Re: P4S8x-x and BIOS 1005.001 beta

Dont trust ASUS update.

Seen too many posts on systems dying completely
using the Windows based update.

Using EZ-flash,

On loading the file system.rom, it says
**WARNING* lol

It showed P4S8x-x, BUT not P4S8x-x boot block
like it shows in the mobo manual.

So, I decided to flash it anyway, and it killed
it. So, luckily this mobo has Crashfree BIOS 2.

I had to put the mobo cd in, it booted, it brought
up a message saying the BIOS was corrupted, and
it re-flashed the BIOS back to 1002 beta 1 BIOS.

(default version on the mobo CD).

I have a feeling this 1005.001 file hasnt been
fully coded/written. As 1004 and 1003 are 256k

This 1005.001 file is ONLY 128k.

And both 1003 and 1004 end with AWD.

1005 is just called SYSTEM.ROM.

And if u extract this 1005 file, it creates a folder
with 1005 in it (256k) and when u extract this
1005 file (if u dont extract it within Powerarchiver, which
I use here), - You right mouse on this file/extract.

It says "Please open first volume of this spanned set".

I've never seen this before with BIOS 1003 or 1004.

So, it looks like ASUS created 1005.001, spanned
the zip file for some reason, and left 1/2 the code out,
(since its only 128k the other BIOS'es are 256k),
and forgot to join them together.

Umm yer well the USB drive must have been trying to do something. (As it
looks like it was booting from the USB drive)

Because it didnt boot into XP, it didnt show the XP
logo, it only brought up the screen where it lists the devices and stopped!

So, I think this 1005.001 is screwed, it is for this mobo, but its not all
there, and 1/2 the code for it is missing








"Paul" <nospam@xxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:nospam-2108050746330001@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> In article <de8sgp$5s0$1@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>, "Paul" <noone@xxxxxxxxxxx>
> wrote:
>
>> Ah its got Aflash on the ASUS site
>> for the P4S8x-x not AFUDOS
>>
>> I have 2.21 of Aflash here.
>>
>> Yup, I'm sure I've got the right flashing program
>> AFUDOS isnt listed on the same page as the BIOS
>> update for the P4S8x-x.
>>
>> Umm yup I backed up the 1004 file, no prob
>> at all without any messages. I didnt reflash the
>> same BIOS again tho.
>>
>> I was going to try it, because in the FAQ
>> for this mobo, it states it can boot from a USB
>> drive / pen thing. I've got a Jetflash USB here.
>>
>> I tried booting from it, on the P4S8x-x, BUT
>> it came to a halt after it listed the devices in the system
>> (hdd/ram/cd etc). The BIOS shows USB HDD, and Zip.
>>
>> BUT the ASUS FAQ says it should should show either hhd or Zip, then Jet /
>> or
>> whatever the USB pen / drive is. after it in the BIOS.
>>
>> BUT it doesnt on this one here. The USB drive
>> does work tho, coz it boots from it on the PC
>> I'm using now (P4P800 - non deluxe) np at all.
>>
>> I'll see what version is on the mobo CD and see what that
>> says.
>>
>> Cheers for the info Paul!
>
> Sorry for confusing you there. I was just commenting on
> the AFUDOS program used for some other boards. One particular
> version of that program is better than some of the later
> ones, as less checking is done before the BIOS is flashed.
>
> You have three flashing options (EZflash, Aflash, Asus Update,
> in the BIOS, in DOS, and in Windows respectively), and
> if the first one doesn't work, try another.
>
> Also, have a look at the archived file with a hex editor,
> and see if the right name strings are in there, like
> Asus of course, and P4S8X-X. Compare to the beta file,
> and see if the structures are roughly aligned. The
> separate BIOS modules start at the beginning of the
> file and "-lh5-" is at the beginning of each one. The
> name of the BIOS module occurs soon after, like "System.ROM".
>
> Eventually, you get to the end of those modules, and you find
> stuff like the boot block, DMI, ESCD, and other static stuff.
> My BIOS extraction tools take no notice of them, so I have no
> way of examining them, and don't know anything about their
> format. There are likely multiple checksums involved, as well
> as name strings declaring the motherboard name and the like
> sprinkled about. I've never seen a single document that
> describes it all - Asus seems to mess about, slightly
> customizing things, as when I've tried to mod a BIOS, the
> modding tool shows some garbage numbers on the screen,
> implying the format is not exactly as AMI/Award set it up.
>
> As for booting from USB, there are many recipes afloat on
> the web. Some of the recipes mention a utility from HP, and
> in fact the HP site has multiple download pages, presumably
> with different versions of their formatter program. Based on
> the response you are seeing, do you think the BIOS is
> trying to read the USB pen drive ? Maybe you just need to
> prep the pen drive a little differently.
>
> Paul


.

Relevant Pages

  • Re: Suggestions for a good AM2+ mobo?
    ... Firstly it was supplied with a PSU ... updated the BIOS and it seemed ... yesterday he rang me and asked about a replacement mobo. ... I like Asus ...
    (alt.comp.periphs.mainboard.asus)
  • Re: Casper XP
    ... ASUS P4B266C. ... I'll download the ASUS mobo manual ... >> this would give me access to BIOS settings but it didn't. ...
    (microsoft.public.windowsxp.general)
  • Re: Suggestions for a good AM2+ mobo?
    ... yesterday he rang me and asked about a replacement mobo. ... vcore all the way in BIOS, ... I bought the Asus M3N32-SLI Premium Vista Edition Mobo nearly a year ago and ran through four mobos before getting one to POST. ... Of course, guessing what was causing problems led me to BIOS, OS, nVidia, Asus, until I finally got it working good. ...
    (alt.comp.periphs.mainboard.asus)
  • Re: I upgraded My CPU
    ... With ASUS motherboards you should also check their user boards to see if anyone else has reported similar problems with that combination of mobo and processor. ... Alas, while ASUS makes generally high quality motherboards, there can be inexplicable glitches between certain processors and certain mobos that should be compatible and BIOS fixes do not correct. ... If the settings are all correct and you cannot boot stably with one videocard try upgrading/reinstalling the motherboard drivers. ...
    (microsoft.public.windows.vista.general)
  • Re: P4S8x-x and BIOS 1005.001 beta
    ... > Ah its got Aflash on the ASUS site ... > for the P4S8x-x not AFUDOS ... > AFUDOS isnt listed on the same page as the BIOS ... I've got a Jetflash USB here. ...
    (alt.comp.periphs.mainboard.asus)