BIOS flash, ut oh..... 1

[Visitor]

Always good to flash your BIOS with more current version, right?  I flashed my IWill P55XB2 (old I know) BIOS to a more current version and then had some problems with sound.  No big deal, I had saved the old bios so I figured I'd just flash it back (wasn't having any problems with older ver).  Well in the middle of flashing to the older version, the process stopped and I got half an error message on the DOS screen (couldn't even read it) and the system was locked up.  Now when I restart it, there's a couple of beeps and then nothing.  So, does anyone know of a way to 'erase' or 'reset' a system BIOS?  I'm going to try to contact IWill today to see what they say.  Any ideas or suggestions would be appreciated as I can't really swing that long-awaited mobo/processor upgrade yet...

 

[Visitor]

also forgot to mention - I did try the BIOS reset jumper on the system board and popped the CMOS battery out.....

 

[ATCal]

I think you are SOL. You may need to purchase a replacement chip or motherboard (probably not much more expensive). <p>Al<br><a href=mailto: atc-computing@home.com> atc-computing@home.com</a><br><a href= > </a><br>

 

[Visitor]

Al, thanks for the reply - that's what I was afraid of, just wanted to see if there was any possible way to recover that I hadn't remembered.

 

[Guest_imported]

I have a suggestion that I never try here but I heard somebody (a technical person too) says that it works. <br>Here is the instuction:<br>1. Find a motherboard that same BIOS chips.<br>2. REMOVE your BIOS chips from motherboard carefully.<br>3. Start the computer with the other mainboard and boot in DOS mode.<br>4. After start the computer, REMOVE the BIOS chips also.<br>5. PLUG IN the old BIOS chip to that mainboard(REMEMBER: never switch off computer)<br>6. Use the download flash utility to flash your BIOS.<br>7. MAKE SURE it done properly.<br>After these process, PLUG back the BIOS chip and restart your computer.

 

[aldog]

Yeah! Go ahead if you want to be be prepared to get FRIED!

 

[TigerFlight]

Some boards will allow you to recover from a bad flash. But you usually have to have a PCI VGA card. The MOBO manufacturer or the bios manufacturer will have more specific details. But I think you will have better luck with the MOBO manufacturer. ^Tiger_Flight
Everyone has their two cents worth. Lets all try to donate our two cents and maybe we all can come up with a Dollars worth of advice!!!!!

 

[gargouille]

All may not be lost...If you have access to an old un-accelerated ISA video card, you might be able to recover your BIOS. Remove all cards and drives from your system, except for the ISA video card and the floppy drive. Then try to boot from the disk you used before. If you are able to boot to the floppy, flash your BIOS according to the directions.

 

[TigerFlight]

My mistake gargouille. You are correct! ISA not PCI video card. SORRY! ^Tiger_Flight
Everyone has their two cents worth. Lets all try to donate our two cents and maybe we all can come up with a Dollars worth of advice!!!!!

 

[gargouille]

Note to alvinckm:
You're my kinda' guy!
Can we use your motherboard and BIOS to do this with, tho?!
LOL

 

[paparazi]

It is possible to hot swop a bios chip if you are lucky enough to have the exact same motherboard close to hand.
A friend of mine (who owns a PC shop)had to do this recently to his Abit IT7 Max2 when apparently Abit posted the incorrect updated bois flash on there website (don't know how true that was) anyway he first partially prized out both chips on both the motherboards, got the new motherboard to the point of flashing then HOT SWOPPED the chip from the faulty board into the socket of the good board then flashed!!!!
It did work and he was able to refit one of the chips into the non working moby to bring it back to life.
Of course this all hindges on the chances of you borrowing the same moby from someone.
There is also a company called &quot;badflash&quot; that you can send your chip to to have it reprogramed.
Never used them but understand they are a reputable company.
Martin Please let members know if there advice has helped any.

 

[hotfusion]

And the moral of all this is, (even if it's a little unhelpful...) is never attempt to flash your BIOS unless you absolutely need to. My suggestions are what I would try myself. If incorrect, I welcome corrections to my rather limited knowledge. Andy.

 

[paparazi]

I think it's worth pointing out your first comment quote:
&quot;always good to flash your bios to the current version, YES?&quot;
Well infact the answer is NO! and for the reasons you have discovered, if you get it wrong your motherboard is rendered useless if not scrap.
As most of the websites point out nowadays, ONLY flash your bios if you have a known issue.
Possibly your motherboard won't recognise a newer processor or larger hard drive but most of the &quot;fixes&quot; that a new bios repairs are posted on the motherboards website so you can see if your problem is likely to be fixed by flashing.
In short then, Don't flash if you have no known issues and your system is running fine, simple as that.
Martin Please let members know if there advice has helped any.