Latest supervisor version

Perzade · April 25, 2024, 9:56am

I’m using this command balena device init -f <fleet-name> --os-version 4.0.16 to flash CM4 but supervisor version is always v14.12.2. How to ensure the latest and stable supervisor version is deployed thru’ cli?

klutchell · April 25, 2024, 7:24pm

Hey @Perzade , the supervisor image is preloaded with the OS and the device init command does not perform any special updates to the SV image.

This is done so we can be sure that we are shipping the OS with a known working and tested version of the supervisor that will work in offline environments without updates. While newer releases of the supervisor are very well tested and backwards compatible, the OS release tests are far more functional and tested on all device types.

I would suggest using a new OS version if one is available for your device type, or manually update the supervisor to the latest release once the device comes online.

klutchell · April 25, 2024, 7:29pm

There is a workaround here if you’re interested in trying it, but it requires jumping through some hoops.

gist.github.com

https://gist.github.com/cywang117/c758a448ddb06e58ce57c2ced9716e73

preload-any-supervisor-version-onto-balena-os.md

Replace loopN with loop number listed with `partx` command

### Download & mount .img
```
balena os download raspberrypi4-64 -o rpi4.img
losetup -fP --show rpi4.img
mount /dev/loopNp6 $MOUNTPOINT 
```
If the mount fails with `wrong fs type` or similar, this is most likely because the image is a flasher image (i.e. for Intel NUC, for example), and you will need to do the following:
```

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Perzade · April 26, 2024, 8:10am

Thanks for the suggestion. This is the latest OS version available so supervisor version will have to be updated manually. The latest supervisor version is v16.2.32. Does that mean latest OS version for rpi4 has supervisor version 14.12.2 which is so behind the latest one?

klutchell · April 26, 2024, 12:52pm

The latest balenaOS release for RPi4 is v5.2.8 and includes supervisor release v16.1.10

You can see the latest releases via the CLI command balena os versions raspberrypi4-64 or in your dashboard.

Perzade · April 29, 2024, 8:35am

My device type is raspberrypicm4-ioboard and latest OS-version for it is 4.0.16 with supervisor version v14.12.2. Will OS be updated with latest supervisor version, as the latest supervisor versions are in series 16.x.x?

klutchell · April 29, 2024, 6:26pm

Okay, I see that the cm4-ioboard does not have an automated testing rig at this time, so it does not receive automatic balenaOS updates like some other device types.

We are actively adding more device types to the automated testing rig all the time, and once added they tend to get new releases pretty often, including of course the newer Supervisor releases.

Is there a particular supervisor issue or feature that prevents you from using the v14.12.2 version included in balenaOS v4.0.16, at least on initial deployment?

Perzade · April 30, 2024, 1:20pm

Yes, there’s an issue. While updating services on cm4-ioboard, device gets stuck and it takes a lot of time to update, around 20min. No commands are accepted like if I want to restart a service or reboot the device. It seems like CPU gets hanged. I’m not sure if it’s an issue at supervisor level.

mpous · April 30, 2024, 3:57pm

@Perzade could you please share more details about this?