How can I gain some space and delete luci etc.?

[thobux]

I’m on GL.iNet GL-AR300M (NOR)
most recent firmware: 4.3.6 (v3)

In general I’m lacking space. Can’t update relevant packages like openssl.
What can I do? Help appreciated.

[elorimer]

There is an entire meg devoted to the GLterf database for MAC lookups. Is it installed? you can zero it out if I recall correctly.

[thobux]

@elorimer

GLterf

that’s all I gt for “terf”

[elorimer]

ok, tertf.

Look here: Imagebuilder questions

and here: What is gltertf and why does it use tons of RAM?

The 1 meg database is the mac_vendor.db file

Personally, I find luci helpful but not the tracking database, so that’s a trade I would make. I also got rid of ipv6 stuff. But I would let things settle before I tried again at shrinking the firmware.

[bring.fringe18]

You’re going to need to SSH into the device to really get at what you’re looking to do. I’d make a backup first:

HOW-TO: Script: List My OPKGs (to a file for backup)

Keywords: backup, opkg, plugins, list, howto, script, shell, luci, restore, ipk, tarball, conf Description List user’s (your) installed packages, writing them to a text file that can be used to reinstall the binaries of what a user manually installed. The resulting .list file will be use to opkg install to pull from the feeds. That is done with two commands in one execution. The GL GUI doesn’t feature a backup function. Creating & restoring a backup achieve (.tar.gz, aka tarball) of all your…

[thobux]

I’m not anywhere close to the box and remote SSH is not active. I would like to remove luci entirely but for some reason it’s not working. Do I miss aynthing regarding removing luci?
My issue is that if I want to remove luci-base it fails due to dependencies

Collected errors:
 * print_dependents_warning: Package luci-base is depended upon by packages:
 * print_dependents_warning: 	luci-mod-system
 * print_dependents_warning: 	luci-mod-status
 * print_dependents_warning: 	luci-mod-admin-full
 * print_dependents_warning: 	luci-i18n-base-zh-cn
 * print_dependents_warning: 	luci-mod-network
 * print_dependents_warning: 	gl-sdk4-luci
 * print_dependents_warning: These might cease to work if package luci-base is removed.

 * print_dependents_warning: Force removal of this package with --force-depends.
 * print_dependents_warning: Force removal of this package and its dependents
 * print_dependents_warning: with --force-removal-of-dependent-packages.

[groentjuh]

Please note that removing packages generally does not give you any extra space, if the files of those package are part of the firmware. The reason is because those files will be in the “rom” SquashFS part of the OverlayFS. All changes (including deletion of files within the ROM) will be written to the “rootfs_data” JFFS2 part of the OverlayFS. The OverlayFS as a whole is acting at root. See this page for further explaination.

So removing any packages, which were part of the firmware, will likely not really provide you with much if any extra space.

If you want to really do it, use GL iNet’s imagebuilder to make a firmware without those packages! That way those packages will not be part of the “Rom” SquashFS part of the OverlayFS leaving more space for the “rootfs_data” JFFS2 part of the OverlayFS. And that way you will have more space.

[Cal]

@elorimer

I find luci helpful

I don’t doubt you. But when GL UI isn’t enough I often find Luci isn’t either and I go directly for the shell.