Raspberry Pi’s have been around for a long time and have been focused on armhf (32-bit) support since day one, all the way up to today on 10/25/2020! Problem is the hardware has advanced well beyond this concept since 2018.
armhf Models
Pi Zero, 1, 2, 3
arm64 / aarch64 Models
Pi 3b+ and all Model 4 varients
- Big Problem: images provided for installation are still armhf
Check your architecure with this command on any default Debian/Raspbian/Ubuntu install:
$ dpkg --print-architecture
armhf or arm64
If your device is a model zero, 1, 2 or 3 you are screwed.
What about 3b+ and Model 4’s?
Raspberry Pi is still focused on armhf.
- There is no mention of arm64 on the official website! It is insanely confusing.
- You’ll want to install the Lite arm64 release, which is not even mentioned on the website. Yikes.
- A beta release of the full image is available, but not recommended as it has seen no activity since 5/2020.
Nextcloud devs are only focused on arm64.
As of version 20, there are a number of exciting changes you must have arm64 installed to use:
- If you purchased 4gb or 8gb ram… It will literally not be used on your
armhfinstallation. - Collabora office suite support in version 19 and 20 requires arm64 or x86 in appstore.
- Requires a minimum of an additional 1gb ram + 100mb per user, so only supports Model 4 with higher ram option to work.
- Matterbridge integration in Talk only released for arm64 and x86 platforms in appstore.
In order to upgrade your raspberry pi to arm64, run nc-backup and import this into your newly installed Raspberry Pi arm64 nextcloudpi installation. Do not save your backup to the device you are installing arm64 to, but do import it after installation from a safe location.
What if I’m stuck on armhf model Zero, 1, 2, or 3?
Time to upgrade. It is what it is. Don’t expect even decent performance without as much ram as possible.
Can I install arm64 on a model Zero, 1, 2 or 3?
No, only armhf is supported. Keep in mind these devices have been around almost a decade, which is really impressive and speaks to how much the community loves them!
What about running arm64 on the 3b+ Model?
It is supported, but not recommended due to a number of issues holding it back.
- 1gb of ram is simply not good enough for the amazing features available in version 20.
- USB 2.0 is slow. Upgrade to Model 3 adds much faster USB 3.0 support.
- 100mb Ethernet is slow. Upgrade to Model 4 brings gigabit ethernet.
- Shared bus between USB and Ethernet is even slower. Upgrade to Model 4 resolves this issue.
I hope this helps!
This will continue to confuse people as they attempt to install the latest Nextcloud release on their NextcloudPi device or similar. I wish you all the best!