Really old SMX3000RMLV2U (ID10) firmware upgrade

[Jabberwocky]

I happened across an auction with a pallet of brand new SMX3000RMLV2U's (or at least never put into service) that I picked up for next to nothing.  They all have firmware v1.6 (ID10) on them.  The lowest ID I can find on the SMX firmware download list is ID20.  Could anyone point me in the direction of getting these babies to an acceptable firmware level?  They all have NMC3 cards in them.

Any help with older firmware download links would be appreciated.

[Teken]

What are the serial numbers for the units on hand?!? Going off memory anything before 2010 37th week with ID11 and firmware below 2.XX does not have upgradable firmware. 

Given this is a SMX3000 ID10 the highest I’ve ever seen is firmware 3.80 on them from the APC factory.

If the hardware works now and as expected you lose nothing. Given these units are not in warranty a firmware upgrade has a better than 50% chance of bricking the unit! 🤦‍♂️

You’ll see more benefits in updating all the NMC 3 to the latest firmware release. As it offers more features, security, and bug fixes. 👍

NOTE: If these units are really old you really need to monitor the charging (float) voltage. As one of the fixes was to reduce the charging tables. This was to reduce the incidence of overcharging and boiling the batteries which caused reduce service life and swelling of the battery case! 🤦‍♂️

Other issues to watch for are EPO, Relay Weld, and Building Wiring Faults. 

[BlueSky]

Hello Jabberwocky.  I have the same UPS and the current firmware revision that I have on the machine, and have the *.enc file for it, is v2.0.  My device was manufactured in July of 2011.

Teken also responded to a question I recently had and will take him at his word because the latest f/w update wizard does not work on my UPS has he indicated.

I'd like to find v3.80 but can't seem to locate it.

Bottom line, as Teken mentioned, if it's working it's probably best to leave it alone.

[Jabberwocky]

BlueSky,

Thank you for the response.  I found an APC employee that had an older firmware update utility and the .ENC file for v2.0 in their archived files.  They sent them to me and I was able to upgrade the entire lot to v2.0 with brand new batteries and NMC v3 cards.  The network is humming like a well-oiled machine now and my pallet purchase of 20 older SMX3000's (bought the entire pallet for $300) turned out to be a huge windfall.  🙂

[BlueSky]

Excellent.  The SMX3000 is a beast of a machine and built like a tank and probably should last twenty years or more.  I've rebuilt the two battery packs I have late last year as well.  Although I do not have the enclosure for the external battery, plugging the 2nd battery directly into the back of the UPS works just fine.

I suspect v2.0 may be the latest version of the f/w in the field but Teken did mention v3.8 I believe so I'll keep looking.  If you come across a later version I'd appreciate a note.