BIOS UPDATE FAILED... now what :-(

Here is the situation… First off I know if anyone can help me it will be you guys… I have come to you all several times in the past and you all have never failed me.. so lets see if we can do this one more time… Ready guys… ok… So heres the deal… A friend of mine told me about a problem he had with his computer and I told him let me see if I can get it back to working condition… His problem is that he received a notice saying that there was an update for his bios.. but after updating when he turns on his computer he gets the same screen and CAN NOT get it to do anything else… I have tried (to no success) to locate some kind of definitive answer as to how to solve the problem (without him having to go and buy a new computer) and have found several different sites saying to do all kinds of things.. but i figured rather than risk doing more harm than good I would come to the one place that hasnt failed me yet… I will give you as much information as I can about the computer.. the mobo and such and any help would be greatly appreciated… ****just a reminder… when the computer is powered on it goes to a screen that says award bootblock bios v1.0 copyright © 2000, award software…. followed by bios rom checksum error…. followed by detecting IDE ATAPI device… found… CD ROM try to boot from it… FAIL… followed by detecting floppy drive A media and then finally it says Insert system disk and press enter I am unable to get into the bios screen itself… so that is not an option… I really dont know where to go from here… I dont want to do more harm.. but then again how much more harm can you cause in this situation… so here is the info i have on it… HP Pavilion TV Media Center m7650n Prod# RF254AA s/n: MXF6380QGB HP/Compaq motherboard name: Buckeye-GL8E motherboard name: P5BW-LA manufacturer: ASUS Chipset: Intel P695 System Bios Core Brand: Award Bios Rev: 3.17 OTHER INFO FOUND ON MOBO: on the sticker near floppy plug-in slot: G69S02-00680-60-MBB4GB-AO4 3.03 also printed on the mobo: N13219 The HP site does have a file that you can download to update the bios.. but even if I download it.. Im not sure exactly how i would go about running it on his computer since I cant get it to go past the screen mentioned above. Some say you can flash the bios.. but I have never done that and would need step by step instructions and also it says to do that you would need to know what flashing utility to use.. again no idea what that would be… So…. if you can help me please it would mean so much to me… if you personally do not know how to possibly fix this…if you could refer me to someone that might.. that would also be great… I would like to try any and all possible ideas before actually telling my friend that he has to go out and buy a new computer or mobo.. Thanks guys for any help Sincerely ShawnaV

Whenever you update your BIOS you are flashing the bios. The particular update HP offers updates the BIOS from within the operating system so there is no way to create a boot disk and do it from what I can see. The fact that the system is powering up makes me wonder if you are missing something else. Can you clarify if the keyboard responds at all? Num lock light goes on and off when pressing the key? What, if any, response do you get from the system based on things you have tried? My first inclination when reading your problem is to tell you I don't think your keyboard is working from the sounds of it. Maybe try another one, try a PS/2 keyboard, or a USB keyboard.

I do have a PS/2 keyboard plugged in… It will allow me to hit enter and thats about it… I have tried all the "normal" key presses as suggestion thru the HP site and even some of the rather rare key presses in an attempt to get into the bios screen… but nothing seems to work.. and i have even gone as far as to switch keyboards… the num lock light does not come on… Things I have tried other than getting into the bios settings itself are: 1- put a windows xp installation disk into the cd drive … this results in the monitor going black for about 10 secs and then going to a screen where at the top it says windows set up (the blue screen) and at the bottom of the screen it says press F6 if you need to install 3rd party ……… (cant remember exactly how the phrase goes but im sure you know what im talking about) and then it hangs there 2- i have disconnected everything from the mobo other than the HD, CD drive, CPU fan, and leads for that connect the power to the mobo… still results in the same screen as described in the first post

Ok.. Did some more research.

Your system did not get updated properly. The only thing left is a failsafe that is attempting to recover the BIOS for you. Your only option is to boot from a floppy disk and have it reflash your BIOS.

You'll absolutely have to hook up a floppy drive to this computer if you don't have one.

Read here about how to create the boot floppy that will flash your BIOS: http://www.birdjanitor.com/bootblock.html

This is going to get tricky but I found the files you needed.

You'll have to download the awdflash.exe file from here: http://support.asus.com/download/Download….SLanguage=en-us Input A7N8X into the search box and then navigate to the BIOS-Utilities download for this particular motherboard. It will be the awdflash program that you need.


Next, you'll need to extract the 317.ROM file from the BIOS update offered by HP for this model of computer. That link is here: http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/softwar…product=3245034

Download and run the executable file on a working XP computer. Accept the agreement and when it gets to the point to where it warns you it is getting ready to flash your BIOS open up My Computer and navigate to C:\Documents and settings\\local settings\application data and then sort by date modified. Find the newest folder in there named something like this 'pft846b.tmp' Open that folder and grab the 317.ROM file. Then, cancel the bios update utility that is still running. You might have to rename this file to 317.BIN

Now you have the awdflash.exe and the 317.ROM that you will use to create a bootable floppy disk to repair your BIOS.

I have no idea if this will work, but this is the right procedure. The problem is that you have an HP computer that neither ASUS nor HP will support, so you are basically notgood if this doesn't work. Buy a new motherboard or new BIOS chip.

Once again you all have amazed me… i have been searching for sometime now to try to resolve this issue… I will immediately try this and will report back to you as soon as I know something… it might be tomorrow before you hear a reply.. but if this all works and I can get my friends computer up and running then believe me you will be greatly rewarded… KUDOS Now then…. **giggles to self, puts on lab coat and crosses fingers**……. come on Igor we have a monster to bring to life

ok so i tried what you suggested.. and the problem is that when i get to the part where it says file to program… it gives me an error saying that the system was not new award bios version please update rom bios first… not sure what or how to do this… any suggestions? thanks for again for your help sincerely, shawna v

one more quick question.. are we sure that the links you gave me to download the files are the ones that are for the mobo and chipset that i mentioned before.. also the socket number is 775 idk if that makes a difference or not… anyways.. i await your reply … thanks again

No.. The link I gave you at ASUS is not for your board. It is where you can find the awdflash program which is needed to flash the BIOS. The problem is, there are many different versions of AWDFLASH and the version you got won't work with your BIOS. I'm researching it.

ok… here is my question… when i go to the link so i can download the awdflash program it asks me to choose my OS… but i also notice this : Product: Motherboard Series: SocketA(462) Model: A7N8X so im wondering.. will the awdflash program work for my mobo eventhough its not the same socket? i have tried beyond belief to find the exact mobo that im working with.. but there really isnt much info out there for it… i really appreciate your help… if you find it… your my superhero… if not… well you can still be my hero ;-) lol jk ill be here awaiting any new info sincerely, shawna v

Well, the awdflash program is a generic program for flashing Award BIOSes. We just need to find the right version or an alternative. I just am swamped at work right now and don't have a lot of time to spend on this project at the moment. I may have to wait a little while to be your superhero as tempting as that sounds.

take your time… im still searching for answers in the mean time lol…. i know how it can get… im a patient person.. as long as you drop in every once in awhile and keep me updated im good ;-) ill be here….

I haven't fogot about you. Just been busy. I've been working on several projects and this one isn't cut and defined. Its a bit of trial and error. I want to make sure you get the right information and give you the best chance of recovery. I do have some things in mind, and later on I will share them so you can try. You do have to understand that this is probably your last hope with this motherboard, and our efforts may prove futile if not actually cause more problems. This should not be the issue that it is but with HP and ASUS offering NO support in the way that is needed, you are in a tough spot.

I know you didnt forget about me and quite honestly I havent been on the computer lately.. However, I did manage to get the bios flashed and back to the HP logo.. and like you said it was a great deal of trial and error.. After I finish doing a few things and putting my friends computer back together I will post another message to explain exactly how I did it so that others that are out there like me struggling to find the answers can finally get back to having a working computer… So for those of you reading this… rest assured I have found a way to unbrick the board and getting it back to the HP logo… please stand by for the next post for the step by step directions on how I did it… and thanks to appleoddity and the entire whatthetech team for your ongoing efforts in helping all of us who come to you in a time of despair and confusion…. sincerely, shawnav

ok for those of you who have been patiently waiting for me to let you know how i fixed my friends computer… heres what i did…
first i had to download the bios update file for his specific computer from the hp web site… then i had to extract the actual file from that update file which i believe is explained above from the person who was helping me…
next i had to go thru many trials and tribulations before i found out what the exact flash file was that i needed but i did manage to finally find it… for his specific computer and motherboard i needed the awd132 flashing utility…

PLEASE NOTE THAT YOU MUST HAVE THE EXACT BIOS FILE AND THE EXACT FLASHING UTILITY IN ORDER TO PROPERLY FLASH/REFLASH YOUR BIOS… FAILURE TO HAVE THE CORRECT FILES COULD END UP PERMANENTLY RUINING YOUR BIOS CHIP!!!!!

next i went to http://www.biosflash.de/e/bios-boot-cd.htm#Download and and followed the directions exactly as they are on the page… ((dont give up if you dont get it the first time… it took me quite a few times before i finally got it))

the file you extract from the bios update file from the hp site will be with a *.ROM extension… you want to keep this extension do not change it {for example the specific one for my friends computer was 317.rom} so on the page where it shows a picture of what files you need… the one that says W6701MLN.11H is actually an example of a bios file… so you will substitute this file for your own actual bios file….

MAKE SURE TO FOLLOW THE DIRECTIONS CAREFULLY!! AND I CAN SAY THIS ENOUGH TIMES …. PLEASE MAKE SURE YOU HAVE THE CORRECT BIOS FILE (INCLUDING THE CORRECT VERSION) FOR YOU SPECIFIC COMPUTER AND MOTHERBOARD AS WELL AS THE CORRECT FLASHING UTILITY…. THIS IS ONLY AN EXAMPLE OF HOW I FIXED MY FRIENDS COMPUTER AND IN NO WAY SHOULD BE TAKEN AS A DEFINATE WAY OF HOW TO FIX ANYONE ELSES BIOS PROBLEMS…

hopefully this can help some of you out there that have been looking for answers… if you have questions please feel free to send me a message or you can post it here.. i will try to look in on this every now and then

Thanks,
shawnav

Hi, well done on getting it fixed Also many thanks for posting the exact details of what you did, Anyone with an identical machine with the same problem who comes across this topic will be grateful to you and appleoddity. appleoddity is tied up right now, but he will be delighted to hear that you have got it up and running Ok Regards paws