OSETC TECH

How to Get BIOS Version Information in Linux

This post will guide you how to find your Computer’s BIOS version or other information from the command line in Linux. How do I find out BIOS version using a Linux command.

If you want to get BIOS version under your Linux systems, and you can use a Linux command called dmidecode. It is a tool for dumping a computer’s DMI (some say SMBIOS) table contents in a human-readable format.


Get BIOS Version Only


If you want only to get BIOS Version for your Linux Operating systems from command line, and you can issue the following command:

$ sudo dmidecode

Or

$ sudo dmidecode -s bios-version

Outputs:

devops@devops:~$ sudo dmidecode
[sudo] password for devops:
# dmidecode 3.1
Getting SMBIOS data from sysfs.
SMBIOS 2.5 present.
10 structures occupying 449 bytes.
Table at 0x000E1000.

Handle 0x0000, DMI type 0, 20 bytes
BIOS Information
Vendor: innotek GmbH
Version: VirtualBox
Release Date: 12/01/2006
Address: 0xE0000
Runtime Size: 128 kB
ROM Size: 128 kB
Characteristics:
ISA is supported
PCI is supported
Boot from CD is supported
Selectable boot is supported
8042 keyboard services are supported (int 9h)
CGA/mono video services are supported (int 10h)
ACPI is supported

Handle 0x0001, DMI type 1, 27 bytes
System Information
Manufacturer: innotek GmbH
Product Name: VirtualBox
Version: 1.2
Serial Number: 0
UUID: 098C043A-4252-4AF9-A54F-BB400B7635EA
Wake-up Type: Power Switch
SKU Number: Not Specified
Family: Virtual Machine

Handle 0x0008, DMI type 2, 15 bytes
Base Board Information
Manufacturer: Oracle Corporation
Product Name: VirtualBox
Version: 1.2
Serial Number: 0
Asset Tag: Not Specified
Features:
Board is a hosting board
Location In Chassis: Not Specified
Chassis Handle: 0x0003
Type: Motherboard
Contained Object Handles: 0

Handle 0x0003, DMI type 3, 13 bytes
Chassis Information
Manufacturer: Oracle Corporation
Type: Other
Lock: Not Present
Version: Not Specified
Serial Number: Not Specified
Asset Tag: Not Specified
Boot-up State: Safe
Power Supply State: Safe
Thermal State: Safe
Security Status: None

Handle 0x0007, DMI type 126, 42 bytes
Inactive

Handle 0x0005, DMI type 126, 15 bytes
Inactive

Handle 0x0006, DMI type 126, 28 bytes
Inactive

Handle 0x0002, DMI type 11, 7 bytes
OEM Strings
String 1: vboxVer_6.0.8
String 2: vboxRev_130520

Handle 0x0008, DMI type 128, 8 bytes
OEM-specific Type
Header and Data:
80 08 08 00 41 77 1B 00

Handle 0xFEFF, DMI type 127, 4 bytes
End Of Table
devops@devops:~$ sudo dmidecode -s bios-version
VirtualBox

From the above outputs, the current BIOS version is VirtualBox.

Get All BIOS Information


If you only want to get All BIOS related information from dmidecode command, and you can issue the following command:

$ sudo dmidecode –type bios

Outputs:

devops@devops:~$ sudo dmidecode --type bios
# dmidecode 3.1
Getting SMBIOS data from sysfs.
SMBIOS 2.5 present.

Handle 0x0000, DMI type 0, 20 bytes
BIOS Information
Vendor: innotek GmbH
Version: VirtualBox
Release Date: 12/01/2006
Address: 0xE0000
Runtime Size: 128 kB
ROM Size: 128 kB
Characteristics:
ISA is supported
PCI is supported
Boot from CD is supported
Selectable boot is supported
8042 keyboard services are supported (int 9h)
CGA/mono video services are supported (int 10h)
ACPI is supported

SMBIOS DMI Types


The SMBIOS specification defines the following DMI types:

Type Information
────────────────────────────────────────────
0 BIOS
1 System
2 Baseboard
3 Chassis
4 Processor
5 Memory Controller
6 Memory Module
7 Cache
8 Port Connector
9 System Slots
10 On Board Devices
11 OEM Strings
12 System Configuration Options
13 BIOS Language
14 Group Associations
15 System Event Log

16 Physical Memory Array
17 Memory Device
18 32-bit Memory Error
19 Memory Array Mapped Address
20 Memory Device Mapped Address
21 Built-in Pointing Device
22 Portable Battery
23 System Reset
24 Hardware Security
25 System Power Controls
26 Voltage Probe
27 Cooling Device
28 Temperature Probe
29 Electrical Current Probe
30 Out-of-band Remote Access
31 Boot Integrity Services
32 System Boot

So if you want to get Base Board Information in your Linux system, and you can get one DMI type called “Baseboard” from the above list, and then run the following dmidecode command:

$ sudo dmidecode --type Baseboard

Outputs:

devops@devops:~$ sudo dmidecode --type Baseboard
# dmidecode 3.1
Getting SMBIOS data from sysfs.
SMBIOS 2.5 present.

Handle 0x0008, DMI type 2, 15 bytes
Base Board Information
Manufacturer: Oracle Corporation
Product Name: VirtualBox
Version: 1.2
Serial Number: 0
Asset Tag: Not Specified
Features:
Board is a hosting board
Location In Chassis: Not Specified
Chassis Handle: 0x0003
Type: Motherboard
Contained Object Handles: 0

If you want to get more information about dmidecode command, and you can run the following command to get it manual pager, type:

$ man dmidecode

Conclusion


You should know that how to use dmidecode tool to get information about your Linux system’s BIOS.