Apple Releases MacBook Air Flash Storage Firmware Update 1.0 - MacRumors
Skip to Content

Apple Releases MacBook Air Flash Storage Firmware Update 1.0

by

Apple today released MacBook Air Flash Storage Firmware Update 1.0, an update for Mid-2012 MacBook Air models to address an issue with recovering from crashes.

This update is recommended for MacBook Air (mid 2012) models. This update addresses a storage firmware issue that, in rare cases, may cause a system to fail to recover from a crash.

macbook_air_2012_flash

Flash storage module from mid-2012 MacBook Air (Source: iFixit)

The update is 1.69 MB and requires OS X 10.7.5 or OS X 10.8.3.

Related Roundup: MacBook Air
Buyer's Guide: MacBook Air (Neutral)
Related Forum: MacBook Air

Top Rated Comments

Weaselboy Avatar
174 months ago
The MAS showed the update was available. I installed it, it rebooted, did it's thing, but it keeps showing up in MAS as an available update. Downloading the manual update now to see if that one will stick.
Manual update said it requires 10.7 (I'm on 10.8.3) and wouldn't install. So there's obviously something wrong with this update. I tried installing the update from the MAS again, but this time I manually shut down and let it install. Still showing up in the MAS. Oh well.
Same here on 2012 13" MBA with 10.8.3. It goes through the update and reboots instead of shutting down like the instructions explain. Tried both manually and through the app store.

I wonder if having Filevault on is causing a problem. I'm decrypting FV2 now to test this theory. Do you have FV2 on by any chance.

Edit: Yep, that was it. I turned off FV2 and waited for it to unencrypt, then applied the update and it worked just fine. You can see the new SSD firmware version TPVABBF0 in sys info.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Simplicated Avatar
174 months ago
Mine is Samsung and I didn't get the update (yet?).

Because this is for Apple notebooks. :D:D
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
chrfr Avatar
174 months ago
After the firwmare updated the computer completely shut off and didnt turn back on.

The installer states that this will happen in the dialog window that opens to confirm you want to install.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Acorn Avatar
174 months ago
Thanks for posting about the encryption. At first I tried to install the update with the encryption on and it didnt work. So I did what others have suggested and turned off encryption (fully wait for it to finish) then reboot then re-run the update and it worked perfectly.

If i wasnt apple enthusiast and visited the forums there would have been no way to know that the drive needed to be decrypted first.

Edit* it also gave me a scare. After the firwmare updated the computer completely shut off and didnt turn back on. It was like 5 minutes before I tried to turn it back on because i was to scared to touch anything.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ConCat Avatar
174 months ago
I have not seen any reports of a user able to apply this update with FV2 on, so I think it is necessary to turn it off.

I believe what is happening is the updater writes itself to Macintosh HD for install upon reboot, but with FV2 on Macintosh HD is a virtual core storage (encrypted) volume that cannot be accessed at boot time, so the update fails.

I was on AC adaptor during my earlier failed attempts to install.
Apple needs to get Core Storage implemented in the firmware. It'll solve so many problems... By that I mean removing the need to have PVs backed by GPT, and to allow decryption without needing a boot partition. They could even implement a GPT emulation layer, complete with a protective MBR for booting Windows.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
174 months ago
I am always surprised how many people seem to manually download Apple firmware and software updates which don't show up on their machines and try everything to get them installed. We can probably assume to 99% that if they don't show up even after waiting, they aren't required for your components... Seems a play with fire to me to try everything to force these updates nevertheless. (no connection to the post above me, that is a different case.)

EDIT: Okay, now that I read this thread again it only seems to be one single guy here doing this, LOL - the others have the MAS notification of the update... Anyway, in other threads with firmware updates I stumbled upon people like described above.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

iOS 27 Next to iPhone

Here's When iOS 27 Rolls Out Today in Every Time Zone [Update: It's Out]

Sunday September 13, 2026 3:00 am PDT by
Update 10:04 a.m.: iOS 27 is rolling out now, though it may take a bit for all users to see it, so keep checking! Apple is about to release iOS 27, which will finally deliver more advanced Siri AI capabilities as well as a variety of other refinements, improvements, and new features to iPhones. It's Apple's biggest software update of the year, and Apple announced at Wednesday's iPhone event...
iOS 27 Icon iPhone

iOS 27 Available Now With These 8 New Features

Monday September 14, 2026 9:00 am PDT by
Update — 10 a.m. Pacific Time: Apple has released iOS 27. During its iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone Duo event last week, Apple announced that iOS 27 will be released widely on Monday, September 14. iOS 27 should be available around 10 a.m. Pacific Time / 1 p.m. Eastern Time today via the Settings app, under General → Software Update. Below, we have highlighted eight new features and...
Apple iCloud Plus expansion hero

iCloud+ Now Includes Apple TV, Apple Arcade, and Curated Apple Music Stations in Over 100 Countries

Tuesday September 15, 2026 1:43 am PDT by
Apple today announced a new subscription initiative that turns paid iCloud+ subscriptions into a broader services bundle in more than 100 countries. In select countries, Apple says every paid iCloud+ plan, including the cheapest 50GB tier, now includes Apple TV and Apple Arcade "at no additional cost," while family sharing extends the storage, TV and Arcade access to up to five people....