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tenlevels edited this page Apr 13, 2025 · 7 revisions

Welcome to the PakUI wiki!

PakUI Installation Guide

Who Should Read Which Section

First-Time Users

  • You have never installed PakUI before
  • You need to follow the First-Time Installation section
  • You MUST place the firmware file on the root of your SD card
  • You MUST use the special button combination (Volume Down + Power)

Existing Users

  • You have successfully installed PakUI before
  • Skip to the Updating Existing Installation section
  • You do NOT need the firmware file
  • You do NOT need the special button combination

First-Time Installation

Prerequisites

  • SD card freshly formatted to FAT32
  • PakUI release package downloaded from GitHub

Step 1: Prepare Your SD Card

  • Format your SD card to FAT32 (fresh format is required)

  • Extract the entire PakUI release package to your SD card

  • IMPORTANT:

    • Ensure all files including hidden folders from the PakUI release are copied
    • Your SD card should contain ONLY the PakUI release files and the firmware file
    • Do not add any other files or folders before completing the installation

    PakUI_install_files

Step 2: Add Firmware File (REQUIRED FOR FIRST-TIME INSTALLATION)

  • ⚠️ THIS STEP IS MANDATORY FOR FIRST-TIME USERS
  • Locate the Firmware folder in the release package
  • For TrimUI Brick: Copy trimui_tg3040.awimg from the Brick folder to the root of your SD card
  • For TrimUI Smart Pro: Copy trimui_tg5040.awimg from the Smart Pro folder to the root of your SD card
  • If this file is not on the root of your SD card, first-time installation WILL FAIL

Step 3: Install to Your Device (FIRST-TIME INSTALLATION PROCEDURE)

  • ⚠️ THIS SPECIAL BUTTON SEQUENCE IS ONLY FOR FIRST-TIME INSTALLATION
  • Insert the SD card into your TrimUI device
  • Press and hold the Volume Down button
  • While holding Volume Down, press and hold the Power button
  • Continue holding both buttons until you see the green status bar
  • Release both buttons once you see the green status bar
  • Wait for the installation to complete (approximately 5-10 minutes)
  • Important: Do not interrupt the installation process
  • Be patient during installation - interrupting can cause install to fail and brick device

This special button sequence is required to install the firmware onto your device and prepare the environment for TrimUI_EX and PakUI. Without this process and the firmware file, first-time installation cannot succeed.

What Happens During Installation

The installation process will:

  • Flash your device firmware
  • Install TrimUI_EX files
  • Install MinUI and PakUI

⚠️ IMPORTANT: The "Limbo Bug" & Deep Sleep Solution ⚠️

New users should be aware of an important device issue:

The TrimUI devices have a notorious "limbo bug" that affects power management. When you power off the device normally, it may enter a "limbo state" where:

  • The device appears to be off but continues consuming battery
  • Battery may drain completely while in storage
  • Device may become unresponsive until recharged

Solution: Sleep Mode Fork We highly recommend installing the Sleep Mode Fork after completing your initial PakUI setup:

  1. Launch the OTA Updater from your Tools menu
  2. Select "Install SleepModeFork"
  3. Follow the on-screen prompts

Benefits of Sleep Mode:

  • Puts your device into a true sleep mode, preserving battery life
  • Screen turns off immediately when sleep is activated
  • LED lights stay on for 2 minutes, then turn off when deep sleep begins
  • Simply press the power button to wake your device
  • Compatible with the MinUI menu and minarch games

Note: Sleep mode is currently not compatible with Paks or RetroArch. You can always revert to stock MinUI through the OTA Updater if needed.

Special Thanks: to Froist for hosting and maintaining the Sleep Mode Fork files that make this feature possible!

Updating Existing Installation

If you've successfully installed PakUI before:

  • You do NOT need to add the firmware file to your SD card
  • You do NOT need to use the special Volume Down + Power button sequence
  • Your device already has the necessary firmware installed from your previous installation

⚠️ UPDATE INSTALLATION INSTRUCTIONS ⚠️

IMPORTANT: FOLLOW THESE STEPS FOR UPDATING

  1. REMOVE EXISTING FOLDERS

    • Delete the "Emus" and "Tools" folders from your SD card as these typically contain updated components
    • Always check the specific release notes for any additional folders that may need to be removed

  2. KEEP YOUR PERSONAL DATA

    • You can keep your Roms (including BitPal), Bios, Saves, Data and userdata folders
    • These contain your personal content and settings that should be preserved

  3. INSTALL THE UPDATE

    • Extract the PakUI package and replace all other files on your SD card
    • Make sure to follow any specific instructions in the current release notes

  4. VERIFY INSTALLATION

    • Restart your device and verify all features are working correctly

Special Note About BitPal

BitPal lives in the Roms folder on your SD card. When updating:

  • Check the release notes to see if BitPal has been updated
  • You generally have two options for handling BitPal:
    1. Keep your existing BitPal: This preserves all your mission data and progress
    2. Use new BitPal files: If a new BitPal version is included in an update, you can copy the contents of the new BitPal and replace existing files in your current BitPal
    3. Transfer your progress: To keep your mission data while using a new BitPal version, transfer your bitpal_data folder from your older version to the new BitPal folder

Note: OTA (Over-The-Air) updates are a feature in development. Until then, manual installation is required for all updates.

For specific update procedures, please refer to the detailed update instructions included in the release notes.

Troubleshooting

Common Issues for First-Time Installation

Screen Flashing Between Installing and Stock Firmware

  • Format your SD card to FAT32 again (completely fresh format)
  • Ensure the firmware file is correctly placed on the root of your SD card
  • Make sure your SD card contains ONLY the PakUI release files and the firmware file
  • Check that all hidden folders were properly copied
  • Restart the installation process

Installation Taking Longer Than 20 Minutes

  • This may indicate an issue with the installation
  • Try the process again with a freshly formatted SD card

Failed Installation or Device Not Turning On

If your device doesn't turn on or installation repeatedly fails, use the recovery process:

  1. Download the recovery image from GitHub:

  2. Flash the recovery image to an SD card using Rufus or similar software

    • Make sure to use the correct recovery image for your device model
    • The recovery image may not be in the most recent release, so check all releases and assets

  3. Insert the SD card into your device and hold the power button until you see the status bar

  4. Release the button and let the recovery process complete

    • Note: The device will NOT boot after recovery is complete

  5. After recovery, perform a fresh installation again with the firmware file on the root of your SD card

Contact & Support

Need help? Want to share feedback? You can find the PakUI team on Discord only.

  • Join the Retro Handhelds server - TrimUI Brick thread
  • Join the Retro Game Handhelds server - TrimUI Brick thread

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