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The programming tool AFU-AMI Firmware Update is distributed in the following versions:

AfuEfix64.efi EFI Shell programming utility;
EtaAfuOemLnx32 Linux 32-bit programmer;
EtaAfuOemLnx64 Linux 64-bit programmer;
AFUWIN.EXE Windows 32-bit BIOS programmer;
AFUWINx64.EXE Windows 64-bit BIOS programmer.

Reprogramming the board's BIOS is a critical operation.
Do not turn off the system or remove AC power while the BIOS update operation is in progress, otherwise this may lead to a non-functioning board.

The first reboot after reprogramming may be slower due to some operations, such as flash re-initialization or embedded controller reprogramming. For this reason it is necessary to wait for the complete boot with the new BIOS before considering the operation completed.

AFU is a very powerful tool which allows a wide range of operations in addition to BIOS reprogramming and most of them could not be supported by the platform.
SECO is not responsible for any change made to the original BIOS with an improper and undocumented use of this tool.
Please, be aware that any operation other than reprogramming BIOS as documented in this manual may lead to a non-functioning board.

INDEX

EFI Shell utility

This procedure requires a USB drive formatted to FAT32.

https://secogroup.atlassian.net/l/c/0ZRDsXbB

Copy the updater tool and the BIOS binary inside the USB drive.
Then, turn on the system and enter in the Aptio Setup Utility pressing the [ESC] key.
From the Save & Exit page select the USB drive created, generally named as “UEFI: Built-in EFI Shell” or similar.
From the Device mapping table identify the filesystem of the USB drive fs* (marked as a Removable HardDisk).
Enter in the USB drive file system fs*:. For example, if the USB drive is fs1 the command will be fs1:.
Move to the folder where AFU utility and the binary file are located and launch the command:

bios_update.nsh BIOSbinary.XXX

where BIOSbinary.XXX is the name of the BIOS you would like to flash.

After the program advises the correctness of operation, the board can be rebooted.

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Linux utility

The Linux Flash tool needs gcc compiler and Kernel-headers installed in the system: make sure they are installed in the system, otherwise install them.
For example, in Debian/Ubuntu you can install them with the following command:
apt install build-essential linux-headers-$(uname -r)

Copy the updater tool and the BIOS binary file in a folder of the Linux Disk.

Both bios_updater_YYY.sh and EtaAfuOemLnx64 must be present.

Open a new terminal as super user and move to the folder where AFU utility and the firmware file are located. From inside here:
Make the script executable through the following command:
chmod +x bios_updater_YYY.sh
where YYY changes for 32-bit or 64-bit Linux version;
To update your BIOS execute the command:
./bios_updater_YYY.sh BIOSbinary.XXX
where BIOSbinary.XXX is the name of the BIOS you would like to flash.
After the program advises the correctness of operation, the board can be rebooted.

Windows utility

Copy the updater tool and the BIOS binary file in a folder of the Windows Disk.

bios_updater_YYY.bat, amifldrvYY.YYY and AFUWINIYYY.EXE must be present.

Run the cmd shell with Administrator privileges, then move to the folder where AFU utility and the firmware file are placed.
From inside here, to update your BIOS execute the command:

./bios_updater_YYY.bat BIOSbinary.XXX

where YYY changes for 32-bit or 64-bit Linux version and BIOSbinary.XXX is the name of the BIOS you want to flash.

Notes

BIOS downgrade is not supported.
Downgrade operation from an upper to a lower BIOS version is strongly discouraged.
New BIOS versions may contain bug fixes, corrections to critical issues and even updates to critical parts as the TXE or the microcode. Unexpected behaviours (non-working module, in the worst case) may arise reverting these components.
Please contact SECO for further support.

Any attempt to update a BIOS not provided by SECO may lead to a non-working board.
Custom homemade images obtained, for instance, with a dump of the content of a BIOS flash from another system are not supported and must not be used.

What to do in case of different PCIe aggregration

AFU tool allows users to update BIOS binary configured with a different PCIe aggregation.

To use this feature the updater script must be modified:

Open the script file (bios_update.nsh, bios_updater_YYY.sh or bios_updater_YYY.sh) with a text editor;
Add the option /FDR at the end of the other AFU commands:
AFUtool /P /N /L /X /FDR
Save the file and follow the steps described before to update your BIOS with the PCIe aggregation desired.

At the end of the operation a full power off of the system (mechanical off, G3 state) is needed.
It’s important to perform this final step instead of rebooting the system, otherwise the strap will not be reloaded and the PCIe configuration will not be updated.