[gentoo-user] Update BIOS with 4MB .exe

[gentoo-user] Update BIOS with 4MB .exe

[Grant]

I'm amazed this is so difficult but I've just spent 3 hours trying to
update the BIOS on my Dell XPS 13 and hit nothing but dead ends.  The
root of the problem seems to be that the 4MB BIOS update file is too
large for the available 1.44MB DOS boot disks.  Apparently FreeDOS had
a LiveCD available at some point but it has reportedly been
unavailable for quite some time.

The following method looks promising but it also doesn't work.  DOS
can't seem to execute the .exe file which sits outside of the boot
image:

http://en.gentoo-wiki.com/wiki/FreeDOS_Flash_Drive

Does anyone know how to do this?

- Grant

Re: [gentoo-user] Update BIOS with 4MB .exe

[Jesús J. Guerrero Botella]

flashrom can write to a growing number of BIOSes, did you try it
already? It's in portage so you can just emerge it. Look at the use
flag list, since you might need to enable support for something in
there so it can see your chip(s).

The exe file might be usable directly with it, or you might have some
luck trying to uncompress it with 7z or xz.

-- 
Jesús Guerrero Botella

Re: [gentoo-user] Update BIOS with 4MB .exe

[Markus Kaindl]

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Hi,

did you try, if your DELL is supported by libsmbios?
http://www.gentoo-wiki.info/Dell_BIOS_Upgrade

Worked for me on 3 DELL-Computers (1 Desktop and 2 Laptops).

Markus

Grant schrieb:
> I'm amazed this is so difficult but I've just spent 3 hours trying to
> update the BIOS on my Dell XPS 13 and hit nothing but dead ends.  The
> root of the problem seems to be that the 4MB BIOS update file is too
> large for the available 1.44MB DOS boot disks.  Apparently FreeDOS had
> a LiveCD available at some point but it has reportedly been
> unavailable for quite some time.
> 
> The following method looks promising but it also doesn't work.  DOS
> can't seem to execute the .exe file which sits outside of the boot
> image:
> 
> http://en.gentoo-wiki.com/wiki/FreeDOS_Flash_Drive
> 
> Does anyone know how to do this?
> 
> - Grant
> 


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Re: [gentoo-user] Update BIOS with 4MB .exe

[Grant]

> flashrom can write to a growing number of BIOSes, did you try it
> already? It's in portage so you can just emerge it. Look at the use
> flag list, since you might need to enable support for something in
> there so it can see your chip(s).
>
> The exe file might be usable directly with it, or you might have some
> luck trying to uncompress it with 7z or xz.

I read that flashrom can't use an executable directly and unzip didn't
work so I didn't seriously consider it.  I didn't try 7z or xz though.

I did finally get it to work with unetbootin though.  This would
actually probably work too:

http://en.gentoo-wiki.com/wiki/FreeDOS_Flash_Drive

My problem was that I was trying to change to the C drive like this:

cd c:

instead of like this:

c:

:)

- Grant

Re: [gentoo-user] Update BIOS with 4MB .exe

[Grant]

> did you try, if your DELL is supported by libsmbios?
> http://www.gentoo-wiki.info/Dell_BIOS_Upgrade
>
> Worked for me on 3 DELL-Computers (1 Desktop and 2 Laptops).
>
> Markus

Sometimes it just doesn't pay to *not* come to the list *first*.  I
did get it working with unetbootin as mentioned in my other post.

Thanks guys,
Grant


>> I'm amazed this is so difficult but I've just spent 3 hours trying to
>> update the BIOS on my Dell XPS 13 and hit nothing but dead ends.  The
>> root of the problem seems to be that the 4MB BIOS update file is too
>> large for the available 1.44MB DOS boot disks.  Apparently FreeDOS had
>> a LiveCD available at some point but it has reportedly been
>> unavailable for quite some time.
>>
>> The following method looks promising but it also doesn't work.  DOS
>> can't seem to execute the .exe file which sits outside of the boot
>> image:
>>
>> http://en.gentoo-wiki.com/wiki/FreeDOS_Flash_Drive
>>
>> Does anyone know how to do this?
>>
>> - Grant

Re: [gentoo-user] Update BIOS with 4MB .exe

[Grant]

> Hi,
>
> did you try, if your DELL is supported by libsmbios?
> http://www.gentoo-wiki.info/Dell_BIOS_Upgrade
>
> Worked for me on 3 DELL-Computers (1 Desktop and 2 Laptops).
>
> Markus

Now that I look more closely at that page, I've got to cast a vote for
going the unetbootin way.  It's really easy and it doesn't require you
to extract anything from the executable.  Just remember to change to
the C drive like "c:".

- Grant


> Grant schrieb:
>> I'm amazed this is so difficult but I've just spent 3 hours trying to
>> update the BIOS on my Dell XPS 13 and hit nothing but dead ends.  The
>> root of the problem seems to be that the 4MB BIOS update file is too
>> large for the available 1.44MB DOS boot disks.  Apparently FreeDOS had
>> a LiveCD available at some point but it has reportedly been
>> unavailable for quite some time.
>>
>> The following method looks promising but it also doesn't work.  DOS
>> can't seem to execute the .exe file which sits outside of the boot
>> image:
>>
>> http://en.gentoo-wiki.com/wiki/FreeDOS_Flash_Drive
>>
>> Does anyone know how to do this?
>>
>> - Grant

Re: [gentoo-user] Update BIOS with 4MB .exe

[Volker Armin Hemmann]

Am Montag, 16. April 2012, 03:14:15 schrieb Grant:
> I'm amazed this is so difficult but I've just spent 3 hours trying to
> update the BIOS on my Dell XPS 13 and hit nothing but dead ends.  The
> root of the problem seems to be that the 4MB BIOS update file is too
> large for the available 1.44MB DOS boot disks.  Apparently FreeDOS had
> a LiveCD available at some point but it has reportedly been
> unavailable for quite some time.
> 
> The following method looks promising but it also doesn't work.  DOS
> can't seem to execute the .exe file which sits outside of the boot
> image:
> 
> http://en.gentoo-wiki.com/wiki/FreeDOS_Flash_Drive
> 
> Does anyone know how to do this?
> 
> - Grant


download systemrescuecd
install it on a usb stick

systemrescuecd has freedos 'on board', boot into freedos, flash.

-- 
#163933

Re: [gentoo-user] Update BIOS with 4MB .exe

[James Broadhead]

On 16 April 2012 11:48, Markus Kaindl <markus.kaindl@stusta.mhn.de> wrote:
> Hi,
>
> did you try, if your DELL is supported by libsmbios?
> http://www.gentoo-wiki.info/Dell_BIOS_Upgrade
>
> Worked for me on 3 DELL-Computers (1 Desktop and 2 Laptops).
>
> Markus
>

Please link people to the maintained version of the wiki, not the
archive (that's .com, not .info)

http://en.gentoo-wiki.com/wiki/Dell_BIOS_Upgrade


Most of that page describes multiple ways of getting a .hdr file to
flash the bios from. Dell provides extracted .hdrs, so there's no need
to extract from a .exe.

I have used smbios a few times in the past, and haven't had any trouble with it.