Flashing Bios On Dell Dim 8100

[Sqweky]

I just upgraded my 1.4G, 640M RAM Dell Dimension to XP
Home from WinME. I thought I'd upgrade the BIOS to XP2;
it's running A08 now. I get this msg when I start.
"The boot block code is different in the new flash. The
boot block will be flashed if you choose to continue. A
power loss during this process may cause the boot ROM to
be corrupted. Press 'C' to continue anyway." Is there
anything in this language for me to be concerned about ?
I really don't understand the last sentence with the
word "anyway". Does that mean press 'C' to continue if
you experience a power interruption, or does this mean
there's a problem but I can press 'C' to continue the
attempt to do the BIOS upgrade anyway ? I escaped out
and didn't upgrade for now.

Regards,
RDL

 

[Yves Leclerc]

This message is a warning. By pressing C, you will instruct it to complete
the current "flashing".

 

[Rick \Nutcase\ Rogers]

Hi,

It's telling you that if you lose power during the flash, that the rom will
likely be corrupted. As long as you are sure there will be no power loss
(like you use a UPS unit), then there is nothing to worry about.

--
Best of Luck,

Rick Rogers aka "Nutcase" MS-MVP - Win9x
Windows isn't rocket science! That's my other hobby!

Associate Expert - WinXP - Expert Zone

 

[Steve C. Ray]

First, DO NOT flash your BIOS unless it is necessary. The warning you are
getting is referring to the possibility of a power outage, or "blip" while
you are flashing the BIOS. If it happens, you will end up with a computer
that won't work. "Press 'C' to continue anyway" means you are willing to
take the chance. I would never flash the BIOS without the computer being
connected to a UPS.

 

[Ken Blake, MVP]

In

I just upgraded my 1.4G, 640M RAM Dell Dimension to XP
Home from WinME. I thought I'd upgrade the BIOS to XP2;
it's running A08 now. I get this msg when I start.
"The boot block code is different in the new flash. The
boot block will be flashed if you choose to continue. A
power loss during this process may cause the boot ROM to
be corrupted. Press 'C' to continue anyway." Is there
anything in this language for me to be concerned about ?

Yes. If something goes wrong (a power failure is the most likely
thing) while it's in progress, you can lose your BIOS altogether.

Why do want to do this? In my view you should upgrade the BIOS
only if doing so solves a problem you're having or the new
versionprovides a feature you need. You should not run the risk
of doing it just because a new version is available.

I really don't understand the last sentence with the
word "anyway". Does that mean press 'C' to continue if
you experience a power interruption, or does this mean
there's a problem but I can press 'C' to continue the
attempt to do the BIOS upgrade anyway ? I escaped out
and didn't upgrade for now.

No, it doesn't mean either of those things. It gave you a
warning; pressing "C" means that you understand the warning, are
willing to accept the risk, and it should go ahead and do the
upgrade. My recommendation, once again, is not to do it unless
you need to.

 

[Richard Urban]

It means, if the power fails, you're screwed! Do you really want to take the
chance?

--
Regards:

Richard Urban

aka Crusty (-: Old B@stard

 

[Richard Urban]

Do you build your own computers Ken?

If you do, you realize that when you purchase a new motherboard, the bios is
not usually even completed till the 3rd to 4th revision. But, the boards do
work with the original bios! Many people though, do not realize that they
are not obtaining the full potential from their system.

Hell, my Asus A7N8X Deluxe, rev 2 boards are on bios rev #7 and we are still
waiting for fixes that other manufactures, of like boards, have already
implemented!

But in general, if you don't know what you are doing or what precautions to
take, I would agree with you. If it's working, leave it alone!

--
Regards:

Richard Urban

aka Crusty (-: Old B@stard