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Device Manager not showing nRF52840 Dongle

faskrobo

I got an nRF52840 Dongle from someone else and started to see what I could do with it. The problem is, although I've downloaded everything needed including nRF Connect on Windows 10, the dongle doesn't show up in Device Manager, or in nRF Connect Programmer, Segger, or VS Code. When I plug it in, LD2 blinks blue at first and then switches to blinking red, while LD1 blinks green more slowly. Does this mean it's in bootloader mode?

I'm new to nRF devices and also J-Link somewhat, so I'm not completely sure my understanding of what to do is correct yet. Is there anything else I can do to get the USB interface working or do I need to re-flash the bootloader over SWD? If the latter, I don't currently have the male pin header for the P1 footprint on the bottom of the device, so would I be able to instead solder the SWDIO and SWDCLK to wires that connect to the proper pins on a J-Link, and use the USB interface for VCC and GND?

Finally, I saw in the bootloader documentation that nrfjprog or Segger can be used to re-program memory. So if I need to re-flash the bootloader, should I connect the device over USB and SWD as described above and use Segger or the following command to flash the .hex file? Is there anything I'm missing?

nrfjprog --reset --program application.hex --family NRF52 --sectoranduicrerase

  • 0

    There are two tiny buttons on the Dongle.  One is a white button facing away from the board.  The other is a button next to the white button and is oriented 90 degrees from the white button.  While keeping this latter button depressed, plug the dongle into the USB port.   Once it is inserted, release the button.  Now it is in boot loader mode.

  • 0 in reply to austin944

    I'm afraid I already tried that and it didn't change the behavior.

  • 0

    Hello,

    As Austin944 mentioned, you can use sideways button to enter bootloader mode. Though as you have gotten it from someone else, it might be that they have already flashed something to it that has removed the MCUBoot partition. With the bootloader present however, it should be possible to flash it using the nRF Connect Programmer while it is in bootloader mode. Using VSC and SES doesn't work, as they would need an external programmer which the Dongle doesn't have. For those reasons the Dongle can be a bit hard to work with, so I recommend that you give this blog post on how to work with it a read. 

    Does this mean it's in bootloader mode?

    No, in bootloader mode LD2 would slowly blink red.

    It might be that you would have to re-flash it using the external debugger on another DK, with SWD. Though first of all, are you getting it to enter bootloader mode? And if so do you see it in the drop-down menu in the nRF Connect Programmer?

    Regards,

    Elfving

  • 0 in reply to faskrobo

    You can buy this adapter to connect the Dongle to a SEGGER debugger for reprogramming the Dongle through SWD (I have one), however it would be much cheaper to buy another Dongle.  They are only US$10 and are readily available.

    https://www.tag-connect.com/debugger-cable-selection-installation-instructions/segger-j-link#71_121-72_146-145

  • 0 in reply to Elfving

    Hi Elfving,

    As I mentioned in my reply to Austin, I can't get the device to exhibit any other behavior even after pressing reset, and as I said in my post, the Programmer doesn't show the device. The problem with the Dongle Programming Tutorial is that the device doesn't show up on the Programmer or any nRF Connect apps, and they all say "Connect a Nordic Development Kit to your computer". Does the Programmer only work with the DK or is it supposed to work with the dongle as well? What is the usual procedure to flash the dongle over USB then? If the bootloader is gone, what are the possible methods to re-flash it, and does the procedure I described in my post work?

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