How To Repair Mfc-7360n Firmware

Yesterday, the status monitor software of my Brother HL-2250DN informed me about a new firmware update. I decided to install the update, just at 90%, the update procedure interrupted. The update tool complained that it cannot connect to the printer anymore.

Later a few minutes, I switched the printer off and on again, only autonomously from brusk flashing of the LEDs it was dead. No fan bravado as usual, no network connexion. When I connected the printer using USB, it was recognized every bit "BrotherHL2-Maintenance", which seems to exist an interface to the printer's bootloader for authorized service partners which can exist used to restore the firmware.

So I chosen a service partner, only the result was disappointing: Firmware updates are not covered by Blood brother'southward warranty.

Firmware Restore Tool / Driver

In social club to use the BrotherHL2-Maintenance interface to restore the firmware, yous need a driver for the interface. These drivers are available to authorized service partners only. After a flake of research, I establish out that the driver Cipher archive is called "BHL2-Maintenance.aught". The file tin exist found using Google, for example here. Y'all also demand the firmware restore tool which is called "FILEDG32.exe".

The device driver requires a 32-bit Windows XP or older. As I'k using a 64-flake Mac, I had to set up a virtual machine (VMware Fusion) running Windows XP.

After installing the device driver, the FILEDG32.exe tool can be used to upload firmware to the printer by simply dragging the firmware file onto the "Brother HL2 Maintenance Printer" icon.

Finding the Firmware

The hardest part was to find the appropriate firmware for the HL-2250DN. At the Brother website, you tin can only download a firmware update tool which does not contain the actual firmware information merely downloads it from the web. Of course, the tool does not recognize the BrotherHL2-Maintenance and fails (no printer found).

The Mac Bone Ten version of the firmware update tool is a Java application which tin exist analyzed quite easily afterward decompressing the JAR file. Assay of the application shows that it gets the link to the appropriate firmware from a spider web service located at firmverup.blood brother.co.jp.

Yous can simply forge a request for the HL-2250DN printer to retrieve the link. Just create a file, eastward.1000. request.xml, containing the following request:

<REQUESTINFO>
    <FIRMUPDATETOOLINFO>
       <FIRMCATEGORY>Chief</FIRMCATEGORY>
       <OS>MAC</Os>
       <INSPECTMODE>1</INSPECTMODE>
    </FIRMUPDATETOOLINFO>
    <FIRMUPDATEINFO>
       <MODELINFO>
           <SELIALNO></SELIALNO>
           <Name>HL-2250DN serial</NAME>
           <SPEC></SPEC>
           <DRIVER></DRIVER>
           <FIRMINFO>
               <Firm>
                   <ID>Principal</ID>
                   <VERSION>1.15</VERSION>
               </Firm>
               <House>
                   <ID>BRNET</ID>
                   <VERSION>1.ten</VERSION>
               </FIRM>
           </FIRMINFO>
       </MODELINFO>
       <DRIVERCNT>ane</DRIVERCNT>
       <LOGNO>two</LOGNO>
       <ERRBIT></ERRBIT>
       <NEEDRESPONSE>1</NEEDRESPONSE>
    </FIRMUPDATEINFO>
</REQUESTINFO>

Then, post it to the web service, eastward.g. using curl:

$ curlicue -X Postal service -d @request.xml https://firmverup.brother.co.jp/kne_bh7_update_nt_ssl/ifax2.asmx/fileUpdate -H "Content-Type:text/xml" --sslv3

You will get a response containing the firmware download link:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" ?><RESPONSEINFO><FIRMUPDATEINFO><VERSIONCHECK>0</VERSIONCHECK><FIRMID>MAIN</FIRMID><LATESTVERSION>1.17</LATESTVERSION><PATH>http://update-akamai.brother.co.jp/CS/LZ3514_J.blf</PATH><DLTIME>180000</DLTIME></FIRMUPDATEINFO></RESPONSEINFO>

Now, just download the firmware (.blf file) from that location.

Restoring the firmware

Connect the printer to a Windows XP machine and install the device driver (see above). Start FILEDG32.exe and drag the firmware file (eastward.g. LZ3514_J.blf) to the "Brother HL2 Maintenance Printer" icon.

The printer's LEDs will start to flash during the process. The process is finished when all LEDs are on. Power-bike the printer and information technology should come up dorsum to life!

Other printers

This process should piece of work for other Brother printers as well, as long as it is beingness recognized as BrotherHL2-Maintenance USB device in the device manager. Yous will have to discover the appropriate firmware for your printer by using the firmverup.brother.co.jp web service. In the XML request file, supplant the MODEL and SPEC fields and the FIRMINFO entries. Note that the SPEC field is empty for the HL-2250DN, just may contain a value for other printers.

Yous volition have to know the right MODEL and SPEC values and also the FIRMINFO entries. This can be quite difficult. I found out the values for the HL-2250DN past querying a functional printer of the same model using SNMP:

$ snmpwalk -c public <IP-ADDRESS> iso.3.six.1.4.ane.2435.2.4.3.99.3.one.half dozen.1.two

SNMPv2-SMI::enterprises.2435.2.4.3.99.3.i.six.1.2.i = String: "MODEL=\"HL-2250DN series\"
"
SNMPv2-SMI::enterprises.2435.2.4.3.99.iii.one.6.1.2.2 = Cord: "Series=\"...\"
"
SNMPv2-SMI::enterprises.2435.2.4.3.99.iii.1.half dozen.ane.2.3 = String: "SPEC=\"\"
"
SNMPv2-SMI::enterprises.2435.2.4.iii.99.iii.1.half dozen.1.ii.4 = Cord: "FIRMID=\"Master\"
"
SNMPv2-SMI::enterprises.2435.2.4.3.99.3.1.half dozen.i.two.5 = String: "FIRMVER=\"one.fifteen\"
"
SNMPv2-SMI::enterprises.2435.2.4.iii.99.three.1.six.one.2.6 = String: "FIRMID=\"BRNET\"
"
SNMPv2-SMI::enterprises.2435.2.4.three.99.three.1.6.1.2.vii = Cord: "FIRMVER=\"i.10\"
"