BIOS Settings Not Saving

[fightcancer]

First, what's the practical difference between CMOS and BIOS?

Second, every time I turn off my PC my BIOS resets to default settings. It's always been this way ever since I got this mobo. Is it the battery? If so, will a batter from the same mobo manufacturer replace the dead one in my existing mobo?

TIA!

 

[fightcancer]

can anyone help me please?

 

[pibb]

Bios are the settings, Cmos and bios is usally referred to as the same thing though. You however also have a CMOS battery which is probley the source of your problem so i'd look into that if it were me.

 

[Ronin]

Originally posted by: pibb
Bios are the settings, Cmos and bios is usally referred to as the same thing though. You however also have a CMOS battery which is probley the source of your problem so i'd look into that if it were me.

That'd be my suggestion.

 

[NuroMancer]

Originally posted by: pibb
Bios are the settings, Cmos and bios is usally referred to as the same thing though. You however also have a CMOS battery which is probley the source of your problem so i'd look into that if it were me.

To clarify,
the CMOS is what holds the settings that you set in your bios and why the time is right even after you unplug the system.

BIOS stands for Basic Input Output System.

My advice is the same, go to your local electronics store or camera store, bring the battery with you, and get a new one.

 

[imported_Kensai]

Get a new CMOS battery.

 

[fightcancer]

Thanks for the help. if I have extra mobos here, can I use their batteries, or are the batteries usually mobo specific? for example, my current mobo is an Abit. can I use another Abit mobo battery?

TIA,

 

[NuroMancer]

If you take the battery off the mobo, you will see a number like
2065.

Take that number and match it to a battery on a different mobo. If the # match ur set. If not your buying a new one!

 

[fightcancer]

Thanks a lot for the tips!

 

[Ronin]

They all pretty much use the same battery, though (CR2025, I believe), so you'll likely not have to search too hard to find one.

 

[fightcancer]

Mine's says:

Panasonic
CR2032
3V

 

[crimson117]

Just buy a new one at radio shack. Should cost around $5.

 

[Varun]

Originally posted by: fightcancer
First, what's the practical difference between CMOS and BIOS?

Since your real question was answered here, I'll answer the question you didn't mean to ask.

CMOS stands for Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor. These Semiconductors make up the transistors in your BIOS, as well as all the other transistors in your computer. The other type of transistor is the NPN or PNP which is a bipolar transistor, rather than the Field Effect Transistor (FET) used in computers.

Bipolar Junction Transistors (BJT) are current switching devices, where as the Field Effect Transistors are voltage switching devices.

It gets pretty complicated, however the complementary part of the CMOS, is actually two FETs, and NMOS, and a PMOS, and these work pretty much opposite. Since only one can be on at a time, and the DC leakage current is almost zero, a CMOS transistor has power consumption that is much much lower than a BJT.

So, to answer your question after a bit of background, the BIOS is a programable chip made up of CMOS transistors.

 

[fightcancer]

uh... thanks Varun.

 

[wpshooter]

Originally posted by: Ronin
They all pretty much use the same battery, though (CR2025, I believe), so you'll likely not have to search too hard to find one.

That sort of depends on how old the motherboard might be.

Some of the older motherboards did not use the same coin/slot type batteries that modern motherboards use.

To be on the safe side, make sure you do a search to find the correct battery for that particular motherboard - how do you know that someone may have not placed the incorrect battery in there to start with and that is the source of some of your problems - and if you just place the exact kind of battery in there you might still wind up with problems. I have even found the batteries placed in motherboards upside down !!!

Remember this little battery is one of the starting key components of your system -get it correct.

Good luck

 

[xgsound]

If your bios was keeping the time correctly when the computer is off the battery is probably OK.

What motherboard is this? Most mobos have a jumper marked "clear" which resets many changable bios areas when turned on. It should then be put in the operate or program position. Check to see if the jumper has been in the clear position all along.

I assume you are selecting "exit and save changes" after you change the settings or they wouldn't take affect at all.

I'm just trying to cover all possibilities.


Jim