hello
my board is Asus z97 pro gamer
me firmware in latest bios is 9.1.25.1005 1.5MB
I have manually updated the firmware to 9.1.37.1002 1.5MB
now i cant go back to any firmware except 9.1.37.1002 1.5MB
it fails says its not supported by the platform even if I extracted it from the original .CAP bios file
the ME test program show no problems - all pass (unless I didn't use the switches right)
but I'm guessing this is not optimal
this device seems to be disconnected (don't know if its ME's fault) Intel(R) 9 Series Chipset Family Thermal Controller - 8CA4
it load only when I'm using siv and no recourses are allocated to the device because its having a problem
so any quick fix to go back to original bios ME firmware ?
I'm not so good in hex editors and such

@genesys

Hi.

You can't downgrade your ME firmware because the Asus Z97 Pro Gamer bios, as well as other Asus motherboards bios, have the descriptors locked.
Unluckly your motherboard has not the second eeprom as backup, so you can only fix this using an Eeprom SPI Programmer (like the EZP2010), unplug
che bios chip, reprogramming it with the official asus stock bios file, and replacing into the socket.

You could try to use the attached file using the syntax command FPTW64 -DUMPLOCK and tell me what it says. If it reports FF FF at the end of each descriptor region
then it's possible to downgrade ME, if it says 08 or 09 it is locked and you can't downgrade via software.

Zitat von Sylar76 im Beitrag #2

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You could try to use the attached file using the syntax command FPTW64 -DUMPLOCK and tell me what it says. If it reports FF FF at the end of each descriptor region
then it's possible to downgrade ME, if it says 08 or 09 it is locked and you can't downgrade via software

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Zitat von genesys im Beitrag #3

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Lock Settings.
=======================
Host CPU master: 00 00 0B 0A
ME region master: 00 00 0D 0C
GBE region master: 18 01 08 08
FPT Operation Passed

I'm guessing its not software programmable right ?
is it hard to unlock it I mean desktop can emulate everything but not a bios programmer ? :P
thanks for responding

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Zitat von Sylar76 im Beitrag #4

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Yes, the 0B 0A / 0D 0C / 08 08 values indicate that the bios descriptor regions are locked. The ME Region, particularly, can't be downgraded even using the USB Bios Flashback procedure.
You can do it only via an external SPI Eeprom programmer.

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Zitat von genesys im Beitrag #5

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You can do it only via an external SPI Eeprom programmer.

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You can simply buy a "CH341A programmer" (on Ebay) or the EZP2010 (which is the one I've always used so far).
A newer bios or a new ME Firmware could fix your issue but I think a SPI flash programmer is a tool you can't miss
and which let you to always recovery any bad flash.

Once you have the programmer, you'll find software inside it which is very easy to use it.

Zitat von genesys im Beitrag #6

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will this do ??
http://www.amazon.com/CJRSLRB%C2%AE-EZP2...=spi+programmer
and how the hell do I use that ??
do I need to take the chip out or will it work with usb like stated ?

---

Hi again.

I've replaced ME bin file with a new one 9.1.37.1002 modified for your motherboard and inserted it in both ME_Flasher.zip and Bios zip file.
Try the ME_Flasher using this syntax :
PWUPDLCL.exe -allowsv -FORCERESET -F 9.1.37.1002.BIN
and press enter, and see if it flashes properly. After rebooting check if this fixed your issues. Otherwise, rename the .CAP inside the bios file
and do an USB Bios Flashback.

If none of the above methods works, you've to use the eeprom programmer.

Zitat von Sylar76 im Beitrag #9

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I've replaced ME bin file with a new one 9.1.37.1002 modified for your motherboard and inserted it in both ME_Flasher.zip and Bios zip file.

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Zitat von genesys im Beitrag #10

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it flashed the BIN file didn't see any confirmation the system auto restarted but it looked ok
it didn't fix the Intel(R) 9 Series Chipset Family Thermal Controller - 8CA4 not connecting

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@Fernando

Sorry mate. I'll take care of that.

any idea ? what can be done ? --- Flash Devices Found ---
W25Q64BV ID:0xEF4017 Size: 8192KB (65536Kb)


Warning: Not all of the file data will be written to flash because
the file is longer than the flash area to be written to!
File: "2203.cap"
File Length: 8390656
Write Length: 1560576

Do you want to continue? Y/<N> or q to quit : y

PDR Region does not exist.

Error 25: The host CPU does not have write access to the target flash area. To enable write access for this operation you must modify the descriptor settings to give host access to this region.

First you have to remove the Capsule header (you can do this using UEFI Tool and extracting the Intel Body Image from the .CAP bios file).

Anyway, the Error 25 is indicating descriptor flash regions locked so you can't dump or flash any bios inside the eeprom bios chip.

You have to use an external SPI Eeprom programmer.