40-150 f2.8 bricked by EM1mkii

tt321 wrote:

Mark Thornton wrote:

karlreed wrote:

This can be done by booting via a pointer to the active system. The VERY LAST THING the updating s/w does is to change this pointer to point to the new systems.

That only works if you have space for both new and old to exist simultaneously. It is regrettably common to cut corners on space for firmware.

Well the other option is to keep a small bios type section which is not changed by changing FW. So if no FW is found the bios means the lens is still alive for the purpose of installing FW.

As a matter of fact, this is precisely how field firmware update is performed on millions of designs today (as well as a number of Olympus designs).

When you update your Olympus camera via the SD card method, there is a small, unalterable portion of the boot code which searches the SD card for a particular filename and if found, calls the updater.

Apparently, the above scheme is not robust enough to update an inert lens, which is unfortunate. However, it is the reality we must all face.

I have been updating Oly bodies and lenses since what... 2004 maybe? After updating perhaps 100+ times, I have yet to see a failure, but I still recognize it as a potential danger and take all of the preventative measures I can.

This complete suicide then rebirth method is quite stupid. One strike and you are out.

This is not unusual at all. The same danger is present when updating the bios of your PC's motherboard. Try removing power during that operation and the chances are very high that your PC will have lost its mind.