Since Armbian 20.05 version, the OS image is compressed in XZ format. If you use balena etcher, you can directly write the XZ compressed image files to the microSD.
## **Step 2** - Writing an image to a microSD Card
You will need to use an image writing tool to install on your microSD Card the image build you have downloaded.
### Under Windows, Mac OS or Linux (via Graphic Interface)
Etcher is a graphical SD card writing tool that works on Mac OS, Linux and Windows, this is the easiest method for most users. Etcher also supports writing images directly from XZ files, without any prerequired decompression. To write your image with Etcher:
- [Download Etcher](http://etcher.io) and install it on your computer.
- Insert the microSD Card inside your SD card reader (microSD to SD adapter might be needed).
/dev/sdX is where the microSD is mapped in your Linux machine, change the 'X' to your corresponding mapped device. If you set /dev/sdX to a wrong device then you might risk erasing a hard drive or different device than the designated microSD.
The serial port detection may vary on different system, please make sure to check the device manager to get the information of correct serial port to connect to Helios64. Check this [link](https://tnp.uservoice.com/knowledgebase/articles/172101-determining-the-com-port-of-a-usb-to-serial-adapte) to learn how to determine the right COM port.
To exit picocom do **Ctrl-a** then **q** button in squence
!!! note
Using command _ls -la /dev/ttyUSB*_ you should be able the find the USB to serial bridge device used by Helios64. Under Linux the device will be named **/dev/ttyUSBx**, where **x** is a digit.
### Under Mac OS (via Terminal)
Connect serial using the *screen* command
$ screen /dev/tty.usbserial-XXXXXXXX 1500000 -L
To exit the session do **Ctrl-a** then **Ctrl-k**
!!! note
Using command _ls -la /dev/tty.usb*_ you should be able the find the USB to serial bridge device used by Helios64. Under Mac OS the device will be named **/dev/tty.usbserial-xxxxxxxx**, where **xxxxxxxx** is some serial number.
## **Step 5** - Log in
!!! note
You might need to press **Enter** for the login prompt to come up.
**Default credential for Debian or Ubuntu image**
```bash
helios4 login: root
Password: 1234
```
You will be prompted to change the root password and then create a new user account.
By default Helios64 will try to obtain an IP address via DHCP. To figure out what is the allocated IP address you will need to type the following command in the console.
You will have to reboot for the network settings to take effect.
```bash
sudo reboot
```
!!! info
You can also refer to the following Debian Wiki [Page](https://wiki.debian.org/NetworkConfiguration#Setting_up_an_Ethernet_Interface) for advanced network settings.
## **Step 7** - Connect to Helios64 via SSH
You can now connect by SSH to your Helios64 to carry on with your configuration.
If you want to install OpenMediaVault, the next-gen network attached storage (NAS) software, refer to the [OMV](/helios4/omv) page.
For other software you can use **armbian-config** which provides an easy way to install 3rd party applications. You can also refer to our *Software* section to find tutorials that will help you to setup manually your Helios64.