Garmin "Lifetime Updates"

[Bumpkin]

As for reinstalling the 2009 mapset, I was travelling in Europe and fortunately, I had taken my laptop with me. I had the 2009 mapset on my laptop and reinstalled from there.

Did you use the 'send to device' button in Mapsource having used the map selection tool to select the mapping you needed to load?

You can load mapping this way although it is then loaded onto the device as the gmapsupp.img file, this is the secondary mapping file. If you then try to do a Garmin controlled update on the GPS via a NuMaps update download, or from an update DVD, this will try to create the gmapprom.img file. This is for the primary mapping and is unaffected by, and protected from, any activity that you can do via the Mapsource or MapInstall programs. If you have a great big honking gmapsupp.img file in place then there wont be room for the new spangly gmapprom.img file and the update will fail.

Hook up your Zumo to your PC and put it into mass storage mode and see if you can find a file called gmapsupp.img, how big is it?

 

[longdog]

Did you use the 'send to device' button in Mapsource having used the map selection tool to select the mapping you needed to load?

You can load mapping this way although it is then loaded onto the device as the gmapsupp.img file, this is the secondary mapping file. If you then try to do a Garmin controlled update on the GPS via a NuMaps update download, or from an update DVD, this will try to create the gmapprom.img file. This is for the primary mapping and is unaffected by, and protected from, any activity that you can do via the Mapsource or MapInstall programs. If you have a great big honking gmapsupp.img file in place then there wont be room for the new spangly gmapprom.img file and the update will fail.

Hook up your Zumo to your PC and put it into mass storage mode and see if you can find a file called gmapsupp.img, how big is it?

The gmapsupp.img file on my 550 is 781,168 Kb Is this big? What should it be? If I need to alter it, what should I do?

I have cleared out the mp3 files and all the voice files except the UK English files.

 

[Bumpkin]

The gmapsupp.img file on my 550 is 781,168 Kb Is this big?

Yes, that's pretty huge. Not sure what the internal memory is on a 550 but ISTR reading that the latest version of City Nav won't fit in its entirety without having a good clear-out. Probably 2GB, or there about, so your gmapsupp.img file is taking up almost 40% of it.

If you loaded your current mapping via Mapsource then this is what's in the gmapsupp.img file. This file can be copied to you PC (just in case) and deleted off the GPS. Having deleted MP3s and unused voice files you should now be able to perform your update, give it a go.

 

[longdog]

Yes, that's pretty huge. Not sure what the internal memory is on a 550 but ISTR reading that the latest version of City Nav won't fit in its entirety without having a good clear-out. Probably 2GB, or there about, so your gmapsupp.img file is taking up almost 40% of it.

If you loaded your current mapping via Mapsource then this is what's in the gmapsupp.img file. This file can be copied to you PC (just in case) and deleted off the GPS. Having deleted MP3s and unused voice files you should now be able to perform your update, give it a go.

Bumpkin, I have to say thanks, I owe you a pint or two

I've followed your advice and it appears that the download for Western Europe has gone successfully, (fingers crossed!).

Next step now is to buy a 2 or 4 Gb SD card and download the rest of Europe to that.

Just as a matter of interest, if I were to select the whole of Europe with a suitable SD installed, would the unit accept it or would I have to install maps to the SD card separately?

 

[NeilDD]

Bumpkin, I have to say thanks, I owe you a pint or two

I've followed your advice and it appears that the download for Western Europe has gone successfully, (fingers crossed!).

Next step now is to buy a 2 or 4 Gb SD card and download the rest of Europe to that.

Just as a matter of interest, if I were to select the whole of Europe with a suitable SD installed, would the unit accept it or would I have to install maps to the SD card separately?

The simplest way is using Whattons instructions and download from Garmin "Map Install" which give you the option of installing the rest of the maps to a file.

Read Whattons info on the sticky at the top of the page, if helped me

Neil

 

[longdog]

All done, got Western Europe loaded onto my ZUMO 550 and I bought a 4Gb SDHC and downloaded the whole of Europe onto that!!!

 

[harry the cat]

Help

I've just researched this thread because I'm having trouble updating my lifetime maps on the 550. I've managed to download the map onto the computer and tried to install it using map install which says I've got 197.7mb of space (just about enough for the UK and a bit of the sea)!

Looking at the garmin the only big file I can see is the gmapprom.img at around 1.47gb. Do I have to copy that to the desktop and delete it to create space for the update? Does the new map not over write the old one?

Am I better buying a 4gb sd card and trying to load europe on that?

Caution - in case any of the above implies I have a clue what I'm talking about...I don't

 

[JohnnyBoxer]

I've just researched this thread because I'm having trouble updating my lifetime maps on the 550. I've managed to download the map onto the computer and tried to install it using map install which says I've got 197.7mb of space (just about enough for the UK and a bit of the sea)!

Looking at the garmin the only big file I can see is the gmapprom.img at around 1.47gb. Do I have to copy that to the desktop and delete it to create space for the update? Does the new map not over write the old one?

Am I better buying a 4gb sd card and trying to load europe on that?

Caution - in case any of the above implies I have a clue what I'm talking about...I don't

Your wife will no doubt be able to sort it..................they usually are good at it

 

[Allan Davies]

It's a bit strange this. I have updated my unit several times (I have to go to zummerset, outlaws, as my tinternet speed is shite, takes all day then crashes and so on) I now name the file 3.4gig Oct2010 or whatever, then delete the previous one, so I know excactley where I am, as that is a BIG FILE to leave on your comp, when it has been updated several times before. I can't see why Garmin don't make a patch or something and just do the full update once ayear instead of 4 times.
I found it best to follow the prompts and click the button/bar that says 'start automatically on conpletion of down load' as sometimes it seems to hang for ages, which is when I normally unplug it to look see, it then wakes up and starts building maps to comp then transfers them to unit .
It only says not enough space when the memory on the comp is full (mine anyway), see above-nameing and deleting. never on the unit as its supposed to overwrite it with new data, which the 550 has enough space for. The 500 has a smaller memory so the whole of Western Europe won't fit on there, which is where SD cards come in.
If memory serves

 

[Bumpkin]

Doing a map update the official way you should be downloading the mapping directly to your GPS rather than saving it to your PC and then installing it from there. The latter is the old pre NT mapping method that was required for the 2610, Quest etc.

The download direct to the GPS method should overwrite your existing primary mapping (gmapprom.img).

If you download to your PC and use Mapsource or MapInstall to load the mapping you'll be loading the your new mapping into the supplementary mapping file (gmapsupp.img).

These two autonomous mapping files share the available memory along with voices, POIs etc.

City Nav Europe is pretty huge, approaching 2GB which leaves little room for the rest of this stuff. You can load mapping either way though ideally your primary mapping (i.e. City Nav Europe) should really be in gmapprom.img. It will only fit if you make sure that there's enough room for it. The Zumo 550 is pretty tight on space, the 660 I believe has 4GB so there's quiet a bit of leeway there.

If you've previously loaded City Nav Europe mapping from your PC and the try to update it using the download to GPS method then it will fail and the same applies the other way around. That's unless you have a clear out first.

The supplementary mapping file (gmapsupp.img) is intended for stuff like TOPO mapping or for a chunk of another map-set, i.e. the States, for a trip.

There is a way to create a gmapprom.img file from Mapsource but it's not for the faint hearted.

 

[andyclift]

Files on the SDS card will probably run a little slower so what we did was first install everything on the computer with Mapsource/Basemap (Mac). This installs IN ADDITION to any maps already installed. it can be useful but I wont complicate this by going into detail, just note you can delete earlier maps now it you want to. As storage is so cheap now, why bother. I am sitting on 4000 gbytes on my iMac which cost about £150.!!.

Once you have the maps unlocked on the computer you can use Mapinstall to move them to the satnav. If you have an SD card in the satnav you get a choice on where to put them. I put the UK and a couple of other countries I use a lot on the satnav then run Mapinstall again and put the rest on an SD card. It will overwrite maps already installed so there is no ned to delete anything manually. You could remove unused language files etc. before installing but realistically it won't make that much difference and you will still need he SD card to get everything on.

Look on the bright side. if you had a Tomtom you would get it all on a very small memory space. It would only be about half of Europe though

 

[Bumpkin]

Once you have the maps unlocked on the computer you can use Mapinstall to move them to the satnav.

You're creating/replacing the gmapsupp.img file doing that, it'll still work but it's the wrong way I tell ya'

If you subsequently need to load a few tiles for a part of Europe you don't have loaded and select to load to the GPS all your current mapping will be overwritten. Of course you could just write it to an SD card. With your primary mapping in the gmapprom.img it's protected from this possibility.

Check on your unit if there's a gmapprom.img file, if so how big is it? Do you have more than one version of City Nav selectable on the unit?

The better way would be to write the mapping you need to an SD card from Mapsource, rename that file to from gmapsupp.img to gmapprom.img and then move that to the GPS. You'd need to check that you have enough room first though.

If your happy doing it your current way then fine but it's not the way that Garmin intended. Of course the whole issue is compounded by the limited space on the 550.

 

[davidgibson999]

I put the whole of the maps on a 4gb sd card and not on the unit and it works fine

Apparently this is the only option if you want to have full Euro mapping on the 550. If I'd known that by purchasing lifetime "updates" I'd slow my 550 down and eventually cause it to die by putting on too much mapping I'd have kept my hand in my pocket. That's progress for you - installing updates that are too large for the unit and use up too much memory for it to calculate long routes.

 

[harry the cat]

Thanks (I think)

Thanks for the thoughts to date.

JB - how little you know!!! She took one look at the responses, said she was tired and went to bed. She's no .

Andy - I'm using an iMac with loads of available memory.

Bumpkin - I think I'm with the logic of what you say. i downloaded the maps to the iMac because it wouldn't load direct to the zumo due to the size issues. The current gmapprom.img file is up to 1.47 gb as per original post and doesn't appear to have more than map.

Does it cause a problem if you clear out the original maps? Does the world end so to speak?

 

[Bumpkin]

The current gmapprom.img file is up to 1.47 gb as per original post and doesn't appear to have more than map.

Does it cause a problem if you clear out the original maps? Does the world end so to speak?

Copy the current gmapprom.img file somewhere safe, you can always put it back onto the Zumo to reinstate it. If there's a sizeable gmapsupp.img then it would be worth deleting that as well.

You then have the option of writing a gmapsupp.img file to the unit assuming RoadTrip or whatever passes for Mapsource on the Mac can do that. If you want to protect it then rename this file to gmapprom.img. Alternatively write the file to a USB pen drive or SD card and rename there before transferring to your Zumo. You must have your mapping fully unlocked on your Mac for the transferred file to work, this means unlocking for your specific GPS.

 

[harry the cat]

Update and a question.

I emailed Garmin support and they came back to me the same day which is good!

They warned me against playing with the files other than MP3, voice, help, or text because it would 'ruin the unit'.

I am currently updating the maps in bite size chunks using Garmin map update and so far I've got the UK and most of Western Europe on that way. When the space runs out I'll put the rest on an SD card.

My next issue is that SWMBO needs a Satnav and I was going to get her a 550 but it would appear the memory in it isn't up to the job. We are now looking at the 660 or the 220 which appears like a smaller 660 without all the stuff I never use, MP3 etc.

Any advice as to the pros and cons?

 

[mr_magicfingers]

Just a quick note to say thanks to everyone who has put advice on here. Due to a problem with the registration date on my zumo (whitebox unit) not being cleared by garmin before it was sold to me I couldn't update the maps.

Garmin kindly offered me a full map up date which I'm in the process of downloading. It was only through this thread that I found out that if I deleted all the voices etc I could actually fit Western Europe on the 550 and the rest will go on the sd card I keep tunes on.

Cheers,

J.