[GTALUG] Skylake: rocky firmware problem; Note for Asus ZenBook UX305ca owners

D. Hugh Redelmeier hugh at mimosa.com
Mon Jul 18 11:41:35 EDT 2016


Warning: if you have the right kind of computer (with an Intel Skylake
processor), Linux will not successfully boot after certain updates.

This is a good description of the Fedora version of the problem:
<https://www.happyassassin.net/2016/07/07/psa-failure-to-boot-after-kernel-update-on-skylake-systems/>

It affects other distros too.

I don't know all the hardware it affects, but it includes a bunch of notebooks:
	Lenovo Thinkpad T460, Lenovo Thinkpad x260, Lenovo Yoga 260, ASUS
	ZenBook UX305CA, Asus ZenBook UX303UB, Samsung Notebook 9.

<https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=1353103>


I was able to fix this on my UX305ca.

- there is a firmware update "300" that fixes the problem

- install the firmware update from Windows (I didn't try to figure out
  how to do it without Windows)

- the Asus GUI tool for update discovery and installation does not
  find it.  I guess that Asus thinks firmware updates are dangerous.

- go to the website with downloads for the UX305ca
  <http://www.asus.com/us/Notebooks/ASUS-ZenBook-UX305CA/HelpDesk_Download/>

- Under the "BIOS" expandable item, find and download "BIOS 300".
  Unzip it.

- you also need the WinFlash (a separate download under BIOS-Utilities).
  I had previously installed it to flash BIOS 205.  Run it, pointing it
  at the unzipped BIOS 300.

- NOTE: (discovered the hard way) the firmware flashing will change at least
  some of the firmware settings that you made.

  The one that bit me:  I need Secure Boot to be disabled because
  I'm using unsigned kernels (to work around the i2c bus problems Linux
  has with Skylake).  When I booted with SB on, I got the infamously
  inscrutable "double free" message from grub:
	<https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=1292615>
  (Notice who posted this bug.)
  


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