Got a school lab that I’m going to flatten and install 11 from scratch. The reinstall of DCU is presenting problems with delivering the BIOS password securely. dcu-cli works if I do it plain text but that’s visible in the logs … I have yet to find the magic syntax to get the password into DCU with the “secure” options - anyone got a command line that works??

EDIT; The actual BIOS password is set, I just want to get it into DCU to simplify future updates. Deploying with SCCM.

Answer from kevinhughes2 on community.spiceworks.com
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Reddit
reddit.com › r/sysadmin › simple question: how i pass the password to dcu-cli.exe in order to apply updates
r/sysadmin on Reddit: Simple question: How I pass the password to dcu-cli.exe in order to apply updates
January 7, 2024 -

Hello to all,

probably mine is a problem related to different mothertongue,but I'm trying to do the most simple and plain operation, I have to execute the bios update on a bunch of Dell devices that ALREADY have an admin password on the BIOS, from GUI you just type the psw, when using DCU-CLI.EXE how the h*ll I have to pass the password??

righ now I'm using this:

$Password = Invoke-RestMethod -Uri $apiUrl -Method Get

Start-Process -Wait -FilePath dcu-cli.exe -ArgumentList "/configure -scheduleManual -autoSuspendBitLocker=enable -biosPassword=$Password -downloadLocation=$UpdatesFolderPath"

$Updates = Start-Process -FilePath dcu-cli.exe -ArgumentList "/applyUpdates -reboot=disable -outputLog=$UpdatesLog" -PassThru -Wait

I'm collecting the password from an Azure Key Vault thru an Azure Function, the variable $Password will contains the plain text psw.

but seems it doesn't work, the -biosPassword is the right attribute? there is something I miss? I just want to pass the already configured password value without changing it, anyone could clarify the code syntax error?

🌐
Dell
dell.com › support › kbdoc › en-us › 000187573 › bios-password-is-not-included-in-the-exported-configuration-of-dell-command-update
BIOS Password Is Not Included in the Exported Configuration of Dell Command Update | Dell US
Run the following command on the target computers, substituting the user’s encrypted password and encryption key for mine. dcu-cli /applyupdates -encryptionkey=""MyEncryptionKey01"" -encryptedpassword=""AdMNCABdAq6eZ2CX4My2aUFINCYBzTv99yYH8eb4Yjow+4jjppfZzt8pICNXj+MMLzQjCVJFvGfKEd7toFXy57fDwVZq6G+dpdUg8++yZQWmPKWTKBbu/tAxi9Ni""
Discussions

Passing BIOS password to Dell Command Update
The reinstall of DCU is presenting problems with delivering the BIOS password securely. dcu-cli works if I do it plain text but that’s visible in the logs … I have yet to find the magic syntax to get the password into DCU with the “secure” options - anyone got a command line that works?? More on community.spiceworks.com
🌐 community.spiceworks.com
2
6
July 25, 2025
Support Dell admin password protected bios updates
Is your feature request related to a problem? Please describe. As someone who manages a fleet of linux desktops and servers, I'd like to update the bios regularly just like we do with our windo... More on github.com
🌐 github.com
14
September 9, 2020
Dell Command Update 4.2 - Update BIOS during TS
Make sure there is no bios password. If a bios password is 0resent, it will give exitcode 0 but no effect if you do not spcify the proper password. More on reddit.com
🌐 r/SCCM
26
3
July 8, 2021
Automating Dell Command Update - Securely storing bios password
The Intune 2404 release adds a new BIOS configuration implementation for Dell devices specifically: including fully managing the BIOS password. Dell has an additional component that is needed for it ("Dell Command | Endpoint Configure for Microsoft Intune") I suspect this is ultimately the direction you will want to go :) See: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/mem/intune/configuration/bios-configuration and https://www.dell.com/support/kbdoc/en-us/000214308/dell-command-endpoint-configure-for-microsoft-intune More on reddit.com
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23
7
April 9, 2024
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Dell
dell.com › dell community › software › endpoint management
Securely Distribute BIOS Password for Dell Command | Update | DELL Technologies
June 16, 2023 - Hi that´s right the BIOS password is not in XML file because of security (cleartext). You can set the Password by command line dcu-cli.exe /configure -BIOSPassword=Password or you can use this approach.
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Mobile Jon
mobile-jon.com › uncategorized › bending dell command update 3.1 to your will
Bending Dell Command Update 3.1 To Your Will
March 11, 2024 - You use a configuration to suspend BitLocker, but it doesn’t stop there. By using the DCU-CLI (its the command line interface for DCU), you set DCU 3.1 to automatically suspend BitLocker when needed and provide the BIOS password so that it can apply the BIOS password.
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GitHub
github.com › fwupd › fwupd › issues › 2370
Support Dell admin password protected bios updates · Issue #2370 · fwupd/fwupd
September 9, 2020 - We would like a way to pass the admin password via fwupd to update the bios. Ideally, not via plaintext on disk or in ps output. As an example, dell's firmware / bios update tool includes this command line executable on windows to do something like: dcu-cli.exe /configure -biosPassword="Test1234" # The password can be passed via an env var ·
Author   fwupd
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PDQ Help Center
help.pdq.com › hc › en-us › community › posts › 4405437680027-Managing-Dell-Command-Update
Managing Dell Command Update – PDQ Deploy & Inventory Help Center
The problem is, it shows the actual password in the Log file and I’d rather not have a file sitting on every computer with the BIOS password in plain text. I thought about creating a FIND command that would search that file for the password, and then if it exists, delete the log file and create a new blank file called DCU_BIOSPW_exists.txt or something.
Find elsewhere
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Reddit
reddit.com › r/sccm › dell command update 4.2 - update bios during ts
r/SCCM on Reddit: Dell Command Update 4.2 - Update BIOS during TS
July 8, 2021 -

Hi,

Currently, I am struggling with BIOS upgrade during Task Sequence using Windows 10 20H2 Enterprise image. I was trying to set it up with help of this threat but with no luck.

According to logs generated by DCU it looks like BIOS have been successfully updated but in fact it is not.

At the moment BIOS + drivers update is placed on the very end of the Task Sequence and I configured it to run in 3 steps:

PC-SCCM-Dell_Command_Start_driverInstall_Bios_Update.ps1
#Install Drivers

$process = Start-Process -FilePath dcu-cli.exe -ArgumentList '/driverInstall -outputLog=C:\Temp\Dell_Command_-_driver_install.log -reboot=disable -silent' -WorkingDirectory "C:\Program Files\Dell\CommandUpdate\" -Passthru

Wait-Process -InputObject $process

Restart Computer using TS

PC-SCCM-Dell_Command_Start_applyUpdates_Bios_Update.ps1
#Apply Updates

$process = Start-Process -FilePath dcu-cli.exe -ArgumentList '/applyUpdates -outputLog=C:\Temp\Dell_Command_-_updates_install.log -reboot=enable' -WorkingDirectory "C:\Program Files\Dell\CommandUpdate\" -Passthru

Wait-Process -InputObject $process

On the second script I also tried to switch "-reboot=enable" to "disable" and perform a reboot using TS but also with no luck.

Any ideas would be much appreciated.

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Reddit
reddit.com › r/intune › automating dell command update - securely storing bios password
r/Intune on Reddit: Automating Dell Command Update - Securely storing bios password
April 9, 2024 -

Hi All,

So I'm automating dell command update via a powershell script that installs it, and then pushes dcu-cli.exe commands to set things up how we want them. I can currently get it to use the bios password, but there doesnt seem to be any way of doing it without providing the bios password in clear text in the script.

DCU has an option to generate an encrypted password via your bios password + an encryption key password that you make up, but in order for it to use the encrypted password on the users end it also needs the encryption key. So my script would have an encrypted bios password. Cool. But it will also have the clear text key to decrypt it making the encryption useless? am i missing something here?

The bios password would be stored in a script, thats in an .intunewin package, on our intune instance, but still.

🌐
Reddit
reddit.com › r/sysadmin › bios update on password protected pc
r/sysadmin on Reddit: Bios update on password protected pc
May 11, 2022 -

For security reasons, i enabled Bios passwords on a few pc in the network, without realising I would need to unlock the pc Bios if a bios update was available using dell command update tool. How do you guys push out Bios update on bios password protected pc's

Top answer
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Dell Command Update ('DCU') has the ability to run updates on a BIOS that has a password, you just either have to store it in the configuration of Dell Command Update on each machine manually (no thanks!) or provide Dell Command Update the (encrypted) password when you perform the update. For the latter I'm talking about using dcu-cli.exe, which is the command line executable for Dell Command Update (note: not available in the Microsoft Store / Universal Windows Platform version). I'll upload my scripts here in a bit, they're for installing DCU, checking for available updates for DCU, and performing the updates with DCU (BIOS password must be provided if the BIOS needs an update and there's a password set). Edit: Here are the PowerShell scripts, I've made some modifications since I've last fully bug tested them so there may be edge cases. Install-DellCommandUpdate.ps1 , Get-DellUpdates.ps1 , Invoke-DellUpdates.ps1
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You can actually pass the bios password to the update installation exe as a parameter to install it silently Read the documentation for the firmware update, all the required info is in there. Or you could use Dell command configure to create an exe to remove bios password, chain the bios update exe in batch file, create another exe in DCC to set bios password again and chain that too. If you manage a bunch of dells go check Dell command configure anyways. You can create an exe with bios settings that can be run from windows to set the bios as you want while imaging or installing the device without the need to get into the bios to do so.
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Reddit
reddit.com › r/dell › how to pass current bios password into dell update command during install
r/Dell on Reddit: How to pass current BIOS Password into Dell Update Command during Install
June 27, 2025 -

Hi all- We’re looking to install the Dell Command Update Classic 5.5.0 across all of our endpoints. We already have a set BIOS password on all of our Dells, but what we’re trying to do is install DCU with our current BIOS password added into its settings (end goal is to stage and push BIOS updates automatically from Intune using DCU)

I can’t find any formal documentation on this or if this is even supported. Does anyone have any idea if this is achievable?

Top answer
1 of 3
3
I've never figured out how/where to save the BIOS password in registry to make DCU more automated, so we pass commands from our RMM to the target workstations. This should still work in 5.5 - I haven't been able to block out time to test it. We use a few steps to get to the point of a command line prompt to pass the BIOS password to the dcu-cli.exe. Navigate to C:\Program Files(x86)\Dell\CommandUpdate. Use the following command: dcu-cli /generateencryptedpassword -encryptionkey=””(key)”” -password=””BIOSPassword”” -outputpath=””c:\temp”” Note: Double-doublequotes are required for some reason that I don't recall This will result in a text file in the "outputpath" with the encrypted password at C:\temp. Then this command is passed from RMM to target device: "C:\Program Files (x86)\Dell\CommandUpdate\dcu-cli.exe" /ApplyUpdates -updateType=bios,firmware -OutputLog="C:\Temp\DellCommandUpdate\Test.log" -reboot=disable -autoSuspendBitLocker=enable -encryptionkey=""encryptionkey"" -encryptedpassword=""encryptedpassword"" This way when we pass the above command from RMM, it triggers the DCU BIOS update (and with other lines in the job, ensures bitlocker is suspended then reboots after several minutes).
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not sure, for an automated rollout. maybe theres a way to encode it into the install script. i would imagine there must be a way. but DCU doesnt seem to be "holding" onto the bios pw, anyway, in v5.4 or 5.5. it errors out "Exit error 7", even with correct bios pw input. i just posted about this today, before reading your OP. https://old.reddit.com/r/Dell/comments/1lm35sp/bios_v137_precision_mobile_workstation/
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Stack Overflow
stackoverflow.com › questions › 60304551 › how-to-manage-dcu-cli-gui-in-powershell-remote-job
driver - How to manage dcu-cli GUI in powershell remote job - Stack Overflow
Invoke-command -computername $Computer -credential $CredObject -Scriptblock { cmd /c start /wait "" "C:\Program Files (x86)\Dell\CommandUpdate\dcu-cli.exe" -argumentlist /configure -biosPassword="$usingBIOSPWD" ; cmd /c start /wait "" "C:\Program Files (x86)\Dell\CommandUpdate\dcu-cli.exe" -argumentlist /ApplyUpdates } Above, script get stuck with no errors...I'd like it to first save the bios-password from my script variables and then run all the updates.
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PDQ Help Center
help.pdq.com › hc › en-us › community › posts › 360071855671-Running-Dell-Command-Update-in-target-computer
Running Dell Command Update in target computer – PDQ Deploy & Inventory Help Center
July 24, 2020 - I'm trying to run Dell Command Update in CLI mode in target computer in order to configure the bios password. ... Checket that dcu-cli.exe exists in the target computer and in the path provided.
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GitHub
github.com › PowershellBacon › Dell-Driver-Updates › blob › master › Update-Dell-Drivers.ps1
Dell-Driver-Updates/Update-Dell-Drivers.ps1 at master · PowershellBacon/Dell-Driver-Updates
Start-process -FilePath ".\dcu-cli.exe" -ArgumentList "/forceupdate $release" -Wait -WindowStyle Hidden · #enable bios password with dell cctk
Author   PowershellBacon
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Dell
dell.com › home › support home › product support › manuals
Dell Command | Update Version 3.1.1 User's Guide | Dell US
After the BIOS and other updates are applied, the system automatically reboots to complete the BIOS update, and BitLocker is re-enabled. When -autoSuspendBitLocker is set to disable, the CLI removes the BIOS updates from the applicable updates and installs the rest of the updates.
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Dell
dell.com › dell community › software › windows general
DCU/CLI how to set bios password for bios updates not in cleartext during scripting. | DELL Technologies
December 24, 2021 - After setting a bios password we got the following problem, Dell command update does not want to update unless it has the bios password.
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PSAppDeployToolkit Community
discourse.psappdeploytoolkit.com › the toolkit › general discussion
Pass exit code from dcu-cli.exe to PSADT v4 - General Discussion - PSAppDeployToolkit Community
April 15, 2025 - Hi, I am running a Dell Command | Update in PSADT in order to update the BIOS using dcu-cli.exe on devices with a BIOS password set. I have the update process working but I am having trouble passing the exit code from d…
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Blogger
mickitblog.blogspot.com › 2016 › 04 › using-powershell-to-control-dell.html
Mick's IT Blogs: Using PowerShell to control Dell Command | Update for drivers and BIOS updates
If option 3 is left blank, it runs the dcu-cli.exe to update all Dell applications, BIOS, and drivers. I know that if you are going to flash the BIOS, the BIOS password is then cleared, but I figured I would add this feature just if you wanted to make sure it was done.