Unofficial (Simplified) Libreboot Documentation
  • Home
  • Building from source/
  • External SPI flashing/
  • Freedom in Libreboot/
  • Maintainance manual/
  • Operating systems/
  • Payloads/
  • Releases/
  • Targets/
    • ARM Chromebooks/
    • Emulation/
    • Other/
    • X86/
      • AMD pitfalls
      • Boards/
      • Changing the MAC address
      • Disabling /dev/mem protections
      • Disabling Intel Boot Guard on MEv11
      • EC firmware updates
      • Generic internal flashing
      • Insert vendor files
      • Intel pitfalls
      • Ivybridge internal flashing
      • Microcode
      • nvmutil import
      • nvmutil manual
  • UNCATEGORIZED/
Site license: GFDL v1.3 with disclaimer

Generic internal flashing

Contents

  • Do these first
  • Finding the correct ROM image
  • Dumping the current flash contents to a file
  • Writing a ROM file to the flash
  • Troubleshooting: flashprog safety checks
  • Having other issues?

This applies to the x86 machines. Chromebook users should refer to the Chromebook page.

Internal flashing means that you boot Linux or BSD on the target machine, and run flashprog there, flashing the machine directly. This is usually only possible if you are already running Libreboot and you have not enabled flash write protection. If you can’t flash internally, you must flash externally with SPI.

All commands presented below shall be run as root (e.g. via sudo).

Do these first

  • Check your motherboard’s page for special notes.
  • Always remember to insert vendor files when using release tarballs.
  • Disable /dev/mem protections first.

Finding the correct ROM image

Find the corresponding ROMs for your motherboard and chosen payload. If they come in multiple sizes (e.g. 8mb and 12mb, use flashprog -p internal to determine the size of your chip and use the corresponding one.)

Dumping the current flash contents to a file

You should usually back up your flash contents first so you could restore it later if needed:

flashprog -p internal:laptop -r dump_before_flashing.bin

It is also a good idea to make multiple dumps and compare them, just to make sure that you have a reliable connection to your flash chip. Assuming a POSIX-compatible shell:

for i in $(seq 3)
do
	flashprog -p internal:laptop -r dump_before_flashing_"$i".bin
done
sha512sum dump_before_flashing_?.bin

If any of the checksums are mismatched, you have an unreliable connection to your flash chip and should not flash.

Writing a ROM file to the flash

flashprog -p internal:laptop -w the_file_you_want_to_flash.rom

Troubleshooting: flashprog safety checks

Please first ensure that you are using the correct ROM file for your machine and that you have correctly inserted vendor files if your board requires so. If you are indeed sure, then:

flashprog -p internal:laptop=force_I_want_a_brick,boardmismatch=force -w the_file_you_want_to_flash.rom

Sometimes this is necessary because flashprog and coreboot change a lot and there are falase alarms in their safety checks.

Having other issues?

If your ROM has been written incompletely/unsuccessfully, do not reboot. You may try to join our community channels for help.