What do I need to know to update BIOS?

[Why Syzygy]

There has been a new BIOS update for my Gateway system for some time. On my Windows '95 machine, I had no qualms about changing settings in the BIOS UNTIL I let someone else in, and they did something which caused a complete HD crash and burn.

The system BIOS options are numerous. How do I know which one to choose? What do I do with it? How safe is it to do?

[CK_John]

1. On Win95 if the bios update is not going to fix something you need I would leave it alone. You could

make the machine unbootable.

If you are going to try it you will need a couple of floppies that are formatted on the win95 machine, XP formatted will not be the correct. Also
brand new floppies may need to be formatted.

Usually you just download the file and then double click and it will create a bootable floppy which you leave in the machine, restart and it should boot. Do not power off or hit and keys or click the mouse, follow instructions and pull the floppy out of the machine when it tells you, etc.

These instructions are general but goto the gateway page for best info on your model system.

The bios update will read the current settings and keep them so you should not need to change anything after updating.

[Why Syzygy]

2. Is that for XP?

I no longer have '95.

[CK_John]

3. You asked for your Win95 machine did I read it wrong. If its XP just double click and follow

instructions.

[Why Syzygy]

4. I wasn't clear...

was relating that now that we've progressed beyond the '95 systems, I am not so self assured about poking around in BIOS. Sorry.

[CK_John]

5. That is a good fear to have it can cost you a new bios chip or a motherboard.

BIOS programming is kind of a lost art and since R&D has mostly been taken over by cloning operations. Its a look but don't touch area. The only change area that I now get into is boot order (floppy,cd,hd) and now a lot of flash drives.

[Why Syzygy]

6. We agree, and thus my hesitancy to update it.

I recently updated a video driver because a game was crashing. Originally I updated from the Intel site, but it crashed again, so XP found a driver on the MS update site which is working flawlessly. Both Gateway and MS have BIOS updates for me. But I have to choose a MB and whatnot. I never got into hardware much and so am clueless here. I KNOW that if I make a wrong selection it can cost me dearly. Gateway's Support site has declined. They now want me to use Control Panel/Add Remove to install their analysis software rather than the prior click and run utility. ugha I'm sure I have a "Pentium" . something or other. Beyond that :shrug: Maybe I should just keep with the current BIOS?

[RoyGBiv]

7. If it ain't broke ...

...leave it alone.

Unless your system is suffering from some specific problem that the BIOS update specifically addresses, there's no reason to do it.

[Why Syzygy]

8. Thanks.

:patriot: It is sailing fine. Slower than I want, but that is due to hardware limitations.

[RoyGBiv]

9. I have a philosophy ...

I own enough doorstops.

In theory, it's not that difficult. Of course in theory, I should be able to do Calculus in my head.

Only time I do it is if I have to do it to get support for a CPU or memory configuration that the old BIOS won't address properly or if some other condition exists that makes it mission critical. I've only rarely run across that.

And I do still own a nice motherboard-looking doorstop that was having its BIOS flashed during a power blip. It's purty.

[Why Syzygy]

10. LOL!

Even though I poked around in BIOS, I never flashed or updated one. As mentioned, terrified to do so. I will never forget that scene when I allowed a work peer to 'look at' my BIOS and she was bouncing around in there like a mad woman. That machine never booted again. I don't even remember the ORIGINAL issue. But I know whatever is was, it wasn't DOA!

[Duer 157099]

11. Well, as already mentioned, if it ain't broke...

but having said that, I'll admit to being the first in line to try to fix unbroken things, usually with success, sometimes not so much.

For years and years I would play with my BIOS with impunity, I never understood what the big fear was. In fact, as far as the BIOS settings go, I still feel that way. Flashing, however, has it's risks. Even so, I flashed and flashed and flashed many times before I ever had a problem, but when I finally *did* have a problem, it took my BIOS chip with it and I've never been able to recover it (yet--although I did finally acquire a second mobo with the same chipset so when I get around to it, I may try to reanimate it; if you have a second nearly-identical mobo on hand, you can play without worrying as much)

[Why Syzygy]

12. How do you

find the specifications for the chip set? Let me guess. From the BIOS? I've never even been in the one on this machine. It gives the Gateway splash screen. The former one did not, so it was a simple matter to abort boot. Now I've gone to reminiscing. That was my first computer, not counting the Tandy and old fogy Atari? (something starting with "A" IIRC) Who's old enough to remember those?

[Duer 157099]

13. I have a Gateway, and it's F1 to get into BIOS

as for specs, I usually look directly on a mobo for identifying marks and then use Google to research further. If your old box that died by just messing with the software settings in the bios is still in your hands, I'll bet you could reanimate it by reflashing the bios (worst case; possible to just reset the bios using a jumper on the mobo, but of course ymmv

[Why Syzygy]

14. Oh, well,

I won't open the box. I'll let my son do it, but he's still in Afghanistan. x(

No. It's long gone. Had it four years. Been on this one since 2002. The old one had 8 GB HD IIRC. Not worth a tinker.

[Duer 157099]

15. 8 gig hd? That's more than enough to install xp! lol

This box has a 5g C: drive with XP on it. I tried to find the smallest reasonable size partition I could put XP on and 5 was about the useful limit. Course, I use other partitions for all programs etc...

[Why Syzygy]

16. I took it from '95 up to '98 SE.

I had my whole life on 8 GB. lol

[Duer 157099]

17. Those were the days eh?

:sigh:

I still have the HD from my first computer.

[Why Syzygy]

18. You romantic you.

:rofl:

[Duer 157099]

19. Hah, but I love every one of my 500gig drives just as much

Nostalgic yes, but that was before audiobooks as mp3s heheh