Module Firmware Update tab is missing

[OldFart]

I have a 2009 Explorer, OBLink EX and 3 year license. I have been using FORScan 2.3.x to make some mods and am quite happy with it. I decided to see what, if any, modules have updates available (may or may not do any updates) so I read the firmware guide and downloaded 2.4.5beta3 but the tab doesn't show up. I thought it odd that I had to re-input my license (I don't remember having to do that when updating before). Is the tab missing because I need a special license key, or my hardware or is it something else? I did a search and didn't find anything. Thank you.

[tractmec]

I have a 2009 Explorer, OBLink EX and 3 year license. I have been using FORScan 2.3.x to make some mods and am quite happy with it. I decided to see what, if any, modules have updates available (may or may not do any updates) so I read the firmware guide and downloaded 2.4.5beta3 but the tab doesn't show up. I thought it odd that I had to re-input my license (I don't remember having to do that when updating before). Is the tab missing because I need a special license key, or my hardware or is it something else? I did a search and didn't find anything. Thank you.

Nothing wrong probably with any of those! I have never had to reinstall my license either and I have a 1 year!

Firmware updating Especially for the FEPS based PCM's (note: it is not possible to do FEPS with an OBDlink EX adapter as it does not have the 18 volt FEPS signal ability. Only vGate vLinker FS has this ability in this price range) and (except under testing status for writing to the PCM VIN block in some 2009-2012 E series van models as per 2.4.4/5 beta 3) is not yet available for many modules older than 2010(one reason it is still in beta test status) and the 3 year license will be fine when/if it does become available!

You will have to renew it in three years and it may take that long as the early HSCAN and older PWM ISO and UBP modules are apparently a much more complicated process in firmware configuration, if some of them can even be firmware programmed!
FORScan has said, in my correspondence with them, that FEPS programming for PCM's older than 2011 at least, is being worked on and is planned for a future release!

Keep watching the 2.4.x beta test thread! If you want to find out more you can email the team with your debug information at https://forscan.org/contactus.html They may not answer you, as they are very busy working on this, unless you have specific problems you want addressed like a module that keeps getting a configuration read or write interrupted!

[OldFart]

Thank you for the reply. I wasn't sure if it was going to work on something this old. I was kind of expecting to see the tab but have it say "not supported" or tab just wouldn't find any firmware. I have used forscan to change some settings on the vehicle (there are some "plain english" changes available as well) so I know it can write to the modules and I have a tuner that works well with it. Thinking about, I bought a laptop just to dedicate for all the diagnostics / manuals (Ross-Tech, Mitchell OnDemand, etc) and maybe when I installed Forscan I forgot to input the license and that's why it asked after I did the update. I'm still confused as to why no tab though.

[tractmec]

Thank you for the reply. I wasn't sure if it was going to work on something this old. I was kind of expecting to see the tab but have it say "not supported" or tab just wouldn't find any firmware. I have used forscan to change some settings on the vehicle (there are some "plain english" changes available as well) so I know it can write to the modules and I have a tuner that works well with it. Thinking about, I bought a laptop just to dedicate for all the diagnostics / manuals (Ross-Tech, Mitchell OnDemand, etc) and maybe when I installed Forscan I forgot to input the license and that's why it asked after I did the update. I'm still confused as to why no tab though.

If it is any consolation I have two vehicles, the 03 Expy which has no firmware tabs (including the PCM programming signal voltage test also being missing) in any modules and the 05 F150 that has the programming voltage test in the PCM Service/Test procedure which is the test of the adapters ability to open the FEPS signal for programming(This may also be missing with your EX adapter because the EX lacks this ability)! It has no other Firmware tabs but i have not had a 2.4.x plugged into it or the 2010 Fusion since 2.4.2 so that may have changed!

Interestingly that 2.4.2 version had an Odometer write function for increasing the K.M. reading(I am in Alberta, Canada) and I tried to use it when I replaced the IPC earlier this Year but when I loaded the Procedure the reading it showed me did not make any sense and had way too many digits than the actual reading in the display. When I tried increasing the reading to the actual reading in the original IPC it would not change the display reading and I would get DTC's for configuration mismatch and the AsBuilt programming would get thoroughly corrupted! I sent my Debug dump.bin and log files in to support_team@forscan.org and they sent back the following!

"Hello",

"The IPC "Odometer write" function is available on almost all new Ford models, but very few old models. This is a dealership function designed for new cluster install, so it can only increase. Unfortunately, for your car this function is not available. Dealership scanner has PMI (programmable module installation) procedure for this cluster, but all what it does is uploading factory As Built data. The IPC Module Configuration function shows the mileage parameter, but it is wrong and was removed as non-working in last versions of FORScan (you use outdated one).

In other words, for your cluster there is no dealership scanner way to set the new mileage. We are curious how dealers make such replacements, but we don't know it. The IPC is old but programmable, so there may be some way to adjust it, but unfortunately we have no idea on how to do it, sorry.May be some tune companies may help".

And the Odometer write process was and is missing for the 2005 F150 and the 03 Expy in 2.4.3 and 2.3.43 and later!

The 2010 fusion also has The PCM Programming voltage test and all the modules Except the PCM have a Firmware programming section in Configuration and Programming(And I have done it on the PSCM Last year when I replaced the Electric rack with a used one{was a little apprehensive as this was the second replacement and the PSCM went inoperative the same as the two failed racks with the same DTC's until I cycled the key and cleared all the DTC's})!

I am sure I have seen the Odometer write function in the Fusion but I will have to Plug in and check again to make sure!

My point with all this is this! It seems the FORScan program algorithm as grown to where it looks at a modules programming availability and the adapters ability to perform the procedure(the program actually looks at this when it first connects to a vehicle and advises the operator if the adapter can not reliably do so) and if gets a response that there is a program that is available and the adapter can be reasonably expected to complete it, it will load a tab for it!
If there is no availability for a program to be run then the programming does not expend any memory or processing power to load a tab for it or in telling the operator whether it is available or not and just ignores it( IDS does This too)!
If there is no firmware program available then you likely wont see a tab for it and Also remember, the 2.4.x branch is still in beta testing and if a program is available but can't be run yet because it has not run reliably in FORScan testing it probably won't set a tab either(do a complete read of this thread viewtopic.php?p=52929#p52929 to see why Forscan is a little shy about enabling some programs before they are reliably ready)( the fall out from this particular thread caused the 2.4.x branch to be removed from public availability for almost a year)!

Don't take this as gospel as the above Paragraph is mostly an old mechanics(over 40 years) semi educated guessing!

As Far as the license goes I would be surprised if you had two computers that the 3 year license successfully installed on(without a multiple license purchase) as the Activation process registers and ties that Activation code to the FORScan Install's computer Hardware ID on a server online at FORScan and unless you bought multiple 3 Year licenses(which is possible to do as the same activation code can be purchased for and installed and activated on however many computers the license was bought to cover) you should have had to "uninstall" the license on the first computer to deactivate its activation, in order to install and activate it on this one!

Sorry for the long windiness but I hope it clears up some confusion? You can always email the team at support_team@forscan.org and come back and tell me I am all wrong or confirm my suspicions! Up top you!

[OldFart]

You were correct Tractmec. My 2009 Explorer is too old. I hooked it up to a newish F150 Raptor and in the module list it showed which modules had updates available. Maybe in the future...

[Edit] The two things that thru me off was (1) in the guide it shows a separate tab showing the firmware update but not the steps before that tab shows up. The second thing was in the "Changelog" where it said "should work for other 2009+MY models with last generation of ECU with FEPS" not knowing if mine was FEPS or not.