How to Update a Lenovo BIOS on Linux Without Windows (fwupd and Bootable ISO)

Updated: 10 October 2026 · Applies to: fwupd 2.0.19 to 2.1.8 on Ubuntu 24.04 and 26.04, Debian 13, AlmaLinux 10 and Fedora 44; Lenovo ThinkPad, ThinkCentre and ThinkStation models

Yes, you can update a Lenovo BIOS from Linux without Windows. Lenovo publishes BIOS (UEFI) firmware for ThinkPad, ThinkCentre and ThinkStation models on the Linux Vendor Firmware Service (LVFS), and the fwupd tool installs it:

sudo fwupdmgr refresh       # download the latest firmware list
sudo fwupdmgr get-updates   # show available updates
sudo fwupdmgr update        # install them (BIOS updates finish during a reboot)

For older ThinkPads that are not on the LVFS, Lenovo's bootable update ISO works without Windows (method 2). Consumer models such as IdeaPad are a different case: see the last section.

Which Lenovo models fwupd can update

The LVFS vendor list has separate Lenovo entries for ThinkPad (by far the most firmware, over 4,000 files), ThinkCentre, ThinkStation, docks and accessories, monitors, Legion and Yoga. The LVFS firmware list we downloaded named several hundred ThinkPad models and dozens of ThinkCentre and ThinkStation models; Legion appeared only as the Legion Go handhelds, and there was no IdeaPad entry at all. The quickest check for your own machine is fwupdmgr get-devices (step 2 below): if it lists a System Firmware device, fwupd can update your BIOS.

Before you start

• Connect the power adapter and charge the battery. fwupd refuses to update a device that needs mains power with Cannot install update when not on AC power unless forced, and stops with battery level is too low below its threshold (messages from the fwupd source code).
• Keep your BitLocker or disk encryption recovery keys at hand if the machine also runs Windows.
• Do not switch the machine off while the update runs after the reboot.

Method 1: fwupd (recommended)

1. Install fwupd if it is missing (most desktop installations include it):

   sudo apt install fwupd     # Ubuntu, Debian
   sudo dnf install fwupd     # Fedora, AlmaLinux, Rocky Linux

   Versions the package managers offered: fwupd 2.0.20 on Ubuntu 24.04 and Debian 13, 2.1.1 on Ubuntu 26.04, 2.0.19 on AlmaLinux 10 and 2.1.8 on Fedora 44.

2. List the devices fwupd can update and look for System Firmware:

   fwupdmgr get-devices

3. Download the latest firmware list from the LVFS and check for updates:

   sudo fwupdmgr refresh
   sudo fwupdmgr get-updates

4. Install the updates:

   sudo fwupdmgr update

   According to the fwupd documentation, updates that can be applied live are installed at once, and updates that run at boot, such as the BIOS, are staged for the next reboot. fwupd then asks An update requires a reboot to complete. Restart now?. The BIOS is written before Linux starts.

5. After the reboot, check the result with fwupdmgr get-history, or read the BIOS version with cat /sys/class/dmi/id/bios_version.

GNOME Software also works with fwupd (according to the fwupd README), so on GNOME desktops firmware updates can appear there as well.

If fwupd does not offer the update

• Failed to connect to daemon: we got this where the fwupd service was not running (in a container). On a normal installation the service starts on demand; check it with systemctl status fwupd.
• UEFI ESP partition not detected or configured: fwupd could not find the EFI system partition. BIOS updates need the machine to boot in UEFI mode (not legacy BIOS mode) with the ESP mounted, usually on /boot/efi. If it is mounted elsewhere, set EspLocation in /etc/fwupd/fwupd.conf.
• UEFI capsule updates not available or enabled in firmware setup: the firmware setup does not allow updates from the operating system, or the machine boots in legacy mode. Check the security and update settings in the BIOS setup (F1 at power-on on ThinkPads).
• BootOrder is locked in firmware setup: on Lenovo machines fwupd blocks BIOS updates while the Boot Order Lock setting is on. Turn it off in the BIOS setup, update, then turn it on again if you need it.
• No System Firmware device: your model is not on the LVFS. Use method 2 for a ThinkPad, or see the last section.

Method 2: Lenovo bootable ISO (ThinkPads not on the LVFS)

For many ThinkPads, Lenovo's support site offers a "BIOS Update (Bootable CD)" package: an ISO file that runs the updater without any operating system. Lenovo's own instructions are to burn it to a CD or DVD and boot it from an internal or USB optical drive, with the AC adapter and a charged battery connected.

Without an optical drive, you can copy the boot image inside the ISO to a USB stick. This is a widely used workaround that Lenovo does not officially support:

1. Download the ISO for your exact model from Lenovo's support site.
2. Install geteltorito. On Debian and Ubuntu it is in genisoimage, and it also needs Perl: on a minimal system without the perl package it stops with Can't locate Getopt/Std.pm.

   sudo apt install genisoimage perl

   We found no geteltorito package for Fedora or AlmaLinux 10; there, run this step in a Debian or Ubuntu container or on another machine.

3. Extract the boot image (replace the file name with yours):

   $ geteltorito -o bios.img n1abc123.iso
   Booting catalog starts at sector: 26
   Manufacturer of CD:
   Image architecture: x86
   Boot media type is: 1.44meg floppy
   El Torito image starts at sector 27 and has 2880 sector(s) of 512 Bytes
   
   Image has been written to file "bios.img".

   This output is from a test ISO we built; a real Lenovo ISO shows its own values.

4. Write the image to the USB stick. Find the stick with lsblk and replace /dev/sdX; everything on the stick is erased:

   sudo dd if=bios.img of=/dev/sdX bs=1M status=progress conv=fsync

5. Connect the power adapter and start the ThinkPad. Lenovo's instructions: press F12 while the startup message is on screen to open the boot menu, then choose the boot device and follow the updater's menu.

IdeaPad, Legion and other models without Linux support

If fwupd shows no System Firmware device and Lenovo offers only a Windows program for your model, Linux cannot run that update. You then need Windows for the update, for example a temporary Windows installation on a spare disk, or Lenovo's support. Do not try BIOS files or tools from other sources.

Servers

Lenovo ThinkSystem servers did not appear in the LVFS list, so the steps above do not apply to them: follow Lenovo's server documentation. On a rented dedicated server, open a ticket with your provider before you change any firmware.

Official documentation: fwupd and the LVFS and fwupd: ESP not found.