Probe firmware is too old

This probe's firmware predates the protocol the debug library speaks.

PROBE_FIRMWARE_TOO_OLD

Symptoms

  • Connecting fails with a message about firmware not supporting SWD, or an unsupported older version.
  • The probe is an older ST-Link/V2 or a clone, or an on-board probe on a dev board that has never been updated.
  • The same board works from an older IDE that ships its own probe backend.

Likely causes

  • Very old ST-Link firmware (early V2J versions) predates the command set pyOCD uses, so there is no protocol in common.
  • Clone probes ship with whatever firmware the factory had, sometimes years behind.
  • On-board probes on Nucleo and Discovery boards are updated separately from anything else and are easy to forget.

How to fix it

  1. Update an ST-Link

    Run ST’s STSW-LINK007 (ST-Link Upgrade) with the probe connected and no debug session open, then reconnect. It works on both standalone probes and the on-board ones.

  2. On-board probe on a dev board

    Connect the board’s ST-Link USB port — not the target USB port — and run the same updater. The target is not touched by the update.

  3. Clone probes

    Some clones accept ST’s updater and some brick on it. If the probe cost less than the board, replacing it is the cheaper route.

  4. Reconnect after the update

    Replug the probe, refresh the device list, and connect again.

Related errors