APIC Mode

[Gatt]

Anyone know what this is?

Having loads of problems with my PC since installing a new motherboard

Mobo: ECS Elitegroup 865G-M8
CPU - Intel Pentium D 3.2GHz
RAM - 1GB DDR PC2100
OS - Windows XP SP2 (32Bit) or Windows Vista Business (32Bit)

Problems:

Vista refuses to install (BSOD - Machine_Check_Exception)
XP SP2 installs but randomly reboots with all kinds of hex excuses afterwards

The only OS that has installed fine with no problems is XP SP2 - 64Bit

Now, I've updated my BIOS, and been looking thru it.

The only option I can not identify is one called "APIC Mode (enabled)"

No idea what it is, XP 32bit refuses to boot if i disable it.

[PeterW]

Are all the other bits known to be good and all you changed was your mainboard? Have you run mem test etc?

Are you using discrete graphics or the Intel integrated?

[Gatt]

Are all the other bits known to be good and all you changed was your mainboard?

Yes they were all good - the only problems were with the onboard USB ports on the old Motherboard

Have you run mem test etc?

Yeah Memtest passed all tests

Are you using discrete graphics or the Intel integrated?

What's discrete graphics?

Have disabled APIC in the BIOS and have installed Vista ok, so just waiting to see if its stable!

ONly thing now is that XP showed 2 CPU's - whereas Vista now shows 1 CPU - is this Vsta or the APIC thing?

[contink]

Discrete graphics would be a plug in/seperate video card rather than on board graphics chip.

I was all set to say try the bios when you mentioned vista as that's cropped up for a few folks with some motherboards from what I've seen discussed elsewhere but the SP2 stuff suggests something else.

Perhaps trying to disable the on board graphics and in fact pretty much anything else on board and then seeing if you can get bits to work as you go along (obviously if you disable the graphics you'll need a graphics card).

It could be something as daft as a default driver causing the problem or something similar. Certainly it's something my father (who likes to discover problems the hard way) has mentioned with a client machine he had a couple of months ago.


As to APIC... this is all I could find at short notice:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advance...upt_Controller

[Geoff]

The APIC implementation in the BIOS is probably buggy. See if there's an updated bios available.

[Gatt]

Ok vista is up and running and *touch wood* is stable
Disabled APIC before I tried the install
The only thing i've noticed is that Vista is detecting on 1 CPU instead of 2 (which XP did before i turned off APIC and installed Vista)

Is APIC the Dual Core setting? or does vista just report only 1 CPU anyway?

@Geoff: Ive already applied the latest BIOS for the mobo - 07/28/2006!! so gonna keep an eye for any newer versions!

[Geoff]

APIC is required for SMP to function correctly. So you'll only get 1 CPU until you fix APIC.

[Gatt]

Thats what I was afraid of - I'm guessing its a fault on the Mobo - may ned to takei t back and get another one

[contink]

Thats what I was afraid of - I'm guessing its a fault on the Mobo - may ned to takei t back and get another one

For what it's worth Gatt, there's a number of motherboards reporting BIOS updates required for Vista to work properly so it may be that your board is still pending an update.

Worth casting around on google for any reports from other sufferers for your board and see if there's anything in the wind.