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Entware Package Manager — K2 Plus

Entware is a software package manager for embedded systems. It provides hundreds of Linux packages via opkg on the K2 Plus.

Tested and working on K2 Plus

Entware was successfully installed using a Python-based wget shim to bypass the ARM ABI incompatibility.

Background

The K2 Plus uses armhf (hard-float ARM ABI). Standard Entware installation requires wget which is not present on the K2 Plus. The solution uses a Python script to simulate wget for the bootstrap installer, after which the real wget is installed via opkg.

Full credit to vsevolod-volkov for this approach.

Installation

Install from the helper script:

sh /mnt/UDISK/helper-script/helper.sh

Select 15) Entware Package Manager.

The installer will:

  1. Create a Python-based dummy wget for bootstrapping
  2. Run the Entware installer
  3. Install the real wget via opkg
  4. Add /opt/bin and /opt/sbin to PATH permanently
  5. Configure Entware services to start on boot

Installing Packages

After installation, select option 15 again to install useful packages:

Package Description
nano Better text editor than vi
htop Interactive process monitor
git Version control
openssh-sftp-server SFTP file transfer access
curl HTTP client

Or install any package manually via SSH:

export PATH=/opt/bin:/opt/sbin:$PATH
opkg update
opkg install <package-name>

After Reboot

Entware PATH is added to rc.local automatically. After reboot, opkg and all installed packages are available immediately.

Useful Commands

opkg update              # Update package list
opkg install <package>   # Install a package
opkg remove <package>    # Remove a package
opkg list                # List all available packages
opkg list-installed      # List installed packages

Credits