Beelink M18 freezing and losing picture

[Jancales]

Is it normal that LibreElec boots from sd card by just pressing the power button?

I had noticed this already before I took the box to the repair shop, since I had only booted about 5 times from LibreElec, which froze each time when I started to fill in the details, so I switched back right away.

[bluesmanuk]

As long as it boots then whether a certain routine is required on one box but not another won't matter.

It's the same principle as booting to say Linux Live from a USB stick on your Windows PC.

As nothing is installed or modified then as soon as you boot back to Windows, everything will be the same as it was the last time.

So logic says that if the Android installation is suddenly taking longer to boot then something must have changed in Android itself.

Could be a new app or process that has been installed or one that has been updated that is less efficient than the one it replaced.

[Jancales]

Nothing was installed, and I actually don't think it's Android that takes longer to load.

It is the Google TV screen that takes 4 times as long as usual, and I think Android only starts loading after that screen disappears.

Anyway, since it doesn't seem to be a know side effect, I will do a factory restore and see if that fixes it.

[bluesmanuk]

You mean the boot animation?

[Jancales]

Yes that may be the correct name, but there are actually 2 boot animations.

First a grey screen with a large colored Google TV logo, followed with the word Android on a black bakground.

When I booted LibreElec it would also switch 2 or 3 times between the Google TV screen and the LibreElec screen before it was loaded

[bluesmanuk]

Yes one is a static image, followed by the boot animation and is pretty much standard across all Android releases.

[Jancales]

It is the static image that is now displayed 4 times as long as previously, and on all other similar boxes that have passed my hands.

The boot animation still takes only 10 secs, same as before.

[Jancales]

Factory restore didn't fix the static image display time, so I flashed the firmware again, and that fixed it.

Box working perfectly now.

A happy camper here.

Thanks again to Bluesmanuk for pointing me in the right direction, as I considered it a lost case.

[bluesmanuk]

Glad it has all worked out for the best.

[Jancales]

Glad it has all worked out for the best.

Celebrated too early. Box just crashed while writing the previous post.

Had been up and running for hours yesterday.

Lost screen and froze up while restoring a Kodi build.

[Jancales]

Unbelievable, has been playing for hours yesterday really trying to make it crash by using as much processor power as possible, and didn't give a glitch.

Today again playing for hours, and after I flashed the new firmware, again for at least 30 minutes installing all kind of apps including Kodi, then crashed almost at the end when restoring a build.

Now it doesn't even complete a boot without freezing up.

I do get the impression that once it has crashed, the time that it will stay alive will get shorter and shorter each boot, unless I leave it alone for an hour or so.

As this seem to indicate a heat issue, there is no heat that I can notice.

The strange thing is that it seemed to be solved, then at once the problem start again.

USB power is also no solution this time.

[bluesmanuk]

It seems that it is going to be difficult to pinpoint for sure but of course as something happened during the process of restoring apps and settings that this can't be completely ruled out as a possible cause too.

[Jancales]

Time for another update.

I have done at least 4 factory resets from recovery menu, flashed the firmware at least 4 more times, but not once have I been able to complete a boot.

It freezes at one point during the boot up before I reach the Android desktop.

My static Google TV image stands for 6 seconds, and that's the way it should be.

Next step I boot from LibreElec again.

I manage to keep it running for about 10 minutes, that is including the LibreElec configuration, installing Ares wizard before it freezes.

Unplug and boot LibreElec again.

This time it freezes when Ares start checking the back up file.

I unplug and reboot a third time. This time I get as far as that it starts actually restoring my build, and then it freezes.

So while booting in Android would freeze while optimizing apps, or finishing boot, at least I get much further with LibreElec.

Unplug again, and now I boot again in regular Android.

My static Google TV image is now again 20 seconds, about triple the time it should be, after which the Android boot screen is 10 seconds as normal.

I have now been able to uninstall all apps that came with the original firmware, install Kodi 17.4, and complete the restore of my build.

All by all it is now active for more than 30 minutes without freezing.

It is clear form the time the static image is displayed that LibreElec installs something and leaves it behind, but it's something that solves my issue.

I guess I'm gonna learn to live with the extended boot time, and refrain from flashing the firmware again.

[bluesmanuk]

It's difficult to see how something booting solely from an external source that is temporary can install anything that affects the Android installation.

However, it does seem that there is something strange going on.

On the basis that once the impossible has been ruled out, anything else, however improbable must be the answer, perhaps it is time to ask the Libreelec experts for their thoughts.

https://forum.libreelec.tv/

[Jancales]

Yes probably a good idea, however the box starts freezing again during Kodi operation.

I start to get the feeling that it has something to do with the HDMI, and will let my tv man check again.

I notice, and I had noticed this the previous times also, that once the picture is frozen. When I press on the box, or give a slight tick on it, that the picture get completely distorted for a second and then returns to normal picture though still frozen.

Sometimes it will get the distorted picture at the point where it freezes up, and will freeze on that distorted picture, but when I then tick on the top of the box I will get a clear picture.

More to come in the next episode, in a few days from now.