We are sure that the first thing that comes to mind when technology is mentioned is the devices you use such as computers, smartphones, tablets and smart watches. True, these are the technological gadgets that we use most often, but if you look around you, you will realize that they are much more numerous. All those devices around you perform the functions they are expected to do, thanks to the firmware.
If you are more or less interested in the software world, you must have heard the name firmware already because it is also called by different names such as firmware and firmware. Sometimes the firmware of a device is loaded once and forgotten, but sometimes it may need updates. Let’s take a closer look at the curious questions such as what is the firmware, what does it do, how to update it.
For those who don’t know, let’s define; What is firmware?
Firmware, also called firmware and firmware, is system software that enables many different technological devices to perform the functions assigned to it. Every device capable of digital data processing has firmware. The name of the firmware was first mentioned in the article Datamation written by the American computer scientist Ascher Opler in 1967.
Firmware can be saved in a device’s non-volatile memory called ROM or in different memories such as EPROM, EEPROM, flash memory. The firmware of the device is often never changed, sometimes it is changed once in its lifetime, and sometimes the device may need to be updated from time to time depending on its functions.
So, what exactly does the firmware do?
Firmware is built by the manufacturer himself on a piece of hardware that will never change during the manufacture of the device. Its main purpose is to ensure that everything that will perform the functions that the device is expected to do when the user picks up the device is working. In other words, we can say that firmware is the basic software that enables the device or hardware to work.
It is also possible to refer to the firmware as the basic control software of the device. No matter how small a device or hardware is, there is always firmware installed to perform different functions. If we are talking about a large device, for example a computer, different parts of that device may contain different firmware.
What devices and hardware is the firmware used on?
Which is not used? In all goods using the internet of things, white goods, electronic watches, traffic lights, smart bulbs, mobile phones, computers, digital cameras, computer peripherals, embedded systems in different devices, MP3 player devices, motherboards, video cards, CD-ROM devices. Firmware software is used in most of the electronic devices and all kinds of electronic devices that you cannot think of.
It is possible to talk about three basic types of firmware:
- low level firmware
- high end firmware
- Subsystem firmware
Low level firmware:
Low-level firmware is considered an integral part for the device. They are generally stored on non-volatile read-only chips such as ROM. They do not receive updates or rewrites. Generally, low-level firmware can be programmed once.
High-end firmware:
High-end firmware has a much more complex system and therefore they are used in devices with more complex functions such as computers. This type of firmware receives updates and can be programmed repeatedly.
Subsystem firmware:
Subsystem firmware, which can be confused with high-end firmware, is also more complex, receives updates and can be programmed repeatedly, but the main difference between it and the high-end is that it is located in the embedded system of the device. A construct that powers a piece of hardware that works with a server, for example, is subsystem firmware.
Let’s see some firmware examples:
- BIOS or UEFI embedded in a memory chip on the motherboard of PCs
- Firmware on USB drives, external hard drives, and similar portable storage devices
- Firmware on mobile phones, tablets, laptops and other portable devices
- Countless embedded systems that perform countless functions in cars
- Firmware on household items such as dishwasher, washing machine, refrigerator
- Firmware in security systems with authentication and similar functions
What is firmware update, how to update?
Since we are talking about countless different technological devices, it is not possible to say with a single sentence that the firmware is updated as follows. Depending on the device or hardware with the firmware, sometimes this update can only be done digitally, but sometimes, especially in radical changes, the part on which the software is installed may need to be changed.
Firmware update is generally much easier on internet-connected devices because you can update the software with a simple download. Not every firmware needs to be updated anyway. For example, a smart light bulb has only one function, and it performs this function unchanged until the end of its life. However, a device that interacts with different devices may need to be updated frequently.
If the device with the firmware is interacting with different devices, it may need to be updated for compatibility. It can also be updated if the functions of the device in question will be added to a new one. As we often see with household items, sometimes this type of change can occur because the part on which the firmware is loaded is damaged. As we said, the examples are endless.
Are firmware and software the same thing?
Not exactly. A firmware not only provides the basic functioning of the device, but also ensures that the other hardware in the device works together with the software. Even if the firmware ensures the operation of the device on which it is installed, it offers the user a low-level control. Because the device in question, if it is a complex system, performs all the expected functions thanks to the other software it works with.
Software is designed for the user to perform different functions. The software written on the firmware takes over the task of communicating with the hardware. It is a much more complex system. For example, an operating system is a piece of software.
We talked about the details you need to know about this software by answering questions such as what is the firmware in almost all technological devices, what is it for, how to update it. Of course, firmware is a much broader subject, but in this article, we aimed to give a basic information about the subject to our readers who are familiar with the firmware for the first time.
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