NVM Update Package - 29.1.2 - ID:705831 | Intel® Ethernet Adapters and Devices User Guide

Intel® Ethernet Adapters and Devices User Guide

ID 705831

Date 06/24/2024

Version

Public

An NVM Update Package contains all the required files to update the NVM on the Intel® Ethernet adapters in your system. It contains the Intel® Ethernet NVM Update Tool, configuration file, updated NVM binaries, and required driver files.

Note:

Some Intel® Ethernet Converged Network Adapter X710-T4 adapters may display the message, “Image differences found at offset 0x7…,” when performing an update using the 700 Series NVM Update Package. This behavior is expected.

Updating the Option ROM on a device with Device ID 1586 is a two step process. The first update will change the Device ID to 1589. Reboot your system and run the update tool a second time to update the Option ROM for the new Device ID.

Adapters Based on the Intel® Ethernet 800 Series

NVM binaries in the NVM Update Package are in the Platform Level Data Model (PLDM) format defined by the DMTF in DSP0240. Refer to your vendor’s platform documentation for instructions on how to update your device NVM using the baseboard management controller (BMC) or UEFI.

Limitations and Prerequisites

This package is intended to be used on Intel branded adapters. Please contact your OEM vendor for an appropriate package. In some cases this package may update an OEM device. This package only updates the NVM image for the device family listed on the package. Each Intel Ethernet product family has its own NVM Update Package.

Important:

DO NOT:

Power down your system during the NVM Update.
Remove the NIC before the NVM Update completes.
Interrupt the NVM Update in any other way.

Taking any of these actions could make your device unusable.

Link Loss During and After NVM Update

When you update a device based on the Intel® Ethernet Controller X710 and Intel® Ethernet Controller XL710, the device may lose the link during and after the update. Power cycle your system after the NVM update completes to resolve the issue.

Linux, FreeBSD, and ESX Requirements

The base driver for your NIC must already be installed.

UEFI Requirements

Create a bootable disk or other media and extract the update package onto the media. Boot your system from the media and run the tool from there.

Firmware Recovery Mode

When a device is in Firmware Recovery mode, it will not pass traffic or allow any configuration; you can only attempt to recover the device’s firmware. A device will enter Firmware Recovery mode if it detects a problem that requires the firmware to be reprogrammed.

Note:

Before starting the recovery process, make sure that your operating system, drivers, and tools have been installed properly. You must use the out-of-tree driver. Using the in-box or kernel driver may result in a Cannot initialize port warning.

Note:

You must power cycle your system after using Recovery Mode to completely reset the firmware and hardware.

Updating Your NVM Using Interactive Mode

Extract the update package into a temporary folder.
Start the Intel Ethernet NVM Update Tool by running the executable. For example, on an x64 Microsoft* Windows* system, type:
```
nvmupdatew64e
```
On an x64 Linux* system, type:
```
nvmupdate64e
```
Follow the prompts to update the NVM image on the desired device.

Using a Script

You can use a script to perform an inventory of all the Intel Ethernet devices in the system or update the Intel Ethernet devices in the system.

Update script example:

nvmupdate64e -u -l -o results.xml -b -c nvmupdate.cfg

This script causes the Intel Ethernet NVM Update Tool to check the installed Intel Ethernet devices against those contained in nvmupdate.cfg. If a device contains an NVM version older than that specified in the config file, the utility will update the device’s NVM. It will create an XML file containing the results of the update.

Note:

Using -b, which is optional, will create a backup of the current NVM image(s). This may add about 30% to the tool’s execution time.

Inventory script example:

nvmupdate64e -i -l -o inventory.xml

This script causes the Intel Ethernet NVM Update Tool to perform an inventory of all the Intel Ethernet devices in the system and creates an output file (called inventory.xml) of the results of the inventory.

Results

The Intel Ethernet NVM Update Tool will return an exit code of zero if the update completed successfully.