(optional) Initialize USB Storage

This section will describe how format the USB storage drive and put the BusKill software on it.

Note

The BusKill software cannot run on the USB drive. It must be run from your computer.

As such, this is an optional step. It’s documented here as a guide for how Alt Shift International prepares the USB Storage Drives when selling BusKill kits to customers. Having the software on the USB drive simply makes it easier for the end-user (so they can just copy the software from the USB drive to their computer instead of downloading it from the Internet).

If you’re building a BusKill cable for your own use, you should probably skip this step and just Download the app.

Windows 10

Step 1: Assemble Cable

If you haven’t yet, assemble the BusKill cable

Step 2: Plug Into Computer

Plug the assembled BusKill Cable (with the USB drive attached through the Magnetic breakaway) into your computer

picture showing the fully-assembled BusKill cable with the USB Storage Drive connected to the magnetic breakaway connected to a laptop's USB port

Note

By plugging in the USB Storage Drive into the computer via the magnetic breakaway cable (as opposed to plugging the USB Storage Drive directly into the machine), you also verify the functionality of the cable’s pinout.

Step 3: Format

Open Windows Explorer (Start -> File Explorer)

../_images/buskill_usb_storage_win_open_file_explorer.png

Click on “This PC”

../_images/buskill_usb_storage_win_click_this_pc.png

Under Devices and drives, right-click on the USB drive and choose Format

../_images/buskill_usb_storage_win_click_format.png

Warning

Make absolutely sure you’ve selected the correct drive!!

If you select the wrong drive, it may result in irrevocable deletion of all your data!

If you’re not sure, unplug the BusKill cable and plug it back in again. The drive will disappear and reappear. Make absolutely sure you’re choosing the BusKill USB Storage Drive before proceeding with the format.

In the new window:

  1. Set the File system to FAT32

  2. Leave the Allocation unit size at the default 4096 bytes

  3. For Volume label, type BusKill

  4. Leave the Quick Format option checked

  5. Click Start

../_images/buskill_usb_storage_win_format_options.png

Note

Make sure the Volume label is BusKill with an upper-case B and K – not Buskill nor buskill.

Double-check that you’ve selected the correct drive before clicking OK in the WARNING prompt. If you proceed with formatting the wrong drive, it will immediately lead to loss of all your data on that drive.

../_images/buskill_usb_storage_win_format_warning.png

After the format completes, close the windows.

../_images/buskill_usb_storage_win_format_complete.png

In the File Explorer, you should now see a drive named BusKill

screenshot shows the USB Drive under "This PC" is named "BUSKILL"

Step 4: Download, Verify, Extract Archive

Note

You only need to do this step once. If you’ve already downloaded, verified, and extracted the archive to your computer, then skip this step

You should have already received:

  1. A download link to the “usbRoot” compressed archive and

  2. A SHA256 Hash for this file

Download the archive using the provided link and put it in your Downloads folder. This archive contains the files that will be extracted onto the newly formatted USB Storage Drive.

Note

Advanced users can build the .zip archive themselves using docker by checking out the git repo and executing the following script.

Open a new File Explorer Window (File -> New Window) and open your Downloads folder. Find the .zip archive.

screenshot shows how to open a new File Explorer Window (File -> New Window)
screenshot shows where to click "Downloads"

Before extracting the archive’s contents, check the integrity of the compressed archive via its SHA256 checksum. This is the “hash” or “checksum” that you should have received with the download link.

Check the integrity of the archive in PowerShell (Start -> Windows PowerShell).

screenshot shows how to open Windows PowerShell (Start -> PowerShell)

Type the following command:

Get-FileHash Downloads\buskill*.zip
screenshot shows the SHA256 output from the File-GetHash command

Check that the Hash exactly matches the hash provided along with the download link.

Warning

Do not proceed if the hash doesn’t match.

If the hash does not match, it’s an indication that the compressed archive is corrupted. This means the software won’t work for the customer, so this is a critical QA step.

If the hash matches, close the PowerShell window and extract its contents.

screenshot shows how to close the PowerShell window (click the "X")

Right-click on the archive and click Extract All...

screenshot shows

Click Extract

screenshot shows the "Extract Compressed (Zipped) Folders" wizard and highlights the "Extract" button to proceed

Step 4: Copy Files

In the extracted archive’s directory, enter the usbRoot directory.

Double-click usbRoot

screenshot shows the extracted archive's contents root with one folder titled "usbRoot"

Note

Do not copy the usbRoot folder to the USB Storage Drive. Copy the contents of the usbRoot folder to the USB Storage Drive.

Click Home -> Select All

screenshot shows the process to click Home -> Select All

Click Home -> Copy to -> Choose location...

screenshot shows the process to click Home -> Copy to -> Choose location...

Under This PC select the BUSKILL USB Storage Drive and click Copy

screenshot shows the "Copy Items" popup window and "BUSKILL" selected as the destination, with the "Copy" button selected

When the copy finishes, close the top two File Explorer windows

screenshot shows three File Explorer windows with the "X" highlighted on the top-most window
screenshot shows two File Explorer windows with the "X" highlighted on the top-most window

Step 4: Safely Eject

Right-click on the BUSKILL USB Storage Drive and click Eject

screenshot shows the right-click menu for the "BUSKILL" drive and the "Eject" option highlighted

Warning

Do not simply remove the USB Storage Drive from your computer without first ejecting it as shown above!!

Physically removing the drive from the computer before clicking Eject can cause data to not be written, even after the copy finishes successfully.

If the data isn’t fully written to the disk before it’s removed, the software on the USB Storage Drive could be corrupt. This means the software won’t work for the customer, so this is a critical QA step.

Wait until the drive disappears from the File Explorer window.

screenshot shows that the USB Drive named "BusKill" is no longer visible in the File Explorer window

After the drive is no longer visible, physically remove the USB Storage Drive.

Step 5: Verify Integrity

Plug the BusKill Cable into the computer again.

picture showing the fully-assembled BusKill cable with the USB Storage Drive connected to the magnetic breakaway connected to a laptop's USB port

Double-click the BUSKILL drive when it appears

screenshot shows the USB Drive under "This PC" is named "BUSKILL"

Double-click provision

screenshot shows the file "provision" selected at the root of the USB Storage Drive

If the window says FAIL, then something is wrong with the drive. Go back to the Format step above and retry.

If the window says PASS then everything worked. Close the command prompt window and safely eject the drive.

screenshot shows how to close the command prompt window, with the "X" on the top-right highlighted
screenshot shows the right-click menu for the "BUSKILL" drive and the "Eject" option highlighted

After the drive is no longer visible, physically remove the USB Storage Drive.

Linux

TODO

MacOS

TODO