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OC Panel I -> OC Panel II

filmbot
Level 7
Couple questions regarding OC Panel

1) I have the OC Panel that came with Rampage Extreme V (x99), assume this is the original version and is considered OC Panel I, correct?

2) If this is OC Panel I, is it possible to flash to a "OC Panel II" so that it supports newer motherboards?
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2 REPLIES 2

Korth
Level 14
I also have an X99 R5E which came with an OC Panel (not an OC Panel II).

There's no "official" documentation (and no "unofficial" comment) from ASUS about why the firmware updates are needed, what they fix, what they do better than older versions.

But it's evident that the firmware revisions merely expand compatibility to subsequent ROG motherboards. Read the detailed summary in "Compatible Models" near the bottom of the OCP-I page. And note that the firmware release dates coincide with motherboard release dates - 0603 and R5E10, 0501 and X99 Rampage V, 0402 and Z97 Maximus VII, 0301 a few months after X79 Rampage IV and Z87 Maximus VI (I'm guessing 0301 corrected bugs in the original 01xx/02xx OCP-I firmwares which shipped with the first of these mobos).

My OCP-I came with firmware 0402 and it wouldn't work with my R5E until I upflashed to 0501 (on a helpful friend's M7F mobo) - an inauspicious beginning, lol, since it was one of the many accessories ASUS bundled into my big R5E box - but then again I bought my R5E (original R5E, not R5E/U3.1) immediately after product launch, I understand and forgive ASUS for this minor oversight. 0501 still works (and I hardly even look at the thing, except for at-a-glance hardware monitoring) so I won't bother upflashing to 0603 unless I get an R5E10.

X99 R5E10 is the last and best motherboard compatible with OCP-I (even though this isn't displayed on the OCP-I page), and OCP-I appears to be discontinued.

OCP-II is compatible with Z97 Maximus VII, X79 Rampage IV, X99 Rampage V, and Z170 Maximus VIII mobos. Surprisingly not compatible (yet?) with Z270 Maximus IX or ROG X299 mobos - or with ROG AM4 motherboards - but ASUS will likely around to updating OCP-II firmware one day.

The two OCP models are visually similar, but OCP-I has a printed white ROG logo and OCP-II has a backlit translucent red ROG logo. More importantly, OCP-II hardware is different, aside from motherboard compatibility it is "enhanced" with a slightly better display and a few more functions (Safe Boot and Retry buttons, tweaked fan controls, etc).
The two OCP models do not have interchangeable firmwares, flashing the wrong firmware will brick the device.
(It would be smart for ASUS to update their software OC Panel Firmware Update Tool with some sort of hardware-detecting safety feature to prevent accidental bricking.)

There is no way to upgrade your OCP-I to an OCP-II through software or firmware, it's different hardware. Motherboard compatibility is critical, otherwise OCP-I users are not really missing anything offered by OCP-II except a handful of convenience features (which are rarely useful unless you're setting the thing up in standalone "Extreme Mode").
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[/Korth]

Menthol
Level 14
As Korth says you can update the firmware and it is compatible with newer boards, just update with firmware for the model you have
I have both models and they do the same thing, I have used the II on my RVE and I on Maximus boards although I don't use them for monitoring