XPS 13 9380, Ubuntu 18.04, left side TB3/USB Type-C port issue

I have somewhat same issue. USB-C ports stopped recognizing other USB devices. Although in my case it's only Left side port #2 does work and the rest two don't. Also ALL ports do charge using provided power adaptor. And I'm still on Windows 10. 

Got a call with Dell support. Guy reinstalled drivers, checked hardware, etc - nothing did help. Seems like a rather new issue and perhaps knowledgebase doesn't have it. As a last resort it was proposed to restore to factory default which we didn't go yet as it will wipe out everything. 

I suspect that latest updates from Windows\Intel\... could have caused that issue. No solid prove though … yet. Except for a common sense:

1. When bought laptop a week ago - everything worked fine

2. After one week and whatever updates were pushed\recommended - it stopped working.

I hope it's enough description for Dell support\QE to identify the issue and fix it sooner.  

Could you please point to this Thunderbolt 3 firmware update you've mentioned? I can't find it anywhere on the official download page.

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@pragmadash wrote:
I have exactly the same problem, 2 of 3 ports stopped working after a week. Updating BIOS didn't help. I'v returned my Dell XPS 13 back and bought a new one (the same configuration). And guess what, the same happened to the new one. I can't find any solution to this and it's such a waste of time to set a new laptop up. Also, I need it for work, if I don't find a solution in a week I will have to return it back again. Any chance somebody figured out a solution to this problem? I have the latest BIOS firmware running on Linux.

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If you're having trouble specifically with Thunderbolt 3 devices rather than regular USB-C devices, there is a separate Thunderbolt 3 firmware update that is not part of the regular system BIOS/firmware update that might be worth trying.  Otherwise, this might be an issue that requires a firmware update that hasn't arrived, which sadly isn't uncommon with newly released products these days.

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@pragmadash wrote:

Could you please point to this Thunderbolt 3 firmware update you've mentioned? I can't find it anywhere on the official download page.

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Here's the direct link: https://www.dell.com/support/home/us/en/19/drivers/driversdetails?driverid=c25p2&oscode=wt64a&productcode=xps-13-9380-laptop

I found that by going to support.dell.com, searching "XPS 13 9380" in the model search, and then clicking Drivers and Downloads.  Then I searched "Thunderbolt" to filter the results.  Fyi if you're going to support.dell.com and entering your Service Tag, sometimes that can cause drivers that apply to your system not to be shown.  Of course NOT entering your Service Tag can cause some drivers to be shown that do NOT apply to your system, but I personally prefer to see everything and skip over what I don't need rather than have potentially applicable updates get hidden, so I always enter my system model rather than my Service Tag.

Thank you!

However, after a long research I could not find a way to flash the firmware in Linux.

There is a related thread on this forum here https://www.dell.com/community/Linux-Developer-Systems/Precision-5510-Thunderbolt-3-Firmware-Updates-on-Linux/m-p/5031168

I tried to create a USB drive with FreeDOS to run the .exe file but could not make it work with UEFI/GPT

There is an official tool here https://github.com/dell/thunderbolt-nvm-linux but it does not actually tell you how to upgrade, only sets the special state to the controller.

I tried to use fwupdmgr, it lists the controller but does not find a new version of the firmware:

  XPS 9380 Thunderbolt Controller                                                                                                                                                               
  DeviceId:             176c00edd9843959086a72a5308e60497d74caf9                                                                                                                              
  Guid:                 0f401ed2-b847-532a-adc8-3193fc737be6 <- TBT-00d408af-native                                                                                                           
  Summary:              Unmatched performance for high-speed I/O                                                                                                                              
  Plugin:               thunderbolt                                                                                                                                                           
  Flags:                internal|updatable|registered                                                                                                                                         
  Vendor:               Dell                                                                                                                                                                  
  VendorId:             TBT:0x00D4                                                                                                                                                            
  Version:              40.00                                                                                                                                                                 
  Icon:                 computer                                                                                                                                                              
  Created:              2019-03-04 

Also, fwupdmgr works with .cab files and does not accept the downloaded .exe file. No history of previous upgrades, no downgrade available.

When I try to extract files from the official .exe I get:

-rw-rw-r--.  1 pragmader pragmader 1124608 Nov  9 22:18 '[0]'
-rw-rw-r--.  1 pragmader pragmader     372 Mar  4 09:26  1
-rw-rw-r--.  1 pragmader pragmader     364 Mar  4 09:26  106
-rw-rw-r--.  1 pragmader pragmader    7104 Nov  9 22:18  CERTIFICATE
-rw-rw-r--.  1 pragmader pragmader   41472 Nov  9 22:18  .data
-rw-rw-r--.  1 pragmader pragmader   17920 Nov  9 22:18  .pdata
-rw-rw-r--.  1 pragmader pragmader   77312 Nov  9 22:18  .rdata
-rw-rw-r--.  1 pragmader pragmader    3584 Nov  9 22:18  .reloc
-rw-rw-r--.  1 pragmader pragmader  294400 Nov  9 22:18  .text
-rw-rw-r--.  1 pragmader pragmader    1428 Mar  4 09:26  version.txt

Based on the size, I assume that `[0]` is the firmware binary but without knowing for sure I would not risk to flash it directly to the hardware like it's described here https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Dell_XPS_13_(9360)#Thunderbolt_Firmware_updates

Any suggestions?

Suffering from the exact same issue here as well, suddenly appeared on my week old XPS 13 9380.

- Running the latest BIOS version

- Thunderbolt controller listed under fwupdmgr get-devices

- No updates available through fwupdmgr

- Right thunderbolt port (number 3) not working with any adapters (previously working).

- Left thunderbolt port (number 3) working with thunderbolt <-> USB but not thunderbolt <-> multi adapter

- Switching to left side port (number 2) works with the adapter.

But would like to have my right side number 3 port working again :catsad:

I'm having the exact same issue as OP. Running Ubuntu 18.10, top-left Thunderbolt port has stopped recognizing the charger and any USB-C dongle I plug into it. I haven't figured out a way to update the Thunderbolt firmware, but I did update the BIOS to the latest version before I installed Ubuntu.

Dear all,

I'm experiencing the same problem with my few weeks old Dell XPS 13 9380 with Ubuntu pre-installed. Does Dell have some policy of reacting to what people are saying on their forums. Seems to be a pretty persistent problem that deserves some attention.

I have all updates, also of the BIOS, installed.

René

I want to give another update since I've last posted. Both Thunderbolt 3 ports are working now. I noticed there was a Linux kernel update for Ubuntu that was released recently. Perhaps that fixed the issue? I haven't updated or changed anything else since I first discovered the problem about a week ago.

Likewise!

I had all the latest kernel updates previously when it stopped working, 2 weeks since and x number of updates it's now working again. Can't say which exact update this was, but at least it's working again now.

I managed to fix it for myself. After trying various things, all that I had to do is fully turn off the laptop (so shutdown option in Linux) and then turning it back on. Just rebooting it did not help. But turning it off and on did.

Few other options I tried before were choosing no security option in BIOS for Thunderbolt, rebooting, restoring. Turning Thunderbolt support off in BIOS, rebooting, restoring. I also ran "boltctl list". But it seems it did not help. But maybe it is necessary to do some of that before fully turn off for things to work, so this is why I am listing it here.