On Tue, Jan 15, 2013 at 9:57 PM, Mike Cloaked <mike.cloaked@xxxxxxxxx>wrote: > If anyone can help or suggest links to solve the following problem I would > appreciate it. > > I have a new system built with an Intel DQ77KB motherboard with a Crucial > mSATA M4 SSD, and a Crucial SATA M4 SSD drive. I want to install arch on > this system and indeed preparing a usbkey with the archiso install media > using dd to write the usbkey boots just fine. > > Also the latest PartedMagic iso written to a usbkey also boots fine so > that I can format the SSD drives (both of them). Looking at the system > profile I can see all the peripherals, including all the RAM and both SSD > drives. > > However before starting the arch install I want to update the firmware on > the SSD drives. This is available from the Crucial website either as a > Windows 7/8 .exe (which I can't use) or a "manual" firmware update file > which is an iso (containing memdisk from syslinux, and a floppy image file > boot2880.img) > > Running the "file" command on the boot2880.img file after loop mounting it > gives: > > # file /mnt/iso/boot/isolinux/boot2880.img > /mnt/iso/boot/isolinux/boot2880.img: x86 boot sector, FREE-DOS Beta 0.9 > Bootloader KERNEL.SYS, code offset 0x3c, OEM-ID "FreeDOS ", sectors/cluster > 2, root entries 240, sectors 5760 (volumes <=32 MB) , sectors/FAT 9, serial > number 0x2b6112fe, label: "BOOTABLE ", FAT (12 bit) > > Writing the iso to a usbkey won't boot - the screen goes blank and nothing > happens when I write the iso to a usbkey with a FAT32 key with the boot > flag. I have tried isolinux and that does not seem to work. I have tried a > bootable grub2 usbkey and that does not work - all are prepared from a > working arch linux laptop. > > I have following numerous "recipes" for making the usbkey from various > sources on the web and none seem to work at all! > > The odd thing is that for syslinux I can't even get a menu item on the > screen when booting the key - nor for grub 2. > > I have used two different makes of usbkey - both 4GB....same result - and > both keys will boot fine with the archiso or PartedMagic. > > I don't know if I am doing something fundamentally stupid but this is > driving me nuts! I have used gparted, as well as fdisk, as well as trying > parted to reformat the usbkeys. Nothing I do seems to work! > > There must be a good step-by-step guide somewhere on how to get a usbkey > with sysylinux to boot the firmware updater - which seems to have a floppy > image file (boot2880.img) and uses memdisk to boot it - though the version > on the iso file is about two year old whereas arch current memdisk in > syslinux is up to date. > > If anyone can help advise on how to make a bootable usbkey to execute > this, I would really appreciate it. > > Thanks in advance. > > I raised this issue above about two weeks ago - and finally tonight resolved the problem. I checked on the Intel site for BIOS updates for my motherboard (DQ77KB) - and it turned out that Intel has in the interim released a new BIOS version 048 which has a bunch of fixes including " Updated VBIOS to fix issue where there is no display in DOS." After installing the new BIOS I was able to update the SSD drive firmware without any problem at all - so it seems that whatever method I tried to boot the firmware update which is DOS based would have failed until the BIOS was updated! So I am a happy bunny again with current Crucial SSD drive firmware! -- mike c
