How to update BIOS and firmware remotely across mixed device fleets
Updating firmware remotely across hundreds of machines is blocked by the fear of bricking devices and the impossibility of finding a time when users aren't working. Juggling separate vendor tools for Dell, HP, and Lenovo leaves admins with no unified way to track outdated systems or safely push updates without disrupting users.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
- 1Relying on Windows Update to push BIOS updates and having users complete optional updates
- 2Informing users in advance by email and asking them to run updates with their chargers connected
- 3Deploying updates in small waves and batches to minimize widespread disruption
- 4Using each vendor's native tool separately
- 5Using polling tools like Tanium, SCCM, PDQ Inventory, or Nessus to gather BIOS versions
- 6Writing custom scripts to check and update BIOS versions
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“Problem is that there's hundreds of laptops so can't invite every user to walk-in helpdesk which T2 could handle.”source ↗
“I don't see any smooth way to do this and I'm afraid of bricking laptops.”source ↗
“there's never a good time to update them cuz someone always got something important to do.”source ↗
“We're running a mix of Dell, HPE, and Lenovo servers, and keeping firmware/BIOS versions consistent across the fleet has become a real headache. Each vendor has its own tool (OpenManage, iLO/SPP, XClarity), and there's no single place to see what's outdated or prioritize what actually matters.”source ↗
Where this came up
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