Nitropad V56 with Heads: How to update the firmware?

Nitrokeys Misc
1

I have an Nitropad V56 with Heads Firmeware.
How can i update my firmeware in Qubes 4.3 Rc2?
Running sudo qubes-fwupdmgr refresh i only get this:

...
Idle...: 0%
WARNING: UEFI firmware can not be updated in legacy BIOS mode
See https://github.com/fwupd/fwupd/wiki/PluginFlag:legacy-bios for more information.
Successfully refreshed metadata manually

Even though it says successfully, it doesn’t seem to really be successful :slight_smile:

I guess that Heads Firmware can be updated using this release which is already a pre-release for some time now, when will it become stable?

2

Hello,

you can find our guide about the firmware update here:

https://docs.nitrokey.com/nitropad-nitropc/heads/firmware-update

It’s not explaining for the V56 yet since the first release is not stable but the process will be similar.

The release will become stable in the next months.

3

I have a Nitropad V56 manufactured in 2025, with Heads and Q4.2.

I attempted an in-place upgrade to Q4.3 and it partially installed; error with low memory. It failed in the first few stages before the reboot.

I then attempted a clean install to Q4.3 but it failed when trying a USB with an ISO put on the USB using dd. That failed - could not find the USB but that same USB was used successfully to perform a clean install of Q4.3 on another Nitrokey computer without heads (an older Nitropro I think - with the mini-form factor). I then tried installing using a USB with an ISO and a detached *.asc file and that failed because the signatures were not verified.

Suggestions?

4

Hello, are you able to boot in the 4.3 installer with your V56 ?

If not could you try to flash the image in the USB using balena etcher and also verify the hashes of the downloaded Qubes 4.3 image.

5

I have not been able to get to the installer yet, the screenshot below is what I receive when I use a USB that has the ISO and separate *.asc file.

I had already verified the ISO file per Verifying signatures — Qubes OS Documentation before putting it on a USB (How to verify detached PGP signatures on Qubes ISOs)

heads-fail
heads-fail1920×983 121 KB

I will retry flashing the Q4.3 image using a different USB and check that I didn’t make an error there.

6

Did you flashed the ISO or just copied it on the USB stick ?

7

I flashed the ISO using dd previously but I suspect I made an error. I just tried using balena etcher and I successfully installed Q4.3 on another laptop that had Q4.2 (a librem 14), so next I’ll try installing on the V56 and I expect it should work fine. Thanks for the help!

8

Nice, indeed dd is a sensitive command to use! This is why I prefer recommending the usage of Balena Etcher which easy to use and open source.