt.md at master - GitHub

My Query

Raspberry Pi OS, what parameters are configured by file /boot/firmware/cmdline.txt

AI Response

The file /boot/firmware/cmdline.txt on Raspberry Pi OS configures arguments and parameters passed directly to the Linux kernel during system boot. Unlike standard Linux systems that use GRUB, the Raspberry Pi bootloader reads this single-line text file to initialize core operating system behavior.

Core Parameters Configured in cmdline.txt

The default configuration typically includes parameters managing storage, console output, and system checks:

• root=: Defines the location of the root file system. This is usually pointed to a specific partition ID (e.g., root=PARTUUID=266982c5-02) or a storage device name (e.g., /dev/mmcblk0p2).

• rootfstype=: Explicitly tells the kernel the file system type of the root partition, which is almost always ext4 on Raspberry Pi OS.

• rootwait: Instructs the kernel to pause and wait for the root storage device (like an SD card, USB drive, or NVMe SSD) to fully initialize before attempting to mount it and boot.

• console=: Configures system console outputs.

  • console=tty1 redirects boot messages to the primary display.
  • console=serial0,115200 routes boot logs to the physical GPIO serial (UART) pins for debugging.

• fsck.repair=: Sets the behavior for file system integrity checks during boot. The default fsck.repair=yes allows the OS to automatically fix minor corruption errors on start.

• quiet: Suppresses the majority of text-based kernel boot logs, resulting in a cleaner, faster-looking startup screen.

• splash: Enables the graphical boot splash screen (the Raspberry Pi logo) instead of raw text output.

Common Advanced Parameters

Users often manually append other kernel parameters to this file for specific features:

• cgroup_enable=memory cgroup_memory=1: Enables memory resource management features required to run Docker or Kubernetes (K3s) containers properly.
• usbcore.autosuspend=-1: Disables automatic USB power suspension, which prevents external hard drives from going to sleep prematurely.
• init=: Specifies an alternative initial system process. For instance, appending init=/bin/sh bypasses the standard login screen to give you an immediate root shell for password recovery or troubleshooting.
• smsc95xx.macaddr=: Manually overrides and forces a specific MAC address for the built-in Ethernet controller.

Format Rules to Avoid Boot Failure

• Keep it on a single line: The kernel will strictly parse only the very first line of text. Pressing Enter to create a new line will cause subsequent parameters to be completely ignored or break the boot sequence.
• Space separation: All parameters must be separated by a single space, without commas or line breaks.

[jimMerk2]

@abcd567

Format Rules to Avoid Boot Failure

• Keep it on a single line: The kernel will strictly parse only the very first line of text. Pressing Enter to create a new line will cause subsequent parameters to be completely ignored or break the boot sequence.
• Space separation: All parameters must be separated by a single space, without commas or line breaks.

So, possibly on my first try at editing cmdline.txt I had two spaces separating the last entry?

[jimMerk2]

@dvsvejk
Thanks, you’re right, that is a massive list!

[abcd567]

@jimMerk2

So, possibly on my first try at editing cmdline.txt I had two spaces separating the last entry?

I just now tested it by adding two extra space before, and one extra space after the last parameter usbcore.autosuspend=-1

saved file, and rebooted.

After reboot, could SSH to Pi using same Local IP, and when checked, found setting is -1 as it should be. So extra spaces does not matter.

[jimMerk2]

@dvsvejk

So, indeed usbcore.autosuspend= is a possible parameter in cmdline.txt :

        usbcore.autosuspend=
                        [USB] The autosuspend time delay (in seconds) used
                        for newly-detected USB devices (default 2).  This
                        is the time required before an idle device will be
                        autosuspended.  Devices for which the delay is set
                        to a negative value won't be autosuspended at all.

This is in a list of hundreds of parameters.

Edit to add – the default delay time is 2 seconds. However, dump978-fa may not have any activity for hours. So disabling autosuspend probably won’t fix the problem.