XP Pro command prompt to update BIOS

[Evoluter]

How do I go about getting to a blank command prompt in XP Pro to install my BIOS update from?

 

[Chubs]

You can just hit Start | Run and them type in cmd and hit return and that will bring up a "DOS" window - which you may or may not be able to flash your BIOS from.

 

[apoppin]

Shouldn't the BIOS flash be done completely outside Windows?


Here is SOYO's "How to"

 

[cchen]

Not a good idea, you should do it out of windows

 

[MasterHoss]

yah,yah ... you should follow the EXACT instructions on how to flash your BIOS correctly.

 

[Doctorweir]

Never, I mean NEVER do a bios flash under Windows....except you want a new MoBo anyway...

Use a DOS bootdisk without any memory managers or drivers (no autoexec.bat, config.sys, etc.)

If you don't have one anymore, you can download it here and copy Flash utility and BIOS-image to it..

Good luck

 

[Doctorweir]

Although I myself still use a MS-DOS 6.22 bootdisk, I think this one is most popular esp. for BIOS flashing.

 

[bacillus]

with xp, just insert your floppy & right click it in my computer>format & it'll give you the option to make a ms-dos startup disk!

 

[hans007]

you can boot into winxp command mode by using the boot cd.

but it would still be in windows even if it looks like dos

 

[Mem]

with xp, just insert your floppy & right click it in my computer>format & it'll give you the option to make a ms-dos startup disk!

Yep,that`s the way I do it with my board, just remember to reboot with the floppy startup disk in.

 

[murphy55d]

I just copy the new files onto a normal floppy and hit Alt F2 when it starts up. Flashes automatically.

 

[apriest]

The GigaByte boards have a sweet feature. You can push F6 while in the BIOS and load a newer one off a floppy. The BIOS includes everything it needs to flash itself. No more making boot disks. Supposedly it can do hard drive to, but what partition and format, I don?t know. Wonder if it can do CD as well? I?ll have to try that today? Some motherboards from GigaByte and Intel have windows utilities that let you upgrade the BIOS from inside Windows. I think it does it on the following reboot or something. Other boards must have either of these features too? I only use Intel and GigaByte boards for the most part?

 

[Mem]

I just copy the new files onto a normal floppy and hit Alt F2 when it starts up. Flashes automatically

Yep you can do that on some boards like the Epox 8KHA+ ,however it does not make a backup of your old BIOS file,while if you make a MS- DOS start disk it does.

 

[Doctorweir]

with xp, just insert your floppy & right click it in my computer>format & it'll give you the option to make a ms-dos startup disk!

Nice feature...never tried it...

 

[vetteguy]

So, when exactly are motherboard manufacturers going to make this process less cumbersome? Everyone always talks about wanting to kill off the floppy, but for me (and I'm sure a lot of others) the only reason I still HAVE a floppy is for cursed BIOS flashing. Maybe if they came up with a better solution, it could finally go away all together.

 

[apoppin]

Originally posted by: vetteguy
So, when exactly are motherboard manufacturers going to make this process less cumbersome? Everyone always talks about wanting to kill off the floppy, but for me (and I'm sure a lot of others) the only reason I still HAVE a floppy is for cursed BIOS flashing. Maybe if they came up with a better solution, it could finally go away all together.

As some have posted above, some manufacturers are streamlining this process.

I am just guessing you could delete the floppy from your system by making your system boot off CD-ROM and make a CDR/RW with the DOS and flash info but I have never tried it. I still use my floppy for convenient small file transfers.

 

[vash]

Originally posted by: vetteguy
So, when exactly are motherboard manufacturers going to make this process less cumbersome? Everyone always talks about wanting to kill off the floppy, but for me (and I'm sure a lot of others) the only reason I still HAVE a floppy is for cursed BIOS flashing. Maybe if they came up with a better solution, it could finally go away all together.

I'm with you on this one. My floppy drive hardly gets any use. The only time I need it is for BIOS flashing, and that is such a pain in the ass to do! With more and more people running Win2k/XP, there will be less and less installations of Win98 floating to easily create the bootdisks and we'll have to rely on bootdisk.com to get our disks. I'm looking more and more at making self booting CDRW disks, just for this, but its still a pain. I guess once I move onto the self booting CDRW disks, I can further move onto a "legacy free" mobo.

vash

 

[Mem]

With more and more people running Win2k/XP, there will be less and less installations of Win98 floating to easily create the bootdisks and we'll have to rely on bootdisk.com to get our disks.

As bacillus pointed out you can make a MS-DOS startup disk from WinXP,yes I`ve tried it a few times and it works fine .

 

[murphy55d]

Originally posted by: Mem

I just copy the new files onto a normal floppy and hit Alt F2 when it starts up. Flashes automatically

Yep you can do that on some boards like the Epox 8KHA+ ,however it does not make a backup of your old BIOS file,while if you make a MS- DOS start disk it does.

Yup, I have an 8K3A+, it also worked on my older 8K7A.