Ultimate UHD Drives Flashing Guide Updated 2023

Forum for discussions about UHD-capable dives
MartyMcNuts
Posts: 2434
Joined: Wed Nov 22, 2017 11:45 pm

Re: Flashing Drives Installed in Vantec NST-540S3-BK

Post by MartyMcNuts »

Chris Kelly wrote:
Tue Apr 26, 2022 2:51 pm
Chris Kelly wrote:
Fri Apr 22, 2022 6:18 pm
It looks like this will be hit-or-miss. I asked Vantec about this and here's what they explained to me. I thought you might find it helpful.

"Hi Chris,

Thanks for asking.
Sorry, we do not know.

Let me explain, in a normal setup, these SATA optical drives installed into a system are connected to a SATA port directly, the optical drive manufacturer engineer test update, and design the firmware update program to write directly to the drive via SATA command.

Now the SATA optical drive is connected to a bridge chipset on the enclosure (just FYI, ALL USB storage that connects to a SATA device is using a bridge chipset between them). The bridge chipset sits and translates all the USB commands and SATA commands between the system and the SATA optical drive. This is another layer of “passing the command and data”.

Whoever the engineer that wrote the firmware program, if they follow and stay within the SATA command set, it will work. If they write outside the SATA command set (write directly to the optical drive using microcode), the bridge chipset may not be able to translate the command resulting in not being able to update the firmware.

I see these issues all the time in earlier days of firmware update software, but it is getting better and now. The only way is to try it out. If you have it connected and run the update software, and it can see the drive correctly, it should be fine.

Another wrinkle that can happen is the design of the bridge chipset, there are many models of the bridge chipset and need the right combination. No one has gone thru this process of screening every optical drive and chipset combination to test firmware update capability.

In answering your question, our enclosure does have a serial number that tracks the batch and I am not sure it can support optical drive firmware update until you try.





If you have any further questions, please don't hesitate to ask and we will do our best to answer them.

Regards,

Technical Support
Vantec Thermal Technologies
Tel: 510-668-0368
Fax: 510-668-0367
www.vantecusa.com

From: Chris Kelly [mailto:chriskfromnj@gmail.com]
Sent: Friday, April 22, 2022 8:42 AM
To: support@vantecusa.com
Subject: Question about NST-540S3-BK

Hello, I have questions about NST-540S3-BK

I have three drives. So I ordered three of these enclosures from Amazon a few days ago, and you guys happen to be the seller. I understand there is inconsistency from unit to unit as far as which units allow drive firmware upgrading and which ones don’t once the drive is installed in the enclosure. My enclosures haven’t arrived yet. Before I install the three drives, is there a manufacturing date or serial number which would determine which units will and will not support optical drive firmware upgrading?

Chris Kelly
"

Well, now that AnyDVDHD uses MakeMKV to make it compatible with my LG WH16NS60, I plan on flashing it from ASUS BW-16d1H-T 3.10 MK firmware back to WH16NS60 1.03 MK as soon as my enclosures arrive. So wish me luck.
My three Vantec 540s arrived yesterday. For someone with limited eyesight who uses screen readers and reads Braille, it took me a total of three hours and twenty-eight minutes to get all three drives installed and assemble the enclosures. I ddecided to use one USB cable and power supply and connect them to whatever drive I want to use because using three USB cables and three power supplies was making my work area messy. But if the power input jack and USB port on each enclosure is too fragile for swapping, I'd learn to deal with the mess. When using the latest version of the modified ASUS flasher, I was able to flash my LG WH16NS60 from the ASUS BW-16D1H-T 3.10 MK back to LG WH16NS60 1.03 MK. Speaking of MK firmware: I understand MakeMKV now works with Pioneer drives which don't require modified firmware. Any plans for MakeMKV to work with unmodified firmware?

You could still use all 3 cables, just cable tie them together to help with the clutter.

Only Pioneer UHD drive models are compatible and there are no firmware changes required.

Also, MakeMKV does work with unmodified ASUS/LG firmware. Just look at all the available "DE" firmware versions ie: ASUS BW-16D1HT 3.02, BH16NS55 1.02 WH16NS60 1.00 etc....
Cheers :D
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
For UHD enabled drives (AU/NZ/SG) & DIY Single Drive Flasher (WW): https://www.uhdenableddrives.com
skutah
Posts: 5
Joined: Thu Apr 14, 2022 8:43 pm

Re: Ultimate UHD Drives Flashing Guide Updated 2022

Post by skutah »

Hi there!

Still trying to flash on Linux unsuccessfully and stuck at the error that it doesn't find the device.

Here is what I did:

1. Downloaded and unzipped the files.

2. Entered in Terminal: cd /usr/bin

3. Entered: ./makemkvcon f -l and got this:

00: dev_21:7, /dev/sr1, /dev/sr1
HL-DT-ST_BD-RE_BP50NB40_1.01_211711231615_SIKBCIABN1311

4. Then entered: ./makemkvcon f -d '/dev_21:7' -f /home/path-to-file/sdf.bin rawflash main -i /home/path-to-file/HL-DT-ST-BD-RE_BP50NB40-NB50-1.03-NM00800-212005070917.bin
Got this: Drive "/dev_21:7" not found

I inserted a regular BD and opened it with MKV without issues, then ran no. 3. again with the same result and no. 4. with the same result.

Any ideas where I'm going wrong?

Thanks
weust
Posts: 4
Joined: Fri May 06, 2022 11:29 am

Re: Ultimate UHD Drives Flashing Guide Updated 2022

Post by weust »

I got my LG WH16NS60 in yesterday.
Manufacturing date of 23 December 2021.
Of course it came with firmware version 1.03

Just flashed it and it shows the following:
Drive Information
OS device name: F:
Manufacturer: HL-DT-ST
Product: BD-RE WH16NS60
Revision: 1.02
Serial number: M00LCOG5159
Firmware date: 2118-10-29 19:36
Bus encryption flags: 17
Highest AACS version: 76

LibreDrive Information
Status: Enabled
Drive platform: MT1959
Firmware type: Patched (microcode access re-enabled)
Firmware version: 1.02
DVD all regions: Yes
BD raw data read: Yes
BD raw metadata read: Yes
Unrestricted read speed: Yes

No disc inserted
I did the flashing using a SATA cable, because when I first had the drive in my OWC Mercury Pro external case it was not detected.
I *think* it saw the USB chipset or something, because with an audio CD it would detect a 388MB drive.
The case has been working fine for several years now with a flashed Asus BW-16D1HT.

Putting the drive in there after this post and see what happens then.
Kinda weird, but glad the drive is fine because it came from the USA to NL because the drive here in over twice as expensive.
skutah
Posts: 5
Joined: Thu Apr 14, 2022 8:43 pm

Re: Ultimate UHD Drives Flashing Guide Updated 2022

Post by skutah »

Any ideas anyone?
MartyMcNuts
Posts: 2434
Joined: Wed Nov 22, 2017 11:45 pm

Re: Ultimate UHD Drives Flashing Guide Updated 2022

Post by MartyMcNuts »

skutah wrote:
Sun May 08, 2022 10:41 pm
Any ideas anyone?
Yep, use windows 10.
Cheers :D
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
For UHD enabled drives (AU/NZ/SG) & DIY Single Drive Flasher (WW): https://www.uhdenableddrives.com
weust
Posts: 4
Joined: Fri May 06, 2022 11:29 am

Re: Ultimate UHD Drives Flashing Guide Updated 2022

Post by weust »

weust wrote:
Fri May 06, 2022 11:36 am
I got my LG WH16NS60 in yesterday.
Manufacturing date of 23 December 2021.
Of course it came with firmware version 1.03

Just flashed it and it shows the following:
Drive Information
OS device name: F:
Manufacturer: HL-DT-ST
Product: BD-RE WH16NS60
Revision: 1.02
Serial number: M00LCOG5159
Firmware date: 2118-10-29 19:36
Bus encryption flags: 17
Highest AACS version: 76

LibreDrive Information
Status: Enabled
Drive platform: MT1959
Firmware type: Patched (microcode access re-enabled)
Firmware version: 1.02
DVD all regions: Yes
BD raw data read: Yes
BD raw metadata read: Yes
Unrestricted read speed: Yes

No disc inserted
I did the flashing using a SATA cable, because when I first had the drive in my OWC Mercury Pro external case it was not detected.
I *think* it saw the USB chipset or something, because with an audio CD it would detect a 388MB drive.
The case has been working fine for several years now with a flashed Asus BW-16D1HT.

Putting the drive in there after this post and see what happens then.
Kinda weird, but glad the drive is fine because it came from the USA to NL because the drive here in over twice as expensive.
Small update. OWC support was pointless. No help at all.
I did find out that if I power on the drive/enclosure with the USB cable plugged in it fails to see the drive.
But when I then unplug and plug the cable back in, the drive is seen.
Same goes for when I don't have the cable plugged in and turn the drive on and then plug the cable in.

Something odd going on, but other then that it seems to work. For now.
skutah
Posts: 5
Joined: Thu Apr 14, 2022 8:43 pm

Re: Ultimate UHD Drives Flashing Guide Updated 2022

Post by skutah »

MartyMcNuts wrote:
Mon May 09, 2022 12:21 am
skutah wrote:
Sun May 08, 2022 10:41 pm
Any ideas anyone?
Yep, use windows 10.
So very helpful.
Thanks, but no thanks.

Anyone else? Can't be the only person here who uses MakeMKV on Linux?
dcoke22
Posts: 2534
Joined: Wed Jul 22, 2020 11:25 pm

Re: Ultimate UHD Drives Flashing Guide Updated 2022

Post by dcoke22 »

skutah wrote:
Sun May 01, 2022 9:07 pm
3. Entered: ./makemkvcon f -l and got this:

00: dev_21:7, /dev/sr1, /dev/sr1
HL-DT-ST_BD-RE_BP50NB40_1.01_211711231615_SIKBCIABN1311

4. Then entered: ./makemkvcon f -d '/dev_21:7' -f /home/path-to-file/sdf.bin rawflash main -i /home/path-to-file/HL-DT-ST-BD-RE_BP50NB40-NB50-1.03-NM00800-212005070917.bin
Got this: Drive "/dev_21:7" not found

I don't use MakeMKV on Linux… but the result of command 3 was:

Code: Select all

00: dev_21:7, /dev/sr1, /dev/sr1
  HL-DT-ST_BD-RE_BP50NB40_1.01_211711231615_SIKBCIABN1311
but in your command 4 you changed dev_21:7 to /dev_21:7. Maybe try it without the leading slash.

Or try substituting /dev/sr1 into your command.
hankZ
Posts: 2
Joined: Thu May 12, 2022 3:27 am

Re: Ultimate UHD Drives Flashing Guide Updated 2022

Post by hankZ »

My old drive has stopped working; it's giving me the no disc error. What's the most reliable drive I should get? The LG BU40N or the LG WH14NS40?
If there's a better drive let me know. My budget is $90.
skutah
Posts: 5
Joined: Thu Apr 14, 2022 8:43 pm

Re: Ultimate UHD Drives Flashing Guide Updated 2022

Post by skutah »

dcoke22 wrote:
Wed May 11, 2022 8:38 pm
skutah wrote:
Sun May 01, 2022 9:07 pm
3. Entered: ./makemkvcon f -l and got this:

00: dev_21:7, /dev/sr1, /dev/sr1
HL-DT-ST_BD-RE_BP50NB40_1.01_211711231615_SIKBCIABN1311

4. Then entered: ./makemkvcon f -d '/dev_21:7' -f /home/path-to-file/sdf.bin rawflash main -i /home/path-to-file/HL-DT-ST-BD-RE_BP50NB40-NB50-1.03-NM00800-212005070917.bin
Got this: Drive "/dev_21:7" not found

I don't use MakeMKV on Linux… but the result of command 3 was:

Code: Select all

00: dev_21:7, /dev/sr1, /dev/sr1
  HL-DT-ST_BD-RE_BP50NB40_1.01_211711231615_SIKBCIABN1311
but in your command 4 you changed dev_21:7 to /dev_21:7. Maybe try it without the leading slash.

Or try substituting /dev/sr1 into your command.
Thank you very much! That actually was what created the error!
I had overlooked that the slash in the example had been taken from the output of command 3 and missing in the output on my machine.

It still gives me a "no disc" error, so I have to look for a solution for this new issue now but it definitely said the flashing process was successful and my original error is gone.
Thanks again, much appreciated.
jonghotti
Posts: 989
Joined: Tue May 01, 2018 7:04 pm
Location: San Francisco Bay Area
Contact:

Re: Ultimate UHD Drives Flashing Guide Updated 2022

Post by jonghotti »

I need my name added back to the sellers list please.
The Original "UHD Friendly" Drive Seller
https://www.makemkv.com/forum/viewtopic ... 20&t=17829
hankZ
Posts: 2
Joined: Thu May 12, 2022 3:27 am

Re: Ultimate UHD Drives Flashing Guide Updated 2022

Post by hankZ »

Thank you for this guide! It worked like a charm!
sapphire
Posts: 9
Joined: Tue May 17, 2022 7:56 pm

Re: Ultimate UHD Drives Flashing Guide Updated 2022

Post by sapphire »

Hello,

I accidently flashed a Desktop to a Slim Drive. What do I do know? I've been trying to restore it to the way it was before for hours now, but with no success. Can anyone kindly help me please?

My Drive name is LG WH16NS40.
(My original intent was to downgrade my firmware, which was at 1.05 because my Blu-ray drive did not want to read my new Blu-ray discs that I bought at all, but I could easily rip them through Make MKV Software).


Thank you!
Sapphire.
louiethe14th
Posts: 1
Joined: Wed May 18, 2022 1:18 am

Re: Ultimate UHD Drives Flashing Guide Updated 2022

Post by louiethe14th »

To flash a drive with encrypted firmware on Linux (or Mac), I was required to replace 'main'
"./makemkvcon f -d '/IOBDServices/D5D25996' -f /tmp/sdf.bin rawflash main -i /tmp/your firmware filename here
with 'enc' instead. Thanks to SanDiegoDana for pointing this out (earlier in this thread).
weust
Posts: 4
Joined: Fri May 06, 2022 11:29 am

Re: Ultimate UHD Drives Flashing Guide Updated 2022

Post by weust »

Just a generic question, are the firmware files specific for use with MakeMKV?
I flashed my LG WH16NS60 and it works fine with MakeMKV, but DVDFab Passkey complains the drive is not usable.

My ASUS BW-16D1HT works fine with both, but it's been so long since I flashed it I just can't remember if I used this forum for it or another one.
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