- What the BIOS Is and What It Does
- When a BIOS Update Is Necessary
- How BIOS Updates Are Performed
- Where BIOS Updates Come From
- Precautions to Take Before Updating a BIOS
- How to Recover from a Failed BIOS Update Procedure
- Plug-and-Play BIOS
- Other BIOS Troubleshooting Tips
- Soft BIOS CPU Speed and Multiplier Settings
- Determining Which BIOS You Have
- Determining the Motherboard Manufacturer for BIOS Upgrades
- Accessing the BIOS Setup Programs
- How the BIOS Reports Errors
- Microid Research Beep Codes
- Other BIOS and Motherboard Manufacturers' Beep and POST Codes
- Reading BIOS Error Codes
- BIOS Configuration Worksheet
Accessing the BIOS Setup Programs
The BIOS is configured in one of several ways. Early computers, such as the IBM PC and PC/XT, used DIP switches on the motherboard to set a limited range of BIOS options, including memory size and the number of floppy disk drives. The IBM PC/AT introduced a disk-based configuration utility to cope with the many additional options on 286-based CPUs. Since the late 1980s, most computers have had their BIOS Setup programs incorporated into the BIOS chip itself. The Setup program is accessed on these systems by pressing a key or key combination early in the system startup procedure. Most recent computers display the correct keystroke(s) to use during the system startup. If not, use Table 3.8 to learn the keystrokes used to start common BIOS types.
Table 3.8 Common Keystrokes Used to Access the BIOS Setup Program
BIOS |
Keystrokes |
Notes |
Phoenix BIOS |
Ctrl+Alt+Esc |
|
|
Ctrl+Alt+F1 |
|
|
Ctrl+Alt+S |
|
|
Ctrl+Alt+Enter |
|
|
Ctrl+Alt+F11 |
|
|
Ctrl+Alt+Ins |
|
Award BIOS |
Ctrl+Alt+Esc |
|
|
Esc |
|
|
Del |
|
AMI BIOS |
Del |
|
IBM BIOS |
Ctrl+Alt+Ins* F1 |
*Early notebook models; press when cursor is in upper-right corner of screen. |
Compaq BIOS |
F10* |
Keystroke actually loads Compaq Setup program from hard disk partition; press when cursor is in upper-right corner of screen. |
Note
See Chapter 5 of Upgrading and Repairing PCs, 13th Edition, published by Que, to see how a typical BIOS Setup program operates.