How to Update balenaSound

Project help balenaSound
1

What’s the process to update balenaSound? The following article has a section on it, but it’s not explicit enough for me. I tried git pull from the Host OS CLI Terminal through the balenaCloud dashboard, but bash complained that the git command wasn’t found.

I downloaded the entire codebase via zip file download but am not clear as to what to do with it now.

It suggests more details are in the following article, but I couldn’t find them.

5

Hi @koeg,

Welcome to the forums!

If you want to do more than run balenaSound on your devices, you will need to keep a copy of the balenaSound Github repo on your computer and send updates to your devices using the balena CLI tool (https://www.balena.io/docs/reference/balena-cli/). You will need a Git client (https://git-scm.com/downloads) also, so you can pull updates from Github as they are committed, and build them into your devices.

The general process is:
0. Install git and balena CLI tools and create an account on Github.

  1. Clone the balena-sound repo with git. (“git clone https://github.com/balenalabs/balena-sound.git”)
  2. Edit things to your satisfaction.
  3. In the root folder of the balena-sound repo, run “balena push <application-name>”
    • Where <application-name> is the name of your application in balenaCloud.
  4. You will see the build run, and when it completes, you will see an ASCII unicorn in your command window.
  5. Then log into your balenaCloud dashboard, and make sure your devices are pinned to the build you want on them.

This all assumes you already have functioning balenaSound devices and you just want to change some things. If you are looking to create your fiirst balenaSound device, the instruction in the links you posted have all the necessary information. But feel free to post any questions.

Cheers!
Mark-

3 Likes
7

Thanks Mark. I mistakenly read the article as requiring an update even if the latest image was used and installed on the device. But I see now that the article was just describing how to upgrade for older images that are installed.

Further, your explanation clarifies how to update a device to do more than just balenaSound, or change things for more advanced purposes.

I was originally thrown off a bit that the images in the article showed different services running than I had, and figured I needed to update to get the latest services. Apparently not so.

Thanks!

1 Like
9

Just to add to @koyaanisqatsi excellent reply above, if you want to update an app you’ve deployed using the Deploy with balena button, you can click the same button again, and when the dashboard loads and modal pops up, you can deploy it to your existing application rather than creating a new one. This will build a new release and then your devices will download it.