It seems that your Alienware 17 R3 system is looking after your best interests, and trying to stop you from bricking your system. Hopefully the original BIOS software has not been corrupted. (You do not report any beep or light diagnostic codes. POST completes. Boot is normal. Alienware splash screen appears with F2 & F12 options There are no sign-in problems.)
Please note that the installation of BIOS updates must be done incrementally. One after another, without skipping a BIOS update. BIOS update files are not relatively large in nature. Trying to install the new BIOS update version (without the intervening update versions) does not install the cumulative update attributes of all the previous updates. It is imperative that the Dell BIOS update process is followed, or unexpected problems will arise and there is a risk that the system will be bricked.
Please ensure that SupportAssist is the most recent version, so that you have the most recent F12 ePSA diagnostic software installed for your model. (Part of disaster recovery process.)
To get ready for BIOS update, read all of the BIOS update webpage information to ensure that BIOS update is successfully installed. (Deviate from this Dell BIOS update process at your risk.)
Open your Local admin account and get ready to download all the intervening BIOS updates listed in Version drop down menu, into your computer update folder. View their full driver details on their respective BIOS update webpage, ensure the integrity of each BIOS update file by verifying their checksum value, to ensure that all these downloaded files are valid. If the checksum values are not identical, download this file again. Check BIOS Installations Instructions drop down menu, and ensure that all the prerequisite supporting updates have been installed.
If the most recent Dell BIOS version includes an urgent security update in response to an Intel security vulnerability, you may decide not to install it until you become fully informed of its consequences, e.g. being locked-out of BIOS roll back to earlier versions, overclocking option disabled, etc.
You are now ready to start the BIOS update process. Ensure that main battery has more that 10% charge, and that the fully functional ac adapter is plugged into laptop. The power shall not be interupted during BIOS update.
Click on the first individual update, Run as administrator and wait for the window to appear and confirm that update process was successful. Then Restart your system so that changes are saved. Allow Restart to boot your system. To confirm that BIOS update is acknowledged wihin Windows, type sysinfo32 into Search and open the System Information application. Click on the next individual update and repeat this process.
Ok, I know that this Dell BIOS update process is time consuming, but you should always try and get BIOS updates right first time.
To be fair here, I did post in the OP on what I've tried:
"Installing older versions of BIOS in addition to less-new ones (2018, 2019) besides just the newest one."
The 2018 update is the 'most recent update' (only one in 2018 followed by only one in 2019) proceeding the Aug 2017 one that this machine is currently equipped with. Unfortunately I'm still met with the same secure flash check failure !! when trying to install the 2018 update and on-boot errors as before when trying to run the 2018 BIOS update. Support Assist is up-to-date.
I actually encountered this problem back when the BIOS update first happened and gave up on ever making this laptop work properly again. Figured I'd give it another shot over the holidays this year. No difference in downloading the 2018 BIOS in 2018 or now in 2020 two years later. It is indeed erroneous to try and leapfrog BIOS updates besides just the properly sequential one, I agree, but I figured it was worth a shot since it's not working the way it's supposed to be working anyway.
I remember reading many users having similar problems with this update on the Alienware subreddit and on various other computer support forums when this BIOS update initially came out back in 2017. Sadly I don't know how it panned out because I abandoned ship and started using a desktop ever since.
Back in 2017/2018 when this Aug 2017 BIOS update took place I had to move across the country at around the same time, but it was too much of a hassle to fix it and relocate at the same time so I bought a new desktop to keep things going. So I threw it in storage, sick of the error screens. Previously, I was unable to even boot into windows; I'm fairly certain changing the boot mode to UEFI last week is what let me get in.
I took the 17 R3 here back out over the winter holidays to try and fix it for my wife to start using, instead of buying a whole new laptop, since she's just been using a tablet for computing. Unfortunately, I've been stuck at Error: secure flash check failure !! both then and now when trying to update to the 2018 BIOS. If this proves fixable, everything else and all the hardware works pretty much good-as-new.
crimsom
7 Technologist
•
6.1K Posts
0
December 30th, 2020 16:00
Hi @z3tsur1n welcome to this user to user forum.
It seems that your Alienware 17 R3 system is looking after your best interests, and trying to stop you from bricking your system. Hopefully the original BIOS software has not been corrupted. (You do not report any beep or light diagnostic codes. POST completes. Boot is normal. Alienware splash screen appears with F2 & F12 options There are no sign-in problems.)
Please note that the installation of BIOS updates must be done incrementally. One after another, without skipping a BIOS update. BIOS update files are not relatively large in nature. Trying to install the new BIOS update version (without the intervening update versions) does not install the cumulative update attributes of all the previous updates. It is imperative that the Dell BIOS update process is followed, or unexpected problems will arise and there is a risk that the system will be bricked.
Please ensure that SupportAssist is the most recent version, so that you have the most recent F12 ePSA diagnostic software installed for your model. (Part of disaster recovery process.)
To get ready for BIOS update, read all of the BIOS update webpage information to ensure that BIOS update is successfully installed. (Deviate from this Dell BIOS update process at your risk.)
Open your Local admin account and get ready to download all the intervening BIOS updates listed in Version drop down menu, into your computer update folder. View their full driver details on their respective BIOS update webpage, ensure the integrity of each BIOS update file by verifying their checksum value, to ensure that all these downloaded files are valid. If the checksum values are not identical, download this file again. Check BIOS Installations Instructions drop down menu, and ensure that all the prerequisite supporting updates have been installed.
If the most recent Dell BIOS version includes an urgent security update in response to an Intel security vulnerability, you may decide not to install it until you become fully informed of its consequences, e.g. being locked-out of BIOS roll back to earlier versions, overclocking option disabled, etc.
You are now ready to start the BIOS update process. Ensure that main battery has more that 10% charge, and that the fully functional ac adapter is plugged into laptop. The power shall not be interupted during BIOS update.
Click on the first individual update, Run as administrator and wait for the window to appear and confirm that update process was successful. Then Restart your system so that changes are saved. Allow Restart to boot your system. To confirm that BIOS update is acknowledged wihin Windows, type sysinfo32 into Search and open the System Information application. Click on the next individual update and repeat this process.
Ok, I know that this Dell BIOS update process is time consuming, but you should always try and get BIOS updates right first time.
Please share an update. Thank you.
z3tsur1n
4 Posts
0
January 1st, 2021 16:00
Thank you for replying.
To be fair here, I did post in the OP on what I've tried:
The 2018 update is the 'most recent update' (only one in 2018 followed by only one in 2019) proceeding the Aug 2017 one that this machine is currently equipped with. Unfortunately I'm still met with the same secure flash check failure !! when trying to install the 2018 update and on-boot errors as before when trying to run the 2018 BIOS update. Support Assist is up-to-date.
I actually encountered this problem back when the BIOS update first happened and gave up on ever making this laptop work properly again. Figured I'd give it another shot over the holidays this year. No difference in downloading the 2018 BIOS in 2018 or now in 2020 two years later. It is indeed erroneous to try and leapfrog BIOS updates besides just the properly sequential one, I agree, but I figured it was worth a shot since it's not working the way it's supposed to be working anyway.
I remember reading many users having similar problems with this update on the Alienware subreddit and on various other computer support forums when this BIOS update initially came out back in 2017. Sadly I don't know how it panned out because I abandoned ship and started using a desktop ever since.
crimsom
7 Technologist
•
6.1K Posts
0
January 2nd, 2021 14:00
Hi @z3tsur1n you said "abandoned ship and started using a desktop ever since", so you solved your thread?
z3tsur1n
4 Posts
0
January 2nd, 2021 14:00
This is still ongoing and not solved. Why did the forum change it to solved?
z3tsur1n
4 Posts
0
January 2nd, 2021 16:00
Back in 2017/2018 when this Aug 2017 BIOS update took place I had to move across the country at around the same time, but it was too much of a hassle to fix it and relocate at the same time so I bought a new desktop to keep things going. So I threw it in storage, sick of the error screens. Previously, I was unable to even boot into windows; I'm fairly certain changing the boot mode to UEFI last week is what let me get in.
I took the 17 R3 here back out over the winter holidays to try and fix it for my wife to start using, instead of buying a whole new laptop, since she's just been using a tablet for computing. Unfortunately, I've been stuck at Error: secure flash check failure !! both then and now when trying to update to the 2018 BIOS. If this proves fixable, everything else and all the hardware works pretty much good-as-new.