Before flashing confirm that you have [RAK4631](https://docs.rakwireless.com/Product-Categories/WisBlock/RAK4631/) and not a [RAK4631-R](https://docs.rakwireless.com/Product-Categories/WisBlock/RAK4631-R/) If this is not the case, fear not. The hardware is identical but requires changing the bootloader. Instructions on how to do this are located [here](/docs/getting-started/flashing-firmware/nrf52/#convert-rak4631-r-to-rak4631).
Once the file has finished copying onto the drive, the device will reboot and install the Meshtastic firmware.
:::caution
If you're upgrading your NRF52 device from a previous version of Meshtastic rather than starting from scratch, you may need to do a full factory reset of the internal flash memory. Stale data saved by previous versions of the Meshtastic firmware can cause devices to get stuck in a crash loop at startup.
:::
Meshtastic uses the [littlefs](https://github.com/littlefs-project/littlefs) library to store configuration, logs, and other data in the internal flash of NRF52 devices. Updating the firmware does _not_ erase this additional data, which can cause issues when the format and location of data changes between releases.
To reset the flash storage on your NRF52 board, first follow steps 1-4 above. At step 5, copy the included file named `Meshtastic_nRF52_factory_erase.uf2` onto the virtual disk device instead of a `firmware-DEVICE_NAME...` binary. After the device resets, connect to it via serial console using the [Meshtastic CLI `--noproto`](/docs/software/python/cli/#--noproto) mode or a standalone serial client like `minicom`. When you connect to the serial console, press any key; you should see the message `Formating ... Done`.
