Samsung 2TB 980 Pro M.2 NVME firmware issue-how to update firmware using a M1/M2 Mac?

[mavots]

I am trying to figure out a way to update the firmware on a 2TB Samsung 980 Pro M.2 NVME. As you may know, Samsung has issued a warning concerning older (2021) 2TB drives and their imminent failure unless the firmware is updated. Only earlier 2TB M.2 NVME's with serial #'s starting with 3 are affected. They have issued new firmware to solve the problem.

I have an external drive enclosure (Fledging 3TB) with a 2TB 980 Pro connected to a M1 MacBook Air.

I downloaded the latest firmware .iso image and created a bootable flash drive using Etcher. Unfortunately, the drive does not seem to mount on my M1 Mac. Perhaps the firmware .iso is Intel only (?). I was able to startup from the .iso on a 2012 MacBook Pro but the TB3 NVME drive was not mountable.

Updating the firmware is fairly easy with a PC, and less so on a (Intel) Mac. I'm not sure how it is possible with Apple Silicon.

Any ideas?

 

[dmccloud]

Here is the link to the page which contains the firmware updates themselves - only issue is that Samsung seemingly does not include dates for the majority of these updates, so it's hard to tell whether the one on their site is newer than what your SSD is already running.

Tool & Software Download | Samsung Semiconductor Global

Download various software related to your product, including Samsung Magician, designed for use with Samsung's memory products, and find related information.

www.samsung.com

 

[mavots]

Here is the link to the page which contains the firmware updates themselves - only issue is that Samsung seemingly does not include dates for the majority of these updates, so it's hard to tell whether the one on their site is newer than what your SSD is already running.

Tool & Software Download | Samsung Semiconductor Global

Download various software related to your product, including Samsung Magician, designed for use with Samsung's memory products, and find related information.

www.samsung.com

Thanks. I've already downloaded the firmware update. Unfortunately, I can't figure out a way to perform the update using an Apple silicon Mac. I created a bootable .iso drive but the firmware only runs on Intel machines. Need a friend with a PC that has an NVME slot.
In the meantime, I contacted Samsung and started an exchange.

 

[jdb8167]

Thanks. I've already downloaded the firmware update. Unfortunately, I can't figure out a way to perform the update using an Apple silicon Mac. I created a bootable .iso drive but the firmware only runs on Intel machines. Need a friend with a PC that has an NVME slot.
In the meantime, I contacted Samsung and started an exchange.

Do you mean Windows or Intel Macs? If the Intel Macs aren’t using a kext then Rosetta should work fine.

 

[magbarn]

Do you mean Windows or Intel Macs? If the Intel Macs aren’t using a kext then Rosetta should work fine.

AFAIK, I don't know of any M.2 NVME drive that allows updates on macOS, only Windows. No way would I risk a firmware update on emulation. I wouldn't even try it on an Intel Mac running parallels. I've done some firmware updates in bootcamp, but that's not an option on AS.

 

[jdb8167]

AFAIK, I don't know of any M.2 NVME drive that allows updates on macOS, only Windows. No way would I risk a firmware update on emulation. I wouldn't even try it on an Intel Mac running parallels. I've done some firmware updates in bootcamp, but that's not an option on AS.

Rosetta 2 isn’t emulation it’s x86 to Aarch64 translation. So if an Intel Mac can update the drive without resorting to Windows then an Apple silicon Mac should also work unless the Intel Mac was using a kernel extension (which doesn’t work under Rosetta).

If Windows is required then I agree. I wouldn’t try it on an Apple silicon Mac.

 

[mr_roboto]

Do you mean Windows or Intel Macs? If the Intel Macs aren’t using a kext then Rosetta should work fine.

To clear this up, Samsung firmware updaters are ISO disk images which you write to a USB thumbdrive. Then, you reboot your computer from the minimal OS on the thumbdrive and use a pre-installed application to update one or more Samsung SSDs.

It's been a while since I did this, but IIRC Samsung uses a non-Microsoft DOS clone as the OS in these ISO images. (It's either that or Linux, I forget which.) So it's not Windows, but it might as well be - these updaters can only be used on Intel Macs, not Apple Silicon Macs.

 

[dmccloud]

To clear this up, Samsung firmware updaters are ISO disk images which you write to a USB thumbdrive. Then, you reboot your computer from the minimal OS on the thumbdrive and use a pre-installed application to update one or more Samsung SSDs.

It's been a while since I did this, but IIRC Samsung uses a non-Microsoft DOS clone as the OS in these ISO images. (It's either that or Linux, I forget which.) So it's not Windows, but it might as well be - these updaters can only be used on Intel Macs, not Apple Silicon Macs.

According to Samsung's site which hosts the firmware, the ISOs are built off some lightweight variant of Linux.

 

[Rafterman]

Would Windows ARM work? Create a Windows ARM VM with Parallels, select the ISO as the boot device and boot the VM while the NVME is attached to Windows via the Mac (I assume th NVME is in a Thunderbolt or USB-C enclosure)

I have no idea if that would work...

 

[ovbacon]

I have an external Acasis (TBU405) Enclosure with a Samsung 980 Pro 2TB and wanted to know what firmware it is running and if I can update it. I contacted Samsung and to no surprise they do not have an easy way of dealing with it on a Mac but was told (and received confirmation via email) that if you need to have the firmware updated you can send it to them and they will update and test the ssd under warranty. This of course is kinda a last resort thing as they will completely wipe it in the process.

As far as checking what firmware your ssd is running you can use your mac's system information and compare that with the latest version on Samsung's site.

 

[bobcomer]

Would Windows ARM work? Create a Windows ARM VM with Parallels, select the ISO as the boot device and boot the VM while the NVME is attached to Windows via the Mac (I assume th NVME is in a Thunderbolt or USB-C enclosure)

I have no idea if that would work...

No way I'd ever try that. Parallels doesn't have direct access to the real hardware.

 

[chrfr]

I have an external Acasis (TBU405) Enclosure with a Samsung 980 Pro 2TB and wanted to know what firmware it is running and if I can update it. I contacted Samsung and to no surprise they do not have an easy way of dealing with it on a Mac but was told (and received confirmation via email) that if you need to have the firmware updated you can send it to them and they will update and test the ssd under warranty. This of course is kinda a last resort thing as they will completely wipe it in the process.

If you have Bootcamp (obviously not on an Apple Silicon Mac) you can update SSD firmware via Thunderbolt. That's probably the easiest way to do it on a Mac but is rapidly becoming impossible as Intel Macs become less prevalent.

 

[mavots]

My 980 Pro ended up in read only mode so I sent it to Samsung. They shipped me a new stick but the whole process took about 2-3 weeks. It sat there for a few days before a technician evaluated the old one and made the decision to replace it. I'm guessing the eval process takes all of a minute.
I thought about asking a friend with a PC to help upgrade the firmware but by the time I was about to do that the 980 went read only.

 

[dmccloud]

My 980 Pro ended up in read only mode so I sent it to Samsung. They shipped me a new stick but the whole process took about 2-3 weeks. It sat there for a few days before a technician evaluated the old one and made the decision to replace it. I'm guessing the eval process takes all of a minute.
I thought about asking a friend with a PC to help upgrade the firmware but by the time I was about to do that the 980 went read only.

I have two 980 Pros in my gaming PC, and they can't be updated even with Samsung Magician on that machine, so access to a PC won't necessarily allow you to update them either. Granted, both of mine were purchased last October so they might have the firmware updates already, but Samsung's app won't even allow you to do the most basic tasks within their app.

 

[chrfr]

I have two 980 Pros in my gaming PC, and they can't be updated even with Samsung Magician on that machine, so access to a PC won't necessarily allow you to update them either. Granted, both of mine were purchased last October so they might have the firmware updates already, but Samsung's app won't even allow you to do the most basic tasks within their app.

I updated a 980 Pro, and I've updated many other Samsung SSDs using Magician without a problem, but with Intel based PCs you can also use the bootable firmware updater if the disk is installed in the computer internally.

 

[tule93]

Only earlier 2TB M.2 NVME's with serial #'s starting with 3 are affected. They have issued new firmware to solve the problem.

idk, my original SSD bought back in April 2021 had SN S6B0NG0R202068J just failed 2 months ago. Samsung did send out a new drive SN starting with S6B0NL0W3*****

Now I'm wondering if I need to update the firmware on this new drive. All my computers run macOS and I hate to ask a friend to swap out his M.2 just to check the fw on this for me

 

[ovbacon]

idk, my original SSD bought back in April 2021 had SN S6B0NG0R202068J just failed 2 months ago. Samsung did send out a new drive SN starting with S6B0NL0W3*****

Now I'm wondering if I need to update the firmware on this new drive. All my computers run macOS and I hate to ask a friend to swap out his M.2 just to check the fw on this for me

You can check the firmware yourself... you just can't update it.

 

[tule93]

You can check the firmware yourself... you just can't update it.

Ahhh thanks for the tips. I didn't know it was possible. A quick google did the trick. Confirm newer batch shipped with latest firmware.

 

[ovbacon]

Ahhh thanks for the tips. I didn't know it was possible. A quick google did the trick. Confirm newer batch shipped with latest firmware.

you could have looked up at this thread where I actually show how including a screenshot... #10

 

[dmccloud]

Samsung Magician is the app Samsung provides on Windows which allows you to check drive health, update firmware, etc. However, that app hasn't worked right for me on my gaming PC in over six months, so I'm not sure Samsung really cares one way or the other regarding actually being able to update the firmware.

 

[chibamac]

I have an external Acasis (TBU405) Enclosure with a Samsung 980 Pro 2TB and wanted to know what firmware it is running and if I can update it. I contacted Samsung and to no surprise they do not have an easy way of dealing with it on a Mac but was told (and received confirmation via email) that if you need to have the firmware updated you can send it to them and they will update and test the ssd under warranty. This of course is kinda a last resort thing as they will completely wipe it in the process.

As far as checking what firmware your ssd is running you can use your mac's system information and compare that with the latest version on Samsung's site.

View attachment 2200770

Just wanted to say thanks for this!
Had a 2 tb 980 pro from last year and just got a new one for Amazon prime day and they both have the more recent 5B2QGXA7.
That would have been a huge pain finding a PC to use for the upgrade.

 

[obesechess]

Just wanted to say thanks for this!
Had a 2 tb 980 pro from last year and just got a new one for Amazon prime day and they both have the more recent 5B2QGXA7.
That would have been a huge pain finding a PC to use for the upgrade.

This is a relief - I bought the 1TB 990 Pro and a 2TB Evo 870 on Prime Day in anticipation of a Mac Mini purchase (3TB storage for $120, not bad) but then read about the need for firmware updates and was very worried I wouldn't be able to do this. I hope I, too, got the most recent firmware. Am I understanding correctly that the update process would have been to find a PC, plug the drives into that PC, and then update the firmware via Samsung Magician? That seems like... a lot!

 

[verm]

I have an external Acasis (TBU405) Enclosure with a Samsung 980 Pro 2TB and wanted to know what firmware it is running and if I can update it. I contacted Samsung and to no surprise they do not have an easy way of dealing with it on a Mac but was told (and received confirmation via email) that if you need to have the firmware updated you can send it to them and they will update and test the ssd under warranty. This of course is kinda a last resort thing as they will completely wipe it in the process.

As far as checking what firmware your ssd is running you can use your mac's system information and compare that with the latest version on Samsung's site.

View attachment 2200770

Sorry for bring up an old thread, I am about to buy the TBU405 Pro M1 (the TBU405 upgraded version with a fan) for the 980 Pro 2TB I just bought (production date 2021 Aug). I don't have access to any modern windows PC with a NVMe m.2 slot or USB C.

I only have an old Macbook Air 2012 (USB A 3.0) and a Mac Mini M1 2020 (USB 4). Will the Acasis case work for the firmware update, if I plugged it into the win PC with a USB C to USB A converter and booted the iso image from a flash drive?

Thanks in advance and for all the information provided on this thread...