System Firmware Update - 12/10/13 fails to install

Anonymous
2013-12-10T19:14:53+00:00

Got the updates on todays patch Tuesday, but the firmware update failed to load.  Rechecking for an update does not give the opportunity to try and reinstall.

Anyone else having this problem?  I do notice that my telemetry driver is now loaded. so not sure what is going on here.

Surface | Surface Pro | Install and update

Locked Question. This question was migrated from the Microsoft Support Community. You can vote on whether it's helpful, but you can't add comments or replies or follow the question.

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Anonymous
2013-12-19T06:53:02+00:00

Josh,

We are working through the holidays to deliver a fix for the small number of customers that have experience decreased battery life and booting/sleeping problems as a result of the December update.  We took the update down to prevent additional customers from ending up in this state. All hardware failures, none of which are known to be caused by the December update, are being handled promptly through our warranty exchange policy.

The UEFI firmware that we released in the December update prevents some devices from entering sleep mode (and other low power states) properly during periods of inactivity. In order to release an updated version of the UEFI firmware we need to test the new version with the other drivers in the set to make sure we are not releasing yet another unknown state to customer machines. We certainly feel your pain and assure you that we are doing everything possible to make this right, as quickly as we can.

Thank you,

Tim

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Anonymous
2014-02-15T00:49:31+00:00

Greetings all,

We understand that the February Firmware Update has fixed the Battery gauge issue and the Firmware showing as failed. However we can see that there are some customers who are still experiencing issues with their Surface Pro 2 going into Sleep mode and Hibernate.

So we can better track those particular issues, we have decided to close this thread off. We encourage you to create a thread related to your Surface Pro 2 not going to sleep or not going into Hibernate. Please give as much detail as possible to your scenario.

We understand that the February Firmware update did not resolve the issue with waking from Sleep or Hibernate, as it was not intended to fix that particular issue. We are continuing to work to deliver a high quality solution. More updates will become available as this effort progresses.

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Anonymous
2014-02-13T22:35:08+00:00

The February update has resolved all issues for me.  The firmware installed with no issues.  Prior to this, I had all sorts of problems with the December firmware.  Sleep and hibernate issues were rampant.  The January update helped a bit, but the battery meter was always getting off calibration. 

With the February update, all issues have been resolved and my Surface 2 128gb is working as it was prior to the December updates.  Very solid and all is back to normal.

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  1. Anonymous
    2014-01-17T20:39:11+00:00

    I was looking at purchasing the Surface Pro 2 (256GB) model from MS's online store.

    Perplexed as to why every model of the SP2 has been sold out, I did some digging and discovered this firmware issue.

    It appears Microsoft has been aware of this issue since at least December 19, 2013, and there is still no fix, nor any statement from Microsoft as to how they intend upon resolving the problem.

    Is there something I am missing?

    In what universe does Microsoft think this is appropriate?

    I would not buy - save yourself a lot of grief - at least until MS fix the firmware - as this device is not stable. It would be a fantastic tablet - but is let down by poor firmware & show response to fix it.

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  2. Anonymous
    2014-01-17T19:50:15+00:00

    The problem with the Power Cover is that it dumps its charge into the Surface Pro.  So as long as the Power Cover has charge, it's going to be keeping the Surface Pro (2) battery at 100% charge.  Running a Li-ion battery at 100% charge is not good for the long-term life of the battery.  The battery will last longer if kept most of the time at an intermediate charge (20% to 80% seems to be the general rule) and Apple recommends a stored device be kept at 50% charge.  So if utility rather than money and device longevity is most important, the Power Cover will be great.  But if you want to make your expensive device's irreplaceable battery last a long time, it's not such a good idea unless Microsoft includes software/firmware to control power flow from Power Cover to Surface Pro.  Anyone want to bet that they are smart enough to do this, especially given firmware nightmares described in this forum?

    The general issue of trading usable battery capacity on a daily basis for long term battery longevity is described nicely in the following surfaceforum post.  The poster points out that Lenovo and Sony both offer battery management utilities for their devices that allow you to control maximum charging while running on AC and/or even switch off charging and allow your device to run directly on AC without trying to pump more juice into the battery (power switching device might require room and add weight to device....).

    http://www.surfaceforums.net/forum/microsoft-surface-general-discussion/6909-optimizing-battery-health-surface-pro-2-a.html

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