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    Can someone help me with the BIOS mod on really old hardware? Watchguard XTM 5

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    • stephenw10S
      stephenw10 Netgate Administrator
      last edited by

      First thing I would try is just install 2.6 to get flashrom 1.2 since that was previously shown to work.

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      • A
        angelicadvocate @stephenw10
        last edited by

        @stephenw10 i will try it thank you

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          angelicadvocate @stephenw10
          last edited by angelicadvocate

          @stephenw10 this might be a dumb question but is "pkg" broken in 2.6.0? if i try to use it for anything it tries to update to pkg 1.19.1_2 which isnt compatible with 2.6.0. im betting theres a flag to set to stop it from upgrading pkg before installing but i couldnt figure it out. for example if i run "pkg install flashrom" it will prompt to update pkg. if i type "n" then it cancels the install, if i click "y" then it updates to an incompatible version and then pkg is broken. i reinstalled 2.6.0 in case i just had a bad install but i saw the same behavior.

          probably should have added this for context. after it updates pkg no matter what pkg command i run i get this:
          [2.6.0-RELEASE][admin@pfSense.home.arpa]/root: pkg
          ld-elf.so.1: /lib/libc.so.7: version FBSD_1.7 required by /usr/local/sbin/pkg not found

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          • stephenw10S
            stephenw10 Netgate Administrator
            last edited by

            It isn't but you must make sure the update branch is set to 2.6.

            When you see lib errors like that it's almost always because it's pulled in a pkg from a newer version. In older versions the branch was automatically switched to a newer available version in order to show it to the user. That doesn't happen in 2.7.2 and newer. (or anything after 23.09 in Plus)

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              angelicadvocate @stephenw10
              last edited by

              @stephenw10 i didnt realise this needed to be set in the web interface. thanks for that. fingers crossed ill have an update for everyone soon. im seeing promising results.

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                angelicadvocate @angelicadvocate
                last edited by

                @nimrod @patient0 @stephenw10 thank you everyone for the help! im adding a how-to below in case it helps anyone else. if i should add this to the OG thread or link to it there let me know.

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                  nimrod @angelicadvocate
                  last edited by

                  @angelicadvocate said in Can someone help me with the BIOS mod on really old hardware? Watchguard XTM 5:

                  @nimrod @patient0 @stephenw10 thank you everyone for the help! im adding a how-to below in case it helps anyone else. if i should add this to the OG thread or link to it there let me know.

                  I always edit original post title and add "[SOLVED]" at the thread title and then post solution at the end. But you can do it either way.

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                  • stephenw10S
                    stephenw10 Netgate Administrator
                    last edited by

                    Yup either (or both) would be fine.

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                    • A
                      angelicadvocate
                      last edited by angelicadvocate

                      How to Flash an Unlocked BIOS on WatchGuard XTM 5 with motherboard MB-7580T and flash chip Micron/Numonyx/ST M25P80 (flash chip stamped 25P80VG) using pfSense 2.6.0

                      Prerequisites:
                      You will need the pfSense 2.6.0 image and the new rom file. You will also need 2 drives. I used two SATA drives.
                      (One for the installer image and one to install to.)
                      You will also need a USB to serial console cable. I used this one
                      Also helpful: PuTTY, win32diskimager, and preferably a computer with ssh access to the device.
                      (This can also be done through the web management UI. Diagnostics > Command Prompt)

                      ROM here: https://misc.alpha-labs.net/pfsense/xtm5_83.rom
                      MD5 hash of xtm5_83.rom: e75bc93ca2db547a3facb8d611f0d441
                      (you can use "curl -O" or "fetch" to download them straight to the device.)
                      (Or, download the files from another computer and use a USB drive.)

                      Step 1: Install pfSense 2.6.0
                      Install pfSense 2.6.0 on your WatchGuard XTM 5 device.
                      Download the pfSense 2.6.0 image and flash it to one of the drives.
                      (I recommend using win32DiskImager for this.)
                      Then connect both drives and boot the device.
                      Connect using PuTTY with the serial cable and use 115200, 8, 1, None, None.
                      Follow on screen installer instructions.

                      2.6.0 .img file here: archive.org/download/pfSense-CE-memstick-serial-2.6.0-RELEASE-amd64

                      Step 2: Set Repository to 2.6.0 in Web Interface
                      Log into the pfSense web interface (192.168.1.1).
                      Go to System > Update > Update Settings.
                      In the Branch dropdown, select 2.6.0.
                      Click Save to use the correct repository for pfSense 2.6.0, and reboot the device.

                      Step 3: Install flashrom
                      (I used ssh to access the shell for this part.)
                      In the pfSense shell, run: pkg update
                      (If you receive an error here try "pkg update -f")
                      Then run: pkg install flashrom

                      Step 4: Check flashrom Version and Verify Flash Chip Detection
                      Ensure that you have the correct version (v1.2) by running: flashrom --version
                      Next, verify that your flash chip is detected properly by running: flashrom -p internal
                      (Check to make sure you see this line in the output: Found Micron/Numonyx/ST flash chip "M25P80")

                      Step 5: Backup Current BIOS
                      Back up your current BIOS with: flashrom -p internal -r /root/bios-backup.bin
                      (or change the backup directory and file name by modifying "/root/bios-backup.bin")
                      (I recommend copying the file directly to the location where you mounted the USB drive {e.g., '/mnt/usb'}.)
                      (Alternatively, you could just copy the file afterwards using the cp command)

                      Step 6: Prepare the New BIOS File
                      Copy your BIOS file (xtm5_83.rom) to /root on the pfSense device.
                      Skip this step if you used curl or fetch to download the rom straight to the device.
                      (I recommend verifying the MD5)

                      Step 7: Write the New BIOS
                      Flash the new BIOS with: flashrom -p internal -w /root/xtm5_83.rom
                      (Use the correct directory for where your rom file is located.)
                      (If you are in the same directory as the file just run "flashrom -p internal -w xtm5_83.rom".)

                      Step 8: Shutdown and Power Off
                      To shutdown from the terminal run: shutdown -p now
                      (Remove the CMOS battery for at least 10 minutes. REQUIRED)

                      Step 9: Power On and Test
                      After 10 minutes, reinsert the CMOS battery and power on the device.
                      Verify that the system boots correctly with the new BIOS.

                      ELI5:

                      Flash 2.6.0 to second disk
                      Install OS to primary disk.
                      Set Repository in webManagement to 2.6.0
                      Run the following commands in order one at a time:

                      pkg update
pkg install flashrom
flashrom --version
flashrom -p internal
flashrom -p internal -r bios-backup.bin
flashrom -p internal -w xtm5_83.rom
shutdown -p now

                      Remove CMOS battery for 10 minutes
                      Verify changes.

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                      • stephenw10S
                        stephenw10 Netgate Administrator
                        last edited by

                        Nice!

                        Though Google killed sites so my site where I had the rom is now dead. 😞

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                          angelicadvocate @stephenw10
                          last edited by

                          @stephenw10 thanks for the catch. fixed the post. i did manage to find another url hosting the rom but it seems ive misplaced it. if i ever come across it in my notes ill add it to the thread.

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