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tttapa
Asked: 2018-09-21 00:15:33 +0800 CST

Should I install firmware update from the Ubuntu Software Center?

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I have a Dell XPS 15 9560 (2017) running Ubuntu 16.04 in dual boot with Windows 10.

Usually, I install firmware/BIOS updates using the Dell update tool in Windows. However, I just noticed an available update in the Ubuntu Software Center "XPS 15 9650 / Precision 5520 System Update 0.1.11.0" (see image).

XPS 15 9650 / Precision 5520 System Update 0.1.11.0 Ubuntu Software Center

The leading zero in the version number, and the rather strange change log look a bit suspicious to me ...

Where does it come from? What does it do? Why have I never seen anything like this in the past?
And most importantly: is it recommended to install this, and do I risk bricking my Windows installation?

dual-boot software-center firmware dell

2 Answers

  1. Actually if it came from the Ubuntu Software Center it usually had passed some minimal security tests before it was included. So I would not be too worried on the safety. But these tests may be incomplete or somebody had overlooked something. Nobody is without fail, so cautiousness always pays off in the end.

    It is perfectly fine to hesitate and to be careful in what you install, or not install. A firmware update in the best case solves issues you have, in the worst case introduces issues you didn't have before. So in case you are happy with you system there is little need to risk anything.

    General sources of concerns are not so much version numbers (many long established applications still are version 0.x) but

    • Applications from a "testing" or "alpha" source. Be prepared for many bugs!
    • Any update where it is unclear if you need it at all
    • An obscure or missing change log (adding "Moo" and "bar" would exactly be such a thing)
    • Unexpected updates
    • Updates from a PPA or another risky external repository
    • Proprietary software updates where nobody (nobody!) knows what comes with it

    If you are faced with such an update it is good advice to perform an internet search for issues other people may have had. Even if nothing turns up then nothing would be lost if you waited a bit with the update. Sometimes bugs need their time to be published, and even longer to be fixed.

    So my general advice is: if you are worried: wait !

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  2. I ended up just installing it on Windows using the Dell application. (The BIOS update wasn't there when I posted this question, but some time later it was.)

    On Windows, the version number was 1.11.0 instead of 0.1.11.0, and it did have a proper change log.

    Now that it has been installed, it no longer shows up in the Ubuntu Software Center either, so everything seems fine now.

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