PPK2 bricked?

RE: PPK2 bricked?

jasonrogers — Mon, 24 Feb 2025 19:35:48 GMT

Having the same issues, fortunately, i have a spare but very annoying.

RE: PPK2 bricked?

Sebi — Fri, 16 Jul 2021 19:43:00 GMT

I borrowed another PPK2 this morning and it worked properly on my computer.

I just tested my PPK2 again (same computer, same adapter, same cable, same port) and it is still not recognized; the LED is flashing thought...

RE: PPK2 bricked?

Sebi — Thu, 15 Jul 2021 13:51:33 GMT

I borrowed another PPK2 this morning and it worked properly on my computer.

I just tested my PPK2 again (same computer, same adapter, same cable, same port) and it is still not recognized; the LED is flashing thought...

RE: PPK2 bricked?

Sebi — Thu, 15 Jul 2021 09:24:14 GMT

I tried with 2 different USB cables (that work correctly when connected to an external HD).

I tried yesterday on my MacBook Pro
...on all its 4 ports, on Windows 10 (under Bootcamp) and on Mac OS X.

I have just tried on a cheap HP laptop running linux (equipped with USB 2 ports).
The PPK2 is still not being detected...

What I don't understand is that I was able to reflash the firmware. But the day after, without doing anything, it stopped being recognized. It is like the PPK2 is powered but the hardware for serial communication got damaged in the meantime.

RE: PPK2 bricked?

Stian Røed Hafskjold — Thu, 15 Jul 2021 07:48:23 GMT

Ok sorry, I had to ask :)

Not really sure what is wrong. If the LED is flashing green slowly, it means that the firmware is running successfully on the PPK2. Could it be some driver issues on the computer? Are you able to test using another computer? I've also seen random issues before with bad USB cables. Not sure if you have tried more than one cable, but if you have another one it's worth trying.

RE: PPK2 bricked?

Sebi — Wed, 14 Jul 2021 22:09:40 GMT

Definitely!
I made sure to use the USB port with power & data.
(even while having the board upside down with its cover off to switch the PPK2 in DFU mode. I admit it was confusing...)

RE: PPK2 bricked?

Stian Røed Hafskjold — Wed, 14 Jul 2021 21:47:31 GMT

Hello. Did you use the correct USB port on the PPK2? There are two different. One of them is only for power.

RE: PPK2 bricked?

Sebi — Wed, 14 Jul 2021 09:33:00 GMT

Dear Stian, my problems with the PPK2 are not over...

I didn't do anything more in the meantime I thought it was fixed.
But this morning when I wanted to do some measurements I plugged my PPK2 in my computer but it is not recognized anymore.

I tried under Windows and Mac OS X, in every one of the 4 USB C ports, using 2 different USB C to USB 2 adapters, using 2 different USB cables...

The LED is flashing green in a slow dimming pattern when I plug the PPK2 (meaning the power app firmware is running correctly?) or turns on red if I set the PPK2 in DFU mode.

My computer sees the the USB C to USB 2 adapter when I plug it in, but no PPK2 afterwards when I plug it in using the adapter. The PPK2 LED starts flashing though. If I connect a different USB device (e.g. a bluetooth adapter) instead, this other device is been discovered though.

Thus I believe my PPK2 has a hardware failure that makes it not reachable now and then.

Can you help?

RE: PPK2 bricked?

Sebi — Wed, 14 Jul 2021 09:31:03 GMT

Dear Stian, my problems with the PPK2 are not over...

I didn't do anything more in the meantime I thought it was fixed.
But this morning when I wanted to do some measurements I plugged my PPK2 in my computer but it is not recognized anymore.

I tried under Windows and Mac OS X, in every one of the 4 USB C ports, using 2 different USB C to USB 2 adapters, using 2 different USB cables...

The LED is flashing green in a slow dimming pattern when I plug the PPK2 (meaning the power app firmware is running correctly?) or turns on red if I set the PPK2 in DFU mode.

Thus I believe my PPK2 has a hardware failure that makes it not reachable now and then.

Can you help?

RE: PPK2 bricked?

Sebi — Mon, 12 Jul 2021 21:52:39 GMT

Ohh I get it. I just bought a nRF52840 dongle. Thank you.

RE: PPK2 bricked?

Stian Røed Hafskjold — Mon, 12 Jul 2021 21:05:01 GMT

Ok, I'm glad you figured it out. Thanks for the report.

[quote user="sebi"]

BTW, can you tell me how to perform a remote nRF OTA DFU update from my PC (as it was actually what I was looking for when I bricked my PPK2) rather than using the nRF Connect iOS app?

Can I flash the Bluetooth Low Energy app firmware on my PPK2 and use it to scan for remote nRFs?

[/quote]

So you want to use the desktop version of the nRF Connect software to do a OTA firmware update, but you only have the PPK2 available as the connectivity hardware, not a separate nRF52 DK or dongle?

Technically, I think you can use the PPK2 as it has the right hardware, but without having the correct firmware to control the current measurement circuitry, I'm afraid that the board can end up in a state where it consumes a lot of current or similar. It might get bricked.

Edit:

Actually, after looking at the board I see that it is missing the antenna matching network, meaning that the antenna is disconnected. So you will most likely not be able to maintain a connection to other devices.

RE: PPK2 bricked?

Sebi — Mon, 12 Jul 2021 16:05:38 GMT

BTW, can you tell me how to perform a remote nRF OTA DFU update from my PC (as it was actually what I was looking for when I bricked my PPK2) rather than using the nRF Connect iOS app?

Can I flash the Bluetooth Low Energy app firmware on my PPK2 and use it to scan for remote nRFs?

RE: PPK2 bricked?

Sebi — Mon, 12 Jul 2021 16:01:33 GMT

Thanks to your encouragements Stian, I kind of did all what you asked:

At first, I checked that my USB ports were not damaged plugging a USB key in all the ports.
I changed my cable, my USB C to old-standard USB adapter, my port and... my computer (kind of).
Actually I was under Windows 10 under Bootcamp on a MacBook Pro so I booted on Mac OS X.
I was looking for a linux lsusb equivalent and found the system_profiler SPUSBDataType Mac OS X command. After connecting my PPK2 in bootloader mode, this command yielded:

Open DFU Bootloader:
Product ID: 0x521f
  Vendor ID: 0x1915 (Nordic Semiconductor ASA)
  Version: 1.00
  Serial Number: E1A796966364
  Speed: Up to 12 Mb/s
  Manufacturer: Nordic Semiconductor
  Location ID: 0x14100000 / 2
  Current Available (mA): 500
  Current Required (mA): 100
  Extra Operating Current (mA): 0

So I felt reassured about my PPK2 not being fried.
Thus I decided to install nRF Connect on Mac OS X and started the power application.
I could then successfully select the unknown device shown in the list and reprogram it with the adhoc firmware.
I switched to Windows 10 and it was working still!

I a nutshell: my PPK2 is working again!
I don't know why I was not able to find and reprogram the PPK2 under Windows 10, but still, it is working now.

I will do a set of current measurements to see if I observe some glitches, but I doubt it.

Thank you.

RE: PPK2 bricked?

Stian Røed Hafskjold — Mon, 12 Jul 2021 12:41:19 GMT

Can you try to go through the process again, and use a different USB cable, also connect the PPK2 directly to the computer, not through a USB hub. If already connected directly to the computer, try to use another USB port, possibly one which is not USB 3.0. Or maybe try another computer. Let me know how it goes. Are you using a Mac or PC?

RE: PPK2 bricked?

Sebi — Sat, 10 Jul 2021 04:20:04 GMT

I did follow that process.
During a short moment I thought I fixed the problem as the red LED started flashing after switching the board ON and realising GND from TP34. After I followed the rest of the instructions:

Open the PPK app, and select the device which is now just a serial number, e.g

When selecting it, the user will be prompted to program the application and it should now be working again.

But when I started the power app, I noticed there was still no device to select from.
I checked with Windows Device Manager and no particular device appears when the red LED starts blinking: always only USB Root Hub (USB3.0) in the device list, PPK2 being ON or OFF.

I am afraid my board is not only bricked but broken too...
What additional tests can I do to try to fix it?
Is there a warranty coverage to replace the board?

RE: PPK2 bricked?

Sebi — Sat, 10 Jul 2021 01:10:31 GMT

I might have a similar issue than in posts PPK2 suddenly stopped working or PPK2 stop functioning after firmware update

Windows didn't complain about power surge though.
Hopefully my board is not destroyed but bricked only.

I will try the solution proposed by Øyvind:

Disconnect all other nordic devices from the computer, turn off the kit and remove it from the plastic by removing the four screws. Insert USB to J2 (USB DATA/POWER). Short a connection between GND (e.g on the four pin power output header) to TP34 on the PPK2. While holding the jumper cable, turn the kit on and remove the jumper. Now the PPK2 should be in bootloader again.