Need to get to UEFI shell

VMSEAGLE

Working with a new UP2 Pro. Work I am doing requires me to use the serial console and get to UEFI shell. Have not been able to get there. No matter what I do, the board progresses into the BIOS setup menu. When I exit, menu comes right back.

Also, cannot find a manual on BIOS settings and UEFI command line.

Work is at a strand still until I can get to the UEFI shell.

Pratik_Kushwaha

Hi @VMSEAGLE ,

As per our FAE team,
BIOS will add a built-in EFI shell to the boot list in the R2.2 version, which will be released around Q4 at the earliest.

For R1.2, we will have the BIOS release notes shared around mid-Aug, which can help you with more details on the next release.

Regards,
Pratik

Pratik_Kushwaha

@VMSEAGLE , Sure'll keep you posted on the release details for BIOS.

Pratik_Kushwaha

Hi @VMSEAGLE ,

The UEFI shell(only UEFI, no legacy) will be accessible in the next release version of UP Squared BIOS, namely BIOS version R1.2

This will be released by the end of this month.
You will be able to download it via our downloads hub, https://downloads.up-community.org/

Regards,
Pratik

VMSEAGLE

Thank you Pratik.

I was able to finally get into the UEFI shell by connecting a USB keyboard. The F7 was not being detected through the serial port.

I now have a new problem.

After building my target system on a SATA attached SSD (from a bootable DVD), I find that I cannot get back into the UEFI shell unless I have a USB DVD reader connected and a bootable DVD in the drive. If I unload the DVD media or disconnect the DVD reader, F7 no longer gets me the into mini menu. I drop (and am stuck in) the setup menu.

When you say that the UEFI shell will be accessible in the next firmware, how will it appear ? Will it be an entry that I can add in setup ?

What I really need is the ability to create a boot entry that runs a program in a directroy on an FS: device. I can do this in the Itanium UEFI shell as well as in the UEFI shell that VMWare provides.

Pratik_Kushwaha

Hi @VMSEAGLE ,

In the next BIOS update R1.2, you will be able to access the UEFI shell (only the UEFI, not legacy).

Users will be able to access the BIOS settings by pressing F7, and setup BIOS boot entry settings. So you will be able to add a boot entry option for the required device.
Other details in customizing BIOS settings such as I2C speed, will be available in R1.2 as well.

You can find more details in the BIOS release notes once the BIOS is released on https://downloads.up-community.org/

Regards,
Pratik

VMSEAGLE

Pratik,

F7 works, now, to get me into a mini-menu from which I can access the shell. However, this only works from a USB attached keyboard and only if a DVD reader, with loaded media, is connected.

I need to be able to:

1. Add boot entry at the top of the device list that enters the shell.
2. Add a boot entry to cause a shell program to be run (I.e., FSn:\EFI\
   \program.EFI

Will the next release allow me to do these ?

VMSEAGLE

Thank you Pratik.

If your team is looking for a test user/site that will use this new release, please let me know. All of my work starts in the UEFI shell.

VMSEAGLE

Any update on BIOS version R1.2 ?
How about release notes ? Post said that release notes would be available (approx) August. Have they been posted anywhere ?