Question BIOS flash failure?

BoomerD

No Lifer
Feb 26, 2006
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Doing some work on my pc, (MSI Z690 Tomahawk WiFi DDR4) and thought it would be a good time to update the BIOS in hopes that MIGHT fix some of the gremlins that have been plaguing me for a while. (Intel wifi, audio)
When I did this originally so the board would support the 13th gen cpu, the whole process took about 5 minutes...which is what MSI says it SHOULD take, I'm almost 30 minutes into it...the red light for the flash procedure is still flashing.
I called MSI tech support...the guy agrees, it SHOULD only take 5 minures, but COULD take as much as 45 minutes. (bullsh*t)
I'm gonna have to try to re-flash the previous BIOS...and HOPE I haven't bricked the board.

Before I do...any suggestions?
 
Jul 27, 2020
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How many minutes is it now? Might as well wait an hour before you do anything.

Maybe the file didn't get downloaded properly or got a few bits corrupted and the update procedure is running in circles, trying to figure out what to do next.
 

BoomerD

No Lifer
Feb 26, 2006
62,681
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I've tried it twice...even re-downloaded the BIOS file...nothing works.
Fortunately, the previous BIO is still intact and working.

Working on updating the BIOS via the "M-Flash" utility in the BIOS. Looks to be working...fingers crossed.

Edit...<phew> That did it...now back to work.
 
Last edited:

tcsenter

Lifer
Sep 7, 2001
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How's the wifey's computer coming along, did you ever complete it? We are so invested in it now.....
 

Tech Junky

Diamond Member
Jan 27, 2022
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BIOS via the "M-Flash"
Sometimes the online live update option provides the better experience vs USB. I think some OEMs have different files being pushed via each method in some cases. My ASR board has the option to do either flash method as well. However it's easier for me to use USB since I have the board setup as a server w/ a quad NIC connected as the WAN and would need to move cable around for the online flash method. There seems to be some issues with updates as this is the 2nd thread today I've seen. The other one though was a different model number issue.
 

BoomerD

No Lifer
Feb 26, 2006
62,681
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How's the wifey's computer coming along, did you ever complete it? We are so invested in it now.....
LOL, no, she gets pissed at me every time I mess with it...I still want to upgrade it to an SSD, but no hurry.
Sometimes the online live update option provides the better experience vs USB. I think some OEMs have different files being pushed via each method in some cases. My ASR board has the option to do either flash method as well. However it's easier for me to use USB since I have the board setup as a server w/ a quad NIC connected as the WAN and would need to move cable around for the online flash method. There seems to be some issues with updates as this is the 2nd thread today I've seen. The other one though was a different model number issue.
I still had to download the BIOS files to an USB drive in order to use the M-Flash...but instead of "blindly" updating it, I was able to watch it process.
 
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Jul 27, 2020
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LOL, no, she gets pissed at me every time I mess with it...I still want to upgrade it to an SSD, but no hurry.
Run the Speedfan HDDstatus on it to see what shape the HDD is in. If it shows there are increasing disk surface errors, you may want to upgrade it without further delay.
 

BoomerD

No Lifer
Feb 26, 2006
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Run the Speedfan HDDstatus on it to see what shape the HDD is in. If it shows there are increasing disk surface errors, you may want to upgrade it without further delay.
Looks good...it's just fckn SLOW.

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Last edited:
Jul 27, 2020
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Looks good...it's just fckn SLOW.
How old is that hard drive? Looks to be in remarkably good condition, considering the power on hours count is a staggering 69000+ when converting from Hex to Dec. The write head is EOL but surprisingly, nothing else suggests that the HDD is degrading.
 

BoomerD

No Lifer
Feb 26, 2006
62,681
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How old is that hard drive? Looks to be in remarkably good condition, considering the power on hours count is a staggering 69000+ when converting from Hex to Dec. The write head is EOL but surprisingly, nothing else suggests that the HDD is degrading.
Maybe 2014.
 
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