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submitted 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) by tradicije@lemmy.zip to c/selfhosted@lemmy.world

This post is an update of the second part of my Moto server series: https://lemmy.zip/post/72142441

Rumor has it that keeping an 8-year-old phone permanently plugged in with its equally ancient Li-ion battery might not be the greatest idea ever conceived.

Some even claimed that a phone needs a battery to work.

Very negative people.

Anyway, I removed it.

Pettyl did not care.

nginx: UP PHP-FPM: UP MariaDB: UP WordPress: UP cloudflared: UP sshd: UP

The battery is currently sitting next to the phone, contributing absolutely nothing to the project.

Pettyl is now running entirely from USB power, at around 37°C, while continuing to serve the website like this is completely normal.

There is, however, one tiny detail the haters may enjoy:

It can’t boot without the battery.

So the official Pettyl disaster recovery procedure is now:

  1. Insert battery
  2. Boot Pettyl
  3. Connect USB power
  4. Remove battery
  5. Pretend this is enterprise infrastructure

The battery is no longer a battery.

It is the starter motor.

I see no problems with this architecture.

Anyway, Part 3 is going great.

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[-] amateurcrastinator@lemmy.world 3 points 11 hours ago

I wonder if my pixel 7 pro that dies suddenly can do the same. I suspect the battery just packed up

[-] Uri@infosec.pub 5 points 18 hours ago

I have a simillar setup but i kept the battery it acts like a ups

[-] bufalo1973@piefed.social 3 points 16 hours ago

Why not connecting the battery with a cable and put a switch in it?

[-] vext01@feddit.uk 47 points 1 day ago

Remember the days when hou could just pop the back off and take the battery out?

[-] El_Scapacabra@lemmy.zip 5 points 1 day ago

And it would still run when you had it plugged in. I could remove the battery from my old Galaxy S2, plug it in and it would work. And if I remember correctly, the same thing went for most of the phones I had before that.

[-] Cyber@feddit.uk 4 points 1 day ago

That's where I am today with my Fairphone.

I honestly held on to my old Nokia, replacing batteries and cases until Fairphone came along and then I jumped from 90's tech to modern day.

0-->100% in 10 seconds (with a 2nd battery)

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[-] NotMyOldRedditName@lemmy.world 19 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

Now plug the phone into a UPS so if the power goes out you're good for awhile.

[-] tradicije@lemmy.zip 51 points 1 day ago

This is obviously ridiculous.

So I’ll do it.

[-] SuspiciousCarrot78@aussie.zone 4 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

We are glad to inform you that your application to the USS Enterprise Engineering Department has been accepted!

Please do not turn Admiral Archer's beagle inside-out on day one and refrain from creating perpetual energy machines, sapient missiles or sexbots until you have undegone the requisite HR training and completed your schedule of immunisations.

[-] NotMyOldRedditName@lemmy.world 8 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

I'm honoured to have my idea contributed to this project!

[-] tradicije@lemmy.zip 7 points 1 day ago

Your contribution is noted and landed you a new position at Pettyl Industries!

Read Here

[-] NotMyOldRedditName@lemmy.world 6 points 1 day ago

I graciously accept the position of Chief Energy Officer! Thank you!

[-] fox2263@lemmy.world 11 points 1 day ago

Perhaps replace its aging battery with a new one. Then you have a built in UPS for ideal disaster recovery

[-] tradicije@lemmy.zip 6 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

Nah, an actual UPS with 7kg batteries is way cooler.

But I really appreciate the feedback!

[-] HeyThisIsntTheYMCA@lemmy.world 4 points 20 hours ago

Inefficient tungsten gravity batteries are so cool tho

[-] fox2263@lemmy.world 8 points 1 day ago

Perhaps then some solar power as well. I think those ecoflow battery + solar can act as UPS too. Could power that server indefinitely 😂

[-] tradicije@lemmy.zip 4 points 1 day ago

Now we're speaking the same language!

[-] fox2263@lemmy.world 5 points 1 day ago

Can you get a second identical phone. Or a third? I’m thinking perhaps load balancing and failover

[-] tradicije@lemmy.zip 5 points 1 day ago

Maybe not an identical one, but I did find an interesting Note 9 for around $40...

I guess this is foreshadowing...

[-] fox2263@lemmy.world 6 points 1 day ago

Definitely take the battery out of that one

[-] tradicije@lemmy.zip 5 points 1 day ago

Yeah, for 40 bucks I get a phone with good specs and a free pillow!

[-] 0485919158191@lemmy.world 54 points 1 day ago

Since when does a phone need a battery to run? It needs power, doesn’t matter where the power comes from.

[-] tradicije@lemmy.zip 85 points 1 day ago

well ACKSHUALLY 🤓☝️

Unfortunately Pettyl is stupid enough to need the battery to boot, but smart enough to forget about it immediately afterwards.

I don’t make the rules, I just host WordPress on an 8-year-old Motorola.

[-] ryannathans@aussie.zone 52 points 1 day ago

Since their burst power consumption started using more current than a capacitor in the charging circuitry could provide

[-] SlurpingPus@lemmy.world 2 points 11 hours ago

Fun fact, this is also why Macbooks, at least some models, throttle the CPU if the battery is missing. My old Macbook went from 2.4 GHz to 800 MHz without the battery.

[-] tradicije@lemmy.zip 27 points 1 day ago

Yeah, what he said. I was just about to say the exact same thing…

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[-] gagootron@feddit.org 22 points 1 day ago

When the battery in my wall mounted android tablet swelled i had to add a 10k resistor to the sense line, inject the 5V directly into the battery port and add a few capacitors to get it to work. But at least it won't cause a fire now.

[-] oaoaoe@thebrainbin.org 35 points 1 day ago

Damn, I wish they still made phones with a removable battery

[-] JustEnoughDucks@feddit.nl 16 points 1 day ago

I just got a fairphone 6. Removable battery!

[-] puz@piefed.social 2 points 16 hours ago

I'm still using my fairphone 5 :)

[-] foggy@lemmy.world 31 points 1 day ago

I used to keep a charged spare on me. And this was back when a phones battery life was like 3-7 days.

Stop making phones thinner God dammit. I don't want a thinner phone. I want longer battery life and a removable battery so I can fucking double the shitty longer battery life I get.

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[-] undefinedTruth@lemmy.zip 9 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

Didn't EU pass a regulation regarding that? If I recall correctly all portable devices sold in the EU after February will will need to have a user replaceable battery.

[-] Wispy2891@lemmy.world 5 points 1 day ago

i'm curious to see how apple will workaround the regulation

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[-] Asetru@feddit.org 10 points 1 day ago

Well... I was obviously wrong. Sorry.

Don't know if my knowledge was just outdated or plain wrong from the start, but good on you for still trying and respect for pulling that off.

[-] MouldyCat@feddit.uk 4 points 21 hours ago

AFAIK it depends on the device. I believe it's simpler to have a battery management system which keeps the battery charged when power is attached, and then a second separate system which powers the phone from the battery. That does lead to more wear on the battery though, so the better solution is to have a power management system which monitors the battery and keeps it within a set charge range, and additionally can supply the voltage needed to run the phone. Only when power is not connected does the battery power the phone.

From a quick google though, it seems that's only part of the picture. High-end modern phones will often require a battery present, as they use it to smooth out the power coming from the adapter, even though most of the power for the phone when the charger is attached comes from a direct power path.

[-] tradicije@lemmy.zip 8 points 1 day ago

You are absolutely fine!

People here, including you, have been very respectful and thoughtful, and I am all for feedback.

I don’t have the knowledge of the whole universe, do I? So please, by all means, I want to hear your critiques, it makes the project better and I learn along the way!

[-] neidu4@piefed.social 25 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

Anything made to be run from battery can work fine without one. Worst case scenario requires you to spoof some I²C communication to properly emulate a battery, but most devices and batteries are far dumber than that. DC is DC, and sometimes you just need to graft something on top for the other pins.

Source: My old laptops charging circuit failed, so I soldered the charger onto the battery pins instead. Then I replaced the actual battery with an Adafruit Itsybitsy 32u4 (because that what I happened to have available) that emulated the battery status of "Charging, nothing to see here, move along" and sent it via I²C

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[-] ayyy@sh.itjust.works 10 points 1 day ago

DO NOT skip step 5. It is VERY IMPORTANT.

[-] dual_sport_dork@lemmy.world 23 points 1 day ago

My old Galaxy S5 would work without the battery, including bootup. So it's not entirely unexpected that other phones could also do so. I would say I can't imagine who would take the time out out of their day to just talk out their ass and claim something like this wouldn't work without trying it first. Except then I remember this is the internet, and people do that all the time.

Regardless, good on you for making this all work!

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[-] non_burglar@lemmy.world 16 points 1 day ago

Nice.

There is often a check for battery that is effectively a check of resistance between sense and ground. Looks like that battery is labelled, you might be able to bodge a resistor between sense and ground on the phone and get it to boot without the battery?

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[-] tradicije@lemmy.zip 14 points 1 day ago

Update! Apparently removing the battery also removes half the CPU lol.

I’ll keep you posted!

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this post was submitted on 26 Sep 2026
639 points (99.1% liked)

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