Banana Pi System Images

Banana Pi system images and installation

Summary

The Banana Pi supports a range of community-maintained and official operating system images. This page provides guidance on selecting the right image for your use case, downloading it safely, verifying its integrity, and flashing it to a microSD card. All images listed here are compatible with the LeMaker Banana Pi (A20-based) board. For a full archive of available files, see the image files page.

Who This Is For

This guide is written for users who need to install or reinstall an operating system on their Banana Pi. It covers beginners looking for a desktop-ready experience as well as advanced users deploying headless server configurations. Basic familiarity with downloading files and using a disk-imaging tool is assumed.

Choosing the Right Image

Selecting an image depends on your intended workload:

  • Raspbian (Bananian): Recommended for beginners. Provides a familiar Debian-based desktop environment with broad community support and extensive package repositories.
  • Ubuntu Server: Ideal for headless server deployments, home automation hubs, and lightweight containerised workloads. Ships without a graphical desktop to conserve resources.
  • Arch Linux ARM: Suited for experienced users who prefer a rolling-release model and minimal base installation that can be customised to specific requirements.
  • Android: Available for media-centre and kiosk applications. Requires a compatible display and touch input for full functionality.

Download and Verification Guidance

Download images only from the official LeMaker resources mirror or trusted community repositories. Each image is accompanied by a SHA-256 checksum. After downloading, verify the file integrity before proceeding:

sha256sum banana-pi-ubuntu-server.img.zip

Compare the output with the published checksum. If the values differ, delete the file and download again from a clean source. Store verified images in a dedicated folder to avoid accidental corruption. Do not rename image archives before verification, as some checksum files reference the original filename.

Flash Checklist

  • Obtain a high-quality Class 10 or UHS-I microSD card, minimum 8 GB capacity.
  • Format the card with SD Card Formatter to remove existing partitions.
  • Extract the image archive if it is compressed (zip, gz, or xz).
  • Write the raw .img file using balenaEtcher, Win32DiskImager, or dd.
  • Wait for the write and verify pass to complete before ejecting.
  • Insert the card into the Banana Pi slot with power disconnected.

First Boot Verification

Power on the board and monitor the LEDs. A solid green LED indicates power is present; a flashing blue or red activity LED signals SD card reads. Connect via HDMI or serial console (115200 baud, 8N1) to observe boot messages. Log in with the default credentials listed in the image release notes. Run uname -a to confirm the kernel version and df -h to verify partition sizes. Expand the root filesystem if the image does not do so automatically on first boot.

Troubleshooting

  • Image does not boot: Confirm the image is built for the Banana Pi (A20 SoC), not the Banana Pro or Banana Pi M2.
  • Kernel panic on boot: Re-flash with a freshly verified image. Test with a different SD card if the problem persists.
  • No network connectivity: Check the Ethernet cable and verify that DHCP is enabled in the image. Run ip addr to inspect interface status.
  • Display resolution issues: Edit uEnv.txt or script.bin to set the correct HDMI output mode for your monitor.

Related Guides

Author: LeMaker Documentation Team
Last updated: 2026-02-10