Help! I think I fried my BIOS.

[thepieguy]

I have an older system that I built in 2005 I think. It has an MSI K8N Neo motherboard, NVIDIA nForce 250Gb chipset, AMD Athlon 64 2400+.

I got the bright idea to update the BIOS last night but stupidly tried to do it with MSI's live update program within Windows XP. I can't remember exactly what happened but the update failed, I closed down the updating program and continued to use the computer for a little while. When I tried to restart, the computer will no longer boot.

It says BIOS ROM checksum error, looks for a boot disk in the floppy, but the computer then powers off after about 10 seconds, whether there is a boot disk in the floppy or not. It powers off before I have a chance to do anything. It doesn't even finish reading the boot disk.

Is there anything I can do, or am I pretty much out of luck? Thanks for any ideas,
Ryan

 

[grieve]

OUCH!

Can you get into the Bios or does it shutdown to fast?

 

[thepieguy]

No, it doesn't get that far, it just asks for a boot disk before being able to get into the bios. But then shuts down before anything at all can be done.

 

[marraco]

...
It says BIOS ROM checksum error, looks for a boot disk in the floppy, but the computer then powers off after about 10 seconds, whether there is a boot disk in the floppy or not. It powers off before I have a chance to do anything. It doesn't even finish reading the boot disk...

First, you need to be sure than your floppy drive and floppy disk works ok. Move the 3 1/2 drive to an other PC. Check than the disk is correctly read and write.

Check again that you had downloaded the right BIOS file for your motherboard EXACT model. It can have two or tree versions, one for installing from Windows, other from floppy, and may exist other versions. Be sure you have the file for floppy.

Also be sure you motherboard does not have a jumper to blocking BIOS update. Read the manual.

Retire any hard disk and any other thing connected to the mother. Should only have CPU, memory, floppy and video. Sometimes also keyboard.

There is the possibility than your BIOS can continue running if the power does not goes off. Your power source will automatically power off, if the bios, because is broken, does not keep it alive.

You can avoid the automatic power switch off, by short circuiting some pins on the power source connector. I think is the green cable with any black cable.

To understand how to manually power on a Power supply, google "Manually turning on a power supply"
here is a diagram:http://www.ariankulp.com/archive/2008/10/18/2537.aspx
here is a video:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cMyjm7_ag88&feature=related
video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ogkIwzsUAsE
video:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AOYD_eE7K0s&feature=related

To be sure than the green cable will switch on your power source, test it, by totally disconnecting any of the power cables, including those on the mother.

Then try short circuiting the green cable of the bigger power connector. Make it contact with some black cable, and the power should power on. When your power supply switch on, you will know they are the right cables to power on the source, so you need some way to keep them connected for ever; try joining them with a bit of cable (you gonna need to retire it after).

Some power sources will power off again if there is nothing connected, but gonna work once connected.

Since you will no more capable of switch off the power source, you will need to unplug the power from the wall.
Then connect the largue power connector to the mother, also two squared 4-pin-connectors. You may need to connect one or two of them. The one with yellow and black colors should ever being connected. (The second squared 4-pin-connector sometimes is attached to the largue power connector).

If you don't have an integrated video card. probably also would need to connect the power of the video card.

Connect again the wall power, to start the computer.

Then try again updating your bios from floppy.

If succeeded, you will need to undone the green cable short circuit, or your power will never switch off.

You run risk to fry both your mother and power source. There are generic bios chips on sale for some motherboards in places like http://www.biosman.com/ or similar. You can also try buy a broken mother (same model) with BIOS intact.

 

[Zorg]

He doesn't have a good command of English, so it's a little confusing, but he is right. Your only hope is to boot from the floppy. You will probably need a PCI VGA if you are using AGP. If you can keep it running and it boots to the floppy you can try flashing again. Or if you have a BIOS chip that is socketed you may be able to get a fresh BIOS from off the web or possibly MSI.

If you get it running and it says boot block you will need the chip replacement, unless the floppy can be read. Check the manual for details.

A public announcement for you, although you already found out the hard way, and all others:
Do not use any type of Windows flash period. If you do you, then you will likely experience a BIOS flash failure. Only use the bootable floppy or, on newer mobos, the BIOS based flash application.

 

[thepieguy]

I tried marraco's suggestion and can't get that to work either, unless something else is going on. I shorted the power so it stays on, but the system seems to shut off at the same point. The power supply and processor fan continue running, but the monitor goes blank as it is booting from the floppy. It seems that power supply is still on but the system is shut off.

But is that what you were talking about with the VGA, Zorg? I am running AGP. Could it be that once it boots from the floppy, the AGP video shuts off? Basically, the system is still running, but with no video? Thanks for the help guys.

 

[Zorg]

Yeah, if it still continues to boot from the floppy but the video is dead, then you need a PCI VGA.

I had that problem and I replaced it with a PCI VGA but it said boot lock and wouldn't boot from the floppy. It may or may not boot from the floppy on boot lock. Boot lock is designed for recovery but you need the floppy.

At any rate, install an old PCI VGA and see what you get.

 

[thepieguy]

I don't really know if it's actually continuing to boot from floppy. I'm trying to track down a PCI VGA that doesn't cost freakin $70.

 

[marraco]

Did'nt worked. Sad news.

Try the PCI video. Used ones should cost 10u$S or less.

Do you checked the Floppy and disk are ok? His quality had falled to very low standards. Lots of them don't work well.

You mention a K8N NEO motherboard, but there are lots of models with that name ¿you are sure you tried the right BIOS? Tried with an older BIOS file?

Try only one memory module, probably in slot 1.

¿do you battery works? maybe is dry out.

Do you have, recently, cleaned the processor radiator/fan? is the fan connected to the mother power connector? If you removed the processor, his siliconated grease may be damaged, so your processor may overheat, the BIOS may shut off to protect him. You would need to put a new silicontated layer.

Check for your motherboards and power source for a chemical smell, or swollen capacitors, or capacitors looking like pouring glue. If so, they may be damaged, and need replacing.

Did you followed the BIOS recovery procedure as stated in footnote in
http://global.msi.com.tw/index.php?func=html&name=service_note#recovery

take note, if you have AMI BIOS you need to rename the rom file (not the executable, and press control+home keys during boot, until you hear 4 beeps.
If your mother does not have a speaker integrated, you will not hear the beeps, unless you correctly connect a speaker. (but it should not impede the BIOS recovery)

 

[thepieguy]

Thanks for the other suggestions, marraco. I will check that stuff out too. I ordered a replacement BIOS since it is removable.

 

[thepieguy]

Unfortunatly I'm about ready to throw my hands up and just upgrade to a new pc. I just got my replacement BIOS, plugged it in, and am in no better shape. Worse actually, now I don't get ANYTHING to come up on screen. I just turn the computer on, nothing ever comes on screen, and then the whole thing shuts off after 10 seconds or so. After waiting two weeks for my BIOS to get here, how disappointing.

 

[akash3656]

A public announcement for you, although you already found out the hard way, and all others:
Do not use any type of Windows flash period. If you do you, then you will likely experience a BIOS flash failure. Only use the bootable floppy or, on newer mobos, the BIOS based flash application.

Quoted from Zorg. JUST REMEMBER THAT UNTILL WINDOWS BASED BIOS FLASH ULTILITY ARE ACTUALLY WORKING!!! IF UR GETTING A GIGABYTE MOBO USE "Q-FLASH" NEXT TIME (SEARCH IN MANUAL ABT IT, SAFE to flash that mehod. for ASUS use EZ-FLASH ultility.