How to degrade my Avnet Azure Starter kit OS version

Question

Hi. We are working with Avnet Azure sphere starter kit. We have already updated the device OS version to 22.11.
We found a link which says we can degrade the version of the device.
"After a device updates to the 22.09 release, it will no longer be able to run a release of the Azure Sphere OS earlier than 22.07".
Does it mean we can degrade the version upto 22.07 for all devices?
[https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/t5/internet-of-things-blog/general-availability-azure-sphere-version-22-09-new-and-updated/ba-p/3638460
Please let us know how to put the device to previous version. Thank you.

Answer 1

Hi,

Downgrading the OS version on your Avnet Azure Sphere Starter Kit requires several steps. Here are the general steps to follow:

1. Identify the desired OS version to downgrade to. You can find a list of available OS versions on the Azure Sphere OS release notes page.
2. Download the desired OS version image package from the Azure Sphere OS downloads page. Make sure to select the correct package for your device model and OS version.
3. Connect your Avnet Azure Sphere Starter Kit to your computer via USB.
4. Put the device in recovery mode by holding down the "SW2" button while pressing and releasing the "Reset" button. Keep holding down SW2 until the device enters recovery mode.
5. Open a command prompt or terminal window and navigate to the folder containing the downloaded OS image package.
6. Use the azsphere CLI tool to flash the device with the desired OS image. The command should look something like this:

azsphere device recover --image <path-to-os-image> --newimage

• Replace <path-to-os-image> with the path to the downloaded OS image package.
• Wait for the device to complete the flashing process, which can take several minutes. The device will automatically reboot when the process is complete.
• Once the device has rebooted, you may need to perform additional setup steps depending on the changes in the new OS version. For example, you may need to re-provision the device, update application code to be compatible with the new OS version, etc.

Note that downgrading the OS version on your Avnet Azure Sphere Starter Kit may result in loss of data or functionality, and could potentially cause security issues if there are known vulnerabilities in the older OS version. It is generally recommended to keep your devices up-to-date with the latest available OS version.

Answer 2

Hello, greetings! I have an update on this issue from the product team. Please find the following feedback.

• If the device is connected to a PC over USB, it is possible to use the azsphere device recover command with parameters to install a specific version of the OS.
• Please note that Azure Sphere devices attached to the Internet all receive the latest version of the OS. So, if the device is internet attached, even after downgrading the OS via USB, the device will just be updated again.

May we also know the reason why you are trying to downgrade the OS version on the device -- all OS updates are compatible with older applications. Are you trying to diagnose an issue that only occurs with a specific older OS version. Is there a specific version of the OS that you are trying to downgrade to?

I highly appreciate it if you can share the above requested information to provide more feedback on this.

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