Archived from groups: alt.comp.periphs.mainboard.asus (
More info?)
In article <41ec45ff$0$223$edfadb0f@dread12.news.tele.dk>, "N´far"
<rudiNOSPAM@mail.dk> wrote:
> I just bought a cheap P4S533 with a bad bios chip.
> I´ve got another P4S533 working ( a spare one ), considering a hotflash now.
>
> But - the P4S533-MX, -X and -E versions got the crash free bios
> feature.Would it make any sense to try to flash the ordenary P4S533 with one
> of these bios versions?
>
> Thanks, Poul.. ;-)
P4S533 645DX + 961B 2Mbit flash chip PLCC
P4S533-E 645DX + 962 4Mbit flash chip PLCC
P4S533-MX 651 + 962L 2Mbit flash chip PLCC
P4S533-X 645DX + 962L 2Mbit flash chip PLCC
None of the boards have exactly the same chipset.
I didn't check, but I am willing to bet there are
differences in the peripherals as well.
And the thing is, "Crash free" is a bit of a joke. In
scenarios where you need it most, it won't work (many
flash operations update the boot block at the same
time as the main code, and just after both have been
erased, if something bad happens, there is no boot block
left to boot from). So, it is hardly "Crash free".
If Asus would get the boot block code right, such
that the boot block was never erased, it would work
fine.
The best "crash free" implementation, is to use a
BIOS Savior. It is a device which consists of an
adapter socket, with a flash chip of appropriate
size soldered to the bottom, and a socket for your
existing flash chip on the top. The product comes with
a switch, mounted on a PCI slot plate, and if one
BIOS image fails, you simply flip the switch and
start using the second image. Once the computer is
booted (and, presumably, the flash code is mirrored
in main memory), you can flip the switch back to the
errant chip, and reflash it.
http://www.ioss.com.tw/web/English.html
The biggest problem with the product, is it isn't
available from the big retailers.
Note that, if your current BIOS chip has a bad image,
the BIOS Savior cannot bail you out. (Only Exsitdata
provides a programming service, when they ship you a
pre-programmed Savior, and at a price.) So, like insurance,
you have to buy a BIOS Savior from most retailers of the
product, before there is trouble.
For example, with the early A7N8X boards that had the
"BIOS-Save-Death" bug, a BIOS Savior would represent an
excellent investment. For other boards that don't have
nearly the same level of trouble, a BIOS Savior only makes
sense, if you are testing hacked BIOS images, and are
expecting trouble.
Paul
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