Updating BIOS – Using Scripts

A customer recently asked, “how can I update BIOS on Ubuntu and DHC systems”? Ubuntu-based systems can take advantage of Linux Vendor Firmware Service located at https://fwupd.org. The Linux Vendor Firmware Service LVFS is a secure portal that allows hardware vendors to upload firmware updates. All major Linux distributions use this site to provide metadata for clients such as fwupdmgr and GNOME Software.

In my case, I created a bash shell script that checks to see if it is running as root, refreshes the firmware catalog, and then performs BIOS/firmware updates.

I have successfully used the script below on 5070s, 3000s, and Precision 3260 running Ubuntu 20.04 and 22.04 with DHC.

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#!/bin/bash

#check if the script is running as root
if [[ $UIED -ne 0 ]]; then
echo “This script must be run as root.”
exit 1
fi

#Update the firmware using fwupd
echo “Updating firmware…”
fwupdmgr refresh
fwupdmgr update -y

#check the exit code of fwupdmgr

if [[ $? -ne 0 ]]; then
echo “Firmware update failed.”
exit 1
fi

echo “Firmware update completed successfully.”

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NOTES:
Do not use Windows Notepad; it will insert CR LF.

Use Notepad++ or a Linux editor to create files. Notepad++ Set the end of the line to UNIX or LF only.

The script can be pushed using WMS; when uploading into your App repository, check the box to allow for unsigned apps.

When deploying with WMS using App Policy for DHC, select the script in the App and Pre-Install Sections.

You are ready to deploy and update BIOS.

Highly recommend testing on a single system before deploying to mass,.