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RM motherboard - Asus P8H61-I/RM/SI

dnlees

By dnlees
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dnlees

dnlees

Posted
Posted

Hi,

 

I have a couple of these boards and need to update the BIOS - however, as I don't have an RM support contract, they have told me to push off....

 

Does anybody have one of these boards, with BIOS version 0803 or later, that they could backup (from within the BIOS) and let me have....?

 

many thanks,

 

Dave.

Edu-IT

Edu-IT

Posted
Posted (edited)
No... official Asus BIOS updates don't work - needs to be RM's own version....

For what reason? Just interested.

Edited by Edu-IT
dgsmith

dgsmith

Posted
Posted
I tried this but couldn't find a newer RM version. We wanted to put some Ivy Bridge CPUs in, which are supported on the new Asus BIOS for this board variation, but as noted above, the Asus BIOS isn't compatible with these boards. RM aren't interested in offering an updated version, as any unit on these boards I suspect is out of warranty, and any reason to want to upgrade will likely not fall within a warranty reason.
AlanD

AlanD

Posted
Posted

Are you sure RM had their own version of a BIOS? May be they have a customised logo, but I can’t see any merit in changing anything else...why would they? We always use manufacturers bios releases and we are an RM school.... never had a problem...or at least not after doing the upgrade.

 

We did have some problems with ASus bios, which had some kind of system which allowed you to recover from a corrupt BIOS using a usb stick. The trouble was...the existing motherboard bios wouldnt boot into the bios with the cpu type we had. So either we had to get an earlier type of cpu...or ...we bought a chip programmer and some blank EPROMs off eBay ..and apart of some guess work trying to understand the Chinese user interface everything went well.

 

I have sometimes had success swapping a bios chip off a motherboard after booting...presumably it cached itsel into ram, with a blank eprom and using mboard itsel to flash it.

 

...

dgsmith

dgsmith

Posted
Posted
Are you sure RM had their own version of a BIOS? May be they have a customised logo, but I can’t see any merit in changing anything else...why would they? We always use manufacturers bios releases and we are an RM school.... never had a problem...or at least not after doing the upgrade

 

The thing with this board is that the manufacturer (asus) releases are just not compatible.. they don't flash. The asus website for this board range shows all the BIOS updates, including the 0403 that the RM ones ship with. The OP wants 0803 revision, which is the earliest to support Ivy Bridge, so I do believe it's for the exact same reason I was looking to flash the boards we have. Whilst we have used manu updates in the past, particularly for Intel, the Asus ones seem more rigidly tied to the reseller. I am sure there must be a way to hack them, but not to the extent of physically changing chips!

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difinity

difinity

Posted
Posted

If it was me, I'd buy the BIOS chip here Bios Chip ASUS P8H61-I LX R2.0/RM/SI Mainboard / Motherboard | eBay

The programmer I use is here https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/24-25-series-EEPROM-Flash-BIOS-USB-Programmer-Burner-CH341A-with-Software-driver/292151620486

There is a newer version like this https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/CH341A-24-25-Series-EEPROM-Flash-BIOS-USB-Programmer-UK-STOCK-FREE-DELIVERY/162562713830

Read the new BIOS chip with the programmer and save it. You'd then be free to remove the chips off the other motherboards and reprogram them.

 

An alternative would be to try and merge the 4mb ROM provided from ASUS for the non RM board with the 8mb dump from your RM board.

 

Option A would be easier I feel and less prone to failure and the EEPROM looks to be socketed, so no need for desoldering.

AlanD

AlanD

Posted
Posted

Just taken a look at Asus web site... version 4202 is validated for ALL versions of this motherboard. But if the existing BIOS is old - you probably can't even start up the MB with a later CPU in it....and so can't update the existing flash. So either buy a ready flashed replacement chip (...around £10...off ebay....from Germany or somewhere...) or a blank chip and program it...or buy a cheap old CPU to get the MB to boot update the BIOS then put new CPU in place.

 

But Yes, ASUS is a bit funny with their BIOS....which I know aonly too well have running into problems with H81M versions of their boards...but persistence did get me there in the end.

dnlees

dnlees

Posted
  • Author
Posted

dgsmith is correct - you cannot use standard Asus BIOS updates on RM boards - they don't work - trust me, I've tried.....

 

Thats why I hoped someone had got it done via RM, and could then have backed up the BIOS to a file....

 

RM are f**kers for this....!!!!

 

Oh well, boards and old CPU may get used somewhere else, and I'll get a new PC for the job in question.... just not from RM - wouldn't touch them with a barge pole now.....

 

There actual response to my request for the BIOS update ,was "we see you haven't got a vaild support contract - I will pass your details on to your area account manger..." - GOOD LUCK WITH THAT....!!!!!

AndyTech

AndyTech

Posted
Posted

Really interested in a new bios for this too - We have a RM Support contract and their response was the board is too old and they don't have a bios available.

 

What version are you on at the minute dnlees? I'm stuck on 0402 so if yours is newer could you possibly do a bios dump of it?

AlanD

AlanD

Posted
Posted

Well I could (just about) understand RM being unhelpful with stuff that is not under support contract...it would make the rest of us wonder what we were paying for if those not paying it were still entitled to get it. So - I'm largely pleased to hear they are being fair....albeit unhelpful.

 

I've never bought RM computers (although we are an RM server school...). Actually - that's not correct - we have a few laptops and the odd desktop PC.... no sign of anything customised...and I've updated BIOS on them without problems.

 

I could (just about again) understand that RM might ship PCs with a customised BIOS so that the "default" setting is the one to do a PXE boot or whatever...or a customised Logo...but I am somewhat surprised to hear they bothered to do this.

 

But its only £10 or something to buy chips programmed with the latest version of BIOS. Buy one, and use a programmer to copy it over existing chips... It can definitely be done...because I've done it....but not because of RM versions of BIOS- just because Asus bios software doesn't work well.....I couldn't for example reflash existing BIOS chips using ASUS flash from penstick ...because there was something buggy in the "parent" part of the existing BIOS that wouldn't let me flash a new version. The same chips flashed just fine when using a separate programmer tool. And you can get later than 4202 if you hunt around the Asus site.

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