Radxa Rock 5C Lite and TeslaUSB

[k1asa]

Please note that this guide was written with my limited English proficiency and the assistance of Gemini, so there may be areas that could be improved. Feel free to point out any missing information or suggest corrections in the comments. I hope this note is helpful to you!

Preface

This guide explains how to enable USB OTG (Mass Storage Gadget) on the Radxa Rock 5C Lite, which features the RK3582 SoC. Since the RK3582 is essentially a binned version of the RK3588S, we can successfully reuse the RK3588's device tree overlays to enable the OTG port.

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1. OS Image Preparation

First, you need to select and install the correct OS image.

• Verified Image Example:
  Armbian_25.8.1_Rock-5c_trixie_vendor_6.1.115_minimal.img.xz
  Note: It is crucial to choose a Vendor (BSP) kernel image for the standard Rock 5C (non-Lite).
• Note: We have confirmed that Mainline kernels (e.g., v6.12) currently do not include the necessary overlay files for OTG out of the box. Using a kernel labeled Vendor or Legacy is highly recommended for this setup.

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2. Verification Steps (Crucial)

After booting the OS, verify that the system contains the necessary components for OTG.

1. Check for UDC (USB Device Controller):

   ls /sys/class/udc/

   • Initial State: This maybe empty. This means the hardware is not yet enabled in "device mode."

2. Check for Kernel Modules:
   Verify if the modules required for Mass Storage Gadget exist in your system.

   Core OTG function

   find /lib/modules/$(uname -r) -name "libcomposite.ko*"

   Mass Storage function

   find /lib/modules/$(uname -r) -name "g_mass_storage.ko*"

   • Verdict: It is fine as long as g_mass_storage.ko is found. libcomposite might be built-in to the kernel, in which case it won't show up in the find command.

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3. Enabling Hardware Overlay

You can enable OTG on the Rock 5C Lite (RK3582) by using the overlay intended for the RK3588.

1. Check Available Overlays:
   Ensure that files like rk3588-dwc3-peripheral.dtbo or rock-5a-usb-otg.dtbo exist in /boot/dtb/rockchip/overlay/.

2. Edit Configuration:
   Modify /boot/armbianEnv.txt to assign the OTG function to the hardware.

   sudo nano /boot/armbianEnv.txt

   Add the following line (or append to the existing overlays= line):

   overlays=rk3588-dwc3-peripheral

3. Reboot and Verify:
   Reboot the system and run ls /sys/class/udc/ again.
   If you see a name like fc000000.usb, the hardware activation was successful.

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4. TeslaUSB Installation

Run the following command to start the installation:

curl https://raw.githubusercontent.com/marcone/teslausb/main-dev/setup/generic/install.sh | bash

For detailed configuration steps after installation, please follow the TeslaUSB Wiki.

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My Hardware Setup

For those interested, here is the hardware I used for this setup:

• Board: Radxa Rock 5C Lite (4GB RAM)
• Cooling: Copper fin heatsink with fan
• Case: Radxa Rock 5C Metal Case
• Storage: 512GB USB SSD (also used for OS boot)
• Data Cable: USB-A to USB-A OTG data cable
• Power Cable: USB-A to USB Type-C power cable