Deploying firmware at Cloudflare-scale: updating thousands of servers in more than 285 cities

What this post added

This post details Cloudflare's automated firmware deployment system for its global server fleet. It leverages iPXE for BIOS/UEFI updates via UEFI shell applications and a minimal Linux environment with initial ramdisks for BMC/NIC firmware updates. The system coordinates updates during scheduled reboots, ensuring no production interruption. It also covers the use of UEFI variables for storing firmware versions and the integration with systemd for executing flashing scripts.