BIOS Flash Guide

[saaya]

In case you run into problems updating your BIOS here are some tips
There are several ways to update the BIOS, from a floppy, usb stick or from within windows.

You can download the latest BIOSes here (official) and here (beta)
You need to register and log in to be able to download from the quantum force site, registering takes only a minute and doesnt require email verification, so you can log in and download immediatly.

FLOPPY
you need to create a bootable floppy disk, id recommend you a windows 98SE boot disk.
You can get loads of different tools that format and then create a bootable floppy on www.bootdisk.com
Then place the flash tool and BIOS image onto the same or another floppy and boot the pc and then follow the flash tools instructions

USB
Backup all data from the UBS stick and then format it to FAT16 or FAT32.
Download this HP tool here to make your USB stick bootable. Put the BIOS and Award files on the USB stick and plug it in any of the USB Slots. Power on the System and select to boot from HDD (!) and then select the HDD Bootup list where your USB stick should show up now. Make sure its no1 in the list and then hit Exit and Save. The Board should now boot from the USB stick and show you the DOS command prompt. From here is the same as updating the BIOS from a floppy.

WINDOWS
updating the bios from within windows is the easiest way. Install the FOX Live Update utility from the CD that comes with the board, then update the utility if necessary and backup/flash the Main and Backup BIOS's with the file above.
Please Note: Main=BIOS1 and Backup=BIOS2 (thanks to ric9887 for pointing this out)

Please make sure you are at safe speeds when updating the BIOS, and please load the setup defaults and then save and exit the BIOS after updating it and then configure the settings.




BlackOps Notes:
The blackops has 2 BIOS chips, the default one that the board will boot from is the left one.
If you run into any problems you can change the jumpers to select to boot from the second chip.
The jumpers work like this, from left to right:
jumper position 1 slects BIOS chip 1 (left chip)
jumper position 2 slects BIOS chip 2 (right chip)
jumper position 3 slects BIOS chip 1 (left chip) by default but you can change in bios to select chip2
jumper position 4 slects BIOS chip 2 (right chip) by default but you can change in bios to select chip1

Dreadnought Notes:
The Dreadnought has 2 BIOS chips, the default one that the board will boot from is the top one.
If you run into any problems you can change the jumpers to select to boot from the second chip below the first one.
The jumpers work like this, from left to right:
jumper position 1 slects BIOS chip 1 (top chip)
jumper position 2 slects BIOS chip 2 (bottom chip)
jumper position 3 slects BIOS chip 1 (top chip) by default but you can change in bios to select chip2
jumper position 4 slects BIOS chip 2 (bottom chip) by default but you can change in bios to select chip1

If you have any questions or comments please let me know