I think my motherboard is dead

[Cheex]

I have an ASRock 775Dual-VSTA.

This morning I was flashing the BIOS to the new 1.80 version.
While doing so, the computer shut off.
Now it won't even POST. HDD LED comes on but nothing happens.
Nothing!!

Is my motherboard dead?

 

[phile]

I'm not at all familiar with your board, but have you tried resetting the CMOS? I'm sure your manual will explain the proper procedure for doing so.

-phil

 

[Cheex]

Nope i haven't tried that but does that work to help maybe like "reset" the BIOS?
When you flash the BIOS, it erases the old one and then writes a new one.
It had completed the erase and had started to rewrite it.

 

[phile]

Yes, clearing the CMOS will reset the BIOS to factory settings. It's not entirely clear to me if your flash finished before the system powered-off, or if it was still in the process of writing. Hopefully, it finished. Anyway, try the CMOS reset and see what happens.

-phil

 

[Cheex]

It didn't finish.
During the process of rewriting the BIOS the system powered-off.
So...will clearing CMOS reset/rewrite the BIOS to its original factory settings?

 

[phile]

I don't think it will repair a corrupt or incomplete BIOS. You're going to have to try it and see what happens.

-phil

 

[DJMiX]

your going to have to get your existing chip re programmed or purchase a new chip..

 

[Cheex]

I cleared the CMOS and still nothing. I guess it is now clear that the BIOS flash didn't complete.
What now? Is it dead, gone, kaput??

 

[Cheex]

Originally posted by: DJMiX
your going to have to get your existing chip re programmed or purchase a new chip..

How do i go about doing that?
EPROM?

 

[phile]

As DJMiX has stated, it would appear that your BIOS chip is toast. Contact ASRock and have them ship you a new BIOS chip. Do you have any idea why the the machine shutdown during the flash? You may have another problem that needs to be addressed.

-phil

 

[Cheex]

possibly the overclock...
i remember reading somewhere that you should flash your bios at your cpu's stock speed to ensure stability during the process...
i remembered that after the fact...

 

[phile]

Originally posted by: Cheex
possibly the overclock...
i remember reading somewhere that you should flash your bios at your cpu's stock speed to ensure stability during the process...
i remembered that after the fact...

I've never heard of that being a problem., but anything's possible. Once you're back up and running, set everything to stock and do some stress testing, just to make sure none of your components are faulty.

Test your mem with memtest. Burn the ISO to CD and boot with it. Let it run overnight.
http://memtest.org

Stress your system with Orthos Stress Prime. Run the blended test for a few hours, minimum.
http://sp2004.fre3.com/beta/beta2.htm

Make sure to keep an eye on your temps while stress testing.

-phil

 

[Cheex]

....IF i need to buy a new mobo (i just bought this one ) what are your thoughts on the ASUS P5NSLI.

 

[phile]

Originally posted by: Cheex
....IF i need to buy a new mobo (i just bought this one ) what are your thoughts on the ASUS P5NSLI.

Your mobo will likely work just fine with a new BIOS chip. You can always RMA the entire mobo with ASRock, in any case. I don't know anything about the P5NSLI, so I can't be of any service on that.

-phil

 

[Cheex]

Where can i order a new bios chip from?

 

[phile]

Originally posted by: Cheex
Where can i order a new bios chip from?

Call ASRock tech support. If they're good about it, they won't even charge you.

-phil

 

[Cheex]

I live in Jamaica. I ordered the board from Newegg though and had it shipped out with a local courier.
What then?

 

[phile]

It doesn't matter where you bought it, your board is covered by ASRock's warranty. Just call them and have your mobo's serial number (should be on a sticker found on the original box) ready for them.

-phil

 

[CRSTech06]

Cheex, do you have another computer you can use to test your power supply and maybe the processor? I think when you are burning a new program the bios is not even active (in the sense of controlling parameters), it seems very unusual that the bios itself would shut off the computer in the middle of being updated.

 

[Cheex]

Originally posted by: CRSTech06
Cheex, do you have another computer you can use to test your power supply and maybe the processor? I think when you are burning a new program the bios is not even active (in the sense of controlling parameters), it seems very unusual that the bios itself would shut off the computer in the middle of being updated.

No I don't have another to test them on but i'm now on my dad's computer. He has my previous system (Socket A...lol).
I got my PSU the day before this happened and i gamed on it quite fine so i don't think that's the problem.

I don't have a UPS so I understand that if i had a power cut during the process i would be screwed but to have it just shut itself off...damn. That just sucks and i'm broke now which sucks even more.

What do i do?

 

[Cheex]

Could it be anything else that's causing the problem? Aside from the BIOS?
If so, what could it be and how do I fix it?

 

[CRSTech06]

Cheex:

any component can fail at any time, even new power supplies. If you check Newegg user comments on different power supplies some people have complained that their power supplies literally smoked shortly after turning them on. (Cheap brands)

The power supply for your Socket A system should work with the 775Dual-Vsta, as long as it has the 4-pin power connector (2 yellow, two black leads). The power supply I'm using on my ASRock is the same I used on my old Socket A motherboard (Asus A7V).
You can also try putting your new power supply in your old system. (There an extremely small risk that a bad power supply can damage the motherboard but that would be extremely unlikely if you bought a good brand power supply).

What I would try next, before even switching power supplies, is to remove every single card from your motherboard, including the video card and ram, and unplug all the drives. (Make sure power cord is unplugged whenever you remove or install components).
Then try to turn the computer on to see if the fans turn with everything unplugged. If the motherboard is still dead plug in the ram and try again.
If still dead I think I would try swapping power supplies next.

 

[Cheex]

Hmm...when i turn the power on...all my LED fans run, the hard drive and my 2 optical drives.
I don't think its the power.

Do i still need to do what you said?

 

[phile]

Before you do anything, you have to get a new BIOS chip. I thought that was clear. Until then, nothing you do will help matters. I don't mean to be harsh, but why are you acting helpless when you know exactly what you need to do, first?

-phil

 

[winr]

Maybe this will help.


http://www.biosman.com/biosrecovery.html


....and...

I have done what "Thorpiedo" wrote on several mobo's before.


I copied this from "forums.whirlpool.net"

Credit to "Thorpiedo"

***********************************************************************
Thorpiedo writes...
There are basically three steps involved in fixing the BIOS:
1. Get a floppy, make it bootable
2. Download the correct BIOS and flash utility.
3. Write an autoexec.bat file that automatically flashes the BIOS without user intervention (there are many examples of this on the net - I could find one for you).
************************************************************************