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Abrites ECU Programming Tool: choosing between DIAG, Bench or BSL (boot) mode

The ECU Programming Tool brings every engine and transmission ECU read and write into one piece of software: EEPROM (Data Flash), internal/external Program Flash, ECM maps, SPI memories and Adblue modules. Before you put a wire on anything you have to decide which of the three modes to work in: DIAG (over OBDII), Bench (direct connection without opening the ECU) or BSL (boot mode, with the ECU opened).

Procedure

1. Check the prerequisites: AVDI connected to the PC, software updated to the latest version (check the news section on abrites.com) and hardware update carried out less than a month ago with AMS active.
2. Try the OBDII read first: open the ECU Programming Tool, choose "Diag", select the car make and the ECU make, then the memory type and press "Info" to see whether the unit answers. It's the quickest route and needs nothing stripped down.
3. If the OBDII read fails (not a common case), move to the "Bench" method: you strip the ECU out and connect straight to the pins from the outside, without opening it and without soldering, using the ZN151 Distribution Box. It's the most widely used method today, especially on Bosch EDC17 Tricore units.
4. If Bench fails too, that leaves "BSL" (bootstrap loader / boot mode): you have to open the ECU and solder a boot pin at the internal position shown in the manual's diagrams, with the resistors that specific diagram calls for.
5. Remember what each mode can do: in "Diag" you read/write ECM Maps, Internal/External Flash and Data Flash and you can do both a real read and a virtual read; in "Bench" and "BSL" you read/write internal/external Program Flash and Data Flash.
6. Always power the ECU with external 12V from the Distribution Box: the 5V supplied by the AVDI is NOT enough to run the ECU.
7. Save every read to file before writing anything: the files you read (DFLASH, PFLASH, maps) are your backup and your means of transferring the data to another ECU in case of replacement.

Reference screenshots