From 80aa303931064fb533aac66dc0549787501cd9b6 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Leah Rowe Date: Mon, 24 May 2021 00:08:16 +0100 Subject: [PATCH] re-assure the user about flashrom's safety options and so on also talk about --ifd --i bios option for updating existing x200/t400 rom and so on --- site/docs/install/index.md | 24 ++++++++++++++++++++++++ 1 file changed, 24 insertions(+) diff --git a/site/docs/install/index.md b/site/docs/install/index.md index d2861a0..5168970 100644 --- a/site/docs/install/index.md +++ b/site/docs/install/index.md @@ -192,6 +192,30 @@ How to erase and rewrite the chip contents: sudo flashrom -p internal:laptop=force_I_want_a_brick,boardmismatch=force -w libreboot.rom +If flashing GM45 laptops such as Thinkpad X200/T400/T500/R400/W500/R500, you +might consider doing this instead: + + sudo flashrom -p internal:laptop=force_I_want_a_brick,boardmismatch=force --ifd -i bios -w libreboot.rom + +The `--ifd -i bios` option, when you use a ROM for GM45 machine, will only flash +the BIOS region. On those machines, the boot flash is split into IFD, GbE and +BIOS region. The GbE region contains your MAC address. If you already ran +the `ich9gen` program before, you can use these options to skip flashing over +those sections. Otherwise, without these options in flashrom, you will just +flash the entire chip. If you're flashing the entire chip, make sure that the new +ROM has a MAC address set correctly in the GbE region. To learn more about this, +please read the ich9utils documentation: [/docs/install/ich9utils.html](/docs/install/ich9utils.html) + +NOTE: `force_I_want_a_brick` is not scary. Do not be scared! This merely disables +the safety checks in flashrom. Flashrom and coreboot change a lot, over the years, +and sometimes it's necessary to use this option. If you're scared, then just +follow the above instructions, but remove that option. So, just use `-p internal`. +If that doesn't work, next try `-p internal:boardmismatch=force`. If that doesn't +work, try `-p internal:boardmismatch=force,laptop=force_I_want_a_brick`. So long +as you *ensure* you're using the correct ROM for your machine, it will be safe +to run flashrom. These extra options just disable the safetyl checks in flashrom. +There is nothing to worry about. + If successful, it will either say `VERIFIED` or it will say that the chip contents are identical to the requested image.