6.5.3 Manual Upgrade

Microchip Studio includes a command-line utility called atfw.exe, which can perform a manual upgrade of most Microchip tools. atfw.exe is installed in the atbackend subfolder.

atfw.exe can be used to:
  • Perform upgrade from a script
  • Upgrade using a custom firmware file
  • Read out firmware version

For details on upgrading using this utility, execute atfw.exe -h.

Note: If a tool is locked in firmware upgrade mode and a normal reset does not restore ordinary operation, a forced firmware upgrade should reset the tool to a working state.

To do a firmware upgrade on a tool already in upgrade mode, invoke atfw the same way as an ordinary firmware upgrade. Some warnings may be displayed as the tool can’t switch the tool to upgrade mode but should proceed with the upgrade.

If a tool listing is done, the tool will have a name related to its mode. However, invoke atfw with the tool name presented to the user in ordinary operation.