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700 series Controller Firmware Updates (Linux)

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Keith Pine edited this page Aug 22, 2022 · 117 revisions

Overview

This guide describes how to perform Over-The-Wire (OTW) firmware upgrades for Z-Wave 700-series controllers, in a Linux (and MacOS) environment, using feely available tools.

If using command line tools does not appeal to you, stop now and follow your vendor's official instructions, or contact them directly for support. See Disclaimer.

Other options:

  • Temporarily relocate your USB controller to a Windows PC and use the Silicon Labs PC Controller software
  • zw_programmer: The Z/IP Gateway software includes this CLI utility to program the controller firmware. This requires obtaining access to the Z/IP Gateway SDK download and the ability to compile it, which will be difficult for most.
  • zpc: The zpc service provided by the Silicon Labs Unify SDK has the ability to program the controller firmware. This requires obtaining access to a private GitHub project and the ability to compile it, which will be difficult for most.

Equipment Used

The following hardware and software were used in the creation of this guide:

  • Platform: Raspberry Pi4
  • OS: Raspberry Pi OS 64-bit (Debian 10)
  • Silicon Labs UZB7 USB controller (SLUSB001A)
  • minicom version 2.7.1
  • lrzsz version 0.12.21

Any Unix-like OS (Linux, MacOS) that supports USB serial devices, minicom and lrzsz should work with this guide, although some tweaks may be necessary.

Confirmed to work with:

  • Raspberry Pi4 and Ubuntu 20.04 64-bit [*]
  • Raspberry Pi2 Model B and Raspberry Pi OS 32-bit
  • Apple Silicon and MacOS, using homebrew installed lrzsz and minicom [*]
  • Synology NAS with a Debian 10.9 Docker container [*]

Firmware Downloads

The latest recommended firmware version is 7.17.2.

Most controllers use stock firmware images distributed by Silicon Labs via the Z-Wave SDKs. Some vendors also distribute their own files, but these are identical to the Silicon Labs versions.

Select your product to view the available downloads:

See Alternative Downloads for other download options.

Missing a product? Let me know by submitting an issue.

Aeotec Z-Stick 7 or Z-Pi 7

The Z-Stick 7 and Z-Pi 7 controllers use the EFR32ZG14 chipset.

See Update Z-Stick 7 with Windows or Update Z-Stick 7 with Raspian OS / RPi for official Aeotec update instructions.

US Region

MD5 checksum: d88e9e94d3df62c0c4d5c591fd88f5b6

EU Region

MD5 checksum: 46ce88e5e61db37b9e96d906dcbc48a8

Silicon Labs UZB7

The UZB7 controller uses the EFR32ZG14 chipset.

See Z-Wave 700: OTW of Controller or Z-Wave 700: Programming UZB7 Controller Stick for official Silicon Labs update instructions.

US Region

MD5 checksum: d88e9e94d3df62c0c4d5c591fd88f5b6

EU Region

MD5 checksum: 46ce88e5e61db37b9e96d906dcbc48a8

Zooz ZST10 700

The Zooz ZST10 700 controller uses the ZGM130S. Only the US region is officially supported.

See How to Perform an OTA Firmware Update on Your ZST10 700 Z-Wave Stick for the official Zooz update instructions.

MD5 checksum: 6cc0961168d209221869bdfd64d5a138

Everspring SA370

The Everspring SA370 controller uses the ZGM130S. Only the US region is officially supported. No vendor download is known.

MD5 checksum: 6cc0961168d209221869bdfd64d5a138

HomeSeer SmartStick+ G3

The SmartStick+ G3 controller uses the ZGM130S chipset. Note that the vendor provided download is a bundle that contains both the firmware file and the Windows PC Controller software.

See Updating SmartStick+ Firmware for the official HomeSeer update instructions.

MD5 checksum: 6cc0961168d209221869bdfd64d5a138

Z-Wave.Me RaZberry 7

⚠️ The RaZberry 7 controllers use custom firmware. Do not follow this guide or use any of the referenced firmware files. Contact the vendor for support.

Alternative Downloads

By Chipset

If you know your device's chipset, you can directly download the Silicon Labs files here.

Chipset Region Firmware 7.17.2.406 Checksum (MD5)
EFR32ZG14 US Download d88e9e94d3df62c0c4d5c591fd88f5b6
ZGM130S US Download 6cc0961168d209221869bdfd64d5a138
EFR32ZG14 EU Download 46ce88e5e61db37b9e96d906dcbc48a8
ZGM130S EU Download 496d22f219b764277a88ba592b43c5a6

GitHub Directory Tree

If you are in a region besides EU or US, you can download those region files by navigating to the GitHub SDK project's gbl directory and searching for the appropriate file. The listing may be truncated, so use GitHub's "Go to file" button to search for the file. See Chipset Information for details on the filename formats.

Zip Archive Download

Download the demo-applications.zip release artifict file. This contains all firmware files for all devices and regions.

Chipset Information

The two current chipsets for 700-series Z-Wave modules for gateways and controllers are the EFR32ZG14 and ZGM130S. The firmware file must match the chipset, otherwise the update will fail, so choosing the file that is specific to your device is important.

The firmware files have a .gbl file extension (Gecko Bootloader) and are named using the following format: ZW_SerialAPI_Controller_<VERSION>_<EFR32ZG14|ZGM130S>_REGION_<REGION>.gbl.

⚠️ The file naming convention for v7.18.0.0 (SDK v4.1.0) has changed, so the above information will not be correct. See this discussion for details on the new naming schemes.

As of SDK v7.17.00, Silicon Labs distributes the firmware files along with the Gecko SDK on GitHub. These files are public and can be downloaded without requiring a developer account or using the Silicon Labs Simplicity Studio application.

Preparation

All commands listed here are being executed as the root user, to avoid any problems with permissions.

  1. Install minicom and file transfer utilities.

    apt install -y minicom lrzsz

  2. Determine the path to the Z-Wave controller's serial device. For a UZB7 and other 700-series USB controllers, this will typically be /dev/ttyUSB0.

  3. Set an environment variable for the USB path. This is used in commands below for easy copy and paste.

    export USBPATH=/dev/ttyUSB0

  4. Create a minicom profile named zwave that configures the serial port for FW upload. This configures the following settings:

    • Set serial port speed.
    • Disable hardware flow control.
    • Hide all file transfer choices except xmodem upload.
    cat << EOF > /etc/minicom/minirc.zwave
# Machine-generated file - use "minicom -s" to change parameters.
pu pname1           YUNYY
pu pname2           YUNYY
pu pname4           NDNYY
pu pname5           NDNYY
pu pname6           YDNYN
pu pname7           YUYNN
pu pname8           NDYNN
pu pname9           YUNYN
pu updir            /tmp
pu port             $USBPATH
pu baudrate         115200
pu bits             8
pu parity           N
pu stopbits         1
pu rtscts           No
EOF

    This is a one time setting and isn't necessary for future upgrades. The profile settings are stored in /etc/minicom/minirc.zwave.

  5. Download or copy the controller firmware file to /tmp.

  6. Stop zwavejs2mqtt or other zwave-js application so it doesn't interfere. Some users have reported that this step isn't necessary.

Installation

All commands listed here are being executed as the root user, to avoid any problems with permissions.

  1. Configure the serial port speed. minicom would normally do this, but we issue a couple commands from the shell.

    stty 115200 cs8 -cstopb -F $USBPATH

  2. Soft-reset the controller and wait long enough for it to recover.

    printf '\x01\x03\x00\x08\xf4' > $USBPATH && sleep 10

  3. Drop the controller into the bootloader.

    printf '\x01\x03\x00\x27\xDB' > $USBPATH && sleep 1

  4. Start minicom to connect to the device console. Be sure to use the profile configured previously.

    minicom -o zwave

  5. Press ENTER (one or more times) and you'll see the bootloader prompt. Enter 1 to upload the firmware. The letter C will be printed repeatedly to indicate that the controller is waiting for an upload.

    Gecko Bootloader v1.5.1
1. upload gbl
2. run
3. ebl info
BL >
begin upload
CCCC

  6. Enter CTRL-A s to open the file upload dialog. xmodem will be the only option, so select it. Navigate the menu so the firmware file is highlighted and select it with Spacebar, then press Enter to upload.

  7. When the upload finishes, select option 2 in the bootloader menu to run the new firmware. Some garbage characters will appear, meaning the firmware is running. Exit minicom with CTRL-A q and select Yes to exit.

  8. Start zwavejs2mqtt or other zwave-js application. If for some reason you have soft-reset disabled in zwave-js (not recommended), be sure to issue a soft-reset prior to starting the application. Confirm the controller firmware has changed to the expected version.

Disclaimer

⚠️ While the author has strived to provide accurate and up-to-date information and instructions, use this guide at your own risk. No warranty is implied nor will the author be liable for any damages arising from the use of this guide.

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