Which handhelds does Arch R support?

The original image carries device trees for the R36S, R33S, R36S Soysauce, Odroid Go Advance (including the v1.1 board) and Go Super, Anbernic RG351M and RG351V, GameForce Chi, MagicX XU10 and Powkiddy RGB10. The clone image covers the K36 style clones (EE Clone), Powkiddy RGB10X, MagicX XU-Mini-M and the Odroid Go Advance. The panel is not part of that list: you generate the panel overlay yourself from your own console device tree.

Is Arch R free and open source?

Yes. Arch R is GPLv2 licensed, free to download and modify. The project’s own code is on GitHub, and `make docker-RK3326` builds both images inside Docker. Builds are not byte-for-byte identical to the releases, the image includes the proprietary libmali GPU binaries, and ScreenScraper support needs developer credentials at build time.

Which GPU driver does Arch R use?

Both stacks ship in the image. The ARM libmali binary driver is the default. Mesa Panfrost, which is open source, is built in and selected in the launcher under System › GPU driver. If the chosen driver fails its check at boot, the script tries the other one and keeps it only if it works; recovery is not guaranteed.

Does Arch R update without re-flashing?

Yes. The launcher’s System › Updates page installs new packages with pacman (archr-update does the same over SSH) and syncs the boot partition, so kernel and device-tree fixes arrive without re-flashing. Re-flashing is only needed for a fresh install, recovery or a bootloader change, and it replaces everything on the card, so copy your ROMs, saves and settings to another device first.

How does the Overlay Generator work?

Upload your console firmware DTB and the generator extracts panel timings, MIPI init sequences and GPIO wiring in your browser via Pyodide. It writes a mipi-panel.dtbo that declares archr,generic-dsi; the ArchR panel driver also binds rocknix,generic-dsi, but an overlay still has to match the board, the panel and the base DTB. Your DTB never leaves the page.

Changelog

Name: Arch R
Author: Arch R

Every change to Arch R, newest first: the system and the launcher, which arrive through Settings › System › Updates, the Arch R Flasher and this site.

v3.0.2

Release with images · 13 November 2026

Release notes

SystemNew release: Arch R 3.0.2 images (official), with every update since 3.0.1 and update from the card from the first boot

20261113.7

Update · 13 November 2026

SystemFix a launcher-only update leaving its session unit stale until a restart (systemd is reloaded now)

20261113.6

Update · 13 November 2026

LauncherFix game scraping (ScreenScraper) without the project's login: the launcher updates 20261113.4 and .5 were built without it

20261113.5

Update · 13 November 2026

SystemNew feature: update without network: download archr-update.tar on a phone or computer, copy it to roms/update/ on the card and install it from Settings › System › Updates; it is checked against Arch R's signature first
LauncherNew feature: Update from the card on the Updates page, with the file's What's new and a confirmation

20261113.4

Update · 13 November 2026

LauncherNew feature: send the last diagnostic report to the developers from Settings › System › Diagnostics (it asks first), and see this console's ID in Error reports
SystemNew feature: every console has a stable ID taken from its hardware, carried in its error reports so reports from one console can be told apart
SiteError reports now accept the console ID in their name and the full diagnostic report (.zip, up to 5 MB)

20261113.3

Update · 13 November 2026

SystemFix PortMaster ports printing "tasksetter: No such file or directory" on start (FEZ and other older ports)
SystemFix false error reports for GameMaker ports waiting for the user's game files and for Unity games' offline analytics message

20261113.2

Update · 13 November 2026

SystemFix system files that only a new image could update (controller setup, CPU speed settings, R36S Clone headphone switch, boot trace): updates now bring them too, so fewer fixes need a reflash

20261113.1

Update · 13 November 2026

SystemFix updates failing on weak Wi-Fi: a dropped or stalled download is tried again, up to three times, and resumes where it stopped

20261113

Update · 13 November 2026

SystemFix memory leak: each game or app opened left about 4 MB of video memory behind until reboot

20261112.6

Update · 12 November 2026

SystemFix 32-bit GameMaker ports that need OpenSSL 1.1 (Climb and others on gmloader): they closed at once with "wrong ELF class"

20261112.5

Update · 12 November 2026

SystemFix Wi-Fi after a restart: a failed first connect is retried within seconds instead of leaving the console offline for up to 30 minutes
LauncherFix the screen not coming up after a restart (seen once after a GPU driver switch): the session now brings the display back
LauncherNew feature: ports that need the panfrost GPU driver (Bugdom, BZFlag, A7Xpg) ask to switch the driver and restart instead of closing with an error
SystemFix ports that use gl4es drawing nothing on the panfrost driver

20261112.4

Update · 12 November 2026

SystemFix ports that need libfribidi (Aleph One: Marathon 1, 2 and Infinity): the shared library is now installed

20261112.3

Update · 12 November 2026

SystemFix ports on PortMaster's Weston package (Alex the Allegator and ~75 more): they now open, and the launcher comes back instead of a black screen

20261112.2

Update · 12 November 2026

SystemError reports: quitting a port that prints a stack trace on exit (Carmageddon) no longer sends a report

20261112.1

Update · 12 November 2026

SystemFix 0% on a full battery: the gauge now calibrates to full when an external charger holds the pack full (R36S and clones)
SystemError reports: the game file's size, space on the card and first bytes

20261112

Update · 12 November 2026

SystemFix N64 games kept in a .7z not opening with the standalone emulator ("not a valid ROM image")
SystemError reports: a game's command line stays whole; no report for PICO-8 before its program is copied in, nor for a screen that comes a few seconds late at boot
SiteOverlay generator: fix the black screen on R36S Soysauce Y3506 V06 (2026 boards), whose new panel stayed in standby; generate the overlay again

20261111.3

Update · 11 November 2026

SystemError reports: a port that writes its own log (NextOS ports and many others) sends the error lines from it; a port's report no longer loses everything after a line like SCRIPT_DIR="$(cd ... && pwd)"
SystemNextOS ports: opening one before its APK is in place no longer sends an error report
SitePortMaster docs: NextOS Universal Ports, how to add their catalogue
SitePortMaster docs: the NextOS catalogue checked library by library (42 packages, 32-bit included)

20261111.2

Update · 11 November 2026

SystemFix Dreamcast, Atomiswave and Naomi discs in a .zip or .7z named after the archive (Hero.zip holding Hero.chd) closing at once
SiteOverlay generator: R36S clones keep the amplified sound card by default again; the switch to the simple card in 20261111 also moved boards whose speaker works on the amplified one (#51, #43); the V20 2551 uses Force simple audio routing, now in the docs

20261111.1

Update · 11 November 2026

SystemNew feature: Dreamcast, Atomiswave and Naomi discs kept in a .zip or .7z (GDI, CDI, CHD or CUE) play; the console extracts the disc once, with a "Preparing the disc" message, and opens it right away the next times
SystemFix the 7z command in the terminal ("cannot find the code that works with archives")
SystemFix error reports counting a core's unknown option ("Invalid value") as the cause of a failure
SiteNew page: changelog

20261111

Update · 11 November 2026

SystemFix the Wi-Fi service (iwd) crashing when a USB Wi-Fi adapter drops while it is being set up (RTL8188EU on the Soysauce)
SystemError reports no longer sent for answers: save and exit with no game open, an emulator that saves no state, an update refused for low battery or no network
SystemGame error reports carry RetroArch's own error lines ("Failed to load content")
SiteOverlay generator: fix audio on R36S V20 2551 clones; boards with the speaker on the RK817 class-D output get the simple sound card by default

20261110.9

Update · 10 November 2026

LauncherNew feature: search in a system's list (Y › Search in list), ignoring accents and case, games inside folders included
LauncherNew feature: folders in a system's list (Y › Show folders, per system, off by default), with the number of games in each

20261110.8

Update · 10 November 2026

SystemR36S Clone: the headphone change of 20261110.7 is withdrawn until it is checked on a real board

20261110.7

Update · 10 November 2026

SystemR36S Clone (boards with an external speaker amplifier): headphones turn the speaker off

20261110.6

Update · 10 November 2026

SystemFix ports kept on the second microSD card not finding their own files

20261110.5

Update · 10 November 2026

SystemError reports cover PortMaster ports: name and version, error lines, the port's log, runtimes and missing libraries

20261110.4

Update · 10 November 2026

SystemNew feature: anonymous error reports when a game, an app or the system fails; only with internet, the same error once, at most 10 a day; off or last report in Settings › System › Error reports
SiteNew: the endpoint that receives the consoles' error reports

20261110.3

Update · 10 November 2026

LauncherNew feature: Theme store and Module store shortcuts in the Start menu, with the number of pending updates
LauncherNew feature: Settings › Appearance › Start shortcuts, to show, hide, move or add each shortcut

20261110.2

Update · 10 November 2026

SystemRetroArch: one menu (RGUI) from Tools and from games
SystemRetroArch: hotkeys and settings changed in its menu are kept between games
LauncherImport from RetroArch also brings shaders and overlays

20261110.1

Update · 10 November 2026

LauncherPorts list shows the cover, description and year of games installed by PortMaster
LauncherItch.io: QR code to the game's page, updates of installed games keeping saves, downloads that resume after losing the network

20261110

Update · 10 November 2026

SystemFix ports copied from a PC failing when PortMaster was never opened ("control.txt: No such file or directory")
SystemFix ScummVM logging "invalid regular expression" on each game start

20261109.4

Update · 9 November 2026

LauncherNew feature: module apps, with their own item in the main list and screens drawn in the theme
LauncherNew feature: itch.io app in the Module store: homebrew for Game Boy, GBC, GBA, NES, Mega Drive and PICO-8, and itch.io games that run through PortMaster
SystemPortMaster: module apps install ports through PortMaster's own installer, never over a port you have

20261109.3

Update · 9 November 2026

LauncherNew feature: Appearance › your own text and background colours, text-only button hints, a background picture per system
SiteOverlay generator: new panel listing where the stock DTB differs from the Arch R base, keeping either value per item

20261109.2

Update · 9 November 2026

LauncherNew feature: Appearance › bold font, battery percentage on or off, box art off or resized, the selected game's picture behind the switcher

20261109.1

Update · 9 November 2026

LauncherQuick menu: Sleep, Restart and Power off grouped under one divider

20261109

Update · 9 November 2026

LauncherPorts list shows only each port's launch script, without helper scripts or duplicates
LauncherFix games copied into a folder inside a system (gba/RPGs/) not showing up
LauncherAfter a game, back to the list and the game you played
LauncherNew feature: hide systems from the list (Y › Hide system) and show them again
LauncherNew feature: remove a game from Recently played

20261108.1

Update · 8 November 2026

LauncherSettings › Information shows the battery voltage and current on the R36S
SiteOverlay generator: fix the R36S clone blue power LED pin (generate mipi-panel.dtbo again)
SiteOverlay generator: new option to swap A and B (ABs)

v3.0.1

Release with images · 8 November 2026

Release notes

SystemFix R36S clones (V20, G80CA) not starting with the clone image: no LED, no screen (#51)
SystemFix the first boot hanging after resizing the card; the resize log is written at every step
SystemFix the battery guard powering off a console in use at around 40%
SystemFix the battery reading 0% on a charged pack (#50)
SystemLower power at idle on the menu: CPU busy 16% → 5%
SystemFix Wi-Fi not reconnecting after switching it off and on; Wi-Fi switched off stays off after a reboot
SystemWi-Fi: no roaming scans every few seconds with band-steering routers
SystemUpdates: only the Stable channel is offered, the progress bar moves, downloaded packages are removed
SystemSystem partition grows from 4.5 GB to 6 GB; 32 GB cards recommended
SystemNew: Sega Saturn on yabasanshiro-pirry 1.6.2, tuned for the RK3326
SystemThe diagnostic report lists the network addresses again
LauncherNew feature: layouts for square (720x720) and small (480x320) screens; no text smaller than 10 pixels
LauncherFix B on a module page opened from the Start menu
Flasher1.3.9: an image for the other console variant (Original or Clone) is refused
SiteOverlay generator: fix the offline script on Windows (device tree paths)
SiteOverlay generator: keep the built-in Wi-Fi chip powered on the R36S V30

v3.0

Release with images · 5 November 2026

Release notes

LauncherNew: archr-launcher replaces EmulationStation, in Rust with SDL2 for 640x480: games, settings, updates, scraping, netplay, RetroAchievements, Moonlight
LauncherNew feature: themes (Grafite by default, Praia and Retro in the Theme store) that can change colours, fonts, icons, sounds and layouts
LauncherNew feature: modules (Start widgets, menu items, settings pages), sandboxed, from a signed Module store
LauncherNew feature: per-system emulator, core, aspect ratio, filter and autosave; BIOS check and free BIOS install (PlayStation, MSX)
LauncherLanguages: English, Brazilian Portuguese, Spanish and Russian
SystemNew feature: ROMs on an exFAT partition (ARCHR_ROMS) that Windows, macOS and Linux open as a normal drive (#37)
SystemNew feature: save and exit with a tap on FN, game switcher, resume the last game at power on
SystemNew feature: battery guard: warning at 10%, the game saved before powering off at 3%
SystemNew feature: the backup includes saves and save states; a restore never overwrites a newer save
SystemNew feature: diagnostic report with FN + L1 + R1 held 3 seconds, saved to roms/relatorios
SystemNew feature: internet from a PC over the USB cable; USB Wi-Fi and Bluetooth adapter advisor
SystemN64 at full speed by default: standalone Mupen64Plus with GLideN64's performance profile
SystemLinux 6.12.114 with kernel fixes adapted from ROCKNIX, faster boot, Mesa 26.2.5
SystemFix volume starting at 100% after boot (#39)
SystemFix the R36S Clone speaker staying silent after unplugging headphones (#35)
SystemFix A/B swapped and Start/Select mixed up in RetroArch on GO-Super and Soysauce pads (#40)
SystemFix Wi-Fi networks with a dot or space in the name, hidden networks and WPA2/WPA3 transition networks (#19)