Upgrading updating the firmware using the internal web interface and a cellphone
GXAirCom is a work in progress and it has a lot of development going on every time that there´s a hardware improvement, or a bug found, or just a clean up on the program code that - generaly - improves the operation and posibilities of gxaircom devices.
Probably if you get a gxaircom unit, there is already a newer firmware out there that you can grab and flash into the device by yourself by only means of using your cellphone, an internet connection (for getting the new software) and some "step by step" walkthrough that this guide is about to point out.
On your phone, go to https://github.com/gereic/GXAirCom/tree/master/bin.
Here look up for the latest "firmware_(version)_(type).bin" In this case we found that firmware_v3.2.1_am_oled_psRam.bin is the latest version for the TTGO T-Beam. Works even if you don´t have an oled screen.
"v3.2.1" is the version number "am" stands for air module, different from ground module, but probably will be unified in the future in the same file. "oled" means that it will workd with the small oled display that some ttgo t-beam can fit. "psRam" means that the device has some Ram built into it, like every ttgo t-beam, different from the heltec units that don´t have psRam.
Do the same with the spiffs_xxxx.bin, searching for the latest one and download it also.
This way you will have two files downloaded on your phone, one called firmware_xxxxx.bin and the other spiffs_xxxx.bin
The firmware has the working software, and the spiffs have the web interface configuration and front end, so, some implementations are only visible in the configuration menu if the spiffs are upgraded.
2.1. Turn on the GXAirCom unit.
2.2. Open up your wifi connections, and look up for a wifi network called gxaircom_xxxxxx.
2.3. Connect to it using 12345678 (default password, that you can change but we will not recomend it)
2.4. If a "no internet connection" message appears, disregard the message and keep the connection. Your wifi icon could show an exclamation mark. That´s perfectly fine.
To do so, go to your phone web browser (we use Chrome but should be the same with every other one) and writte the following on the address bar:
192.168.4.1
Hit enter, and a "local website" should pop up:
Here you can see the version number of the GXAirCom that you are running, as the build date of the file, and the name of the device. Also you can see all the options that are available through the web interface. We will stick to the last of them: "firmware update"
4.1. Here you need to click on "choose file" and look up for spiffs_xxxxx.bin. Select it so you can see it next to the "Choose File" button, and click "start upgrade".
4.2. Sometimes the progress bar will move, sometimes it won´t. It depends on the cellphone. Leave it for a while to run, it shouldn´t take more than 1 minute.
4.3. The GXAirCom will reset, so it´s quite probable that you will loose your wifi connection to it.
4.4. Reconnect to the GXAirCom, and once more get into the web inteface or refresh your phone browser.
4.5. Repeat the process but this time with the file firmware_xxxxxx.bin. This file is bigger so it should take for Be aware that the firmware version that appears on top of the web interface correspond to the "firmware_xxxxx.bin" file so the spiffs_xxxx.bin do not show the version at the momment.
After version 2.2. the device id changed from 07XXXX to 08XXXX, so your will also "loose" your wifi network automatic connection, as the wifi broadcast name is different now. If the flashing is not working as supossed, check that you are actually connected to the gxaircom wifi and not to your local internet router.
Also it´s nice to check the settings after you finish the upgrade, as some settings probably will need to be "re-set". For example output power could be left blank on some cases.
And probably you will also find out some nice things that you didn´t knew about, when looking up into the settings, like on the ground station mode, the posibility to broadcast weather information throught fanet radio network, that can be already processed by some flight software such as lk8000.