New
#61
Yes I should know better but I can get stupid with the best ! lol
Interesting:
I'm looking at motherboards and I see that Asus has a new BIOS flash utility on their X79 boards (maybe others too) called "USB BIOS Flashback".
This feature allows the user to install or update the BIOS to the motherboard without a CPU, RAM, or Video Card installed. The PC does not need to be on. You only need power on the 24 pin connector and the 8 pin CPU connector. You plug a USB stick with ROM file into the dedicated USB port in the back, push the button, and it blinks as it flashes the BIOS.
I imagine the need for this function was because of the type of problem linnemeyerhere had here. It must happen more than I thought. We will probably see this type of feature on more boards as the days go by.
Not quite sure I would use it personally for any other case but an emergency though. Without that comforting progress bar I'd be a wreck just watching the flashing LED!
Anyway, FYI
The Z77 boards have the same thing. I've never used it, but it could come in handy if you crash your bios.
if that bios flashing method is handled by a standalone controller (likely the case as BIOS cannot work without a processor), then the days of wrecked bios update bricking the mobo could be a memory of the past.
And it wasn't something so horribly difficult to implement, mind me. But they took a while even to ditch floppies.
MSI must have used some trick such as this short cut as the short time it took them to take my rig away un-mount the water pump pull the chip install the older chip flash then pull and install my i7 back just couldn't have been done in the time they took (about 15 minutes).
Okay Alan other than installing the connector properly what was done to the computer to repair it.
Note; a reversed cable could of wiped the bios. A power short to ground.