I happened to notice that the EmbeddedController git repository hasn’t been updated since May, and several bios updates have come out since then with EC updates. Is Framework no longer providing the source code for EC firmware?
For instance, the Framework 16 3.05 bios update had EC version ec_305_227507, which corresponds to commit hash 227507. However the latest 4.02 bios has EC version ec_402_c8091da, yet the commit hash c8091da is nowhere to be found.
FW don’t seem to be answering questions about this. They answer most other questions about bios releases except this one.
I have made modifications to my FW16 7840HS that make it behave in a more stable fashion. Some others are also using my changes, as it removes stutter problems while gaming.
I am stuck on BIOS 3.05 because FW have not updated the EC repo.
I am waiting impatiently for them to update the repo.
Being that i was instrumental to highlighting EC firmware bugs that were damaging batteries, i think there is considerable benefit to FW by continued open source firmware.
There are still major bugs in the EC firmware. E.g. stuck at 550Mhz and problems like that. I can fix those sorts of bugs, but not without the repo updated to the latest by FW.
I see, well good that they plan on releasing it, however as you are I’m still disappointed it’s taking this long.
If Framework truly intends to keep the EC open source though then what I’d like to see is for development to happen in the open, even if features aren’t ready yet. It should be common knowledge that running untagged/unreleased code could have dire consequences especially on embedded systems like an EC and so any concern of not wanting people to run unfinished code shouldn’t be. Additionally, I’m pretty sure manually flashing non-official EC releases voids the warranty anyway (I could be wrong but I remember reading that somewhere) so I personally don’t see the harm in releasing it early.
The only thing I can think of why they wouldn’t is hints at new releases or features they don’t want public yet, but those can be held back in unpublished branches while still releasing regular updates for everything else…
Anyway, I hope it’s released soon, not because I want to fiddle with it myself, mainly for the principal of it.
The text at the end of the EC firmware version is the commit hash, which you can use to lookup the exact commit in GitHub. For instance the 4.02 bios for the 7040 16 inch has ec version ec_402_c8091da, and so this would be the commit it corresponds to. That one does indeed exist in the fwk-tulip-29169 branch. The commit/branch for the 13 inch should be able to be found similarly.