How to use a storage device (usb or sata or sdcard or whatever) to expand your device's space in root filesystem, to install freely all the packages you need.

In most supported devices, the firmware splits the internal storage in two partitions

• “root filesystem” (/), a highly-compressed read-only partition
• “overlay” (/overlay), a second partition that is writable

The overlay partition is merged with the root filesystem using the overlayfs feature of linux kernel, showing a single “whole” read-write filesystem to applications.
This way OpenWrt fits even in tiny amounts of internal storage (as low as 4 MiB), but still allows to write settings and install some packages in the writable partition without changing all linux programs used.
Extroot works by setting another overlay partition in the external storage device, and during boot this new overlay partition will be mounted over the internal storage's overlay partition. This approach allows easy fallback in case the external storage device is removed, as your device will still have its own overlay partition and thus will load all configuration from there.
Which means that it will behave exactly the same as just before you set up extroot.

In the default OpenWrt firmware images there are no tools to make extroot, as the build system currently makes only barebone images.
The only way to go for these devices is to rebuild a firmware image with the right packages using the Image Builder.
The Image Builder can run only in a 64bit Linux operating system, so if you don't have a linux system on hand, look up a tutorial to install Ubuntu 64bit in VirtualBox.
Then go in the same download page where you can download the firmware for your device and scroll down until you find a file starting with “OpenWrt-imagebuilder”.
Download it and extract it in a folder in the Linux system.

Open a terminal in that folder, and write:

make info

This will write on screen all the possible profile names for the devices supported by that Image Builder, so we can build the image for the right device. Each entry will look like this:

tl-wr1043nd-v1:
    TP-LINK TL-WR1043N/ND v1
    Packages: kmod-usb-core kmod-usb2 kmod-ledtrig-usbdev

First line is the profile name, the second line is a full descriptive name of your device, third line is a list of default packages for that device, and should list some packages about USB or Sata or whatever other storage device.

In my case I have a TP-LINK TL-WR1043N/ND v1, so the profile name for my device is tl-wr1043nd-v1 Now you need to write the command to start building the image (note how the name after the PROFILE= is my device's profile name, please use the profile name for yours):

make image PROFILE=tl-wr1043nd-v1 PACKAGES="kmod-fs-ext4 kmod-usb-storage kmod-usb-ohci kmod-usb-uhci"

This will build a firmware image that is able to read a partition formatted with ext4 filesystem.

Afterwards, open the folder bin inside the Image Builder folder, then open the target folder, then the folder you find in it (it has a device-type-specific name), and then inside a folder called generic and you should reach the flashable images. Choose the right image (factory or sysupgrade) and install it.

Then you will have to format the USB drive with ext4 filesystem, and to do that you will need to use a Linux LiveCD or gparted disk https://gparted.org/livecd.php
Sadly this is inconvenient but as said above we cannot fit formatting tools in devices with 4MB of flash

These devices should have enough space to install the packages we need. Remove all packages you have installed to add functionality, as they are only wasting space now. After you make the extroot you will have all space you need.

From the command line interface write (on a single line):

opkg update && opkg install block-mount kmod-fs-ext4 kmod-usb-storage e2fsprogs kmod-usb-ohci kmod-usb-uhci fdisk

This installs packages needed for a partition with ext4 filesystem.

Risk-adverse users may wish to create a custom image (as described in the pervious section) containing these tools and especially the kernel modules that are consistent with the firmware kernel so that they are available in failsafe mode.

Connect with ssh to the device.

See what partitions you have:

block info 
/dev/mtdblock2: UUID="9fd43c61-c3f2c38f-13440ce7-53f0d42d" VERSION="4.0" MOUNT="/rom" TYPE="squashfs"
/dev/mtdblock3: MOUNT="/overlay" TYPE="jffs2"
/dev/sda1: UUID="fdacc9f1-0e0e-45ab-acee-9cb9cc8d7d49" VERSION="1.4" TYPE="ext4"

here we see mtdblock devices (partitions in internal flash memory), and a partition on /dev/sda1 that is on a usb flash drive (in the example it is already formatted as ext4)

We now first format the external drive as ext4.

For ext4:

mkfs.ext4 /dev/sda1

Then we transfer the content of the current overlay inside the external drive

mount /dev/sda1 /mnt ; tar -C /overlay -cvf - . | tar -C /mnt -xf - ; umount /mnt

Now we create automatically the fstab uci subsystem and fill it with the right configuration to have /dev/sda1 as new overlay

block detect > /etc/config/fstab; \
   sed -i s/option$'\t'enabled$'\t'\'0\'/option$'\t'enabled$'\t'\'1\'/ /etc/config/fstab; \
   sed -i s#/mnt/sda1#/overlay# /etc/config/fstab; \
   cat /etc/config/fstab;
 

If you have a swap partition it will also get recognized and added automatically.

If you want to do it manually, this command will create automatically a generic fstab uci subsystem

block detect > /etc/config/fstab  

Note that the mount is not enabled by default. This includes manual use of block mount

This is an example of /etc/config/fstab configured to automount /overlay /data and swap partitions.

config 'global'
        option  anon_swap       '0'
        option  anon_mount      '0'
        option  auto_swap       '1'
        option  auto_mount      '1'
        option  delay_root      '5'
        option  check_fs        '0'
 
config 'mount'
        option  target  '/overlay'
        option  uuid    'c91232a0-c50a-4eae-adb9-14b4d3ce3de1'
        option  fstype  'ext4'
        option  enabled '1'
 
config 'swap'
        option  uuid    '08b4f0a3-f7ab-4ee1-bde9-55fc2481f355'
        option  enabled '1'
 
config 'mount'
        option  target  '/data'
        option  uuid    'c1068d91-863b-42e2-bcb2-b35a241b0fe2'
        option  enabled '1'

as you see, most options are self-explaining.

let's try manually mounting to see if everything is OK

mount /dev/sda1 /overlay 

now we see mount point sizes:

df 

this is an example output:

Filesystem           1K-blocks      Used Available Use% Mounted on
rootfs                     896       244       652  27% /
/dev/root                 2048      2048         0 100% /rom
tmpfs                    14708        64     14644   0% /tmp
/dev/mtdblock6         7759872    477328   7221104   6% /overlay
overlayfs:/overlay         896       244       652  27% /
tmpfs                      512         0       512   0% /dev
/dev/sda1              7759872    477328   7221104   6% /overlay

Note that only /overlay has grown but not the /

1. Reboot the device
2. Verify that the partitions were mounted properly:
   • via LuCI
     • System - Software should show free space of overlay partition
     • System - Mount Points should show USB partition mounted as overlay
   • via CLI
     • mount should show USB partition mounted as /overlay
       

root@lede:~# mount
/dev/root           on /rom               type squashfs (ro,relatime)
proc                on /proc              type proc     (rw,noatime)
sysfs               on /sys               type sysfs    (rw,noatime)
tmpfs               on /tmp               type tmpfs    (rw,nosuid,nodev,noatime)
/dev/mtdblock6      on /overlay           type jffs2    (rw,noatime)
overlayfs:/overlay  on /                  type overlay  (rw,noatime,lowerdir=/,upperdir=/overlay/upper,workdir=/overlay/work)
tmpfs               on /dev               type tmpfs    (rw,relatime,size=512k,mode=755)
devpts              on /dev/pts           type devpts   (rw,relatime,mode=600)
/dev/sda1           on /overlay           type ext4     (rw,relatime,data=ordered)
/dev/sda3           on /data              type ext4     (rw,relatime,data=ordered)
debugfs             on /sys/kernel/debug  type debugfs  (rw,noatime)

• df should show free space available on your /overlay and / partition, all the storages mounted to /overlay and / (the rootfs in the first place) should look the same increased capacity:
  

root@lede:~# df
Filesystem           1K-blocks      Used Available Use% Mounted on
rootfs                 7759872    477328   7221104   6% /
/dev/root                 2048      2048         0 100% /rom
tmpfs                    14708        64     14644   0% /tmp
/dev/mtdblock6         7759872    477328   7221104   6% /overlay
overlayfs:/overlay     7759872    477328   7221104   6% /
tmpfs                      512         0       512   0% /dev
/dev/sda1              7759872    477328   7221104   6% /overlay
/dev/sda3            242846048    163864 230323224   0% /data

• : might be outdated Add option force_space in /etc/opkg.conf to allow installation of packets bigger than your /rom partitions free space:

  echo option force_space >> /etc/opkg.conf

• Do not use vfat (FAT/FAT32); it does not work. If you have a FAT preformatted USB drive, you cannot use it for extroot without reformatting. Use e.g. ext4 (install e2fsprogs, then format your FAT formatted USB drive using mkfs.ext4 /dev/sda1 as per the example).
• If the partition containing your extroot isn't mounted during boot, but you can mount it without problems from a shell, you should try to increase config 'global' / option delay_root. On my system I had to set it to 15 seconds to get extroot working. Another hint to this being the culprit is having a working swap or other partitions mounted after booting, but not your extroot.
• Another possibility to consider and try is to include in /etc/rc.local the commands: export PREINIT = 1;mount_root, as described in 14946 ticket, which in the case of running Chaos Calmer r44266 in the Comtrend AR-5387un, has been the only thing that allowed me to achieve extroot.
• If after successful extroot mount, swap isn't enabled and other partitions aren't mounted, check your /etc/config/fstab in the overlay partition. If your /etc/config/fstab in the overlay partition only contains a global section, you may need to add the following from the example:
  

  config 'swap'
          option  uuid    '08b4f0a3-f7ab-4ee1-bde9-55fc2481f355'
          option  enabled '1'
   
  config 'mount'
          option  target  '/data'
          option  uuid    'c1068d91-863b-42e2-bcb2-b35a241b0fe2'
          option  enabled '1'

• If you are putting the extroot on a non-USB device such as a mmc card all modules needed acccess the device should be in appropriate file in /etc/modules-boot.d. For example using a sdhci card on a mt7688/mt7628 device /etc/modules-boot.d/mmc needs have two lines added:

  mmc_core
  mmc_block
  sdhci
  mtk_sd

• If you receive a “block: extroot: UUID mismatch” error in your logs after upgrading, remove /etc/.extroot-uuid on the target volume.

Saving opkg status in the extroot, instead of in RAM, saves some RAM and keeps package lists available after a reboot.

1. Generate the new folder on the extroot: mkdir /opkg-lists
2. Edit /etc/opkg.conf, changing:
   
   • lists_dir ext /var/opkg-lists
     into
   • lists_dir ext /opkg-lists
     

The same file can be edited with Luci web interface by opening System menu, then selecting Software, and then clicking on the Configuration tab.

If device has 32MB of ram, opkg update will likely fail when it tries to read the downloaded archives

• Iif this happens, delete them and try again.
  • rm -r /opkg-lists/*

It's a good idea to include the usb-modeswitch tool in the image.
There is a caveat: if the /overlay points to a memory card sitting in a slot of the dongle - the otherwise working pivot overlay set-up will break in the later stages of OS boot. This is because the usb-modeswitch (while disabling the CDROM and enabling the modem) would also intermittently affect the card-reader in the dongle thus hurting the file system.
To avoid this you need a dongle that can be pre-configured to enable its' modem or network adapter (and the card-reader as well) on the power-up, without the need to do it with the usb-modeswitch on the router.

Insert your dongle in a desktop and use a terminal to send the necessary AT-commands.
Check your dongle's initial configuration:

at^setport?
^SETPORT:A1,A2;1,3,2,A1,A2
OK

The meaning of the above report can be understood with the following command:

at^setport=?
^SETPORT:A1: CDROM
^SETPORT:A2: SD
^SETPORT:A: BLUE TOOTH
^SETPORT:B: FINGER PRINT
^SETPORT:D: MMS
^SETPORT:E: PC VOICE
^SETPORT:1: MODEM
^SETPORT:2: PCUI
^SETPORT:3: DIAG
^SETPORT:4: PCSC
^SETPORT:5: GPS
^SETPORT:6: GPS CONTROL
^SETPORT:16: NCM
OK

So, in the example above we have a dongle with CDROM and card-reader available in the first configuration (to the left of the ; character), and with modem, control and diagnostic interfaces, and card-reader available in the other configuration. It is between these configurations the usb-modeswitch switches the dongle on the router.

Your goal is to disable the CDROM and enable the modem (the 1 above) or the network adapter (the 16 above) while leaving the card-reader enabled (the A2 above).
NOTE: Never disable the PCUI (the 2 above) - this will lock you out from your dongle!

Some dongles accept a 'disable all' operand (the FF below).
Place the list of all the functions you need on your dongle by default to the right of the ; character according to their codes from the dongle's answer above:

at^setport="ff;1,2,3,a2"
OK
 
at^reset
OK
 
at^setport?
^SETPORT:;1,2,3,A2
OK

This sequence has disabled the CDROM and made the modem, control and diagnostic interfaces and the card-reader available by default - without any usb-modeswitch interaction. Thus only one configuration exists now in the dongle - see the ; character, there is nothing to the left of it now.

• Huawei E3131s-2 f/w v21.158.47.00.1094

• Forum: Fstab not mounting cifs at boot or through CLI

This section applies to Openwrt snapshot, but not to OpenWrt releases, as the kernel-related packages (and the packages requiring them) in releases will only receive fixes and security patches.

DO NOT try to do upgrades using opkg upgrade. You will likely end up with an inconsistent state and soft-bricked router that way:

• The main reason is that the uClibc ABI (Application Binary Interface) is unstable and changes from revision to revision, so binaries for one version of uClibc may be incompatible with versions from another.
• Another problem that can arise is if you try to upgrade the kernel packages, then flash and reboot, but your operation is interrupted in any way, then you will have a kernel and module mismatch and likely a brick.
• Finally, if you upgrade all packages but the kernel and the kernel modules, some packages like iptables will be broken.

Sometimes you may need to access the original root overlay, for example to change your extroot settings. A convenient way of doing this is to configure /etc/config/fstab on your extroot partition to mount the original root overlay in another directory, like this:

config mount
	option target	/overlay-boot
	option device	/dev/mtdblock3
	option fstype	jffs2
	option options	rw,sync
	option enabled	1
	option enabled_fsck 0

This assumes the original, internal overlay was on /dev/mtdblock3 - check your router's page on this wiki and look at the flash map to confirm what MTD block it is for you. Or run $ cat /proc/mtd and search the partition named rootfs_data to know where is your overlay.

If you then create /overlay-boot on the extroot partition, this directory will contain the original root overlay, which is used as the main root overlay until the extroot is up and running. So you can then for example edit /overlay-boot/etc/config/fstab to change your extroot configuration (or temporarily disable it) should you ever need to.