Need Help - BIOS

[RGK01]

It finally happened - power went out on me while flashing a customers bios. Of course I don't have a matching one from any of my dead boards. It is an AMI bios for the pcchips M572 board - super socket 7, p&p for cpu settings (no jumpers) and SDRAM support. If anyone has a dead board with an AMI bios that supports these features, and would be willing to send me the bios chip (so I can get the board to boot and do a hot swap & reflash), I would really appreciate it. Please email me - [email protected] - sooner the better, I either have to get this board up & running or eat the cost of a new one.

Any/all help is welcome!!



[This message has been edited by RGK01 (edited December 02, 2000).]

[shawnMt]

Sorry I don't have one - have you tried posting it with ISA video? Prob. won't work but I'd try it before I bought a new board.

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Paint your old laptop!

[RGK01]

Yes, the main problem I'm haveing is the *** plug & play CPU - without that feature no CPU is recognized, thus no boot.

Thanks anyway.

[runderwo]

I can program nearly any flash BIOS chip for $5 and shipping back. Email for details.

Yes, the $5 is profit for me, but I'm a busy man, and this is peanuts compared to the cost and trouble of a new mainboard.

All I will need is a blank/corrupt flash part of the type that your target board supports, and a file to burn into it.

Note that if the BIOS chip is actually defective, there isn't much I can do, since I'm not willing to go to the trouble of ordering these. However, this is obviously rare when something else has caused the flash process to fail (power out, etc).

If you don't feel like sending your chip, an alternative out is to reflash the BIOS yourself using another board as a host. (Careful if you borrow a friend's system for this...)

Make sure you check the manual to see what flash parts are supported by your system. Also make sure you are using the latest version of whatever flash utility you use since they will detect and properly program more chips.

Especially differentiate between parts that require 5V and parts that are 12V for programming. Many times a jumper on the mainboard will need to be set. Generally the flash program can differentiate between different sizes (1M/2M) of flash ROM.

First make sure the system BIOS on your "bench" system is shadowed/cached so that the BIOS chip is not hot after POST. (Pull a hot chip out and you run the risk of ruining it AND a perfectly good board.) Also beforehand, remove the BIOS chip and put a zip-tie underneath it as you re-insert it, so it will be easy to yank out.

Go into DOS and have your flash program for whatever type of BIOS the bench system is (awdflash, amifl8xx) as well as the target BIOS image handy on a floppy.

Now swap the BIOS chips. be careful that you match the notch with the socket as you insert it.

Fire up the flasher, and flash the chip with the image from the recover system. Ignore or bypass any "Program part number does not match" messages.

Once complete, power off and pop the fresh BIOS into your dead system, and watch it spring back to life. (may need to clear CMOS).

Hope someone is helped by this procedure. I have done it ever since flash BIOS existed and saved quite a few boards otherwise headed for the trash over the years.

[Ruslan]

Good point...
But I can help You for free,(bottle of beer will be enough).
If You have any ASUS MoBos lying around, You can use ASUS flash util for flashing BIOS for any another MoBo (ASUS TX97,-E,LE,XE will be enough,though).
Make hot swap before starting flash util and follow instruction. Just ignore incopatibility message, as runderwo said.

!!! Recently I found way, how bad flash IC (well-known "uknown flash type" message) can be reflashed. Usually these IC looses manufacturer's description byte info at A9 adress line, but remains programmable. Download this util from following link: http://www.ixbt.ru/mainboard/biostools/ecsflash.zip
I can e-mail You this util, if You want.
1.start this flash util with original good BIOS IC.
2.util have to recognize IC type correctly,of course.
3.Make hot swap with bad IC.
4.Type filename of image file You want flashing.
5.Press enter and wait...You'll got IC flashed.

!! One important limitation - because only that util don't check IC type twice, You should use IC with exactly same type of IC
(remove cover sticker and see). Also this util don't working with IC with boot block protected like Intel (haven't tried it yet,though)

Good luck.
Don't hesitate to ask me more.


[This message has been edited by Ruslan (edited December 03, 2000).]

[runderwo]

Only Elitegroup's utility will reprogram the manufacturer byte though?

I use a standalone programmer when I have problems with any chip, and the only ones I've had to throw away are ones that get Red blocks in Award flasher. Which basically means the chip was bad from the get-go considering these parts should have a life of about 10,000-20,000 programmes.

[Ruslan]

You're right again,runderwo.
I also have standalone programmer, but unfortunatly mine cann't programming latest flash IC and manufacturer no longer support it. Of course it's the best way to go with,
but I thought,what not so many techies out where have similar one. Am I right?