S3 doesn't finish update firmware 8.1.1

[Peer_van_Altenborg 0]

Today I started the firmware update 8.1.1 from an USB stick. After 45 minutes the update is still not finished. All I can see on the display are 4 groups of three vertical lines.

 

Do I have to wait longer of should turn the printer off?

[gr5 2,167]

This happens sometimes (crash during update).  most of the time a reboot (power cycle) finishes the install.  Or usually worst case the install never completed and you are at the older version.  Most updates take less than 2 minutes or at least show changes on the display every 30 seconds or so.  There are a few updates that had to reformat all the saved profiles or something that could take maybe 8 minutes.  45 minutes is too long.  It's time to power cycle.

[Peer_van_Altenborg 0]

Thanks for the swift reply. I turned the printer off and on again and apparently there 's no harm done. However, I'm still on firmware 5.3.0. Should I just retry to update to 8.1.1? Or should I install another version between 5.3.0 en 8.1.1?

[gr5 2,167]

Don't be afraid to try again.  It's very unlikely to fail. 

 

However what features do you want that are in 8.1.1?  In my perspective I'm not eager to swap my current known minor bugs which all have work arounds with a newer version of firmware that has new, different (minor) bugs which I then need to find workarounds for.

 

Most of the useful bug fixes and features in the last few years have been related to the air manager (AM), the material station (MS) and Digital Factory (DF).  So if you don't use those you might want to just stick with version 5.3.0.

 

Some features go away in 8.X.  Many networking features.  If you aren't using DF and are using the printer directly over the network then you may be quite upset when you upgrade to 8.X.  I think actually most of the changes in 8.X are related to networking.

[Peer_van_Altenborg 0]

I'm a technician responsable for the inventory at our school, but our printer is hardly ever used. Maybe once a year. A few weeks ago I tried to print a small and simple .STL file (M5 washer) to demonstrate the printer, but the printer failed to recognize the file on the USB stick. On previous occasions this file caused no problems whatsoever and the print came out smoothly. But this is a different topic. I searched for a solution for this issue but couldn't find one in the time I had available.

So I reckoned a firmware update or a factory reset might help.

[tomnagel 126]

The file format has not changed for years. New firmware or a factory reset is not likely to help.

Have you tried another USB disk?

[Peer_van_Altenborg 0]

I've imported the .STL in Cura and that looks fine. My next step was to export the file in all formats supported by Cura to the USB: .3mf, .gcode, .STL (ASCII), .STL (BIN), and .upf. The top file in the list is the original file.

Only two of the six files appear in the list on the printer display: . gcode and .ufp. These two are unfortunately not accepted as Cura reported an error during export. One is 0 kB in size; the other 1 kB. The original file is 15 kB.

 

I think the USB stick is fine. It 's the one supplied with the printer ... I don't get any error messages when I'm using it in my computer. And I've tried several other sticks as well in the printer.

[Peer_van_Altenborg 0]

I used two different USB sticks with the same list op files in the root. I've copied the file with the firmware update to the root as well. The firmware update is shown on the display.

 

I've tried to update the firmware several times. The update is copied, checked and installed but reboot after installation fails.

[tomnagel 126]

1 hour ago, Peer_van_Altenborg said:

I've imported the .STL in Cura and that looks fine. My next step was to export the file in all formats supported by Cura to the USB: .3mf, .gcode, .STL (ASCII), .STL (BIN), and .upf. The top file in the list is the original file.

Only two of the six files appear in the list on the printer display: . gcode and .ufp. These two are unfortunately not accepted as Cura reported an error during export. One is 0 kB in size; the other 1 kB. The original file is 15 kB.

 

I think the USB stick is fine. It 's the one supplied with the printer ... I don't get any error messages when I'm using it in my computer. And I've tried several other sticks as well in the printer.

From this story, it looks to me as if something is wrong with Cura. 
why do you think it may be related to your printer?

[Peer_van_Altenborg 0]

Oops. I'm not doing this often enough (RTFM applies). I forgot to slice the file in Cura. Print runs smoothly now. Sorry to have wasted your time on this.

 

The firmware issue remains however.

[tomnagel 126]

You're on a very old firmware version. You cannot update in one step to this version, you need a so called stepping stone version. I'm not too familiar, please open a support ticket on our website, or read the documentation that is on our website

 

[Peer_van_Altenborg 0]

I've looked for firmware updates prior to 8.x on your website but couldn't find any. I'll open a support ticket next week (we're having a short break in the Netherlands).

Thanks for your help.

[Dustin 126]

@Peer_van_Altenborg Sorry you are having issues.. you appear to be on an unexpected build of firmware.
Can you please raise a case with UltiMaker Support directly to help resolve this issue?
You will likely need to do a firmware recovery to get to the correct update level.
Additionally steps might be required and UltiMaker Support can help get you going.

Contact here: https://support.makerbot.com/s/contactsupport

Unfortunately, UltiMaker does not provide 1:1 Technical Support via the Community.

[Peer_van_Altenborg 0]

Today I found out that the UM S3 is discontinued as per March 14^th, 2023 (Ultimaker 3 firmware release notes (makerbot.com)). I suppose the firmware version 8.1.1 is not designed for S3 and 5.3.0 is the latest version of the firmware that is issued for the S3.

[ahoeben 1,948]

There's a difference between the Ultimaker 3 and the Ultimaker S3. The Ultimaker S3 is a current model, the Ultimaker 3 (without the S) is much older.

 

Judging from the UM3 prefix on your filenames, I think you have an Ultimaker 3. If you have an Ultimaker S3 in your Cura installation, it would save files with the UMS3 prefix.

 

The Ultimaker 3 has a monochrome (white on black) display and a click-wheel, both flush with the front surface, the Ultimaker S3 has a color touch-screen which is on an angle with the front surface. The S3 also comes with a hinged door.

Edited May 30, 2023 by ahoeben

[Dustin 126]

3 hours ago, Peer_van_Altenborg said:

Today I found out that the UM S3 is discontinued as per March 14^th, 2023 (Ultimaker 3 firmware release notes (makerbot.com)). I suppose the firmware version 8.1.1 is not designed for S3 and 5.3.0 is the latest version of the firmware that is issued for the S3.

Please dont attempt to install S Series firmware on your UltiMaker 3 it is not the same firmware.