Systems and methods of device firmware delivery for pre-boot updates

摘要

Systems and methods are provided that may be implemented to deliver firmware for pre-boot updates of targeted information handling system device/devices using custom update capsules (e.g., such as custom unified extensible firmware interface capsules) and a separately-stored firmware update package that is remotely or locally stored. The custom update capsules may contain instruction payload information that may be used to determine location and desired components of the separately-stored firmware update package, and that also may be used to determine whether existing driver/drivers are to be retained in a firmware module in system memory or to be unloaded and replaced with a new (e.g., upgraded or downgraded) driver version in a firmware module in system memory as part of the firmware update.

主权项

1. A method of delivering firmware for pre-boot updates to an information handling system, comprising using at least one processing device of the information handling system to perform the following steps in an out-of-band manner separate from and outside an operating system prior to operating system booting and prior to booting the information handling system:
retrieving a custom unified extensible firmware interface (“UEFI”) update capsule from a source external to the information handling system, the UEFI custom update capsule being formed from an original UEFI capsule by removing one or more firmware images from the original UEFI capsule and replacing the removed firmware images with instruction payload information that describes a specified remote or local storage location for a given firmware update package that includes the removed firmware images, the specified remote or local storage location being separate from the UEFI custom update capsule; reading the instruction payload information contained in the custom update capsule to determine the specified location of the given firmware update package that is remotely or locally stored, the given firmware update package being separate from the custom update capsule and including the one or more firmware images; and retrieving the given firmware update package from the specified location determined from the specified firmware update package; where the custom update capsule contains none of the firmware images contained in the firmware update package; and where the custom update capsule has a format of a conventional UEFI capsule with the instruction payload information substituted in place of firmware payload components that include the firmware images of the firmware update package that are stored separately from the custom update capsule.