--- title: Fixing a bricked AMD 7040 series Framework 13” laptop... description: A detailed account of recovering a Framework 13 (AMD Ryzen 7040 series) laptop that was bricked by a failed BIOS 3.20 update. After Framework support offered... canonical: https://daily.dev/posts/fixing-a-bricked-amd-7040-series-framework-13-laptop-with-20-tools-dtfjr2ran twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:site: @dailydotdev og:type: website og:site_name: daily.dev og:title: Fixing a bricked AMD 7040 series Framework 13” laptop with $20 tools | daily.dev og:description: A detailed account of recovering a Framework 13 (AMD Ryzen 7040 series) laptop that was bricked by a failed BIOS 3.20 update. After Framework support offered... og:url: https://daily.dev/posts/fixing-a-bricked-amd-7040-series-framework-13-laptop-with-20-tools-dtfjr2ran og:image: https://api.daily.dev/og/posts/DtfJr2Ran.png og:image:alt: Fixing a bricked AMD 7040 series Framework 13” laptop with $20 tools og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 630 og:locale: en --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://daily.dev/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Fixing a bricked AMD 7040 series Framework 13” laptop with $20 tools **[Lobsters](https://daily.dev/sources/lobsters)** · 46 min read · 0 upvotes · 0 comments ## Summary A detailed account of recovering a Framework 13 (AMD Ryzen 7040 series) laptop that was bricked by a failed BIOS 3.20 update. After Framework support offered no recovery path and demanded a CA$500+ motherboard purchase since the warranty had lapsed, the author bought roughly $20 of tools (a CH347 SPI programmer, a 1.8V level shifter, and a WSON8 pogo pin probe) to reprogram the Winbond W25Q256JW BIOS chip in-circuit using flashrom. The piece walks through identifying the chip, extracting a raw BIOS image from Framework's UEFI update package via a Linux-ported extractor tool, wiring the pogo pin probe, flashing, and fixing post-flash issues like lost UEFI NVRAM boot entries. It also covers a coincidental Framework data breach disclosure (via a Metabase 0-day) and closes with sharp criticism of Framework's repairability claims, its broken BIOS updater, and its treatment of out-of-warranty customers. ## Full article daily.dev links to this article rather than hosting it. Read it at the original source: ## Questions this post answers ### How do I recover a Framework 13 AMD 7040 series laptop that got bricked by a failed BIOS 3.20 update? Recovery requires externally reprogramming the Winbond W25Q256JW SPI flash chip in-circuit, since Framework provides no automatic BIOS recovery mechanism. Using a CH347 USB SPI programmer, a 1.8V level shifter, and a WSON8 pogo pin probe (about $20 total), the chip can be read and rewritten with flashrom while holding the probe against the chip's solder balls to maintain contact during the flash. _Anyone facing a bricked motherboard can find repair walkthroughs like this one gathered on daily.dev._ ### Why is the CH347 SPI programmer better than the CH341A for flashing BIOS chips? The CH347 runs at a 15 MHz SPI clock versus roughly 1.7 MHz for the CH341A, cutting a full chip read/write from around ten minutes down to under a minute. It also natively outputs 3.3V on its data pins, avoiding the voltage bug found on cheap black-PCB CH341A boards where data pins stay at 5V even when powering a 3.3V or 1.8V target chip. _Developers comparing hardware flashing tools can track hands-on verdicts like this via daily.dev._ ### How do I extract a raw flashable BIOS image from a Framework UEFI update .cap file? The raw 32 MiB BIOS image can be pulled from the .cap file in Framework's UEFI shell update package using a Linux-compiled fork of the InsydeH2O-extractor-2 tool, since the original relies on Windows-only functions like fopen_s. Running the extractor against the .cap file produces a BIOSFILE.FD, which is the exact file to write back to the Winbond W25Q256JW chip with flashrom. _Firmware tinkerers piecing together vendor-undocumented recovery steps can follow guides like this on daily.dev._ ## Community take How the wider developer community reacted, aggregated from 3 discussions and 491 comments across lobsters, hackernews (as of 2026-08-19). **TL;DR:** The repair writeup itself gets praise as a useful, well-documented guide, but it kicks off a much larger, contentious debate about whether Framework's repairability promise is actually worth much compared to Dell/Lenovo/Apple, and many share frustration with Framework's firmware quality and lackluster support for out-of-warranty bricking. **Sentiment:** 15% positive · 45% mixed · 40% skeptical **The case for** - The 'expansion card' port design is seen as genuinely useful since a broken port costs ~$15 and minutes to fix instead of a motherboard swap. - Several people value being able to buy new mainboards over time to upgrade CPU/RAM without replacing the whole chassis. - The author's guide is called the most detailed BIOS-recovery resource currently available for this issue, filling a gap Framework itself hasn't addressed. **The pushback** - Many argue enterprise laptops (Dell, Lenovo, ThinkPads) have long been just as repairable, undercutting Framework's core marketing angle. - Lack of A/B BIOS redundancy or a USB recovery mode is called an inexcusable design flaw given how common this exists on other hardware. - Some report Framework parts/hardware reliability issues (RTC battery, hinge, port power draw, 400MHz CPU bug) that undercut the repairability value proposition. - Reusable/swappable mainboards are dismissed by some as a niche feature few consumers actually want or benefit from. - Support is criticized for offering no recovery path and pushing a CA$500+ motherboard purchase instead of acknowledging a known firmware issue. **By community** - lobsters (mixed): No comment content was provided, so sentiment can't be determined beyond the discussion existing. - hackernews (heated): A large, contentious thread splits between defending Framework's repairability philosophy and arguing traditional enterprise laptops are just as repairable, while broadly agreeing Framework's BIOS update and support handling here were bad. **Hottest debate:** Whether Framework's modular, repairable design is a meaningful advantage over long-standing enterprise laptop repairability (Dell/Lenovo/ThinkPad) or mostly marketing/ideology with real reliability trade-offs. **Open questions** - Will Framework ever implement A/B BIOS redundancy or a USB-based recovery mode to prevent future bricking? - Will Framework publish an official recovery guide or offer free repairs for units affected by this same firmware issue? - Is buying and replacing individual Framework components over years actually more sustainable/cost-effective than buying a new laptop periodically? **Highlights** > > I would bet that this story of a failed BIOS update reaches the support anytime soon and they provide a repair guide or maybe a replaceable BIOS chip. Stories like this are somehow sad but at least they help to improve. Original author here. I like your optimism, but I've linked multiple threads on their forums with people doing the same problem going back over a year. I also pieced together most of the stuff from people doing external flashing on the forums. Still, no official guides, no changes as far as I can tell. This post is the most detail repair guide available right now. If something happens after this, it would be because this post got to the top of HN and they have to respond to save face. > — [quantum5 on hackernews · 1 comments](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49347889) > "Bricked" is a bad term for system without a proper software/firmware update path. A LOT could have been done here to improve "repairability" (with quotes, because this is a software issue on a perfectly fine mainboard). A/B updates automatically recovering the bios is case of failed update, recovery from usb in case that somehow fails as well (InsydeH2O call it "crisis mode" I think). Lenovo support both. Dell too afaik. This is very much realistic to have, and I would expect it from a decent product. A computer without this feature is pretty much designed to fail more easily. If for some very weird reason framework was unable to offer this, then at very least they could have placed a header on the board with flashing instructions on the website, instead of advising to buy new hardware. > — [anthonj on hackernews · 1 comments](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49351132) > From my experience they have been getting less repairable. Look at recent thinkpads. My headcannon is that the only reason the T14G7 is as repairable as it is, is due to the whole right to repair movement, including framework. > — [QwenGlazer9000 on hackernews · 2 comments](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49347165) > I agree with their conclusion. I somewhat regret buying my framework laptop at this stage, because the answer to every fault is "buy a new component, from framework". I'm not sure I blame them for this really, but there is no competitive market of parts (or really any market at all), which means that the reality is that you're just locking your money to them. They also often have stock issues, so woe betide you if your component fails at the wrong time. It's very hard to predict costs here, but framework laptops do seem to fail more than other brands, and their laptops do tend to be more expensive. In comparison to MacBooks I've used over the years, which other than screen delaminating, have been faultless, at least. > — [SCdF on hackernews · 6 comments](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49346293) > Author here. I am not even sure how much damage I can actually claim given that I spent $20 on tools to fix the laptop. If I bought a new board, I might be able to claim that, but filing small claims over $20 is likely not worth anyone's time. The important thing here is awareness and helping anyone affected, not trying to get Framework fined for a tiny sum. > — [quantum5 on hackernews](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49353393) **Source threads** - [lobsters](https://lobste.rs/s/phisnd/fixing_bricked_amd_7040_series_framework) · 37 points · 7 comments - [hackernews](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49345220) · 321 points · 484 comments - [hackernews](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49330329) · 3 points · 0 comments ## Similar posts on daily.dev - [Framework proved repairable laptops can work, but almost nobody is willing to buy one](https://daily.dev/posts/framework-proved-repairable-laptops-can-work-but-almost-nobody-is-willing-to-buy-one-bntlyxzie) · XDA Developers · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [Coreboot 26.09 Released With Framework Laptop 12 Support, AI Review Comment Policy](https://daily.dev/posts/coreboot-26-09-released-with-framework-laptop-12-support-ai-review-comment-policy-z5uiyn3xj) · Phoronix · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [Framework 16 Gen1 Seeing Coreboot \+ AMD openSIL Port, Framework 13 AMD Gen1 To Follow](https://daily.dev/posts/framework-16-gen1-seeing-coreboot-amd-opensil-port-framework-13-amd-gen1-to-follow-zdjfqwvmf) · Phoronix · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [Wait is over - coreboot on the AMD StarBook](https://daily.dev/posts/wait-is-over---coreboot-on-the-amd-starbook-dfalwv26g) · Lobsters · 0 upvotes · 0 comments --- Tags: [#firmware](https://daily.dev/tags/firmware) [View this post on daily.dev](https://daily.dev/posts/fixing-a-bricked-amd-7040-series-framework-13-laptop-with-20-tools-dtfjr2ran) ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180},"sameAs":["https://twitter.com/dailydotdev","https://github.com/dailydotdev","https://www.linkedin.com/company/daily-dev-ltd"]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https://daily.dev/#website","url":"https://daily.dev","name":"daily.dev","publisher":{"@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization"},"potentialAction":{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https://daily.dev/search?q={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"TechArticle","headline":"Fixing a bricked AMD 7040 series Framework 13” laptop with $20 tools","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/fixing-a-bricked-amd-7040-series-framework-13-laptop-with-20-tools-dtfjr2ran","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/fixing-a-bricked-amd-7040-series-framework-13-laptop-with-20-tools-dtfjr2ran"},"datePublished":"2026-08-18T22:01:31.409Z","dateModified":"2026-08-19T08:18:13.315Z","description":"A detailed account of recovering a Framework 13 (AMD Ryzen 7040 series) laptop that was bricked by a failed BIOS 3.20 update. After Framework support offered...","image":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/9aa16a9aa45c6a3e7d5c323384ba6528?_a=AQAEuop","thumbnailUrl":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/9aa16a9aa45c6a3e7d5c323384ba6528?_a=AQAEuop","isAccessibleForFree":true,"articleSection":"Lobsters","inLanguage":"en","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180}},"author":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Lobsters","logo":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/s--tl8v_Fku--/f_auto,t_logo/v1698841318/logos/lobste.jpg","url":"https://daily.dev/sources/lobsters"},"commentCount":0,"discussionUrl":"https://daily.dev/posts/fixing-a-bricked-amd-7040-series-framework-13-laptop-with-20-tools-dtfjr2ran","interactionStatistic":[{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":0},{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"CommentAction"},"userInteractionCount":0}],"keywords":"firmware","timeRequired":"PT46M"} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https://daily.dev"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Lobsters","item":"https://daily.dev/sources/lobsters"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Fixing a bricked AMD 7040 series Framework 13” laptop with $20 tools"}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"FAQPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/fixing-a-bricked-amd-7040-series-framework-13-laptop-with-20-tools-dtfjr2ran#faq","mainEntity":[{"@type":"Question","name":"How do I recover a Framework 13 AMD 7040 series laptop that got bricked by a failed BIOS 3.20 update?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"Recovery requires externally reprogramming the Winbond W25Q256JW SPI flash chip in-circuit, since Framework provides no automatic BIOS recovery mechanism. Using a CH347 USB SPI programmer, a 1.8V level shifter, and a WSON8 pogo pin probe (about $20 total), the chip can be read and rewritten with flashrom while holding the probe against the chip's solder balls to maintain contact during the flash. Anyone facing a bricked motherboard can find repair walkthroughs like this one gathered on daily.dev."}},{"@type":"Question","name":"Why is the CH347 SPI programmer better than the CH341A for flashing BIOS chips?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"The CH347 runs at a 15 MHz SPI clock versus roughly 1.7 MHz for the CH341A, cutting a full chip read/write from around ten minutes down to under a minute. It also natively outputs 3.3V on its data pins, avoiding the voltage bug found on cheap black-PCB CH341A boards where data pins stay at 5V even when powering a 3.3V or 1.8V target chip. Developers comparing hardware flashing tools can track hands-on verdicts like this via daily.dev."}},{"@type":"Question","name":"How do I extract a raw flashable BIOS image from a Framework UEFI update .cap file?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"The raw 32 MiB BIOS image can be pulled from the .cap file in Framework's UEFI shell update package using a Linux-compiled fork of the InsydeH2O-extractor-2 tool, since the original relies on Windows-only functions like fopen_s. Running the extractor against the .cap file produces a BIOSFILE.FD, which is the exact file to write back to the Winbond W25Q256JW chip with flashrom. Firmware tinkerers piecing together vendor-undocumented recovery steps can follow guides like this on daily.dev."}}]} ```