Victron Multiplus II firmware upgrade gone wrong (and fix)

My friends/marina neighbors have a Victron Multiplus II 24/3000 120V inverter that was working perfectly. They got a notice on their Victron Connect app that there was a firmware update available and the notice included an option to install upgrade using the app. They assumed this was a good idea and installed the firmware.

After the new firmware was installed and the inverter rebooted, it would not invert or charge. It was powered on and communicating, and had been essentially factory reset, so I figured it would start working properly when I provisioned it for the AC supply, battey type, etc., but nothing I did would make it invert or charge.

I did some googling and I was able to fix it by downgrading the firmware using a file I got from Victron. In order to get the file, I had to create a Victron Professional account and a Dropbox account. I installed the firmware file with a Vicron Energy Mk3 USB to VE dongle that I already had, using VEFlash software that I got from Victron. The fix took me quite awhile to figure out and was not at all intuitive. If your Victron gear is working fine, I recommend that you do not upgrade firmware.

Was your friend aware of the procedure that needs to be followed after the firmware upgrade? The upgrade saves the configuration, but leaves the system at factory defaults, just as you describe. You then need to process the config using one of their tools and download it to the multi to restore configuration and get it going again. It’s a bit of a complex process.

twistedtree said:

Was your friend aware of the procedure that needs to be followed after the firmware upgrade? The upgrade saves the configuration, but leaves the system at factory defaults, just as you describe. You then need to process the config using one of their tools and download it to the multi to restore configuration and get it going again. It’s a bit of a complex process.

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They became aware and they contacted me to do the configuration work. I am pretty familiar with the tools and how to configure the inverter, it's just that none of settings or changes worked to make it operate again. It was pretty much bricked.

Mischief Managed said:

They became aware and they contacted me to do the configuration work. I am pretty familiar with the tools and how to configure the inverter, it's just that none of settings or changes worked to make it operate again. It was pretty much bricked.

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Wow, that’s one’s worst fears when doing an update. I don’t necessarily agree with the “don’t update unless you have a problem” approach, but I definitely look at the list of changes to see if there is anything that I care about or that might impact me. And then always update when a total crap out like you experienced won’t be a disaster, just a PITA.