MBA mid 2011 2.9 Firmware update just killed by Air

Same here:

Mid 2011 13-inch MBA dead after installing the EFI-Firmware-Update 2.9. Also tried SMC reset but the MBA is dead.

After I installed the update on my MacBook Air the MB shut down and was gone black for a couple of minutes. First I plugged in the power cord and pressed the power button a couple of times. While I was starting to look for the reset stuff it came back to life without any further actions. It took around 5 minutes I guess.

MacBook Air EFI Firmware Update 2.9

Do your MBAs meet the system requirements?

System Requirements

• OS X 10.9.2 and later
• Update over these EFI versions only:
  • 0077.00
  • 0077.08
  • 0077.0E
  • 0077.0F

I had the same issue. The machine simply shuts off and doesn't restart so the firmware update is never applied. The power button stopped working and the machine would not turn on at all. So I took it the the Apple Store and they cracked it open to do a physical SMC reset. It booted up fine after that. We tried the install again and no dice. Same thing happened. This time the guy at the Genius Bar did some kind of "soft" SMC reset. He pressed SHIFT+FN+CONTROL+POWER at the same time (the first 3 keys are in the lower left corner) ... held it for a few seconds and let them go. When he pressed the Power button after that the machine booted up fine. Still didn't apply the firmware update though. The guy at the Genius Bar said he would report this issue to Engineering to alert them to the problem with the update.

In any event, your laptop is probably not completely dead. Give that keystroke combination above a try to see if you can revive it. It doesn't appear to be the standard SMC Reset keystroke combination which is SHIFT+CONTROL+OPTION+POWER if I recall correctly. Certainly wasn't anything I'd ever seen before.

I Have this problem also. Completely dead. I attempted the key combination suggested by Ondray Wells Jr to no avail.

Any advice appreciated!

I just realised the fan is running quietly, so maybe not dead, just having a terrible dream.

OS X: Keyboard shortcuts

These should not be used, if the firmware update is still in progress.

I installed the EFI 2.9 update on both my Air's (13" & 11") booted back up fine.

However the APP STORE still indicates that I still need to download and install the update.

I just tried to update my MBA mid 2011. It sort of goes out for a couple minute, and then slowly turn back on. But now the app store software update still show the update as "available". Strange.

I tried to update it by manually downloading the file from apple support site. No luck.

Below is a screenshot of me desperately try to update it over and over again.

After about an hour it rebooted itself and I now have the same situation, the update shows as installed but also still available. Don't think I'll bother trying it again.

Same issue here. Endless attempts to reinstall this firmware update. Stopped after 2. Now it still shows 1 update available and will probably try to reboot and install tonight.

With the firmware of a machine being critical for operation, I am very concerned about this re-installing itself over and over. Sounds like some had no issues, but can't imagine Apple wouldn't have seen this with a thorough test in a live environment prior to releasing this update.

My experience was not nearly as bad as some, but there were some problems with my attempt to update to the 2.9 firmware on my 11" mid-2011 Macbook Air. The update appeared in App Store/Software Update, so naturally, having some down time, I went ahead and installed it. The update appeared to install and then the computer rebooted. After coming back up App Store opened and still showed that the 2.9 update needed to be installed, but also listed it right below in the list of already installed software. Against my better judgement, I clicked update again, and the same thing happened, only now there are two instances listed as installed, with one still needing to be installed. I finally went to Apple's pages on the update...

MacBook Air EFI Firmware Update 2.9

EFI and SMC firmware updates for Intel-based Macs

...and there is where I found what Loner T said above, that the update should only be applied over the following firmware versions:

• 0077.00
• 0077.08
• 0077.0E
• 0077.0F

Even this listing is incorrect according to Apple's other document. None of the firmware versions end in a two digit number, although granted they all start with the same letter "B". So the correct listing, based on what System Information says would be...

• 0077.B00
• 0077.B08
• 0077.B0E
• 0077.B0F

It doesn't even have this list in the update description in App Store. Usually, if an update doesn't apply to your computer, it doesn't show up. In this case Apple expects people to go look for a support article and figure out how to find the current firmware version, but then it's probably too late. My firmware version is MBA41.0077.B0F which I can't find any other reference to in Apple's support but with the "B" is the last one in the list. They list MBA41.0077.B11 (EFI 2.9) as the current (2.9) version for the mid-2011 MBA...if it applies. Even more annoying, there is no way to hide the update, so I'll forever have the (1) showing on the App Store icon unless the update gets fixed.

Apple borked this update, so if you haven't updated yet, wait for 2.9.1.

I recommend everyone with this problem call APPLE 1-800 692-7753 and let them know there is a major issue with this update.....I just called and their not aware of any problem.😮

There is a much more comprehensive list, last updated on 10 Jul 2014 at EFI and SMC firmware updates for Intel-based Macs

The 2.9 MBA 2011 update came out on 15 Jul 2014.

The download site for notebooks is Apple - Support - Downloads.

The older article from 4 Sep 2012 on restoring firmware is About the Firmware Restoration CD (Intel-based Macs).