memory in bios?

I have had several problems loading xp. When windows requries reboot during installation it seems to get in a fix going through the rebooting process again and again the only cure is to turn off pc disconect power and reboot several hours later this problem also ocured after installation when booting to windows proper for the first time.Is this caused by bios memory? Also can bios degrade or corupt where can I download upgraded award bios for free as the motherboard do'es not warrant any expense. Thanks

 

At what point during the installation (which is apparently what you meant by "loading xp") of Win XP does the system begin rebooting? If it's very early on, immediately after you see the names of a bunch of drivers that are being copied to the hard drive, you may be having a reboot caused by the use of a USB keyboard during installation. If that's the case, try to borrow a PS/2 keyboard just until you're able to complete the installation properly. After that you should be fine using a USB keyboard. (Actually, even after that you may, very occasionally, see the computer halt before booting windows with an error message saying "No keyboard present". But if this occurs, typically you can shut down the system, turn off the power completely -- i.e. flip the power supply rocker switch on the back of the computer or if it doesn't have one of those, then unplug it from the wall. After 10 or 12 seconds, turn the power supply back on (or plug the computer back into the wall socket/surge protector/UPS or whatever) and push the start button. And if that doesn't do it, then check to make sure the USB keyboard plug into the computer hasn't wiggled loose.

USB keyboards often don't work well during an installation of WinXP, but are fine to use once the installation is complete and running well.

As far as your BIOS, if you're pretty sure it's the source of your problem, you can either attempt to reset it or upgrade to a later version. Resetting the BIOS typically requires removing the CMOS battery and changing the position of a "jumper" on the motherboard. Usually after a few minutes you can move the jumper back to the original position and insert the CMOS battery back into its motherboard socket and the CMOS should have been reset to conservative "fail safe" default settings which you can then tweak if necessary to turn on additional motherboard features, enable overclocking or whatever. Usually you'll have to enter the BIOS to at least set the correct time and date as the hardware clock is contained in the CMOS/BIOS chip and needs battery power to keep running accurately.

If you wish to update your BIOS to a later version you should go to your motherboard manufacturer's website and look for instructions for updating your motherboard's BIOS. Make sure you correctly identify the right BIOS for your make, model and revision of motherboard as attempting to update to the wrong BIOS can cause serious problems, including making your computer unbootable.

So be sure you have complete and clear instructions for your particular motherboard about how to update it's BIOS and that you carefully identify a correct, compatible BIOS to download from the motherboard manufacturer's website. Read the BIOS update instructions over carefully and be sure you understand them before you begin the update process. Many motherboard manufacturer's now have special BIOS update software you can download which can make the whole process much easier.

Even then, updating your BIOS is not something to be done lightly. Little things can cause you big problems. If your computer isn't plugged into a "UPS" -- uninterruptable power supply -- and the power goes off in the middle of a BIOS update (or if the power plug just happens to fall out of the wall socket for example) your computer may become unbootable.

Your motherboard manual should have instructions for both 1) resetting the BIOS and 2) updating the BIOS. If you don't have a manual for it, you should be able to download one from the manufacturer's website. Again, make sure you get the manual for your specific model and revision of motherboard.

Even if you have a printed manual, I'd recommend checking the company's website just to check to see if there are better or more complete instructions, especially for updating your BIOS as they may have free update software available (I mean a utility that will do most of the work for you -- software that will check to see which version of which model motherboard you have, and download and install the correct BIOS update for you while just prompting you to click a few buttons onscreen, and telling you when to reboot as necessary for example).

There are lots of versions of the Award BIOS. Many motherboard companies license their BIOS'es from Award but modify them to support special additional features on their motherboards. You really should get one specifically designed for your make, model and revision of motherboard from the motherboard manufacturer.

Are you seeing any error codes at all that might help us figure out more exactly what's going wrong? If you can post that info here, we may be better able to advise you about the best course of action to take.

But if you carefully follow the directions for your motherboard, resetting the CMOS/BIOS is a pretty safe procedure, usually. I'd attempt that before trying to update your BIOS, especially if you've never done that before.

But be aware, once you reset your BIOS you may have to tweak some of the BIOS settings to get your system operating as smoothly and fast as it should. At the very least, you'll likely have to reset the hardware clock and calendar as I mentioned earlier, and you may have to make some other BIOS adjustments also.

But give us some error messages/codes if you're seeing any when these problems occur and we may be able to suggest a better way to proceed.

 

Thanks for the reply Eezak have cleared cmos useing jumper and removeing battery. Motherboards abit b6 2 pentium 3 750 so as you can see a bit old in the tooth hardly worth the thought but you know what battles with computers are I don't like to give up It's a later copy of xp with service pack 2 I have been installing to help with larger drive recognition but I can still only see 137 out of 250gb. I think perhaps the motherboards just not up to it. The other thing thats had me rubbing my head is I must have made 3 to 4 computers for my children and myself between 2000 and 2004 mostly abit m/bs both pentium amd amd. Now I think 3 out of 4 don't boot from cold first time they have to be run for a minuate then disconect power reconect then they boot fine. Have you come across this before? :confused

 

Did resetting your CMOS fix the problem with that computer? (By the way, software from your motherboard manufacturer to handle BIOS updates, if available, as well as any BIOS updates themselves, shouldn't cost you anything. I didn't think to mention that in my earlier post.)

I've heard of similar if not the same problem you describe, but don't know what might be causing it. Have these computer been shut down for a long time (many months) or are they quite old? The only thing that occurs to me is that the CMOS batteries might have lost their charge and thus your CMOS/BIOS wouldn't be functional when you first turn them on. Leaving them on for a few minutes might, I suppose, result in a CMOS reset and then the batteries hold charge long enough to allow you to shut down, reboot and everything's fine. In other words, the batteries may have gone dead over time, but will hold a charge for a short time, maybe even a few hours or days. Typically a good CMOS battery will hold a charge and preserve the BIOS information in the CMOS chip correctly preserved even if a computer is shut off for some months. When the computer is turned on the CMOS battery recharges. Usually a CMOS battery has a good life of 5 to 7 years before needing to be replaced because it can no longer hold a charge reliably. They only cost a few dollars to replace (at least here in the US), but from what you've said I'm doubtful that defective CMOS batteries are at the root of the problem you're describing.

Give us some more specific info about how many computers, with which model and make of motherboards you're having exactly what problems with and whether or not resetting your CMOS on one computer (I guess it was just one) resulted in any improvement.

If you're having somewhat different problems with several computers it may be best to start different threads for each. On the other hand, if the problems are the same or similar on similar computers/motherboards, you may as well keep posting in this one thread.

Give us more info please.