ELI5 firmware upgrade?

Questions
1

Hello.

I have had my WLED running constantly for 3 years but I haven’t touched the firmware and can’t remember squat about it.
There’s probably a dozen or more threads asking for help updating firmware.
I tried youtube but couldn’t seen to get a good tutorial.

Here’s the problem.
In the last 3 years my actual vision has changed so it’s hard for me to read fine print. I can’t seem to read the print on the WLED app on my phone. At least not tonight. I have good days with my vision but today isn’t one of them. Every time I blink everything turns fuzzy and glasses don’t help. It’s a visual blockage issue. (I can only read with one eye)
The vision thing also makes it very hard to focus my mind as well. I know it sounds stupid.

Can anyone give me a quick ELI5 guide to updating the firmware or even point me to an actual youtube that focuses on that exclusively?

(Not to be condescending but for those who don’t know “ELI5” means "explain like I’m 5 years old)

2

Certainly, here is a more detailed version of the text with step-by-step instructions:

If you have access to the UI or a PC, you can follow these detailed steps for updating your device:

Option 1: Using Wled Web Installer with USB Connector

  1. Precaution: Before updating, ensure data recovery to prevent any potential loss.

  2. Plug in the device with a USB connector.

  3. Visit the Wled Web Installer and click on the installation option.

  4. Select the corresponding COM Port where the ESP is located. This is crucial for a successful update.

Option 2: Installing the WLED .bin file

  1. Check the WLED installation guide for more information on selecting the appropriate software version.

  2. To install the official WLED binary, visit this link.

  3. Alternatively, you can access the unofficial version with additional features and beta versions through this link.

  4. Ensure compatibility by referring to the table below:

    Board / Chipset Recommended Version
    All ESP8266 devices WLED_0.x.x_ESP8266.bin
    All ESP32 devices WLED_0.x.x_ESP32.bin

Step-by-Step Process through UI

  1. Access the settings page on your device.

  2. Navigate to the „Security & Updates’ section.

  3. Locate the option „Manual OTA Update’ and hit latest version to install the latest software version. Or Alternatively, you can manually insert the downloaded .Bin file from the steps before.

Refer to the following screenshots for additional guidance:

Step 1:

Screenshot_2023-10-15-13-21-50-184-edit_com.aircoookie.WLED
Screenshot_2023-10-15-13-21-50-184-edit_com.aircoookie.WLED1080×2171 95.1 KB

Step 2:

Screenshot_2023-10-15-13-38-59-841-edit_com.aircoookie.WLED
Screenshot_2023-10-15-13-38-59-841-edit_com.aircoookie.WLED1080×2174 213 KB

Step 3:

Screenshot_2023-10-15-13-40-09-024-edit_com.aircoookie.WLED
Screenshot_2023-10-15-13-40-09-024-edit_com.aircoookie.WLED1080×2178 132 KB

Step 4: Select the .bin file!

step 5: Hit Update!

I hope these detailed instructions provide a clear guide for updating your device. If you have any more questions please let me know!

3

I’ve followed all that and used the settings as you’ve outlined (trying OTA as I don’t want to pull down the WLED board from where it’s located) and when I try to use the updater it asks me to “please unlock OTA in security settings”.

I don’t know that I ever had a passphrase and if I did it doesn’t seem to work with any passphrase I might have chosen.

I have the latest bin file ready to go.

If it helps, my build is 0.9.1

4

I very highly doubt you will be able to OTA from 0.9.1. to the latest releases. That firmware is from 2020.

5

Thanks.
I ended up dragging out my 10 other boards and added the newest firmware to those.
I’ll wire upgrade the other one when I swap in a new board.

6

FWIW, I ended up with 10 good boards and one that just wouldn’t take the BIN file. It’s in the garbage.
I flashed all of them and even the one already connected.

I have to say that I’m not terribly impressed with the new flash. The layout is OK on my laptop but using my cell phone, I run out of room for all the controls.

It is what it is.

The one feature I did like is now it comes back to the last preset when the power is shut off. Before I had to leave it on 24/7 or reset it each time I turned it on.