BIOS/CPU conundrum

[Giraffe]

Just ordered, today, me new bits. Very impressed with the chap at Scan (decided to use Scan as 'the devil I know' and could get everything in one go) as he mentioned a possible impasse with CPU and mobo:
the mobo is a Gigabyte Z97 with a Broadwell CPU (i5 5675C). Seems that the board won't POST until it sees the CPU but the BIOS can't be updated until it'll POST!
Now, the latest BIOS is F9, which I have downloaded, and Gigabyte's site says that F8 supports 5th. generation, so I should be OK.
Somewhere I (very) dimly remember seeing something about it being possible to flash the BIOS nowadays without POST - is this so and, if it is, I'd appreciate a link.

Thanks,

Peter.

[kalniel]

Does your board have Q-Flash Plus (cf standard Q-Flash)? If so, you just download a file to a USB drive. If you go to the gigabyte site you should find your motherboard and see if it's in the support & downloads section.

Here's a vid for the X99 motherboard which does have it:

[MrJim]

Some Gigabyte motherboards apparently support a system called "Q-Flash Plus", which allows the BIOS to be updated from a USB stick without a CPU or RAM installed: http://www.gigabyte.in/MicroSite/372/images/safe.html

If your motherboard supports Q-Flash Plus, you're in luck; if not, you'll need to borrow or somehow acquire a compatible CPU in order to update the BIOS to support the Broadwell CPU.

Edit!

Kalniel beat me to it!

[Giraffe]

Thank you both. The board (GA-Z97-D3H) does have Q-Flash, but it doesn't mention "Plus" so I shall have to see what happens.
v F9 was released mid-September, so possibly too recent for it to have made its way through the chain. F9 says:
"Better system compatibility for Intel® 5th Generation Core™ Processors".

v F8 was released in April, so I hope that is here, at least. F8 says:
"Supports Intel® 5th Generation Core™ Processor".

With luck that'll do it.

[Giraffe]

Well, the 'plan' failed. The board is Rev. 1.1 (current is 1.2), so the BIOS is pre-F8 April for that, so rather old); also no Q-Flash Plus socket.
Things move on Power ON but no POST.
Please, could anyone lend me a Haswell (or something supported) CPU for a day or so, then I can flash the BIOS? The list is here:
http://uk.gigabyte.com/support-downl....aspx?pid=5359

Obviously all costs met.

Thanks.