Phaeton

Phaeton documentation

Backup and Restore

Protect configuration, saved operating state, logs, and local license files.

Important Files

Phaeton keeps everything it needs in its data directory: /data/phaeton on Venus OS. Each additional charger on the same GX has its own folder under /data/phaeton-instances/.

  • config.yaml: the main configuration, including the administrator account and charger credentials.
  • config-web.json: a private copy of the administrator account, used when config.yaml cannot be read.
  • state.json: the saved operating state.
  • phaeton.<date>.log: the daily log files, plus phaeton.<date>.<n>.log when a file reaches its maximum size. These are the defaults when no custom log path is set.
  • license/install-state.json and license/license.json: the local installation identity and the signed license.
  • tls/: the HTTPS certificate of the web UI, so its fingerprint stays the same after a restore.

A custom state file or log path must stay inside the data directory: the state file must end in .json, and the log path must end in .log or name a folder. Phaeton runs with full privileges on the GX, so it refuses other locations; at startup it moves a saved path from elsewhere back to the default and shows a notice in Settings. Phaeton keeps at least two log files, so a rotation always keeps the previous one. The Logs page, log downloads and support bundles read the newest log file.

Backup Command

Sign in to the GX over SSH and run this command. It saves the whole data directory in one file in the current folder:

tar -czf phaeton-backup-$(date +%Y%m%d).tar.gz -C /data phaeton

With more than one charger on the GX, use the command in Back Up Several Chargers instead.

Copy the file to another computer. It holds your administrator password, charger credentials and license, so keep it as private as a password. Make a new backup before each update.

Restore On The Same Device

Phaeton must be installed for this; after an uninstall, install it again first. Copy the backup file back to the GX, unpack the first charger into /data and restart the GX, so Phaeton starts with the restored files. Use your own file name:

mkdir -p /data/phaeton
tar -xzf phaeton-backup-<date>.tar.gz -C /data phaeton

Restore an additional charger only while it is still installed on this GX, by unpacking its own folder the same way: tar -xzf phaeton-chargers-<date>.tar.gz -C /data phaeton-instances/<folder> (grep -H . /data/phaeton-instances/*/gx-display-name.json shows each folder with its charger's name; a charger added over SSH uses its installation name as the folder). After an uninstall, or after you removed a charger, add it again under Chargers on this GX instead: a restored folder by itself has no startup entry, so the charger would not start.

License Note

License files are bound to the installation identity and device fingerprint. Do not copy them to another device and expect activation to remain valid. To move a license, see Activation.

Reinstalling or replacing a device

Uninstall Phaeton

Uninstalling deletes the settings, administrator account, license and charging history from the GX, so make a backup first if you may want them again. Take out a Phaeton USB installer stick before you start; otherwise the GX installs Phaeton again when it restarts.

Open System → Chargers on this GX, expand this charger and choose Uninstall Phaeton. Remove any other chargers on that page first. Phaeton stops, removes its VRM Control Panel route, its saved GX Modbus device and its startup entry, and deletes /data/phaeton and its USB recovery files. Other startup commands in /data/rc.local are kept. The GX drops Phaeton from its device list within a minute.

Uninstalling refuses to start while other chargers or a Phaeton USB installer are present, or when the startup file holds a Phaeton entry that was changed by hand. If Phaeton cannot be stopped or its VRM Control Panel route cannot be removed, it starts again with every file intact and reports why. If Phaeton is still listed on the GX a few minutes later, restart the GX. If it used Modbus TCP and still appears in the GX list of saved Modbus TCP devices, remove that entry there.

The license stays in your portal account. After a reinstall Phaeton has a new installation identity, so activate it again.

Uninstall From A GX Terminal

If the web interface cannot be opened, or setup was never finished, run this command in a GX terminal and type uninstall to confirm. It removes the same things as the web interface.

/data/phaeton/phaeton --uninstall

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