Keyboard related UEFI/BIOS bug with Gigabyte GA-970A-UD3P?

I recently ordered a Gigabyte GA-970A-UD3P motherboard and AMD FX-6300 black edition CPU from CCL online, which I received on Monday (13 Jan 2014).

The symptoms I have are that the keyboard doesn't always work, but it's complicated...

The keyboard always works for the BIOS setup screen. It also always works once Windows 7 is running, or once a Ubuntu 10.10 live CD is running. However, it almost always doesn't work for bootable CDs - including but not limited to the Windows 7 SP1 home premium install disk. I suspect a UEFI/BIOS issue with some kind of legacy interface emulation.

For running Windows 7 installation, you have to reset, then wait for the "please press any key to boot from the CD or DVD" (I think that's roughly what it says) and then try pressing a key. If it doesn't work, reset and try again. The keyboard seems to work in around 1 in 10 attempts, or perhaps a little better than that, but definitely not as often as one in five attempts. When the keyboard doesn't work it times out and defaults to trying to boot from the hard drive (I guess because it needs that for the reboots while installing) and in any case you still need the keyboard to work once the Windows 7 installer starts.

So for most people, I'm guessing this is a scratch the head, reconnect the keyboard, and reboot a few times until it works thing - and once Windows is installed there's no apparent problem. But for me, I like to have Windows 7 and Windows XP (with ethernet disabled of course) dual booting via EasyBCD, and I'd like to have Linux installed too. And I've already confirmed that at least the EasyBCD boot manager falls victim to the issue - you can only choose which operating system you want on around 1 in 10 reboots. For me, that's not fit for purpose.

I have eliminated the keyboard and connector as causes by trying multiple keyboards, including both USB and PS/2. I have tried changing the obvious BIOS settings related to legacy USB and BIOS emulation. Basically, all that seems to work is using the "optimized defaults" and resetting over and over until it works.

There is no BIOS update available - only the initial version F1 BIOS that's already on the mobo.

I've contacted CCL Online and asked to do a substitution - the almost identical (same chipset, 2 fewer USB2 ports on the back panel, probably some differences that overclockers would care about but I don't, about £1 cheaper IIRC) ASUS M5A97 for the Gigabyte GA-970-UD3P - and CCL have refused. I've had to arrange for the full order to be returned, and I have to admit I have some worries because of all their emphasis on testing the motherboard before providing a refund. I'm actually giving thought to whether I need to record evidence before returning in case of small claims court.

Basically, CCL seem to believe I'm being deliberately awkward. Perhaps because I won't return *only* the motherboard alone unless I can get the substitution. The whole order was bought as a unit, I didn't find many mobos with the spec. I wanted (6 SATA, USB3, full ATX with 2 usable PCI and enough PCI express, AHCI support with hot-plugging without needing to reformat drives for RAID) and at the price, and I chose the CPU to go with the mobo. If I keep the chip in hope of ordering a mobo to suit later, once the refund is processed, I'm artificially restricting my options - though since they can sell an almost identical mobo IMO it's CCL who are being awkward by refusing to do the substitution, wasting more of my time after sending a bad board, and ensuring I don't want to return to them for the new board once the refund is processed.

Key worries - if this is a UEFI/BIOS bug, why isn't it something well known that I can look up online? I have to admit that with CCL Online claiming they've sold a lot of that board and not had the problem reported before, and not being able to find any warnings in reviews, the "people scratch their head and reboot until it works" theory seems a bit suspicious. Is there really *no-one* who noticed the problem and cared enough to complain?

Also, is there any possible way this could be an installation issue? It seems unlikely given that it affects both USB and PS/2 keyboards, and they all work for the BIOS setup screen and in Windows - just not (I guess) when some kind of legacy API is used.

Basically, I'm looking for any indication that others have seen this problem or can reproduce it, or any possible alternative explanations other than a BIOS bug.

TIA

**Update on 21 Jan**

This motherboard, along with the rest of the order, were returned to CCL - collected on the 16th of January. I did not resolve the issue - the best explanation I have is still a UEFI/BIOS bug relating to some kind of legacy emulation for the keyboard. When I phoned yesterday, CCL said they had installed Windows and found no problem, asking me to describe the problem again. I did, and ended up on hold for a few minutes while it was tested again. On returning, I was told I would receive a full refund (but not explicitly saying whether the issue was reproduced or not). I have received e-mails today saying the refund is being processed, but they simply say the motherboard successfully had Windows 8 installed.

So AFAIK, CCL did not reproduce this issue - I don't even know if the Windows 8 would have worked for me - I don't have Windows 8. At least two bootable CDs of mine didn't have an issue - an old Acronis TrueImage boot disk (which crashed - a compatibility issue that's *not* specific to this motherboard but due to the age of the disk - but the keyboard worked up until that happened) and a Ubuntu 10.10 live CD - so I already know that only some bootable CDs are affected, presumably depending on how they access the keyboard.

Anyway, I still don't know for certain that the problem I experienced really was a UEFI/BIOS bug. I only know that it was hard to explain as anything else, and that I couldn't find a solution. AFAIK CCL didn't reproduce the problem, maybe because they didn't do what I told them, but I don't really know that.

Basically, don't rule out the board - but some caution may be warranted.

I'm not very happy with CCL, but they're probably just as unhappy with me. My main issue is that they refused to do a direct exchange for a different-brand but otherwise nearly identical motherboard that could have saved me a lot of time and hassle. First they collect the item for return, then they test, then they refund or replace. I understand why but that doesn't mean I'm happy to lose another week or more. They *are* providing the refund, though, for the full order - whether they reproduced the problem or not. All I've lost is time and (I assume) the original delivery charge.

**Update on 3 Feb**

I'm a bit late with this final update, but I got the refund from CCL. As I expected, the delivery charge (and VAT on that charge - I forgot about that) weren't refunded, but the price of the items was.

I bought an [Asus M5A97 Evo R2.0](http://www.amazon.co.uk/M5A97-EVO-R2-0-Motherboard-eS-ATA/dp/B008RPZ5H8/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1391429731&sr=8-1&keywords=Asus+M5A97+Evo+R2.0) motherboard from Amazon. This is a slightly better board than the [Asus M5A97 R2.0](http://www.amazon.co.uk/M5A97-R2-0-Motherboard-PCI-Express-Flashback/dp/B008RPYB0U/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1391429731&sr=8-2&keywords=Asus+M5A97+Evo+R2.0) I considered as the almost identical replacement board from CCL. The Amazon price was a tad cheaper, so I got the slightly better board.

This is an AM3+ board again, so I got the same AMD FX6300 black edition processor (at a slightly higher price). So I wish I had only returned the motherboard to CCL, but then I hadn't been able to easily check what was available online at the time.

The upgrade was a slight misjudgement. One thing I forgot to check on the EVO board - four of the SATA ports point off the edge of the board. This was something I wanted to avoid because of a cable guide in my case which would make those ports unusable. I was pretty annoyed with myself when I spotted that, though I guess it wasn't a big deal to remove the cable guide.

Another minor hassle while assembling - the 24-pin power connector is right on the edge of the board, on the side where the drive bays live. That creates some awkwardness with the power cable getting in the way of connecting optical drives etc. Again, not really a big deal.

I noticed a minor UEFI/BIOS bug with this new board - sometimes, pressing Del for setup results in the machine locking up (apparently indefinitely) with a black screen. This is only occasional and only happens at all when trying to access UEFI setup, so it doesn't bother me. The keyboard works reliably even for boot managers and bootable CDs etc ;-)

I have Windows 7 Pro and Windows XP Home dual booting using EasyBCD. To install XP I needed to create a slipstream disk with the AHCI/RAID drivers and SP3, which is probably standard for recent hardware. The retail XP disk I slipstreamed didn't work because it wouldn't accept the (valid) product key - I don't really know why, but it wasn't the motherboards fault. Starting from an OEM XP disk (and using an OEM product key, of course) resolved that problem.

Basically, I'm very happy with this new board. The mystery of the Gigabyte board will obviously remain a mystery.