I have a Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5 ITL05 laptop. Today I checked for updates with Lenovo Vantage and it told me I have a BIOS update available (FXCN47WW), so I downloaded it and selected Yes to reboot and install it. After the reboot, I checked for updates again and it said the BIOS update had failed. So I tracked down the .EXE installer and tried that way but it failed too. I installed the previous BIOS update (FXCN46WW) back in April and it installed successfully with no problems. I booted into BIOS just to be sure and indeed it's still the previous version. I've been looking around for a solution but not having much luck. Lenovo doesn't report any problems with the new version; it was released in May. I have a feeling this could turn into a lot more work than I really want to deal with, but does anyone know what some of the more common problems with BIOS update failure are?
Have you tried running the BIOS update with elevated privileges, e.g. 'Run as administrator'? If not, right click on the BIOS update file to do so, and turn off Windows Defender if you are running Windows. The nuke option: reset the BIOS to the default setting ... but that will lead to "a lot more work than you really want to deal with". I've never had a BIOS update fail on my Lenovo systems by flashing the update or by using other methods, so my suggestion is based on what might help (it's not expert advise, by any means).
I assume by UFD you mean USB drive? I know how to create a bootable USB drive, but what would I do then? Do I put the BIOS .EXE file on the USB? Will it run automatically or will it need input from me?
Thanks for the suggestion. I tried running as Administrator but it made no difference. I've tried disabling Defender in the past but remember I was never able to do it. Is there a simple way to disable it? I did find that it's extracting the update files to C:\Drivers\Flash. It creates four files: FXCN47WW.CAP, install.bat, SctWinFlash64.exe, and WinFlash64.exe. It may not be your field of expertise, but maybe someone else knows if clicking any of them will install the update. Thanks.
Phil, It depends on the laptop brand. Some require a bootable UFD, others allow you to put the exe on a blank UFD and run it from a BIOS shortcut. The instructions will be with the update file. I always use a UFD (usb flash drive) for BIOS updates. Edit... Maybe Lenovo don't provide a USB update.
I checked BIOS and didn't see any way to update directly from there. What do you mean exactly by BIOS shortcut, and how would I run the update from it? I press F2 to enter BIOS, is that what you mean? The extracted .EXE has no Read Me or instructions.
I think I'm going to leave well enough alone for now. I'm afraid I'm going to bork the whole system. I'll just wait for a new update and see what happens then. Thanks all for the support.
You need a bios.iso file and use that to make it bootable. However, it seems Lenovo only offers exe files for your model, so that is not an option.
