diff --git a/.includes/eeprom.sh b/.includes/eeprom.sh
index 3c1db38..59ea3f4 100644
--- a/.includes/eeprom.sh
+++ b/.includes/eeprom.sh
@@ -5,11 +5,76 @@
 # sudoFlags is defined in the main configure-stormux.sh script
 # shellcheck disable=SC2154
 
-updateEeprom() {
-    # Detect Pi version from device tree
-    local piModel
-    piModel=$(LC_ALL=C tr -d '\000' < /sys/firmware/devicetree/base/model 2>/dev/null)
+getRaspberryPiModel() {
+    LC_ALL=C tr -d '\000' < /sys/firmware/devicetree/base/model 2>/dev/null
+}
 
+getEepromPackage() {
+    local piModel="$1"
+
+    if [[ "$piModel" == *"Raspberry Pi 5"* ]] || [[ "$piModel" == *"Raspberry Pi 500"* ]]; then
+        echo "rpi5-eeprom"
+    elif [[ "$piModel" == *"Raspberry Pi 4"* ]] || [[ "$piModel" == *"Raspberry Pi 400"* ]]; then
+        echo "rpi4-eeprom"
+    else
+        echo "rpi4-eeprom"
+    fi
+}
+
+ensureEepromPackage() {
+    local eepromPackage="$1"
+
+    if pacman -Q "$eepromPackage" &> /dev/null; then
+        return 0
+    fi
+
+    infobox "Installing ${eepromPackage}..."
+    if ! install_package "$eepromPackage"; then
+        msgbox "Failed to install ${eepromPackage}. Please check your internet connection and try again."
+        return 1
+    fi
+}
+
+requireCurrentEepromForPi5Kernel() {
+    local checkOutput
+    local checkResult
+
+    if ! command -v rpi-eeprom-update &> /dev/null; then
+        if ! ensureEepromPackage "rpi5-eeprom"; then
+            return 1
+        fi
+    fi
+
+    infobox "Checking EEPROM status before switching kernels..."
+    checkOutput=$(sudo "${sudoFlags[@]}" rpi-eeprom-update 2>&1)
+    checkResult=$?
+
+    case $checkResult in
+        0)
+            return 0
+            ;;
+        1)
+            msgbox "The Raspberry Pi 5 kernel switch is blocked because an EEPROM update is available.\n\n${checkOutput}\n\nRun Update EEPROM, reboot if an update is applied, then try the kernel switch again."
+            ;;
+        2)
+            msgbox "The Raspberry Pi 5 kernel switch is blocked because the EEPROM status check failed.\n\n${checkOutput}"
+            ;;
+        3)
+            msgbox "The Raspberry Pi 5 kernel switch is blocked because the EEPROM is currently frozen and cannot be verified as up to date.\n\n${checkOutput}\n\nThis may require a reboot to resolve."
+            ;;
+        *)
+            msgbox "The Raspberry Pi 5 kernel switch is blocked because EEPROM status could not be verified (exit code: ${checkResult}).\n\n${checkOutput}"
+            ;;
+    esac
+
+    return 1
+}
+
+updateEeprom() {
+    local piModel
+    local eepromPackage
+
+    piModel=$(getRaspberryPiModel)
 
     # Guard against non-Pi hardware
     if [[ -z "$piModel" ]] || [[ "$piModel" != *"Raspberry Pi"* ]]; then
@@ -20,24 +85,11 @@ Detected model: ${piModel:-unknown}
 If you are not running on a Raspberry Pi, this option will not work correctly."
         return 1
     fi
-    # Determine which EEPROM package is needed
-    local eepromPackage=""
-    if [[ "$piModel" == *"Raspberry Pi 5"* ]] || [[ "$piModel" == *"Raspberry Pi 500"* ]]; then
-        eepromPackage="rpi5-eeprom"
-    elif [[ "$piModel" == *"Raspberry Pi 4"* ]] || [[ "$piModel" == *"Raspberry Pi 400"* ]]; then
-        eepromPackage="rpi4-eeprom"
-    else
-        # Default to rpi4-eeprom for unknown models
-        eepromPackage="rpi4-eeprom"
-    fi
+    eepromPackage=$(getEepromPackage "$piModel")
 
     # Install EEPROM package if not present
-    if ! pacman -Q "$eepromPackage" &> /dev/null; then
-        infobox "Installing ${eepromPackage}..."
-        if ! install_package "$eepromPackage"; then
-            msgbox "Failed to install ${eepromPackage}. Please check your internet connection and try again."
-            return 1
-        fi
+    if ! ensureEepromPackage "$eepromPackage"; then
+        return 1
     fi
 
     # Check for EEPROM updates
@@ -84,4 +136,6 @@ If you are not running on a Raspberry Pi, this option will not work correctly."
 }
 
 # Execute the update function when sourced
-updateEeprom
+if [[ "${eepromUpdateAutoRun:-true}" == "true" ]]; then
+    updateEeprom
+fi
diff --git a/configure-stormux.sh b/configure-stormux.sh
index e030863..dc0897e 100755
--- a/configure-stormux.sh
+++ b/configure-stormux.sh
@@ -90,6 +90,12 @@ while [[ "$choice" != "Exit" ]]; do
             sudo "${sudoFlags[@]}" systemctl enable bluetooth --now
         ;;
         "Install Raspberry Pi 5 kernel")
+            eepromUpdateAutoRun=false
+            source .includes/eeprom.sh
+            unset eepromUpdateAutoRun
+            if ! requireCurrentEepromForPi5Kernel; then
+                continue
+            fi
             yay -R --noconfirm linux-rpi
             install_package linux-rpi-16k
         ;;