[vdonchev]

Hello,
I am trying to fully understand how the Flash/Update of all ECUs works. I read a lot of forum and blog posts, but yet there are things that I don't fully understand.

Here are some questions that I could not found answers:


Which one will be the safer solution to perform a full update of ALL ECUs, ISTA/P Or E-Sys?

I found a few posts describing that Update is possible through ISTA/D too. Is that true? If so, then why would we need to install ISTA/P at all?

On the web, there are a lot of PSDzData archives, but some are exported from ISTA/P and others from ISTA/D. What is the difference? How these exports differ from one another?

As far as I understand, an update of some ECUs may be performed by only using E+Sys + PSU + ENet cable, without using J2534 pass-through device OR ICOM NEXT A2. Can I do a full update with e-sys only too (read about issues when flashing FEM_GW ECU)?

Which one is better/safer to use J2534 pass-through device OR ICOM NEXT A2?

Can I perform an update with ISTA/P and Enet cable without J2534 pass-through device OR ICOM NEXT A2?

I also found some videos showing an online update with ISTA/P and bmwtechinfo.com. Is this website available only for people in the US?

In bmwtechinfo.com requirements there is a text "ISTA/P should not be used for F and G series vehicles. All BMW E Series and MINI R series vehicles can be
programmed with ISTA/P". What does this mean?

Using E-Sys I was able to get my current I-Step version. Also, I found *.pdf files describing each ISTA/P-D version and the I-Level for each car. Does I-Step mean I-Level too?

If I update only a few ECUs with E-Sys, will this increase the I-Step of the car or it should be a Full update to do so?

Currently, my NBT version is NBT_K15072A (shown right below the navigation map version) after the update will this version change too or like the navigation and phone/media, it should be updated via USB stick?

On bmw.com/update I searched my VIN a few weeks ago and there was an update for MN, TN versions, but today it says that my car is up to date. I did not perform any updates and the version on my car are the same. Any suggestions why it says that there is no update?



Thank You in advance for Your time! It will be really appreciated!