Normally web servers are powerful rack-mounted LINUX or Windows PCs running a full, Apache “LAMPs” software stack, where processor speed, memory and disk space are plentiful. Creating a web server on an embedded hardware device like iKommunicate is a bit more challenging and although our first attempt has done us proud, since we released it last summer, we have intended to update it for a while.
When you only have 128KB of RAM and 1MB of Flash, every byte counts and although we store a lot of the content on the micro SD Card, we still need to include the home page and admin pages in Flash memory, in case the SD Card is removed or corrupted. With this in mind, we have replaced the bitmap logos/icons with Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) which take up much less memory.
This week we have released a new iKommunicate firmware (26th April 2017) and a companion SD Card image V2.00 which both feature the new SVG web interface. Although you can update one without the other, we do not recommend this, as you may get odd results, so please visit http://ikommunicate.com/firmware/ to download the new SD Card image V2.00, which includes the new firmware file. If you follow the instructions on the web page, you can copy the new image to your micro SD Card and when you re-insert it and power on your iKommunicate, it will upload the new firmware when it boots up.
Exciting news. I just wish this happened one week earlier as I just finished my network equipment install that is tucked away so getting to the hardware won’t be as easy as an over-the-air firmware update.
Hi Robert,
Yes we are excited with the new web interface, but at the end of the day it is purely a cosmetic change, so you will not lose any functionality or performance by staying with the previous firmware and SD Card Image. If it is not easy to access the SD Card, then I would wait until you have another good reason to gain access to the electronics and do the update then.
Best regards
PAUL
Have upgraded the SD card firmware to version 2 and having post install issues. It seems the new graphics requires access to the internet to load correctly. If the internet is not accessible it hangs for a few minutes before loading. This happens on many pages on the device. I have posted about this on the forum without any reply.
Hi Justin,
Thanks for this info, not had anyone else report it yet, but would prefer to get ahead of the game and I have answered you on the iKommunicate forum, asking for some more info on what browser you are using and the console output.
Best regards
PAUL
It would be great if the firmware supported some kind of ftp server or similar way of transferring files for updating the contents of the SD card. It is not always convenient to open the unit and remove the card. Also, adding apps to the card would be much easier this way.
Hi Chris,
This is a feature that a number of people have requested in our iKommunicate Survey and I am sure we will be looking at a way to implement this feature later this year. If you have not completed the survey yet, please have your say at…
Click here for iKommunicate Survey
Best regards
PAUL