APPENDIX
90
Appendix A
Upgrading Flash ROM Update Process
A-1 Overview
Since the ThunderBox 800 Thunderbolt RAID storage features flash
ROM firmware, it is not necessary to change the hardware flash
chip in order to upgrade the RAID firmware. The user can simply
re-program the old firmware through the in-Band Thunderbolt port
or out-of-band LAN port McRAID storage manager. New releases of
the firmware are available in the form of a DOS file on the shipped
CD or Areca website. The files available at the FTP site for each
model contain the following files in each version:
ARC8050NNNN.BIN: Software binary code (“NNNN” refers to the
software code type)
ARC8050BIOS.BIN:
→
PCIe 2.0 BIOS for system board using
ARC8050BOOT.BIN:
→
RAID controller hardware initialization
ARC8050FIRM.BIN:
→
RAID kernel program
ARC8050MBR0.BIN:
→
Master Boot Record for supporting Dual
Flash Image in the ThunderBox 800 6Gb/s SAS RAID storage
README.TXT contains the history information of the software code
change in the main directory. Read this file first to make sure you
are upgrading to the proper binary file. Select the right file for the
upgrade. Normally, user upgrades ARC8050FIRM.BIN for RAID
function. All these files in the firmware package are a part of the
firmware. You should update all files in the package, no special
update order needed. New firmware works after a system restart
not instant available, so you can update all files before restart the
system. The controller firmware is independent of the array; up-
date firmware does not touch anything you stored in the array.
Note:
ThunderBox 800 uses the same firmware package of ARC-
1882 series RAID adapters.
Please update all binary code
(BIOS, BOOT, FIRM and MBR0) before you reboot system.
Otherwise, a mixed firmware package may hang the controller.
