Abstract: When electronic mail indicating termination of firmware rewriting has arrived from an image formation apparatus that has received divided firmware, the transmitter side of the firmware determines whether rewriting has ended properly or not from the mail. When rewriting has ended properly, electronic mail with the next divided firmware attached is transmitted based on the division number, divisor value, machine type and module indicated in a Subject field. When rewriting has not ended properly, the same firmware indicated in the Subject field is transmitted again. Accordingly, divided firmware can be transmitted appropriately. Thus, firmware of a large size can be transmitted appropriately even in the case where the size set at the mail server is restricted.

Abstract: New firmware is attached to electronic mail from a computer of the service center to be transmitted towards a monitor device at the user side. The monitor device of the user side reads out the electronic mail from a mail server and downloads the electronic mail into its own apparatus. Then, the firmware is derived from the electronic mail and transmitted to an image formation apparatus that is the subject of transmission. The image formation apparatus receiving the firmware writes the new firmware into the flash ROM that is the subject of rewriting. Accordingly, increase of the communication traffic can be prevented and the load on the mail server can be alleviated in the case where the same firmware for a plurality of devices connected on a network is to be altered using an electronic mail system.