10.5 Firmware and Software Updates
Three ways to update a scanner, how to tell which one you need, and the checks that keep an update from ending a project.
Where to Get Firmware and Software
Everything comes from xgrids.com. From a desktop browser, open Support, then choose Download from the dropdown. Select your scanner from the list on the left. The firmware packages and the processing software for that device are listed together on that page. Your sales manager can also supply any package directly.
Download the package that matches your exact device model. Do not install XGRIDS firmware or software from any other source. A firmware package intended for a different model, or altered in transit, can leave a scanner unresponsive in a way that only XGRIDS can recover.
Which Update Path You Need
There are three. The first two are firmware updates driven from your phone, and the app tells you which of them applies. The third runs entirely from your workstation and is available whenever the scanner and the computer are in the same room.
Path 1: In-App Update
Use it for: minor firmware updates, which XGRIDS also calls incremental package upgrades. The app prompts you when one is available and installs it directly. Nothing to download by hand.
You need: the scanner, your phone, and a battery above 50 percent. Use LixelGO for the L2 Pro, and LCC Scan for the PortalCam.
XGRIDS documents the USB drive route as covering every firmware version on the L2 Pro, and publishes it as the procedure for the K2. If a prompt is ambiguous, or you are updating a K2, Path 2 always works.
Path 2: USB Drive Update
Use it for: major firmware updates, also called full package upgrades. The app tells you when an update is major and cannot be installed in the app. You download the package, copy it onto the scanner, and the device installs it on the next startup. This route works for any firmware version.
You need: the scanner, a computer, the supplied USB cable, and a battery above 50 percent. On the L2 Pro you also need your phone, because USB mode is switched on and off from LixelGO.
Path 3: LixelStudio Update
Use it for: any firmware update, from the workstation instead of the phone. This is the documented route for the full XGRIDS handheld scanner range, and it is the one to reach for when no phone is available or the in-app route will not complete.
You need: the scanner, a computer running LixelStudio, the supplied USB cable, a downloaded firmware package, and a battery above 60 percent.
Major and minor is not a file-size rule. Major packages are usually larger than 1 GB, but size is a symptom, not the definition. Let the app tell you which kind of update you have rather than judging by the size of a download.
Before You Start: Every Path
A firmware update cannot be undone from the device, and interrupting one can render the scanner unresponsive. The LED alternates red and green while an update runs. During that state, do not power off, do not disconnect, do not remove the battery, and do not let the charge run out. Recovery from a failed update requires XGRIDS engineering assistance.
- Transfer every unprocessed project off the device first. After a major firmware upgrade, projects captured on older firmware may stop appearing in the app. Copy the work to your workstation and confirm the copy opens before you begin the update. This is the single most common reason an operator concludes an update destroyed their data.
- Charge the battery above 50 percent. The LixelStudio path requires above 60 percent. When in doubt, start on a fresh battery; there is no cost to being over the floor and a real cost to being under it.
- Confirm the package matches the device model exactly. Download it from the Support page for that specific scanner.
- Do not skip firmware versions. This is a rule, not a preference. A scanner several releases behind must be brought forward one published release at a time, in order. Section 6 carries the published upgrade chain.
- Do not unzip the firmware package. It is copied to the scanner in its compressed state, exactly as downloaded. Extracting it is the most common way a correctly downloaded update fails to install.
- Set the computer not to sleep. On the USB and LixelStudio paths, a workstation that sleeps mid-transfer or mid-install interrupts the update.
- Do not update in the middle of a project. Finish and deliver the current job first. Section 6 explains why.
The Three Update Paths
Path 1: In-App Update
- Power on the scanner and wait for standby. On the L2 Pro and K2 this is a solid green LED.
- Connect the scanner to the app. LixelGO for the L2 Pro and K2, LCC Scan for the PortalCam.
- Accept the update prompt. The app raises it automatically when an update is available. If the prompt says the update is major, stop here and use Path 2 or Path 3 instead.
- Wait without touching the device. The LED alternates red and green throughout. The device may restart on its own. That is expected.
- Confirm the version. When the LED returns to solid green, check the firmware version in the app device settings before you scan anything.
Path 2: USB Drive Update
- Download the firmware package and leave it compressed. Get it from the Support page described in Section 1. Do not unzip or extract it. You copy the compressed package itself onto the scanner, and extracting it first is the most common reason a correct download will not install.
- Power the scanner on and wait for solid green standby.
- Put the scanner into USB mode. This differs by device.
- L2 Pro: connect the scanner to LixelGO, then enable USB Mode in the LixelGO settings. The device then presents itself as a USB drive.
- K2: just connect the USB cable. The K2 switches from regular disk to USB drive by itself and the indicator changes from green to blue. Only if it does not switch do you intervene, either from LixelGO or with the power button: single-press so the LED turns white, then press again.
- PortalCam: connect it to a desktop or laptop from standby and it enters USB mode by itself after about five seconds. Only phones and tablets need a manual switch.
- Confirm the drive appears on your computer. If it does not, unplug the USB-C connector, rotate it 180 degrees, and plug it back in. The port is orientation-sensitive on the L2 Pro and K2, and a connector inserted the wrong way round is by far the most common reason a healthy scanner will not mount.
- Drag the compressed package to the root directory of the device drive. The top level, not inside any folder. A package in a subfolder is ignored and the update simply will not run.
- Exit USB mode before you power anything off. Safely eject the drive and remove the cable from both the computer and the scanner. On the L2 Pro, then disable USB Mode in the LixelGO settings. The K2 exits by itself once the cable is out and the indicator returns to green.
- Power the scanner off, then power it back on. It detects the package and enters firmware upgrade mode by itself. The LED alternates red and green throughout.
- Wait for solid green. Do not power the device off and do not remove the battery while the LED is alternating. Solid green is the signal that the upgrade finished successfully.
- Confirm the new version in the app device settings before you scan anything.
Path 3: LixelStudio Update
This path is documented for the full XGRIDS handheld scanner range and does not involve the phone at all.
- Download the firmware package for your device model and note where you saved it.
- Power on the scanner and connect it directly to the computer with the supplied USB cable. Wait about 30 seconds until the USB button in LixelStudio lights up. Clicking that button also shows you the current firmware version and remaining storage, which is a fast way to confirm what you are starting from.
- Click the Device button at the lower right of the LixelStudio window, then click Update.
- Click the field under Firmware Path and select the package you downloaded.
- Click Start. Installation takes roughly 30 minutes.
- Let it finish. The scanner switches USB mode on and off repeatedly during installation and will appear to disconnect and reconnect. That is normal behavior, not a fault. Do not cancel the update and do not unplug the cable until it reports completion.
After the Update
Three checks, in order, before the scanner goes back on a paid job.
- Confirm the firmware version. Read it in the app device settings, or connect the scanner to LixelStudio and click the USB button to see the version and storage together.
- Check whether your processing software also needs updating. Firmware and processing software move together. Section 6 covers what breaks when they drift apart.
- Run a short test scan and process it end to end. Five minutes of capture through to a finished output confirms the whole chain still works. Finding a version problem on a test scan costs an hour. Finding it on a client site costs the day.
If older projects are missing from the app after the update, that is expected behavior and not a device fault. Data captured under earlier firmware may no longer be listed. This is why Section 3 puts the transfer step first.
Firmware and Software Version Compatibility
Firmware Versions Cannot Be Skipped
A scanner several releases behind is brought forward one published release at a time, in order. You do not install the newest package on top of old firmware and let it catch up. On the L2 Pro the published order is:
Anything below 1.2.4, then 1.2.4, then 2.4.1, then 3.0.2, then 3.1.1, then 3.2.1, and onward through each subsequent release.
Every step in that chain is a separate upgrade run through the full procedure in Section 4. A scanner that has been sitting in a case for a year may need several passes before it is current, so start the process the week before a project rather than the morning of one.
Check the current release list on the Support page before you begin, because the chain extends with each new version. If you are unsure which intermediate releases apply to your scanner, ask us before installing anything.
Keep the Processing Software in Step
The common failure is processing software older than the firmware on the scanner. It does not announce itself as a version problem. It surfaces as import failures, file parse errors, and processing that stops partway, all of which look exactly like corrupt scan data. Operators lose hours rescanning a site that was captured correctly.
On the L2 Pro, LixelStudio project processing requires device firmware version 2.4.1 or above. Data captured on firmware older than that is processed in the matching earlier LixelStudio release, which XGRIDS publishes alongside the firmware on the same Support page. Running the current software against older firmware data does not work, and the error it produces does not name the version as the cause.
Two rules follow from that. When you update device firmware, check for a processing software update in the same sitting rather than leaving it for later. And keep every scanner in a fleet on the same firmware release, so that segments captured on different days by different operators remain compatible with one another and with a single version of the processing software.
Device capability also changes between releases, so confirm the current state rather than relying on what a device could do at purchase. For which reconstruction modes and features each device supports, see 9.1 Pipeline Overview. For export prerequisites and downstream platform support, see 9.7 Export Formats, 10.6 Platform Compatibility, and 10.7 Device Specifications.
Project Rules: Updating Around Live Work
Firmware and software updates occasionally change behavior in ways that affect projects already underway. The rules below exist because a mid-project update can make two halves of the same job incompatible with each other.
- Never update firmware mid-project. Device firmware updates can change how scan data is structured internally. Data collected on one firmware version may process differently than data collected on another, even within the same project. Complete all field collection for a project on a single firmware version. If a firmware update is applied between sessions, test a new scan before combining it with older data.
- Update between projects, not before a multi-segment one. Multi-segment and fusion workflows are the most sensitive to a version mismatch, because every segment should be collected on the same firmware. Bring the device current before the first scan, then leave it alone until the project is delivered.
- Test before committing to a new processing software version. Before updating LixelStudio or LCC Studio mid-project, process a test file in the new version and verify the output is consistent with previously processed scans. If inconsistencies appear, retain the old version for that project and start using the new version on the next one.
- Back up project files before updating software. Project data is version-specific. A project opened and saved in a newer version may not open in an older one. Back up critical projects before updating so you can revert if needed.
For firmware recovery, activation issues after an update, or version compatibility questions not answered here, contact Alpine Reality Capture.
©2026 Alpine Reality Capture LLC • XGRIDS Pro Guide™ • Site Disclaimer