Dell XPS 13 2020 Firmware update failed

Discussions in English on using Fedora
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#1

Greetings all

Gnome software informed me that the Linux Vendor Firmware service had a firmware update—I restarted to install it—during the update, I got a message saying that the update failed. It looks like the version has been updated correctly to 1.2.5, although the release date hasn’t. Everything seems to work well. I would like to try to force a reinstallation of the firmware, but I am not sure how. Maybe the most sensible thing to do is to just wait until the next one.

Maybe this is a better question for a Dell forum, but I thought there might be some ideas about it here.

Thanks

Adam

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#2

As long as your Gnome software is running in Fedora the question is legit :grin:

If you are comfortable with the terminal you can check:

fwupdmgr --help

there is a downgrade option if you like to try that …
LVFS Website

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#3

Thank you! There is something a little strange going on with this bios update. Output from trhe firmware update manager shows that all is well, but the log in the BIOS, and the message I saw during the update, said the update failed. And at the Dell web site, it says the release date is 11 Jan. It also says I can’t revert. I wonder if the error was geneated because I had a USB-C device plugged in, which the docs say you aren’t supposed to—alas, didn’t see that until too late!

home/adam [430]~% fwupdmgr get-history                                                                                                                                                                          [adam@localhost.localdomain]
Unknown                  [***************************************]
XPS 13 9310
│
└─System Firmware:
  │   Device ID:          [redacted]
  │   Previous version:   1.1.4
  │   Update State:       success
  │   Last modified:      2021-01-18 05:30
  │   GUID:               cfb08d7c-8d3d-41b1-846b-48f634dfac9d
  │   Device Flags:       • Internal device
  │                       • Updatable
  │                       • System requires external power source
  │                       • Supported on remote server
  │                       • Needs a reboot after installation
  │                       • Cryptographic hash verification is available
  │                       • Device is usable for the duration of the update
  │ 
  └─XPS 13 9310 System Update:
        New version:      1.2.5
        Remote ID:        lvfs
        Summary:          Firmware for the Dell XPS 13 9310
        License:          Proprietary
        Size:             26.6 MB
        Created:          2020-12-10
        Urgency:          Critical
        Vendor:           Dell Inc.
        Description:      
        This stable release fixes the following issues:
        
        • Fixed the issue where ACPI errors are reported when you run dmesg command in Ubuntu operating system.
        
        Some new functionality has also been added:
        
        • Corrected the panel type from Wide UXGA to FHD+ and UHD to UHD+ in the BIOS setup.
        • Corrected the video controller name from Intel UHD Graphics to Intel(R) Iris(R) Xe Graphics in the BIOS setup. It is applicable on systems with Intel Core i5 and i7 processors.
        • Updated the Intel Reference Code to improve the system security and stability.
        • Updated the Intel processor microcode.
        • Updated the Intel Management Engine firmware.
        • Updated the Intel Integrated Sensor Hub firmware.
        • Updated the Embedded Controller Engine firmware.
        • Updated the USB Power Delivery firmware.
#4

Yes i think so … on the dell website it says:

Important Information

  • Once the BIOS is upgraded, you cannot downgrade the BIOS EXE/Recovery (RCV) to versions earlier than 1.2.5 due to restrictions.
  • Except for the AC adapter, remove all the USB Type C devices from the system before you start the BIOS upgrade process.

Might be missing a feedback from the AC adapter.

But anyway, next time before updating check that the AC adapter is plugged in and if an error message appears take a picture or print screen. It is not just for us here at ask.fedora, it is also for Dell or LVFS.

I don’t know if you refer to

Created:          2020-12-10

This must be the Date of creation for the package of LVFS system. It not has to be the same as the release date of the BIOS itself.

Please take also in consideration that you use Fedora. On the Dell Website it just shows up support for Ubuntu. This means that it could also generate an error if something is not exact the same way as in Ubuntu.

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