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BIOS Updates?


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Guest Matt320
Posted

Hello, Does anyone know how i update or flash a BIOS? is updating and

flashing the same thing? ive been told to download the update...but if i have

no o/s how can i download? thank you.

Posted

Bios update is nothing to do with MS or win.

Flashing is when you update the Bios

 

Bios updates are obtained from your motherboard manufacturers site.

Incorrectly flashing the Bios or useing the wrong update will result in a

none functioning PC - unless perhaps you have a modern mobo with dual bios /

recovery facility.

Having a pwr failure / hickup whilst updating will likely cause the same

Its not neccessary to update the bios unless to cure a problem or obtain

extra functionality

 

"Matt320" <Matt320@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message

news:F163EAFD-E464-4648-B19C-40AADEAF8D78@microsoft.com...

> Hello, Does anyone know how i update or flash a BIOS? is updating and

> flashing the same thing? ive been told to download the update...but if i

> have

> no o/s how can i download? thank you.

Guest HEMI-Powered
Posted

> Hello, Does anyone know how i update or flash a BIOS? is

> updating and flashing the same thing? ive been told to

> download the update...but if i have no o/s how can i download?

> thank you.

>

Consult your PC manufacturer on this or the manual that came with

it. But first, why do you think you need or want a BIOS update? Is

your PC failing and the manufacturer or your techie says to, or do

you just want the latest of the latest? If you system is running,

don't give Murphy an even break by flashing your BIOS or any of the

other methods of installing new firmware. That is one SURE way to

completely destroy your system if ANYthing at all is amiss and

you're left with an unusuable system and a big problem getting the

original BIOS back.

 

Also, ALL computers have some sort of O/S. What exactly are you

running? In the days of simple DOS, it certainly was possible for

skilled programmers to run simply from the BIOS, but even

rudimentary tasks such as running software compilers, accessing a

HD, or accessing a telcom channel ala the Internet is impossible

without assistance from at least a minimal O/S.

 

Please clarify what you're trying to do and have a great day!

 

--

HP, aka Jerry

Guest HEMI-Powered
Posted

DL added these comments in the current discussion du jour ...

> Bios update is nothing to do with MS or win.

> Flashing is when you update the Bios

>

> Bios updates are obtained from your motherboard manufacturers

> site. Incorrectly flashing the Bios or useing the wrong update

> will result in a none functioning PC - unless perhaps you have

> a modern mobo with dual bios / recovery facility.

> Having a pwr failure / hickup whilst updating will likely

> cause the same Its not neccessary to update the bios unless to

> cure a problem or obtain extra functionality

 

I strongly agree and just said so to the OP! For one thing, if a

flashed update does install but blows down the mobo, there is

probably little chance of getting back to the old one from the

manufacturer because THEY are now sending out revised HW to go with

the updated BIOS. And, I do not understand the OP's statement that

they are running without an O/S at all.

> "Matt320" <Matt320@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message

> news:F163EAFD-E464-4648-B19C-40AADEAF8D78@microsoft.com...

>> Hello, Does anyone know how i update or flash a BIOS? is

>> updating and flashing the same thing? ive been told to

>> download the update...but if i have no o/s how can i

>> download? thank you.

 

--

HP, aka Jerry

Guest Matt320
Posted

hi, thanks to everyone for repling. I do not need to do flash my BIOS but I

have started to study computers in college and am finding it difficult to

understand how exactly you would flash a BIOS? and why you would? thanks

 

"HEMI-Powered" wrote:

> > Hello, Does anyone know how i update or flash a BIOS? is

> > updating and flashing the same thing? ive been told to

> > download the update...but if i have no o/s how can i download?

> > thank you.

> >

> Consult your PC manufacturer on this or the manual that came with

> it. But first, why do you think you need or want a BIOS update? Is

> your PC failing and the manufacturer or your techie says to, or do

> you just want the latest of the latest? If you system is running,

> don't give Murphy an even break by flashing your BIOS or any of the

> other methods of installing new firmware. That is one SURE way to

> completely destroy your system if ANYthing at all is amiss and

> you're left with an unusuable system and a big problem getting the

> original BIOS back.

>

> Also, ALL computers have some sort of O/S. What exactly are you

> running? In the days of simple DOS, it certainly was possible for

> skilled programmers to run simply from the BIOS, but even

> rudimentary tasks such as running software compilers, accessing a

> HD, or accessing a telcom channel ala the Internet is impossible

> without assistance from at least a minimal O/S.

>

> Please clarify what you're trying to do and have a great day!

>

> --

> HP, aka Jerry

>

Guest Shenan Stanley
Posted

Matt320 wrote:

> hi, thanks to everyone for repling. I do not need to do flash my

> BIOS but I have started to study computers in college and am

> finding it difficult to understand how exactly you would flash a

> BIOS? and why you would? thanks

 

Learn to use Google.

It is a student's best friend.

 

http://computer.howstuffworks.com/bios4.htm

 

--

Shenan Stanley

MS-MVP

--

How To Ask Questions The Smart Way

http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html

Guest LadyDungeness@Fish.Net
Posted

So now you have several good answers that can help with your homework.

:-)

 

 

Lady Dungeness

Crabby, but Great Legs!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

 

 

On Tue, 14 Aug 2007 05:06:05 -0700, Matt320

<Matt320@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote:

 

|Hello, Does anyone know how i update or flash a BIOS? is updating and

|flashing the same thing? ive been told to download the update...but if i have

|no o/s how can i download? thank you.

Guest HEMI-Powered
Posted

=?Utf-8?B?TWF0dDMyMA==?= added these comments in the current

discussion du jour ...

> hi, thanks to everyone for repling. I do not need to do flash

> my BIOS but I have started to study computers in college and

> am finding it difficult to understand how exactly you would

> flash a BIOS? and why you would? thanks

 

Are you kidding, you trolled all of us with a student's question?

I don't know how to break this to you, friend, but that is NOT

the way you learn things in a college class. The profs have the

romantic notion that you know how to research broadly in the

literature on your own, and not go crying for help to a tech

support NG, then blather on about not even having an O/S. If

you're on a computer science major towards a B.A. or B.S. degree,

or any variant of a technical degree in computers, IT,

networking, and the like, you can depend on successive classes

getting a LOT more difficult. Best find Google and start there,

then look into your colleges printed or digital library.

 

BTW, I am a bit dated on this, but the orginal way a chip in

anything that comes under the heading of "firmware" was

reprogrammed was using EPROM technology, meaning Electrically

Programmable Read-Only Memory. That kind of tech, greatly

updated, is still used in some applications, AFAIK, but several

other common techniques, software-based primarily, are used to

"flash" or re-program firmware by overwriting the old machine

language code with new code. As I say, this is true of ALL

thingies that have a computer in them from your cell phone all

the way to a modern car, as well as major appliances. They can

all be updated to correct defects under warrenty, but should

NEVER be blindly updated unless you actually have a problem. As I

advised you in my first reply, do not try to fix things that

aren't broken.

 

Good luck in your studies, I think you're going to need it.

 

P.S. I am sure by now that you've found college somewhat more

challenging than H.S. I remember graduating from H.S. in 1965 (is

anybody that old?) 10th in my class of 255 sailing through with a

3.55 GPA, so I thought that engineering school would be equally a

piece of cake. I was just a little wrong. Nay, a whole bunch

wrong! Within 2-3 weeks I realized that EVERYBODY was at least as

good in H.S. with both the liberal arts and hard science and math

as I was, and most were better. So, I found myself going from top

5% to bottom 5%. It was, to say the least, a big awakening. So,

roll up your sleeves and have at it!

> "HEMI-Powered" wrote:

>

>> > Hello, Does anyone know how i update or flash a BIOS? is

>> > updating and flashing the same thing? ive been told to

>> > download the update...but if i have no o/s how can i

>> > download? thank you.

>> >

>> Consult your PC manufacturer on this or the manual that came

>> with it. But first, why do you think you need or want a BIOS

>> update? Is your PC failing and the manufacturer or your

>> techie says to, or do you just want the latest of the latest?

>> If you system is running, don't give Murphy an even break by

>> flashing your BIOS or any of the other methods of installing

>> new firmware. That is one SURE way to completely destroy your

>> system if ANYthing at all is amiss and you're left with an

>> unusuable system and a big problem getting the original BIOS

>> back.

>>

>> Also, ALL computers have some sort of O/S. What exactly are

>> you running? In the days of simple DOS, it certainly was

>> possible for skilled programmers to run simply from the BIOS,

>> but even rudimentary tasks such as running software

>> compilers, accessing a HD, or accessing a telcom channel ala

>> the Internet is impossible without assistance from at least a

>> minimal O/S.

>>

>> Please clarify what you're trying to do and have a great day!

>>

>> --

>> HP, aka Jerry

>>

 

 

 

--

HP, aka Jerry

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