How to Update HP Jetdirect 300x (J3263A) without Web Jetadmin or HP Download Manager

[jleg094]

If you own an HP Jetdirect 300x (J3263A specifically) with an older firmware version, such as H.08.20, you may have noticed it is next to impossible to update. The HP Download Manager is supposed to be used to update the product to the latest firmware revision, however it does not work and gives an error. Likewise, the HP Webjetadmin software does the same thing. Both peices of software use the SNMP protocol. Newer versions of the firmware are supposed to be updatable via FTP or HTTP, however if you are stuck with an old version such as H.08.20, you are out of luck on those methods. So how is one with an older firmware supposed to upgrade to the latest revision?

After days of experimentation and digging through documentation and forums I have found a solution! TFTP. This process is not documented anywhere else to my knowledge (and trust me I looked!) so read closely.

[jleg094 · Accepted solution]

The first step is to set up a TFTP server. You can try setting it up on Windows or even Mac OS X. For the record however, I tried using the Mac OS X built-in TFTP server and had no luck. Your best bet is to use a Linux virtual machine or live cd. I used Debian and tftp-hpa. I did not have luck with tftpd.

1. Boot Debian machine
   
   
2. Make sure you have an IP address that is accessible to the Jetdirect. To configure IP address, follow instructions here: https://wiki.debian.org/NetworkConfiguration#Setting_up_an_Ethernet_Interface. If you are already connected to a DHCP server, you shouldn't need to do anything.
   
   
3. Install tftp-hpa:
   $ apt-get install tftp-hpa
   
   
4. Copy the firmware file to the tftp directory, in my case "300X_H0867.dld"
   $ cp 300X_H0867.dld /srv/tftp/
   
   
5. Give everyone read permissions on the file
   $ chmod a+x /srv/tftp/300X_H0867.dld
   
   
6. Optionally, try downloading the file from another computer on the network to check that it works (assuming 192.168.1.1 server IP).
   $ tftp 192.168.1.1
   tftp> get 300X_H0867.dld
   If all goes well and the file downloads, you should be good to go!
   
   
7. Telnet into the Jetdirect 300X. If necessary, reset to factory defaults to enable the telnet server and set an IP address as outlined here: http://h20564.www2.hp.com/hpsc/doc/public/display?docId=emr_na-bpj02738
   
   
8. Once in a telnet session, execute the following commands (assuming the tftp server address is 192.168.1.1):
   tftp-server:192.168.1.1
   upgrade-file:300X_H0867.dld
   upgrade
   
   
9. Immidiately after typing upgrade and hitting enter, you will get a message saying the Jetdirect will begin the update and your telnet session will be closed.
   
   
10. In a minute or two, try to telnet into the Jetdirect again. If everything went well, type "/" and hit enter, and you should see that the firmware revision is set to the new version!