Installing PortareOS¶

PortareOS supports only the Retroid Pocket Nova.

A first installation needs a fresh PortareOS microSD image. Moving from ROCKNIX requires writing a fresh card; its image cannot be updated in place.

1. Download and verify¶

Choose a build from GitHub releases. Download the Nova's PortareOS-SM8550.aarch64-<date>.img.gz and its matching .sha256 file. The .img.gz is for a fresh card; the .tar is for updates.

Keep both downloaded files in the same directory. From that directory, verify the checksum, replacing <date> with the downloaded filename's date:

# macOS
shasum -a 256 -c 'PortareOS-SM8550.aarch64-<date>.img.gz.sha256'

# Linux
sha256sum -c 'PortareOS-SM8550.aarch64-<date>.img.gz.sha256'

Continue only if the check reports OK.

2. Write the card¶

Decompress the .img.gz and write the resulting .img to the microSD card with a raw-image writer such as Raspberry Pi Imager or balenaEtcher. Select the downloaded image and check the target card carefully: writing the image erases that card. Eject it safely when writing and verification finish.

3. Boot the Nova¶

Power the Nova off, insert the card, then hold Volume Down while powering on. In the boot menu, choose Switch boot mode, confirm with the power button, then press power again to boot from the card.

If the device has no menu for switching boot mode, it needs a compatible bootloader first. Follow the device-specific ROCKNIX Nova bootloader procedure, including its backup step. Flashing the wrong bootloader can leave the handheld unable to boot. Those instructions cover the bootloader; use a PortareOS image for the operating system.

4. First boot and games¶

In the launcher, open Settings > Wi-Fi to join a network. Settings > About shows the device's IP address and the root password generated on first boot. Enable SSH in Settings > SSH if needed, then connect with ssh root@<address> using that password.

Game formats¶

Use CHD for disc games. Cartridge games keep their native ROM formats, such as .sfc, .nes, .gba and .z64, or supported cartridge archives. PlayStation, PlayStation 2, Dreamcast and Neo Geo CD accept only .chd images. The first three also accept .m3u playlists naming CHDs for multi-disc games. Copying an ISO, CUE/BIN or GDI directly into those folders will not make it appear in the launcher.

CHD compresses disc data losslessly and saves card space. Converting an already lossy rip does not restore the original disc's quality. Cartridge, arcade and floppy-disk games use their system's formats. Experimental GameCube/Wii and Xbox paths also retain emulator-specific formats because their emulators do not accept CHD; consult the table below before preparing those games.

Recommended: PortareOS tools and nova-push¶

Use PortareOS tools on your Mac or Linux computer to prepare and transfer games. portare_chd.py converts discs locally; nova-push converts CUE, GDI and ISO inputs to CHD, verifies the result, and transfers it over SSH with rsync. Existing CHDs and cartridge ROMs can be transferred directly.

Follow the tools repository's dependency instructions. nova-push needs Python 3.10 or newer, SSH and rsync; disc conversion also needs chdman, and encoded CUE audio needs FFmpeg. Copy the standalone nova-push file to a directory on your PATH and make it executable. Then, on your computer:

# Replace 192.0.2.1 with the address shown under Settings > About.
nova-push --set-host root@192.0.2.1
nova-push --list
nova-push psx "Game.cue"
nova-push ps2 "Game.iso"
nova-push dreamcast "Game.gdi"
nova-push neocd "Metal_Slug.chd"
nova-push snes "Super Mario World.sfc"

For a disc with separate BIN or audio tracks, select its CUE or GDI descriptor and keep its companion files beside it. The tools read them during conversion; upload the resulting CHD. Source files are kept by default. The tools support more systems than PortareOS includes, so use nova-push --list to check the folders on your device.

For Neo Geo CD, convert locally with portare_chd.py first, then transfer the CHD to neocd as above. The current nova-push automatic converter uses the older neogeocd system name; that is not the device's folder name.

Games belong under /storage/roms/<system>/, for example /storage/roms/snes/. Required BIOS files belong under /storage/roms/bios/ in the layout expected by the emulator. An SFTP client can also connect using the same address, root username and password to copy prepared games and BIOS files. See game folders and supported formats for each system and the README for controls and everyday use.

Updating¶

In Settings > About > Update, choose the nightly or release channel, download the update over Wi-Fi, and restart when the launcher says the update is verified. It installs on restart.

For a manual update, download the PortareOS .tar and matching .sha256 from the same release. Verify it with shasum -a 256 -c on macOS or sha256sum -c on Linux, as above. Copy the .tar to /storage/.update/ on the device, then restart. This is for an existing PortareOS installation only; moving from ROCKNIX requires writing a fresh card.