Install OS

OpenWrt Mainline Installation

This document describes how to install an OpenWrt mainline image on Radxa ZERO 3W / ZERO 3E.

Image Download

Please go to Resource Download to download the corresponding image.

Recommended image filename:

openwrt-25.12.0-rockchip-armv8-radxa_zero_3w-ext4-sysupgrade.img.gz openwrt-25.12.0-rockchip-armv8-radxa_zero_3e-ext4-sysupgrade.img.gz

warning

Make sure the downloaded image matches your product model. Extract the image before continuing.

Install the System

Install system to microSD card

Preparation

• 1x microSD card
• 1x microSD card reader
• 1x power adapter (recommended: 5V/2A power adapter)

Install the System

Balena Etcher is a cross-platform and user friendly image file burning tool that we recommend you use.

1. Download Etcher and install it.

Windows

Please download balenaEtcher-2.1.4.Setup.exe After the download is complete, there is no need to perform any additional actions. After downloading, you can double click it to open it without any additional operation.

Linux

Please download balena-etcher_2.1.4_amd64.deb. Once the download is complete, please install it by executing the following command in the terminal:

sudo dpkg -i balena-etcher_2.1.4_amd64.deb

2. Open Etcher

   

3. Click Flash from file to select the image to write to.

Image Note

The downloaded system image is in compressed format. You must decompress it first before using Balena Etcher for image flashing.

4. Click Select target to select the device, please select carefully.

   

5. Click Flash! Start writing and wait for the write progress bar to complete.

   

6. When writing the image successfully, Etcher will display Flash Complete!.

   

If there is an error in flashing, please try again.

Boot the System

• Insert the flashed microSD card into the microSD slot on Radxa ZERO 3W / ZERO 3E
• Power on the board with 5V/2A power adapter

Install system to eMMC

Preparation

• USB data cable
• x86 PC
• Extracted image file
• Radxa ZERO 3W / ZERO 3E with eMMC

Enter Maskrom Mode

Please refer to Maskrom Guide.

Windows

Install RKDevTool

RKDevTool is Rockchip's software for USB burning on Windows platform. If RKDevTool is not installed on your Windows host, please follow the steps below to install it.

Please download and extract the following files to install RKDevTool:

• RKDevTool v2.96 (Includes Chinese documentation)
• DriverAssistant v5.14

Installation of drivers

Download and unzip DriverAssistant, then execute DriverInstall.exe and click the Install Driver button to install the driver. If you have already installed another version of driver, please click Uninstall Driver to uninstall the driver first, and then reinstall it again.

Install RKDevTool

unzip RKDevTool_Release_v2.96_zh.zip ，click RKDevTool.exe to open.

Enter Maskrom mode

If the operation is normal, RKDevTool will prompt A MASKROM device was found.

Flash images into storage media.

eMMC

• Select Loader (see File Download section above, the loader in picture below is just a example).
• Right click, select Add item, select eMMC as the storage media.
• Select the system image (see above section on file download, you need to unzip it into .img format after downloading, the image in the picture below is just a example).
• Click Execute to start burning

If there is a prompt Download complete, it means the burning is complete, the system will be restarted automatically after burning, and you can log in to the system via HDMI or serial port.

Linux

Please refer to Linux flashing guide.

Log In

• The default management address is usually 192.168.1.1
• The default username is usually root
• Set the password when prompted on first login

Storage Expansion

If the root partition does not occupy the whole storage on first boot, refer to the official OpenWrt guide first:

• Expanding root partition and filesystem

tip

Storage device names, partition numbers, and expansion steps may vary by product. Do not directly reuse partition commands from another board.

Frequently Asked Questions

• Device not detected: check whether the board has entered Maskrom mode, and try another cable or USB port.
• Flashing failed: check the image format, file integrity, and model match.
• LuCI is not reachable: check the default IP, Ethernet port, and host network settings.