# Flash SD Card Image
For many types of devices, including the Raspberry Pi 4, the first step in getting started is to download a MyNode image and flash it onto an SD card. The SD card is then inserted into the device so it can run the MyNode software.
For some devices, like PCs and laptops, a USB thumbdrive can be used in place of the SD card using the same instructions.
This same process can be done to load new versions of software, reset your password if it was forgotten, or to swap to a new SD card with larger storage capacity.
# What is an SD Card
The Raspberry Pi and many other devices use a micro SD card that is inserted into a slot in the device. If you need a micro SD card, they will look similar to the image below and can be purchased from Amazon.
On the Raspberry Pi, the SD card slot can be found on the bottom of the device.
# Download the Software Image
You will need to download the image for your device from mynodebtc.com/download.
Once downloaded, the software needs to be written to the SD card.
# Flash SD Card
To load software image on the SD card, you will need a way to connect the SD card to your computer. Some PCs and laptops have a slot to insert them, but most users will need a USB to micro SD adapter. They can be found on Amazon.
Put the SD card into the adapter and connect it to your PC.
Then, download Etcher, a program for writing software images to SD cards, and install it on your PC or Mac.
Open Etcher and click "Flash from file" and choose the recently downloaded image.
After selecting the image, click "Select target".
Choose the SD card or USB drive from the list and click "Select". Verify the size of the drive matches what you expect.
Once selected, click "Flash!" and the image will be written to the drive. The flashing process may take 5-15 minutes.
Once the image has been flashed to the SD card, you can remove it from the PC.
# Insert SD Card into Device
Finally, the last step is to take the SD card and insert it into the unpowered device.
Once, it has been inserted, reconnect the power cable and enjoy MyNode!
For futher steps, try the Getting Started guide.