Gathering the required items

  • Home Assistant Yellow
  • Flat nose pliers

Opening the case

Step 1

Protecting from ESD

Grounding protects the components from the static electricity that can be naturally present (electrostatic discharge, ESD).

  • Always: Touch the working surface before touching electronics.
  • Ideally: Use ESD protective equipment, such as ESD table mats and grounding cords.

Step 2

Removing the case - bottom part
  • Remove the 4 screws on the bottom of the Home Assistant Yellow Kit.
  • Keep the thumb screws close by; you will need them again later.

Step 3

Removing the case - top part
  • Make sure the interfaces are facing towards your left.
  • Flip the case over.
  • Slightly lift off the enclosure on your left.
  • Slide the enclosure off towards your right.

Removing the Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4

Step 1

Removing the heat sink
  • Use the pliers and squeeze the front of the pin so that it fits through the hole.
  • Repeat the procedure for the other pin.

Step 2

Removing the Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4
  • Ideally, the module should be pulled up vertically. But this is hard to to.
  • Pull up the module from one side, tilting as little as possible. Tilting can damage the connector.
  • This requires quite a bit of strength. If it does not work, pull harder.
  • Do not use a screw driver as a lever. It might damage the board.

Re-seating the Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4

Step 1

Align the CM4
  • Place the board in front of you, the red and blue buttons facing to the right.
  • Orient the CM4: The CE mark needs to be on the bottom.
  • Use the outline of the chips to help find the correct orientation of the CM4. Note: on CM4 Lite variants, the chips on the bottom edge are in a different location.
  • Carefully place the CM4 without force.
  • The CM4 should fall into place slightly when correctly aligned.

Step 2

Installing the CM4
  • Press the CM4 board onto the board-to-board connectors until it clicks into place.
  • Make sure you press on both sides (the two long edges).
  • This requires quite a bit of force. If you don't hear a loud click, it is most likely not fully seated.
  • Do a visual check to make sure the CM4 is installed correctly: it needs to run parallel to the Home Assistant Yellow board.

Step 3

Placing the heat sink
  • Push the 2 plastic push pins into the dedicated hole on the heat sink.
  • Start by first aligning the right plastic push pins into the dedicated hole on the carrier board.
  • Then, place the heat sink onto the CM4.

Step 4

Securing the heat sink
  • Take the entire board off your workplace and push the pins firmly through the carrier board.
  • Ensure that the CM4 is still fully seated after securing the heat sink.

Reassembling your Home Assistant Yellow

Step 1

Preparation
  • Place the translucent bottom part of the case onto the table.
  • Make sure the two round notches form a line pointing towards the top right corner.

Step 2

Reassembling - bottom part
  • Place the board onto the bottom part of the case.
  • Make sure the USB connectors are facing upwards, away from you.

Step 3

Reassembling - top part
  • Turn the enclosure upside down.
  • Then, slide the push buttons into the openings of the case.

Step 4

Mounting the case
  • Insert the 4 thumb screws.
  • Do not over-tighten the screws.