Cannot update Bios v2.33 to 2.77 for HP Elite desk 800 G1 SFF

[sabnamClemenger]

Hey Guys,

I have been trying to upgrade bios v2.33 to 2.77 but when i run the update, it does nothing. 

I have tried other versions as well, none of them seem to work.

Would you have any advice?

thanking you,

SabnamClemenger

[Paul_Tikkanen]

Hi:

I don't see a BIOS version 2.77 on your PC's support page.

The most recent one I see is 2.71.

HP EliteDesk 800 G1 Small Form Factor PC Software and Driver Downloads | HP® Customer Support

If that is what you meant to write, I recommend you use the F10 Setup BIOS flash method to update the BIOS.

Download and run the BIOS 2.71 file.

https://ftp.hp.com/pub/softpaq/sp80501-81000/sp80501.exe

An info page will open.

Read the instructions under this section...

                                        Startup Menu / F10 Setup BIOS Flashing

The HP Business Desktop systems provide a BIOS upgrade option through both the Startup Menu and the F10 Setup utility using the "Flash System ROM" feature.  Reboot the PC and press the Escape key to display the Startup Menu. Use the arrow keys to select Utilities, and then select the Flash System ROM option. Alternatively, reboot the PC and press F10 to access the BIOS Setup utility. In the File menu, select Flash System ROM.  Either method requires that removable media be present (USB storage or data CD) that contains the BIOS binary image file in the root directory. The binary image file can be found in the DOS Flash folder and is named xxx_MMmm.bin where "xxx" is the BIOS family, "MM" is the major version number, and "mm" is the minor version number.  To create a CD for updating the BIOS, use a blank CD-R or CD-RW disk on a system with a CD-RW or DVD+RW drive, and write the binary to the disk using any CD-burning software (Windows 7 and Vista support burning data CDs without additional software). If a BIOS Setup password has been set, the password will be required before being able to access the "Flash System ROM" menu. The user is notified when the process is completed.  The new BIOS code will not take effect until the PC is restarted.

View Contents of DOS Flash Folder

Get a USB flash drive.

Format it with the FAT32 file system.

On the info page that opened, under the Startup Menu / F10 Setup BIOS Flashing section, click on the View Contents of DOS Flash Folder link.

Copy the file contents of that folder to your USB flash drive.  Just the files, not the folder.

Restart the PC.

Press/tap the ESC key to get the menu of options.

Select the F10 Setup option to get into the BIOS.

Select the File tab>Flash System ROM command.

Select the USB flash drive.

The PC should 'see' the BIOS files on the flash drive.

Follow the on-screen instructions to update the BIOS.

[SDH]

I fully agree with Paul on his advice, including there not being a more recent version of BIOS for your HP computer beyond 2.71. Of interest one can download that SP80501 to any computer and run it... it will create a directory (folder) on the root level of your C drive called SWSetup, and in that you will find a folder named SP80501. In that is a DOS Flash folder from which I can harvest the .bin file for the update (L01_0271.bin). It is small, only 16MB in size. There also is a Bios Flash.htm file worth reviewing.... specifically the section on Bootblock Emergency Recovery Mode which I have attached as a PDF below.

In that there are several hints from HP to help you, which I'll expand on. Let me add that I have seen HP make mistakes in their BIOS update instructions before. There was a period when HP added the instructions for BIOS updating of the ZX40 workstations to the instructions for the ZX20 workstations. That did not work at all in the ZX20s. The ZX40 methods are actually very different, and I pointed this out to HP and they fixed the issue. For the ZX40 workstations one places the BIOS .bin file in the lowest folder in a nest of 3 folders whereas with the ZX20 you just place it at the top level of the thumb drive. Some newer HP BIOS install methods describe using a nest of 3 if BIOS is set to run the OS in Legacy mode versus a nest of 4 if set to run in EFI mode. 

In the HP document attached below the implication is that there are 3 "valid paths". I'm not sure I believe it but the HP statement indicates one path can be "root" on the thumb drive (the very top level placement of the .bin file). The second valid path would be a nest of 3 folders if Legacy, and the third valid path a nest of 4 folders if EFI. The series of folder's names is very important to get perfect, and I'll assume your BIOS is set to run the computer in Legacy mode. The choice of thumb drive matters too. Have it be a relatively small size overall, and specifically format it as FAT or FAT32. Ideally It is best to start with a blank USB device that only contains the BIOS binary in its proper nest of folders. Insert it in a USB2 port with the computer fully off. I prefer a rear USB2 port because they are directly attached to the motherboard, not via a cable. Previously have harvested the L01_0271.bin file as described above, and on the thumb drive make the following series of folders: First a folder named Hewlett-Packard and in that make another named BIOS. In that make another folder named Current. Finally, in that place the L01_0271.bin file.

As BIOS becomes more sophisticated the use of NTFS formatted larger thumb drives inserted into USB3 ports and even having BIOS reach out over a network to harvest a .bin file for updating with from within BIOS is evolving but I generally stick to the basics for this important process.

Now cold boot the computer and get into BIOS and follow Paul's instructions above.

If your computer is set to run in EFI mode in BIOS then the series of four folders would be named exactly EFI/HP/BIOS/Current with L01_0271.bin placed inside that last one. All other instructions would be the same.

This is "updating BIOS from within BIOS" and you can think of BIOS as a very primitive operating system running from a flashed EEPROM. It is programmed to look for the specific folder pathway(s) noted above and if you get anything wrong with your folder naming, including adding a space or misspelling things won't work. This approach has been safe for us versus updating BIOS from within the running operating system. Also, please let us know what worked.