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Created August 2, 2024 22:55
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lenovo_430-x_hba_firmware_BIOS_update.md

Lenovo 430-x HBA Firmware/BIOS Update

What?

Guide on how to update the firmware and BIOS of a Lenovo ThinkSystem 430-x SAS/SATA 12Gb HBA.

References

Steps

  1. Download the latest STORCLI utility for LSI SAS3.5 Controllers per the reference above.
  2. Download the latest HBA (Windows) driver package per the reference above.
  3. Extract the packages to a folder on your local (Windows) machine.
  4. Copy the relevant files to a FAT32 formatted USB, for example:
    • storcli.efi
    • 16i_24_00_07_00.fw
    • mpt35sas_x64_24_00_05_00.rom
    • mpt35sas_legacy_9_47_03_00.rom
  5. Boot to the USB via EFI shell.
  6. Identify the relevant (cX) HBA: 
    storcli.efi show all
  7. Confirm the relevant HBA: 
    storcli.efi /c0 show
  8. Backup STORCLI output to the USB: 
    storcli.efi /c0 show all > backup\output.txt
  9. Backup current controller bios, firmware etc. to the USB: 
    storcli.efi /c0 get bios file=backup\bios
storcli.efi /c0 get firmware file=backup\firmware
storcli.efi /c0 get mpb file=backup\mpb
storcli.efi /c0 get fwbackup file=backup\fwbackup
storcli.efi /c0 get nvdata file=backup\nvdata
storcli.efi /c0 get flash file=backup\flash
  10. Update the firmware: 
    storcli.efi /c0 download file=16i_24_00_07_00.fw
  11. Update the EFI BIOS: 
    storcli.efi /c0 download efibios file=mpt35sas_x64_24_00_05_00.rom
  12. Update the BIOS: 
    storcli.efi /c0 download bios file=mpt35sas_legacy_9_47_03_00.rom
  13. Check HBA versions have updated: 
    storcli.efi /c0 show
  14. Power cycle the machine.
@WarmWelcome
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WarmWelcome commented Aug 19, 2024 •
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Thank you so much for this guide. I had no clue where to find a way to safely update them, and everything else was unhelpful. This is the equivalent to the 9400-16i it seems, so heres my expansion on this. Hopefully it can help anyone else who stumbles upon it. Let me know if I got something wrong, I did this blind with many assumptions lol.

The equivalents for the non-oem 9400 seem to be as follows:
download (fw): HBA_9400-16i_Mixed_Profile.bin (depends on which firmware you pick)
download efibios (x64): mpt35sas_x64.rom
download bios (legacy): mpt35sas_legacy.rom

Here are the commands that I used translated with that in mind. Everything else is equivalent it seems.

  1. Update fw
    storcli.efi /c0 download file=HBA_9400-16i_Mixed_Profile.bin
  2. Update EFI bios:
    storcli.efi /c0 download efibios file=mpt35sas_x64.rom
  3. Update the BIOS:
    storcli.efi /c0 download bios file=mpt35sas_legacy.rom

If anyone else stumbles upon this and needs help with finding downloads I can point you in the right direction if necessary.

@ForsakenRei
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ForsakenRei commented Aug 25, 2024 •
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While doing my research on 430-16i(9400-16i) I landed here, curious about what's the main difference between 430-16i and 9400-16i?
From a Google search it seems lenovo disabled NVMe support on the 430-16i and limited the max devices to 16 only? can you still use a SAS enpander like RES2SV240 with it? Ref https://lenovopress.lenovo.com/lp0649-thinksystem-430-8i-16i-internal-sas-hba
9400-16i seem to be able to handle max 1024 SATA devices if you use expander, if I'm not understand it wrongly. Ref https://docs.broadcom.com/doc/BC00-0459EN

@WarmWelcome
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While doing my research on 430-16i(9400-16i) I landed here, curious about what's the main difference between 430-16i and 9400-16i? From a Google search it seems lenovo disabled NVMe support on the 430-16i and limited the max devices to 16 only? can you still use a SAS enpander like RES2SV240 with it? Ref https://lenovopress.lenovo.com/lp0649-thinksystem-430-8i-16i-internal-sas-hba 9400-16i seem to be able to handle max 1024 SATA devices if you use expander, if I'm not understand it wrongly. Ref https://docs.broadcom.com/doc/BC00-0459EN

I dont believe that it is officially supported to do nvme over the card, but it seems to be the same model. They look exactly the same, at least. I think you could enable it by using the mixed profile version. You really shouldn't be trying to do nvme over these if you are planning on using nvme drives, as these are awful to put a drive behind. If at all posible, avoid using these with nvme drives.

Sas expanders should work with these, at least in IT mode. Unsure how well it would work in raid mode. There is a version of that sas expander that you listed that does 12gb by the way, the RES3FV288. I would recommend using it instead if you can.

@ForsakenRei
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ForsakenRei commented Aug 28, 2024 •
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I dont believe that it is officially supported to do nvme over the card, but it seems to be the same model. They look exactly the same, at least. I think you could enable it by using the mixed profile version. You really shouldn't be trying to do nvme over these if you are planning on using nvme drives, as these are awful to put a drive behind. If at all posible, avoid using these with nvme drives.

Sas expanders should work with these, at least in IT mode. Unsure how well it would work in raid mode. There is a version of that sas expander that you listed that does 12gb by the way, the RES3FV288. I would recommend using it instead if you can.

Yes they look exactly the same, asked several sellers they can only tell me there might be firmware difference. I will only use SATA drives with it so it should be fine. A search for RES3FV288 on eBay finds me the AEC-82885T, another Lenovo card which has 24 internal ports and it's dirt cheap, maybe give it a try lol.

BTW is there any problem you guys encountered without updating the firmware?

@buswedg
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buswedg commented Sep 5, 2024

I dont believe that it is officially supported to do nvme over the card, but it seems to be the same model. They look exactly the same, at least. I think you could enable it by using the mixed profile version. You really shouldn't be trying to do nvme over these if you are planning on using nvme drives, as these are awful to put a drive behind. If at all posible, avoid using these with nvme drives.
Sas expanders should work with these, at least in IT mode. Unsure how well it would work in raid mode. There is a version of that sas expander that you listed that does 12gb by the way, the RES3FV288. I would recommend using it instead if you can.

Yes they look exactly the same, asked several sellers they can only tell me there might be firmware difference. I will only use SATA drives with it so it should be fine. A search for RES3FV288 on eBay finds me the AEC-82885T, another Lenovo card which has 24 internal ports and it's dirt cheap, maybe give it a try lol.

BTW is there any problem you guys encountered without updating the firmware?

I was having intermittent drives drop from one of my pools and assumed the HBA may be the cause. It ended up being a separate issue with my backplane after all. But it's hard to apply the "if it ain't broke, don't fix it rule", when you don't know the source of the issue. Either way, the firmware/driver updates have changelogs, so you can get a sense of what potential issues you'll correct by updating.

@WarmWelcome
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@ForsakenRei

Yes they look exactly the same, asked several sellers they can only tell me there might be firmware difference. I will only use SATA drives with it so it should be fine. A search for RES3FV288 on eBay finds me the AEC-82885T, another Lenovo card which has 24 internal ports and it's dirt cheap, maybe give it a try lol.

BTW is there any problem you guys encountered without updating the firmware?

Yeah forgot to mention that the RES3FV288 is just a rebadging of the adaptec 82885T. My bad. It is usually cheaper as well. Also, no, I didnt even begin to use the card without updating the firmware. I see no reason to risk my data and reliability over "it might be fine". The latest IT mode drivers are what I always upgrade to before I put my trust in an HBA or RAID card.

@buswedg

I was having intermittent drives drop from one of my pools and assumed the HBA may be the cause. It ended up being a separate issue with my backplane after all. But it's hard to apply the "if it ain't broke, don't fix it rule", when you don't know the source of the issue. Either way, the firmware/driver updates have changelogs, so you can get a sense of what potential issues you'll correct by updating.

Backplane issue? What backplane and what ended up being the cause, if you don't mind me asking?

@ForsakenRei
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ForsakenRei commented Sep 5, 2024 •
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Yeah forgot to mention that the RES3FV288 is just a rebadging of the adaptec 82885T. My bad. It is usually cheaper as well. Also, no, I didnt even begin to use the card without updating the firmware. I see no reason to risk my data and reliability over "it might be fine". The latest IT mode drivers are what I always upgrade to before I put my trust in an HBA or RAID card.

Good point. I have never tried updating HBA firmware before since my current HBA was aquired from my friend who tested that card for almost 2 years in his NAS, but will give it a shot after my 430-16i arrived.

I was having intermittent drives drop from one of my pools and assumed the HBA may be the cause. It ended up being a separate issue with my backplane after all. But it's hard to apply the "if it ain't broke, don't fix it rule", when you don't know the source of the issue. Either way, the firmware/driver updates have changelogs, so you can get a sense of what potential issues you'll correct by updating.

Hmm that's quite concerning for sure, ordered mine on eBay a few days ago but will definitely update the firmware before using.

@WarmWelcome
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@ForsakenRei

Yes they look exactly the same, asked several sellers they can only tell me there might be firmware difference. I will only use SATA drives with it so it should be fine. A search for RES3FV288 on eBay finds me the AEC-82885T, another Lenovo card which has 24 internal ports and it's dirt cheap, maybe give it a try lol.

BTW is there any problem you guys encountered without updating the firmware?

Yeah forgot to mention that the RES3FV288 is just a rebadging of the adaptec 82885T. My bad. It is usually cheaper as well. Also, no, I didnt even begin to use the card without updating the firmware. I see no reason to risk my data and reliability over "it might be fine". The latest IT mode drivers are what I always upgrade to before I put my trust in an HBA or RAID card.

@buswedg

I was having intermittent drives drop from one of my pools and assumed the HBA may be the cause. It ended up being a separate issue with my backplane after all. But it's hard to apply the "if it ain't broke, don't fix it rule", when you don't know the source of the issue. Either way, the firmware/driver updates have changelogs, so you can get a sense of what potential issues you'll correct by updating.

Backplane issue? What backplane and what ended up being the cause, if you don't mind me asking?

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