I have a TrueNAS Mini X+ I was gifted several years ago. I’m looking to see if there are firmware or BIOS updates available for it (related to my attempted RAM upgrade, to be safe).
I’ve searched online, and results point me to opening a ticket with Support. I opened a ticket with Support, and was told to search the forums. I do not have a support contract, but I am hoping basic updates are free.
Am I missing something, or are BIOS / Firmware updates for the Mini X+ paywalled?
Posting your firmware version may be helpful.
Fair, details below. It was more of a “where can I find the current version?” than “Is my version current?”
Firmware Revision : 03.60
Firmware Build Time : 07/28/2017
BIOS Version: 1.3.V1
BIOS Build Time: 06/08/2020
Redfish Version : 1.0.1
AFAIK, the Mini X+ uses a commodity motherboard, made by ASRock, IIRC. Take a look at it, find the model number, and check with ASRock for firmware. iX are not rolling their own firmware.
I think past advice from TrueNAS (iX Systems) has been not to update the firmware with versions not supplied by TrueNAS (iX Systems)
From a different thread but on a Mini system.
Right, the problem is, no where can I find a way to check versions or download the current version of the iXsystems BIOS for my device.
Try the Out of Band Management guide in the online docs section.
They are free where needed.
However, we try to avoid the need for them. The appliance is validated with firmware shipped.
Do you have a reason why you think an update is needed?
I personally think that a BIOS or firmware update is (almost) always needed.
Otherwise, Supermicro would not have published it.
Removing bugs, closing CVEs. The only thing that I would deem not needed is stuff like “added support for newer CPU X or improved RAM compatibility”.
That is just my laymans take, and I could be wrong. Still, I think if iX sold these systems, they should provide firmware updates.
But that isn’t what they generally say–motherboard vendors almost always say things like, “don’t update your BIOS unless you’re having some specific problem that this update should fix.”
They do indeed, here’s Supermicros blurb for one of my motherboards:
WARNING!
It is recommended to flash the Firmware for your system only when there is a Firmware-related issue. Flashing the wrong BIOS/Firmware can cause irreparable damage to the system.In no event shall Supermicro be liable for direct, indirect, special, incidental,or consequential damages arising from a BIOS/Firmware update.
That was true, because there is a always a small risk of bricking the BIOS.
But IMHO that is a thing of the past, back in the days when BIOS updates did not patch CVEs.
Hello,
I hope you are doing well today.
Thank you for providing your TrueNAS serial number. At this time, your Mini X+ Support for System A1-XXXXX is expired.
If you would like to discuss options for continuing your Support please let us know and we will get in contact with our Sales team to discuss your options.
Should you choose not to continue with Enterprise Support options, we recommend reading through our TrueNAS New Community Forums (Legacy Forums found here: Community Forums) and Docs Hub.
This is the best place to contribute to the open source version of TrueNAS and collaborate with other users on the issues you are experiencing.Thank you,
(Name)
Customer Success Coordinator
Customer Support Team
Apparently I can’t get basic updates for in-production hardware without a support contract.
Dell, HP, and Lenovo provide basic BIOS updates to devices that are out of warranty. I get if the product is End of Life, but that is not the case with the Mini X+.
Have you checked with the mainboard manufacturer’s support website?
Looking at other posts linked in this discussion, flashing firmware from the board’s vendor (as opposed to iXsystems) removes some of the features from the TrueNAS dashboard, such as View Enclosure. It’s pretty clear that iXsystems does modify or roll their own - during boot, the iXsystems logo appears on the POST screen.
@Captain_Morgan - I responded with this in my Support ticket, but I’ll post it here as well - there is no public documentation on managing the firmware on iXsystems hardware that I can find, or that someone can link to. This includes:
The last one is important - without documentation from iXsystems saying “This is the official source,” people begin to look elsewhere for support and downloads, which is likely to end in frustrated customers.
Given the date on my Mini X+ firmware is 2017, it’s reasonable to assume there should be an update available. Had I been able to search and find a page that had the current version of the Mini X+ firmware listed, and a brief blurb on how to update it (or who to reach out to, to get it), this would not have been an issue. Instead, we have a discussion with people advising me to look at other vendors to support hardware I bought from iXsystems.
The request for official documentation is a good one. Including if this ends up up indicating that firmware 1.01 from 2017 is actually current, and including if the link to download said current firmware is behind a paywall because iX does not people to build their own NAS using compatible parts and then load an iX firmware to get the extra UI niceties for free.
AsRock Rack is not know for pushing firmware updates, so it may be realistic to expect that no updates are available.
Correct, but there was a thread about a second-hand motherboard which was acting strangely with TrueNAS because it was actually pulled from a genuine TrueNAS system—and then wired differently as home build—, in which you can find indications as to what you should manually save and restore if you want to update to a generic firmware and not lose UI niceties.
Of course, the best course of action is to get an updated custom firmware from iX.
I think iX would be well advised to supply BIOS updates for free to buyers of a miniX system. Even if the support contract ran out. Your are paying top $ for a mini X system and that should give you life time BIOS updates.
Its a fair comment… we could add more info.
As a general strategy, we have a process of customizing and locking down the firmware and settings. We avoid changes unless we find a specific reason. The firmware is well tested prior to any shipments and we also recommend the IPMI port is not accessible from the Internet.
There are two types of changes:
AFAIK, you are seeing that we don’t have any #2 improvements to report for the Mini X+ (which was launched in 2020).
Most customers (and ourselves) prefer to avoid the messy process of updating BIOS and settings. We make sure TrueNAS software copes with existing settings. Our focus is on managing the TrueNAS appliance… not as separate motherboards and chassis. For example, the software looks for motherboard settings to identify the specific TrueNASA appliance type so that enclosure management works well.
We have had reason to update firmware on many of the Enterprise products. Our support team guides customers through that process to minimize any downtime. However, we only do this when we see a need.
If you are aware of any security or stability issues, feel free to ping me and I will chase down the answers.
