Firmware Update

If you have previously flashed the full firmware, you can make future updates via USB stick.

When instructed to press both buttons, press Prev and Next. You may alternatively press Select, or the rotary encoder, if you have them.

• Remove all old *.upd files from the root of the USB stick.
• Copy the *.upd file from the root of the release archive to the root of the USB stick.
• Insert the USB stick into the Gotek and power on with both buttons pressed.
• You should now be in the bootloader ("UPD"). Release both buttons.
• The latest firmware will be programmed and the Gotek will reboot into it.
• Success!

Errors during update are reported on the LED display:

• E01 No update file found
• E02 More than one update file found
• E03 Update file is invalid (bad signature or size)
• E04 Update file is corrupt (bad CRC)
• E05 Flash programming error
• Fxx FatFS error (probably bad USB drive or filesystem)

Updating the Bootloader

The main bootloader can also be updated by USB stick. Note that it is important for this operation to succeed, otherwise the Gotek will require a full reflash by following the steps in Initial Programming. Therefore make sure the Gotek has a stable power supply and a known good USB stick.

New features and bugfixes are rare. In general you do not need to update the bootloader and can skip these steps.

I repeat: do not follow these steps unless you are sure of what you are doing.

When instructed to press both buttons, press Prev and Next. You may alternatively press Select, or the rotary encoder, if you have them.

• Program the 'Reloader'
  • Remove all old *.upd and *.rld files from the USB stick.
  • Copy the contents of the release's reloader/ folder to the root of the USB stick.
    • [v2.x] Please note the folder has moved to alt/reloader
  • Insert the USB stick into the Gotek and power on with both buttons pressed.
  • You should now be in the bootloader ("UPD"). Release both buttons.
  • The 'reloader' will be programmed and the Gotek will reboot into it.
• Program the latest Bootloader
  • You should now be in the reloader ("RLD"). Press and release both buttons.
  • The latest bootloader will be programmed. The Gotek will then reboot.
• Program the latest Main Firmware
  • You are now in the reloader again. Power off.
  • Remove the *.upd and *.rld files from the USB stick.
  • Copy the *.upd file from the root of the release archive to the USB stick.
  • Insert the USB stick into the Gotek and power on with both buttons pressed.
  • You should now be in the bootloader ("UPD"). Release both buttons.
  • The latest firmware will be programmed and the Gotek will reboot into it.
• Success!

Aside: What these steps do

Some people get confused by the above sequence of steps and it might help to give them a mental model of what's going on. First, realise that the Flash memory contains two programs: the Bootloader and the Main Firmware. The Bootloader's sole purpose is to allow update of the Main Firmware. The Main Firmware of course runs the floppy-drive emulation, and doesn't know how to update anything. The trick in updating the Bootloader is to replace the Main Firmware with an alternative program (the Reloader) whose sole purpose is to update the Bootloader.

The main sequence of steps in updating the Bootloader is then:

• Old Bootloader overwrites Old Main Firmware with Reloader
• Reloader overwrites Old Bootloader with New Bootloader
• New Bootloader overwrites Reloader with New Main Firmware