WARNING: Do not upgrade firmware directly from 1571 to 1916 for Runcore Pro IV SSD !!

[bungee28]

Ok, I learnt this the hard way. After following the firmware upgrade instructions posted on Support | RunCore and running the firmware upgrade procedure successfully off a MS-DOS boot USB on my Samsung D die Flash#8 64GB SSD, I was shocked to encounter the following BIOS message when restarting the drive.

DRIVE0 HARD DISK LOCKED
ENTER PASSWORD [ ]

No password I tried would unlock the drive. Several e-mail exchanges with Runcore's China support later, and to cut a long story short, I was informed that I should have updated from 1571 to 1819, and then from 1819 to 1916. Don't ask me how I should have known that or where I can even download the 1819 firmware ugprade files?!

I'm currently in the midst of attempting to recover the SSD but first, need to get my hands on a Runcore ZIF external USB drive enclosure that has a green (not dark blue) PCB. It's a complicated procedure I need to do, failing which my only other choice is to RMA the drive, which I'm trying to avoid.

I'm posting this here as a warning and will update if I'm able to successfully recover and 'unlock' my drive.

[Hellvince]

Hello,

Just registred when I saw your post about NOT upgrading from 1571 to 1916...

That was just in time, as I was about to do exactly this upgrade...

Now that mentioned it, I had to browse through the chinese website to find the 1819 Firmware upgrade.

I downloaded the 1819 updgrade tutorial from their website (here : http://www.runcore.com.cn/common/download.ashx?id=27).
By chance, there was a direct link to the 1819 Firmware at the end of the PDF :

RunCore FW1819 Update(Samsung Mdie Flash ) Release Version
RunCore FW1819 Update(Samsung Ddie Flash ) Release Version

I must say that I DO NOT HAVE TESTED IT (yet !). The Tutorial is in chinese but it's looking similar to the tutorial for the 1916 on the runcore website (in english).
According to screenshots, .exe for DOS upgrade are in english...

I think I'm gonna give it a try !

[poteck]

Dear bungee28,

When i try to upgrade my firmware i had the same problem. I upgrade
directly from 1571 to the 1916 with the same result, i lost access to my disk.

You need to upgrade to the 1819 first, then 1916. I want to tell you that in my case i need to put the jumper that you can see INSIDE the pcb who says JP1 to on. Without it the disk fail to upgrade. This jumper is a factory mode jumper.
After upgrade to 1819 update to 1916.

Hopes this helps to you.

Bye.

[LinTweak]

I upgraded my Macbook Air directly to the new firmware without issues.

My guess would be the upgrade method used.

[bungee28]

If you read the published instructions carefully, it sounds like a 1571 direct to 1916 would only work with the Samsung M die flash. Unfortunately, I have the Samsung D flash.

And yes, I'd need to open the SSD casing and insert a jumper as part of the procedure to fix my problem. I've received instructions and some custom initialization 'simplified MP tool' from Runcore Support, and am waiting to get my hands on a ZIF ext USB enclosure.

[beaconer]

If you read the published instructions carefully, it sounds like a 1571 direct to 1916 would only work with the Samsung M die flash. Unfortunately, I have the Samsung D flash.

And yes, I'd need to open the SSD casing and insert a jumper as part of the procedure to fix my problem. I've received instructions and some custom initialization 'simplified MP tool' from Runcore Support, and am waiting to get my hands on a ZIF ext USB enclosure.

Hello,

did you get the ssd reflashed?
I made the same mistake and now i hope to repair the device.

Regards

[warenbe]

ARG!
i made the same mistake!

now i'm stuck

i have a ZIF case so i can connect the disk to my computer using an USB cable... but what can i do now?

i mean, if i try to reflash the disk, the tool is not able to find my disk because it's connected using USB!

do you have a solution?

it's a big mistake from runcore that they didn't write this information in the PDF in the firmware installation manual...
i was really happy with this 64GB samsung D Die disk: really fast... but now i'm a bit disapointed :(


thank you for your warning, event if it's a bit late for me!

[Goldy]

Any chance of posting the instructions and maybe even some pics? I'm in the same boat but don't want to send my SSD back overseas to have it fixed - too long and risky, I'd rather have a go myself.

Thanks heaps,

Goldy

[warenbe]

for your information here is the discussion i had with the support:

Me:

Hi i updated my 64GB pro 4 disk (samsung D Die) from 1571 to 1916 and now my disk is locked :( on the formum i saw that it was dangerous for the disk! you should write it on the download page of the new firmware! now what can i do to have this really good disk operating again? i have a ZIF case so i'm able to connect the disk to my computer using USB cable. thank you. olivier (from france)



Support:

Dear customer

We do apologize for the inconvenience.
For some SSDs, it needs to be update to 1819 before to 1916.
Please read the instruction attached carefully, and run the 1819 firmware updating process again.
Also, before connect the drive via USB connector, u might need tweezers to connect those two "J1" holes in order to set the drive back to factory mode.

Regards,
Runcore support



Me:

Hi again

It don’t work 

Here is what i did :

First try:

I inserted a squeezer in the j1 (DISK NOT CONNECTED!)
I removed the squeezer
Connected the disk on USB
I followed the procedure (booting with DVD of win7)
Disk not detected by the firmware tool

Second try:

Exactly the same on another computer. Same problem

Third try:

I inserted a squeezer
Without removing it, I connected the disk on USB
Disk not detected again by the tool

4 try:

Same thing on another computer, same problem

5 try:

Connected the disk directly to the mother board using a ZIF cable (got error “DISK LOCKED”)
Disk not detected by the flashing tool 




Even if the disk is detected in bios as “INITIO”, it’s not detected by the tool….
What’s wrong in what I did?





Support:

Dear customer

Normally, for you case the ssd should be sent back to our factory for
reinitialization due to misoperation while updating firmware version.
Now, we've actually got a simplified MPtool which can provide to specific
customer for self-reinitializing, It is risky though, which may cause the
SSD to be 'dead', and eventually leads to RMA.

Here is what i need to confirm with you before i send you the tool:
1. The code printed on the flash
2. PN of the ssd
3. color of your USB adaptor (blue or green, picture preferred. Note:blue adaptor is not compatible with the MPtool )


Regards,
Runcore support





me:

Here is the informations you asked me for:

Code printed on the flash: S/N: 640910080180
Product number of the SSD: 14056400
Picture of USB PCB: (here attached to SDD):




support:


Dear Customer

We apologize for the inconvenience, there may have been something wrong due to the misoperation while updating firmware, and caused a flash problem. Our SSDs are under a two-year warranty, so you may need to contact your vendor and apply for a replacement? If you bought the item from runcorestore.com, please send us the order receipt so i could pass the email to the relevant regional sales, who will take care of your RMA process.

Best Regards,
Runcore support







in conclusion: i will contact my reseller (in USA :( ) to get another SSD

[melvsee]

I read this thread and was afraid to perform the upgrade.

However, I really wanted to upgrade from 1571 to 1916.

So, I read and reread the manual several times. I even printed it out so that I would have it in front of me during the upgrade.

I decided to trust the manual when it said that my drive (M die) could be upgraded from 1571 to 1916 and took the plunge.

My drive now works great - it has regained its speed and seems to be as fast as it was when it was new.