A
Adam Albright
Everytime Microsoft releases a new flavor of Windows these support
groups come alive with a raft of complaints, some due to bugs in the
released version, others due to hardware, typically driver conflicts.
Often there is another villan that doesn't get much attention. Your
BIOS. This does not have to be a 'geeks only' fix. Anybody can do if
you observe some patience and common sense.
BIOS is a acronym for Basic Input Output System. Once you turn your
computer on the first thing you see is a BIOS copyright, and a version
number. Often with today's fast computers it flys by faster then you
can read it. Your BIOS is a special kind of software instructions
contained in a special kind of chip on your mother board called a
EPROM or ROM, which stands for erasable programmable read-only memory
or sometimes just read only memory. Unlike other chips on your MB, it
can be written to directly and thus "store" critical information your
computer needs to first wake up and then boot the operating system.
You can "flash" your BIOS which simply means you replace the current
version with a newer one and you can do it over and over as new
improved versions of your BIOS are released. The more current your
BIOS, generally the better your computer will run. Flashing your BIOS
also often fixes things that seem "broken" that were simply not
capable of functioning as they were designed to.
Why would you want to update your BIOS? To resolve issues you can't
any other way. If you've tried the usual vanilla suggestions often
posted here like, go back to XP, get Linux or a Mac, download a
driver, update your software and none of that appeals to you or you've
tried and it didn't help, next thing to try is to update your BIOS.
First click on Start/Help then enter 'BIOS version' as your search
term. Then pick FAQ, then what kind of BIOS does my system have and
finally click to open System Information. This is the easy way to see
what version you currently have installed. You should see the name of
the BIOS, the version and the date it was released.
Example: Award Software Intl F7 11/08/2006 Just for sake of
illustration, I build this computer in late October. It came with BIOS
version F2 so in less than six months 5 new BIOS versions have been
released that address a whole laundry lists of minor issues for my
motherboard.
Write the version number and date down for future reference. Now visit
your motherboard's web site or go to your vendor's site like Dell or
Gateway. Usually under support you'll find drivers and BIOS updates.
See if there is one with a later date and higher version number then
you currently have installed. Probably is.
Download the file and any help sheet if you haven't done this before.
Be absolutely certain you download the RIGHT file. There will liikely
be dozens to pick from. While most should detect the MB on their own,
you never know. The last thing you want to do is install the wrong
BIOS.
Some further cautions before proceeding. If you think messing with
Windows' Registry is scary, flashing your BIOS can make you break out
in a cold sweat f your a newbie. Things have changed a lot over the
years and it isn't as risky or as cumbersome as it once was. Also many
companies now allow you to automate the process and "flash" your BIOS
just like downloading and installing any other application. Some still
require having a floppy drive and using some cryptic commands. Consult
your vendor for specifics.
What are the risks of flashing your BIOS? Trashing your computer or
making problems worse. Your computer can't start up with a damaged
BIOS. If something should go wrong during the process, like your power
goes out or your computer hangs, you MAY be in deep trouble. The way
to fix it would be to replace the EPROM chip. This is rare, but needed
to be mentioned.
If I haven't chased you away the next thing to do before proceeding is
disable ALL your running software. ALL of it. That means your
anti-virus, anything and everything running in the background too. You
may or may not have to also change setting is your CURRENT BIOS before
proceeding like turn off hyper threading. Read and follow the
instructions carefully. You aren't installing software just on your
hard drive, you're actually about to reprogram a computer chip
(Intergrated Circuit) on your motherboard. No, you don't have to open
the computer case.
Still not scared? Ok, good. Next backup your current BIOS. This should
be offered as a option of the BIOS update package you just downloaded
if it is automated, if not it is assumed you read the instructions and
may need to do it manually from the command prompt window, don't skip
backing up your current BIOS. Should only take seconds, minute tops.
Now you finally go ahead and get to update the BIOS. The process from
here on is simple. You just wait for it to finish. Typical time is
anywhere from 30 seconds or so to several minutes. You will see the
typical progress bar as the process begins and notice once it has
finished.
Absolutely critical... do NOT touch your keyboard, mouse, nothing,
just wait no matter what or you risk having a half installed BIOS or a
mixture and thus corrupted BIOS or none at all. Once finished, reboot.
If the BIOS flash was successful you'll probably see a new BIOS page
or some change at least from the old one you were previously seening
every time you fired up your computer. Mine when from a drab white on
black to full color with graphics. For sure if you can catch it before
it flys by you should see the new BIOS copyright version on the
screen. Now some more patience is called for.
Some "wonderful" things may, probably will happen. In effect the BIOS
upgrade will often give Windows a kick in the ass, and it in turn will
bring up the "found new hardware" and start installing new drivers you
never knew you had like crazy. There were already on your hard drive
and Windows put them there when you installed Windows, but if they
weren't supported by your old BIOS version, Windows just ignored them.
I just counted 6 new drivers when I just "flashed" by BIOS. New
controllers for my IDE drives, for SATA too, my DVD burner got a
upgrade and tweaks for my hard drives and ethernet controller too.
This shouldn't be looked on as a cure all. In fact there is a lot of
people that will tell you do NOT upgrade your BIOS unless you have a
specific problem that a new version addressed. That makes good sense.
Don't flash your BIOS just because there is a new version. The only
time you should is if you are trying to resolve a problem and have
tried the less critical things first.
groups come alive with a raft of complaints, some due to bugs in the
released version, others due to hardware, typically driver conflicts.
Often there is another villan that doesn't get much attention. Your
BIOS. This does not have to be a 'geeks only' fix. Anybody can do if
you observe some patience and common sense.
BIOS is a acronym for Basic Input Output System. Once you turn your
computer on the first thing you see is a BIOS copyright, and a version
number. Often with today's fast computers it flys by faster then you
can read it. Your BIOS is a special kind of software instructions
contained in a special kind of chip on your mother board called a
EPROM or ROM, which stands for erasable programmable read-only memory
or sometimes just read only memory. Unlike other chips on your MB, it
can be written to directly and thus "store" critical information your
computer needs to first wake up and then boot the operating system.
You can "flash" your BIOS which simply means you replace the current
version with a newer one and you can do it over and over as new
improved versions of your BIOS are released. The more current your
BIOS, generally the better your computer will run. Flashing your BIOS
also often fixes things that seem "broken" that were simply not
capable of functioning as they were designed to.
Why would you want to update your BIOS? To resolve issues you can't
any other way. If you've tried the usual vanilla suggestions often
posted here like, go back to XP, get Linux or a Mac, download a
driver, update your software and none of that appeals to you or you've
tried and it didn't help, next thing to try is to update your BIOS.
First click on Start/Help then enter 'BIOS version' as your search
term. Then pick FAQ, then what kind of BIOS does my system have and
finally click to open System Information. This is the easy way to see
what version you currently have installed. You should see the name of
the BIOS, the version and the date it was released.
Example: Award Software Intl F7 11/08/2006 Just for sake of
illustration, I build this computer in late October. It came with BIOS
version F2 so in less than six months 5 new BIOS versions have been
released that address a whole laundry lists of minor issues for my
motherboard.
Write the version number and date down for future reference. Now visit
your motherboard's web site or go to your vendor's site like Dell or
Gateway. Usually under support you'll find drivers and BIOS updates.
See if there is one with a later date and higher version number then
you currently have installed. Probably is.
Download the file and any help sheet if you haven't done this before.
Be absolutely certain you download the RIGHT file. There will liikely
be dozens to pick from. While most should detect the MB on their own,
you never know. The last thing you want to do is install the wrong
BIOS.
Some further cautions before proceeding. If you think messing with
Windows' Registry is scary, flashing your BIOS can make you break out
in a cold sweat f your a newbie. Things have changed a lot over the
years and it isn't as risky or as cumbersome as it once was. Also many
companies now allow you to automate the process and "flash" your BIOS
just like downloading and installing any other application. Some still
require having a floppy drive and using some cryptic commands. Consult
your vendor for specifics.
What are the risks of flashing your BIOS? Trashing your computer or
making problems worse. Your computer can't start up with a damaged
BIOS. If something should go wrong during the process, like your power
goes out or your computer hangs, you MAY be in deep trouble. The way
to fix it would be to replace the EPROM chip. This is rare, but needed
to be mentioned.
If I haven't chased you away the next thing to do before proceeding is
disable ALL your running software. ALL of it. That means your
anti-virus, anything and everything running in the background too. You
may or may not have to also change setting is your CURRENT BIOS before
proceeding like turn off hyper threading. Read and follow the
instructions carefully. You aren't installing software just on your
hard drive, you're actually about to reprogram a computer chip
(Intergrated Circuit) on your motherboard. No, you don't have to open
the computer case.
Still not scared? Ok, good. Next backup your current BIOS. This should
be offered as a option of the BIOS update package you just downloaded
if it is automated, if not it is assumed you read the instructions and
may need to do it manually from the command prompt window, don't skip
backing up your current BIOS. Should only take seconds, minute tops.
Now you finally go ahead and get to update the BIOS. The process from
here on is simple. You just wait for it to finish. Typical time is
anywhere from 30 seconds or so to several minutes. You will see the
typical progress bar as the process begins and notice once it has
finished.
Absolutely critical... do NOT touch your keyboard, mouse, nothing,
just wait no matter what or you risk having a half installed BIOS or a
mixture and thus corrupted BIOS or none at all. Once finished, reboot.
If the BIOS flash was successful you'll probably see a new BIOS page
or some change at least from the old one you were previously seening
every time you fired up your computer. Mine when from a drab white on
black to full color with graphics. For sure if you can catch it before
it flys by you should see the new BIOS copyright version on the
screen. Now some more patience is called for.
Some "wonderful" things may, probably will happen. In effect the BIOS
upgrade will often give Windows a kick in the ass, and it in turn will
bring up the "found new hardware" and start installing new drivers you
never knew you had like crazy. There were already on your hard drive
and Windows put them there when you installed Windows, but if they
weren't supported by your old BIOS version, Windows just ignored them.
I just counted 6 new drivers when I just "flashed" by BIOS. New
controllers for my IDE drives, for SATA too, my DVD burner got a
upgrade and tweaks for my hard drives and ethernet controller too.
This shouldn't be looked on as a cure all. In fact there is a lot of
people that will tell you do NOT upgrade your BIOS unless you have a
specific problem that a new version addressed. That makes good sense.
Don't flash your BIOS just because there is a new version. The only
time you should is if you are trying to resolve a problem and have
tried the less critical things first.