Bios update is too large for floppy disk

Tweakfiend

OSNN Senior Addict
Joined
6 Jan 2004
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340
Hi
I wonder if anyone can help
I have processed many bios updates by booting from floppy.
However the latest update using Vista for the IP35 Pro Board from Abit is over 1mb, after extraction , ( for all 5 files ) so together with the files need to "create an MS Dos startup disk" ....pushes the size to 220 kb over the floppy limit.
On my previous Abit board the "bin" file update itself was 525Kb, on this one its 1.09Mb !
Ive tried unsuccessfully to boot these files from Zip and CD to get to "runme" access to activate the bios update.
No help on the Abit website.

Any help would earn rep points.
Thanks
 
Hi,

I am not sure whether you have tried it or not, but flashing from within Windows is increasingly popular.

Abit have a tool too;
http://www.abit-usa.com/downloads/bios/flashmenu.php

Obviously use at your own risk, but if the files do not fit onto a Floppy Disc, and you can't get a bootable CD to work, what other options are there...?

Hope it helps!
 
Abit provide this and then warn people that its not 100% safe !
But I might bite the bullet if no other option !
Thanks
 
Abit provide this and then warn people that its not 100% safe !

They have to cover themselves though, flashing the bios isn't 100% safe in any respect. It's becoming more common place, although power users feel at home with it i suspect flashing in Windows is marginally less safe than via Floppy as there are more variables.

However, if you keep your system clean/virus free and running smooth i would of thought it would be ok. However, if you suffer freezes etc then i wouldn't bother!

I've done Windows flashes before now, and the only ever time i messed up a board was flashing through a Floppy! But luckily it was a 'Dual Bios' jobby so it wasn't trashed.

Post back if you do, or if you find a way.
 
use nero, create bootable cd, use nerodos image, then add your update to that
 
Sorry... never liked Nero always used Easy Media Creator, but theres probably an option there.
Anyway the Abit Windows Flash Menu update worked.... no pain no gain !
Now the bios is 16/03/08 and has major updates.
On rebooting the system .....lost the graphics driver and the Monitor driver somehow.
Though with Nvidia graphics thats not completely unexpected .
 
I'd just flash it from Windows if I were you. I've not flashed from a floppy since about 2003. It's pretty common to do it through Windows now.

There are still potential problems from any sort of BIOS flash, floppy or otherwise, so motherboard manufacturers are naturally cagey about the whole thing, but in reality you should be fine. Good luck!

EDIT: Oh sorry, I just saw your last post!! D'oh!!
 
I dislike manufacturers that don't provide a way to flash from floppies anymore. I don't run Windows on most of my machines, and having to flash a BIOS from Windows is just asking for trouble.

Give me the file I need, and a flasher that runs from DOS, and let my DR-DOS floppy do the rest.
 
Abit still does and it will fit on a floppy.

Not sure what the OP downloaded but the files I found for the IP35 Pro were only slightly over 1 MB after extraction. The only files needed for the flash were the awdflash.exe and the bin file so you really would not need to put the other files on the disk.

If you wanted to use all five files you could have made a bootable floppy then made another floppy with your five files on it.

Boot from the floppy with the system files on it and when you get to the A: prompt insert the other floppy and type runme.bat

Bios
 
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After thought
As a result of going from 40% overclock back to default setting after UPDATING THE BIOS /resetting the CMOS ,the Q6600 processor seems locked into an overheating situation showing 45 to 55 C from boot up rather than 19c
Possible the petroleum based heat sink pad has melted / stuck to the processor.. have had that happen once b4.....will check later today.
 
might be a temp reporting bug with the new bios. are you actually getting crashes or instability? is the heatsink hot or not?

and, for the record, i trust flashing through windows more than i do floppy. in windows, i usually close all background pograms and processes possible and disable the ethernet adapter for that extra margin of safety. floppies are just too old and fragile a medium to be trusted, imo.
 
might be a temp reporting bug with the new bios. are you actually getting crashes or instability? is the heatsink hot or not?

and, for the record, i trust flashing through windows more than i do floppy. in windows, i usually close all background pograms and processes possible and disable the ethernet adapter for that extra margin of safety. floppies are just too old and fragile a medium to be trusted, imo.

Youve made me think.
THe problem with the CPU temperature started when the setting change from 3000Mhz overclock to 2448 Mhz standard wth the bios upgrade/cmos reset.
Also the graphics and screen lost drivers on reboot.
I think I might try reverting the bios back to the last bin file from Set 2007
 
Good call Taurus
Crap bios update... faulty CPU reporting.
Basic testing on the part of Abit should eliminate such an error .
 
If the board is working fine and the BIOS in question is only for some minuscule tweak and no big update is referenced as to the BIOS then there is no need to do the BIOS update, never a hitch or problem. My Asus board has a utility for doing the update while in Windows. It connects to the Asus site finds the newest BIOS file for my board and downloads it. Then it flashes it and done. I have done 4 over the last 3 years. Mainly due to new CPU compatibility and other compatibility updates for other hardware items. Otherwise it has always done fine. KC remembers one BIOS update I had to do as to a compatibility issue. Oh I hated that one. So, if it isn't broke don't try to break it. Tweaking as to overclocking is an entirely different thing than flashing a BIOS. You can always turn everything back if you over clock/tweak. But a corrupt BIOS is a bad bad thing.
 
If the board is working fine and the BIOS in question is only for some minuscule tweak and no big update is referenced as to the BIOS then there is no need to do the BIOS update. My Asus board has a utility for doing the update while in Windows. I have done 4 over the last 3 years. Mainly due to new CPU compatibility and other compatibility updates for other hardware items. Otherwise it has always done fine. KC remembers one BIOS update I had to do as to a compatibility issue. If it isn't broke don't try to break it. Tweaking as to overclocking is an entirely different thing than a BIOS thing. You can always turn everything back if you over clock/tweak. But a corrupt BIOS is a bad bad thing.

This was a main Bios update.. thats why I tried it.
Have been doing them for 10 years
Same as you..... I dont introduce minor updates
 
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1) Most versions of DOS boot floppies can create a RAM disk from main memory. Install some of the files there to free up room on the bios data file disk. This is what the latter DOS boot floppies did to get extra space.

2) Install the bios data file on your C: drive root. Create a small FAT partition to hold the file if you can't read the C: from DOS.

3) There are USB installs for DOS on thumb drives if the MB supports boot from USB.

4) Flash from Windows, it seems to work fine these days, at least on XP.

Are you sure you got the right Bios file? I can't beleive ABIT made that big of a mistake. Though Plextor did once on a DVD firmware.
 

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