ALPON X4 Operating System
This page describes the ALPON X4's customized Raspberry Pi OS, emphasizing its optimized performance and the need to maintain system integrity.
Operating System
The ALPON X4 operates on a customized version of Raspberry Pi OS Lite 64-bit Bookworm, specifically tailored for optimal IoT performance. This OS includes essential software for cellular communication, device management, network management, app and container management, API integration, and VPN setup.
Customized by Sixfab for industrial IoT edge deployments. Includes pre-installed software stack for all ALPON platform capabilities.
This customized OS is optimized to ensure seamless performance and smooth operation of all pre-installed applications. We strongly advise against making any changes to the operating system, as modifications may negatively impact device performance, disrupt pre-installed applications, and cause conflicts with your own software.
For best results, we recommend using the system as provided. Any alterations could lead to reduced uptime, system instability, and compatibility issues that may affect both your applications and the ALPON X4's reliability.
Setting Up User Access
By default, the ALPON X4 device comes with a pre-configured alpon user and a password of sixfab.
This default user allows you to perform initial configuration on the device. However, for security reasons, you can choose to either update the password for this user or delete it entirely. Additionally, you can create a new user and grant them admin privileges.
alpon / sixfab credentials are shared across all ALPON X4 devices. Always change the password or replace this user before deploying to a production environment.
Also, each ALPON X4 has a unique hostname based on its MAC address, in the format:
This ensures that multiple devices on the same network do not conflict. Follow these steps to create a user account, assign admin privileges, and connect to the device:
Before proceeding, ensure the device is provisioned via the Sixfab Connect platform.
📋 PrerequisiteALPON X4 Getting Started guide →Log in to the Sixfab Connect platform and open the remote terminal for your ALPON X4.
The ALPON X4 device comes with the alpon user account, with the password set to sixfab. For enhanced security, you can:
passwd alpon
Enter the new password and confirm it.
sudo deluser alpon
After completing these steps, it is recommended to create a new user for further access and management (see Step 4).
Run the following command to create a new user:
adduser [USERNAME]
Replace [USERNAME] with the desired username. Example:
adduser test
- Enter a password when prompted.
- Confirm the password.
Assign Admin Privileges
Grant the new user admin rights by running:
echo "[USERNAME] ALL=(ALL) NOPASSWD: ALL" | sudo tee /etc/sudoers.d/[USERNAME]
Example:
echo "test ALL=(ALL) NOPASSWD: ALL" | sudo tee /etc/sudoers.d/test
Once the user is created, connect to the device from your computer using SSH:
ssh [USERNAME]@alpon-[MAC_ADDRESS].local
Example — if your device's hostname is alpon-2ccf67319374 and your username is test:
ssh test@alpon-2ccf67319374.local
test (the user you created in Step 4)alpon-2ccf67319374.local (unique per device — find on label)22 (default SSH port).local suffix uses mDNS (Bonjour/Avahi). If hostname resolution fails, use the device's IP address instead: ssh test@<IP_ADDRESS>If needed, you can connect a display to the ALPON X4 via HDMI and log in using the created username and password.
Updated 13 days ago