Most PC users hardly need to know how to update the BIOS of a motherboard, since this process is quite risky and does not provide any special advantages.
However, in some cases, an update is still required:
- If there is an incomplete microcode on the board (as a result of the manufacturer's attempt to bypass competitors by releasing the product early);
- If necessary, eliminate some problems with integrated devices (for example, refusal to work with a theoretically supported type of memory or processor).
Checking the upgradeability
When deciding to reinstall the BIOS on the motherboard of your PC, first of all, you should make sure whether you need to update this collection of firmware and whether there is such an option.
You can find out on the manufacturer's website in the CPU Support List.
As a rule, it also contains information about the compatibility of processors and BIOS versions.
True, before that, you should definitely find out the revision of your motherboard and the parameters of the BIOS already installed on the PC.
Revision and BIOS check
There are several ways to define a revision:
- look at the inscription on the motherboard;
- familiarize yourself with the labeling on its own packaging.
The last option is easier - but only if the box from the board is preserved. In addition, sometimes a computer is purchased as an assembly, and the box goes immediately to the entire system unit.
Therefore, most often you have to remove the side cover (after disconnecting the PC from the network) and look for inscriptions like REV 1.0 or REV 2.0 on the board. This is a revision.
Determining the version of the BIOS installed on the board takes less time.
Usually, you just need to display the system information window by typing "msinfo32" in the command execution window (Windows key + R).
Among the information provided, you can find the manufacturer of the motherboard, and its model, and the BIOS version.
When all the required information about the board has been received, you should visit the official page of its manufacturer and check for BIOS updates.
Sometimes the data is presented in English, however, most manufacturers have official resources and technical support in Russian.
Finding information about the BIOS for your board is usually quite simple.
Advice: If the computer was purchased already assembled and has a certain model, you can try to find the appropriate BIOS versions on the manufacturer's website system unit... As a last resort, at least the parameters of the board will be indicated here, knowing which, you can continue searching on the resources of the company that released it.
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Update Methods
Depending on the specific model of the board installed on your PC and its manufacturer, the BIOS can be updated in one of three main ways:
- from DOS mode, which is present on all, even modern computers designed to work with Windows;
- from Windows;
- using special programs (utilities) produced by manufacturers and allowing you to flash not from Windows or DOS, but directly from the BIOS itself.
Updating in DOS
The first option was used 20 years ago, although at that time a boot floppy was required for flashing.
Now you will need a special disk or flash drive where the Autoexec.bat (or Update.bat) file is located, which is required to start the installation.
Additional utilities and BIOS elements should also be written here.
Having prepared a bootable USB flash drive (for this you can use the help of special programs), you should install in the same BIOS the ability to boot from the media and start updating.
It will take a little time for it, but it is very important that the computer is not turned off or restarted at this time.
Updating a firmware package through Windows is much easier, although not much faster. To do this, you must first download a new version of BIOS on the manufacturer's website, which will be installed on the board.
In addition, all manufacturers have their own installers.
For example, Asus has this ASUSUpdate application.
Before starting the flashing, install the utility, as well as regular program and then open.
When a prompt appears on the screen, they select the update "from file" and indicate the path to the BIOS package already located on the hard disk of the computer.
Sometimes the utility can find, download and install its latest suitable version for the board by itself
Update utilities
In order to be able to update the BIOS using proprietary programs from the manufacturer, you should find them on the official pages of the manufacturers.
There are such utilities, for example, on the pages of manufacturers Asus, Gigabyte, MSI and Intel.
This option is most suitable for general users, as it requires the least amount of action and, moreover, allows you to avoid the error of using the wrong BIOS.
Advice: while the utility is running, close all other programs. In addition, it is not recommended to perform any actions on the PC. Moreover, it takes a little time - up to a minute on new computers, 2-3 minutes on old devices.
ASRock
ASRock, which manufactures motherboards for powerful processors and the most advanced memory modules, has its own flashing utility.
You can usually access it by pressing F6 while testing or booting the system.
The utility itself finds the necessary storage media with BIOS and displays only suitable firmware. After choosing the desired version, with just one click, you can update in a couple of minutes.
ASUS
Most of the latest models of Asus motherboards are successfully updated using the USB BIOS Flashback utility, which is downloaded from the website of the manufacturer's Russian branch.
For older versions, the Asus Update Utility is used, which runs in Windows.
MSI
You can reflash MSI motherboards using the proprietary MSI Live Update program, which automatically detects suitable versions and downloads them from the network.
You can find the utility and instructions for it on the official website of Micro-Star International.
Gigabyte
It is best to download utilities for updating BIOS of Gigabyte boards on the manufacturer's official website. It automatically detects the correct version and downloads it from the network.
The PC must be constantly updated. And this applies not only to hardware, operating system and applications. But it is advisable to do this only when a serious need arises.
If the machine works in normal mode without glitches and errors, then there is simply no need to update to the latest BIOS version. Since this procedure is extremely unsafe.
Why update
The new firmware for the device in question requires:
- new installed device is not supported;
- when there is a conflict with any application that needs to be installed on a personal computer;
- when it is necessary to increase the performance of the PC;
- if the outdated firmware is damaged.
Most often, an update is required due to the installation of new hardware - a processor, hard disk... Much less often - video cards, random access memory... This need arises from a conflict between hardware and firmware. Very often old BIOSes simply do not see large hard drives. This situation is corrected in most cases by updating.
Some applications do not support working with certain BIOSes and their programs. In most cases, this situation can be resolved by updating the version. Sometimes it is required to run some professional applications.
Often, old firmwares simply do not allow you to overclock the processor in various ways. If it is necessary to change the frequency of the CPU upward or apply a higher voltage to it, it is necessary to update the BIOS. This usually provides ample opportunities for manipulating various kinds of parameters of the central processor and other devices.
Sometimes the PC starts giving errors just like that, for no apparent reason. Bios is often the culprit. It is the installation of a new program in BIOS that allows solving problems of this kind in many cases.
Video: reflash BIOS
Current version
There are several ways to determine the BIOS version:
- before starting the OS boot;
- by means of the operating system;
- using third-party software.
In order not to waste time performing any unnecessary actions, the owner of the PC can simply look at the labeling of the software of the device in question even before starting Windows.
To do this, you need to perform in a strict order of actions:
- turn on the PC;
- wait for the corresponding icon to appear ("American Megatrends", "Energy" and others);
- click on the button called "Pause Break".
This key allows you to stop the download personal computer at any stage. Wait until a table or a list of characteristics appears on the monitor. The user needs to find the inscription "Bios Revision" or "Bios Version". There must be a combination of numbers next to one of these phrases. It is these numbers that indicate the version of the Bios used.
You can also find out the labeling of the software of the PC component in question by simply going into its settings.
To do this, you need to do the following:
- turn on the computer;
- until the image appears, press the "Delete" key several times;
- in the section called "Main" find item "Information" -> "Version".
The easiest and safest way to find out the version is to use the item in the Start button called Run.
The following actions must be taken:
- open "Run";
- in the field that appears, enter "msinfo32";
- click on "Enter" or just click on "Ok".
This will open a standard Windows operating system component. It contains all the information about the system, including the Bios firmware information.
How to update Bios on a computer
Refresh software for the device in question, there are three ways:
- in MS-DOS mode;
- in Microsoft Windows directly;
- without logging into Windows and MS-DOS.
Each method has both advantages and disadvantages.
Where to get the update
To update Bios, you must first find desired application for this PC component. It is best to download it from the official website of the motherboard or Bios manufacturer. The surest way to find out the model and name of the manufacturer of computer components is to visually inspect the motherboard itself, the chip of the updated device located on it.
You can also use any specialized program in order to find out the marking of the firmware and the manufacturer's name. Everest is best suited for this. The most important advantage of this application over its counterparts is that it offers the user links to the official websites of the manufacturer, where you can find everything you need.
Another source of new firmware versions can be various unofficial sites on the Internet. But the likelihood of downloading counterfeit software with a virus or simply not working, which can damage your PC, is very high. Therefore, it is highly discouraged to use applications from unreliable sources.
Making a backup
Before performing any actions that make changes to the firmware, you must make a backup copy of it. This will avoid all sorts of problems in the event of any error that makes the hardware inoperable. A backup copy must be saved to an external medium (USB-disk, flash drive, floppy disk) in order to avoid the need to extract it from the hard disk.
The easiest way to make a copy of the software to be updated is with an application called EZ Flash (used by ASUS).
The copying process consists of the following main steps:
- making a bootable USB flash drive with the MS-DOS operating system;
- by inserting the USB flash drive into the port, you need to restart the PC;
- after pressing the "Delete" key during loading, you should find the "Tool" tab;
- choose Asus EZ 2 Utility;
- press the "F2" key and enter the name backup.
After completing all the above operations, all data necessary for recovery will be saved on the selected media. If necessary, they can be easily used.
Installation
Most in a simple way is the installation of new software on the considered component of a personal computer directly in the Windows operating system.
To do this, follow these steps:
- download a special update program for a specific motherboard model;
- run the executable file.
Most manufacturers have their own update application. That is why it is necessary to use only files downloaded from official resources. For example, ASUS has an application called ASUSUpdate for performing this action. It is installed as the most common application, the menu is intuitive, even if it is in English.
Some manufacturers provide for updating their products without logging into the OS. In the ROM of the equipment, special tools are already embedded in the update. For example, the ASRock Instant Flash utility can independently perform all the necessary actions in a matter of minutes. You just need to press "F6" - it will scan all available sources of information.
Reset system settings
There are two ways to reset the system settings:
- software;
- hardware.
To use the first method, you must:
To perform a hardware reset, you must use a special jumper or remove the battery from a special connector for at least 30 minutes. After performing the necessary actions, a reboot is performed.
Possible problems
When installing new firmware versions, various kinds of errors may occur:
- version mismatch;
- data writing error.
The most common problem is using inappropriate files to implement the update. If this type of problem occurs, you must use a backup to restore the system to its original state. If an error occurs in writing data, then you should do the same - reset the settings to standard.
Video: update the BIOS
When carrying out an operation of this type, it is necessary to make sure that the applied voltage is stable. If the electrical current is cut off suddenly, there is a high probability of severe damage to the updated component. Which is unacceptable.
It is important to only use firmware from trusted sources. Since there is always a possibility of the presence of bookmarks or viruses in the extraneous data. All of these can damage your computer. It is also worth checking the health of the button cell battery inside the system unit.
Many users do not understand why they need to update Bios. It is necessary to perform this operation only in extreme cases, when it is simply impossible to resolve any conflict in an alternative way. The procedure should be carried out as carefully as possible in order to avoid damage.
At the end of 2016, Intel announced the release of the processor Kaby lake... New chip like its predecessor Skylake, uses the same 14-nanometer process technology, but it was not without optimization. The innovations have added performance to the chip, which surpasses the power of the 6th generation processor in Intel's "family". This naturally explains the consumer hype around Intel 7th generation processors. But what about the bios who wants to upgrade? Let's talk about this.
And the difference is what: a comparison of Skylake and Kaby Lake
If you work with 4K content a lot, then buying a Kaby Lake processor is a smart investment... The new generation chips support HEVC. They charge the video card with the encoding / decoding of UHD video format, and do not use their own kernels. Result - noticeable improvement in video quality and reduced battery consumption. Moreover, among the possibilities of processors is to direct their power to solving problems that await, while the tendency remains less energy consumption... 3D is getting better too. The picture quality is superior to that previously provided by 6th generation processors. The gameplay promises to be bright and detailed.
In addition, pleasant updates should be noted - increase clock frequency, improvement turbo mode, support new formats (2nd generation USB 3.1, HDCP 2.2).
BIOS firmware update to support Kaby Lake
Are you planning or have already bought a Cabi Lake processor, but it does not work on your machine? The situation will be saved by the BIOS firmware, of course, provided that latest version Bios is designed to solve this problem. Intel insists to update the BIOS for PCs that do not need it, not desirable.
To ensure work Intel processor 7th generation owners of motherboards with Z170, H170, B150, H110 chipsets can update BIOS... Firmware update is in progress extremely simple but safer contact the service. The fact is that in the process difficulties often arise, with which it is unrealistic for an amateur to cope.
The transition from the 6th generation is carried out in several ways, and it all depends on will the payment work without updating. If not, then for firmware need Skylake... If the motherboard supports the technology Q-Flash Plus then it will be possible to update from a USB flash drive and without a processor. In other cases - need a programmer, and in addition, the desoldering of the BIOS memory chip. Agree complicated and resource-intensive.
BIOS updates - required condition even for those motherboards that have received support for 7th generation chips (for example, Intel H110 / B150). Although there have been platforms on the market for some time that allow the use of upgraded CPUs, nobody guarantees that when you buy, you will not get a device whose BIOS version does not support Kaby Lake. In such a situation, you will also have to to apply for help from Skylake or go in service center.
What does the ComPom service center offer?
The ComPom service updates the BIOS firmware to support the 7th generation of Intel processors without loss of guarantee... At our disposal modern equipment which allows fast and qualitatively make the transition from the 6th generation to Kaby Lake.
Motherboard models with which we work:
- Afox H110
- ASRock H110
- Asus H110
- Biostar H110
- EliteGroup (ECS) H110
- Gigabyte GA-H110
- MSI H110
- ASRock H170
- Asus H170
- Gigabyte GA-H170
- MSI H170
- ASRock B150
- Gigabyte GA-B150
- MSI B150
- Asus B150
- ASRock Z170
- Asus Z170
- EVGA Z170
- Gigabyte GA-Z170
- MSI Z170
- Asus Q170 etc ..
The most common reason customers ask for an upgrade is because of the Intel Pentium G4560 processor in 100th motherboards. And we are happy to solve the problem of compatibility of 100-series chipsets with 7th generation processors.
The master performs the firmware not through the operating system, where there is a risk of failure of the BIOS chip. Our way - updating the BIOS firmware of the motherboard using the programmer... The firmware process takes on average 60 minutes!
We do not solder the BIOS chip!
Pleasant bonus for our clients - providing a guarantee for all types of services.
Any computer hardware and software, as you know, becomes obsolete over time and ceases to meet current requirements. This applies equally to primary BIOS / UEFI systems, the software of which is integrated into a special chip on the motherboard. When installing new hardware ("hardware"), BIOS flashing may sometimes be required. On a laptop, on a stationary computer terminal, such a procedure will be performed, it does not matter. The technology is almost always the same. Some users unfamiliar with the basics of such techniques believe (and not without reason) that this process is unsafe and difficult. If one can agree with the first statement, then one can argue about the second. In fact, flashing the BIOS of the motherboard is not so troublesome. But for the correct conduct of such a procedure, special attention should be paid to some important details and nuances, which depends on the manufacturer of the motherboard and the programs and methods used for flashing.
What is BIOS flashing for?
In general, if it is not planned, and the whole system is working stably, there is basically no point in updating the BIOS version.
But when new hardware is installed on the computer, which may not be supported by the primary system only because of its obsolescence (the BIOS simply does not recognize the device), flashing the BIOS becomes an urgent problem. Although many users find this process difficult, anyone who uses a computer will be able to perform these steps on their own. It will take no more than 10 minutes.
Flashing the motherboard BIOS: prerequisites
To get started, pay attention to several prerequisites, failure to comply with which can lead to disastrous consequences.
You should download files and programs for updating primary systems only from the official resources of motherboard manufacturers. If an unofficial firmware is installed, no one will be able to guarantee that the process will be successful and the system will then work as expected.
The second thing to look out for is during the update. Make sure that there are no power surges or spontaneous disconnection of the computer or laptop from the mains, you need to in advance.
General rules for updating all firmware
BIOS flashing for almost all motherboard models implies the use of the same scheme:
For standard BIOS systems, DOS mode is used in most cases. However, for some BIOS versions, as well as for more modern systems UEFI, can be applied special program for flashing the BIOS, created by the manufacturer of the motherboard, which is able to run even in the operating environment Windows systems without the need to create bootable media.
How can I find out the motherboard modification and the current BIOS version?
The very first thing to do is to determine which motherboard model is installed in the computer system, as well as find out the version of the primary BIOS system (it may be on this moment is relevant and does not need updating).
You can view information about the board and the BIOS version in the section called from the "Run" console with the msinfo32 command.
For the motherboard, you can also use specialized utilities like CPU-Z (formerly Everest). For a device determined in this way, you need to find the latest firmware on the manufacturer's website and save the files on your hard drive.
Preparing bootable media (general methodology)
In the case of using bootable media, when an update from under Windows is not provided, at the first stage it must be created. Plain recording of uploaded files will not work.
To simplify the work, you can use the Rufus utility, which is very easy to learn and creates a bootable USB flash drive in a couple of minutes. Almost nothing needs to be changed in the parameters. Only in file system you should specify FAT32, and use MS-DOS mode in the write method, be sure to check the box next to the bootable media creation line. If this is not done, then upon rebooting the device will not be recognized as bootable. Then, to install the update, in some cases, you will need to additionally copy to the media control program and the firmware file.
Next, we will consider the BIOS update process with examples for motherboards from several well-known manufacturers. Although in general they are very similar to each other, nevertheless, each of them has its own nuances. We assume that the priority in BIOS settings already installed.
ASUS
Asus BIOS flashing can be done in several ways. Among the preferred utilities are two programs - AFUDOS and ASUSTeK EZ Flash 2.
When using the first utility, you should create bootable media and make sure that the afudos.exe program file and the firmware itself (for example, p4c800b.rom) must be present on it.
ASUS BIOS flashing is as follows. We boot from the USB stick. Since the media was recorded for DOS mode, the initial line C: \> will appear on a black screen, in which you need to write the / i p4c800b.rom command and press the enter key. Upon completion of the update, a reboot will occur, during which you just need to remove the media from the USB port to start the system from the hard disk.
Re-flashing the BIOS of the ASUS motherboard when using the second utility is somewhat different from the previous version.
Despite the fact that most of the firmwares on the official ASUS website have the .rom extension, sometimes CAB files can also be found. There is nothing wrong with that, since they are used for UEFI systems.
For the firmware, enter the UEFI settings on reboot, go to the Advanced Mode (additional settings) and select the ASUSTeK EZ Flash 2 line in the Tool service (tools) section. Next, from the list, select the media with the program (line of the same name) again, after which on the right will be shown the desired firmware file. We select it and twice agree with the warning (first to check the file, then to start the firmware process).
At the end of the process, a notification about reboot will appear, and at the beginning of the re-start you will be prompted to carry out the initial configuration. Press F1 and set the required parameters. Otherwise, just exit the settings without saving the changes.
Gigabyte
BIOS flashing of Gigabyte-systems differs from other processes quite strongly. First of all, this is due to the fact that an online update can be used to install the firmware. But first, let's look at using the Q-Flash utility, which is believed to be the best for updating firmware.
First, you should enter the BIOS settings and use the option to reset all settings Load Optimized default. After that, you need to save the changes, restart the computer and enter the BIOS settings again. Further, to launch the Q-Flash utility, press the F8 key, and the start is confirmed by pressing the Y and Enter keys. First, it is recommended to save the current version using the Save Bios option, after which you need to use Update Bios. Next, a request will follow to indicate the source from which you want to update. Select HDD 2.0 as the storage medium (this is how the flash drive is displayed in the settings). Then everything is as usual: we select the firmware file present on the media and agree with all the warnings.
For the Internet update, you can use the @BIOS utility specially developed by Gigabyte specialists, which runs in Windows environment... In this case, it is strongly recommended to disable Hyper-Threading mode in the settings of the primary system, as well as deactivate antivirus and other resident applications to avoid errors or failures during the update process.
After starting the program, you can immediately save the current BIOS version by clicking the Save Current BIOS button, and then select the Internet Update online update mode, click Update New BIOS and specify one of the servers present in the list. After that, you will be prompted to indicate the model of the installed motherboard, and the program will automatically download all the necessary components and activate the update process.
MSI
MSI BIOS flashing, as in the case of ASUS, can be done either from under Windows or from under DOS. For the DOS mode, a BIOS-embedded tool called BIOS-MFLASH is used. However, MSI Live Update 5 or 6 can also be used as an initial management utility. installed drivers MSI, and also flash the BIOS of the corresponding graphics accelerators. Let's start with him.
In the main window, you just need to check the boxes on the necessary elements. Select the MB BIOS component and press the scan button from the bottom (Scan). If a a new version firmware will be detected, use the Download and Install button, after which the update process will start.
First, you will need to select the update environment. To simplify matters, check the In Windows mode item, in the next window, press the button to close all the programs that appear in the list (Close all listed programs), press the Continue button (Next) and in the next window press the button to start the process.
For DOS mode, select it from the window of the running update process, after which we indicate the medium and agree to the destruction of all data present on it (the process will take no more than a minute, after which a message will be displayed about successful establishment boot drive). When you reboot, you just have to follow the instructions of a kind of "Wizard".
In the case of updating using the built-in MFLASH mechanism, you will have to download the firmware manually, create a bootable media and perform the same actions in the BIOS as described above (the media and the firmware file are selected in the tools menu).
Acer
Re-flashing the BIOS of Acer-systems is surprisingly much easier. You don't even need to create a bootable media, although you still have to format it to FAT32.
To install the update, a special utility called Insyde Flash is used, which is copied to removable media. At the same time, into the main program directory on a USB flash drive, you need to copy the firmware file downloaded from the official website with the extension .fd and corresponding not only to the motherboard, but also to the laptop model. Please note that the device must contain only one firmware file, otherwise the application will offer a proposal to reflash only one of several. After starting the utility with the power on, you will be prompted to install the update immediately.
The second way is just as simple. First you need to completely turn off the laptop, unplug the power cord and wait until the power indicator stops blinking. Next, plug the cord into an outlet, insert the USB flash drive into the appropriate port, hold down the Fn and Esc keys and press the power button. As soon as the indicator starts flashing, release the pressed keys. After that, information will be read from the drive (this can be seen by the blinking LED on the device itself). At the end of the update process, the laptop will reboot itself.
Video cards
Since GeForce and Radeon are dominant in the video card market, BIOS flashing will be considered using their example.
At the initial stage for your card on the manufacturer's website you need to download new firmware and management programs. If the system has several video cards, you need to leave only one during the update, inserting it into the PCI-Express slot.
For GeForce cards, the NVFlash program is used (two files), for Radeon cards, the ATIFlash utility (one file). Next, you need to create a bootable USB drive for DOS mode, and then copy the program and firmware files to it.
When starting from a flash drive, make sure that the card is single-processor, otherwise the proposed method will not work. For NVIDIA, use the nvflash --list command, for ATI - atiflash -i. If information on two cards is issued, then the adapter has two processors, and the proposed firmware method cannot be used (it is better to go to the manufacturer's website and find instructions there).
At the next stage, flashing the BIOS of the GeForce video card involves disabling protection. This is done with the nvflash -protectoff line.
Further, to start the BIOS update process for GeForce cards, use the command nvflash -4 -5 -6 newbios.rom (the name of the ROM file must correspond to the name of the loaded firmware), for Radeon cards- atiflash -p -f 0 newbios.rom. After that, we wait for the completion of the process and reboot the system in normal mode.
Brief summary
That's it for flashing primary I / O systems. Based on the foregoing, we can conclude that the best option is to install the update exclusively in DOS mode, although special utilities can be used to simplify the work. But they work only in the case of UEFI systems, and they are not suitable for standard BIOS versions. You need to be extremely careful with video cards, because incorrect installation of the update or the slightest violations during the flashing process can lead to the failure of the graphics adapter.