Updating the BIOS

[watforddude]

I have run into the problem of buying a 4770 and finding out i have a x16 slot which runs in x4, i have read into this and apparantly sometimes updating the BIOS can enable it to run at x16 (makes it supportive)

but i have absolutely no idea how to do it, from what i have researched into it seems quite hard, and if you bugger it up its Game Over, i assume a lot of people have had to do it on here and will be able to give me instructions on how to do it correctly. or if there is any point in doing it at all

this computer has never had a BIOS update.

Cheers

Tom

[peterb]

Go to your mobo mfrs website and follow the instructions there.

Reflashing the bios is one of the riskier things you can do - so follow the instructions to the letter - some mobo mfrs offer a windows utility - personally I'd stay cleqar of that option, they have been known to be unreliable. If you have a UPS, plugging the compute into that is useful if you have any worries about power going off during the reflash. Others have a reflash utility built into the borad's firmware, others require you to prepare bootable media and load a flash utility onto that. (CD, floppy or USB)

As to whether it is worth it - again the mfr's site should tell you what particular bugs and additional facilities each revision provides.

[scaryjim]

I'd be amazed if that was true - if the PCIe slot runs at x4 it's likely to be physically hardwired as an x4 and no amount of BIOS updates is going to solve that!

If you want to try though - go to the manufacturer's website and find the pages for your motherboard. They should provide the latest BIOS file and also instructions and tools for how to update the BIOS (if you don't have the mobo manual you may be able to download that which will tell you).

[pipTheGeek]

If you post your actual motherboard model, we might be able to give you some more specific advice. I tend to agree with scaryjim though, if the slot is wired as a 4x then that is all it will ever be.
Being in a 4x slot will hamper your graphics card. But you can buy the card now, then have the new system feeling all over again when you get a new mobo and maybe CPU.

[watforddude]

I'm pretty sure this is it.

http://www.msicomputer.com/product/p...odel=945GZM3-L

and any cheep and cheerful mobos about that can do the job.

[GoNz0]

unless you find a bios that says it enables 16x i wouldnt bother.

i cant see it being the case anyway.

[watforddude]

I doubt it, just thought id double check, its less risk and hasel to just buy a new mobo.