Can a BIOS upgrade half-fail?! Please help..

Don't ask how to hack password. (BIOS Passwords)
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spun4621
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Here's my story..

I have a Toshiba Satellite A135-S4467. I was running version 1.10 of the BIOS. (Phoenix) The other night, I tried updating to the newest version on Toshiba's website, which is version 1.90. It brought up WinPhlash, read the blocks, etc., and everything seemed to go okay. Then it said it needed to re-start, so I did.

After that, I can only get to the splash screen (Toshiba logo). The F2 (Setup) and F12 (Boot Order) keys don't work from here. If I push escape, I get the POST info, but I can push F2 (setup) from here. I can get into the BIOS setup utility. There really isn't anything there that I can change/modify that will help or that wasn't there before...

The POST screen shows all my memory, shows the version of BIOS I tried upgrading to (1.90) and says its shadowed, etc, etc. But why can't I get past that point? On the post screen, if I don't push any buttons, it stops after the memory check, and listing the drives. The last line says "Mouse Initialized" then nothing happens after that.

So..now what?
edwin
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If it's possible to reset the bios to defaults, that would be the first step.
edwin/evasive

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System error, strike any user to continue...
spun4621
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I can reset the bios configuration to default settings, but thats it. I'm currently trying to make bootdisks with different versions of winphlash to see if the computer can be saved. So far, no luck.
edwin
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Tried emailing Toshiba tech support yet?
edwin/evasive

Do not assume anything

System error, strike any user to continue...
spun4621
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No, but I did try calling them twice. The first time I was told it was a HDD issue. And then he offered me the advice of sending it to an authorized repair center. He stuttered the whole was through his scripted responses. It was terrible.

The second time, wasn't as bad, but close. It was blamed this time on the motherboard and maybe the RAM. The golden mark to that phone call was that he even recommended I try my local Best Buy's Geek Squad to try and diagnose and repair my computer. Shortly after that, I hung up.
edwin
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Is this thing out of warranty already?
edwin/evasive

Do not assume anything

System error, strike any user to continue...
murraysj
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Tonight I updated my BIOS from 1.60 to 1.90 under Vista. It seemed to go OK, the machine was beeping away with varying volume levels during the flash process, but it said it completed correctly. At the end it said it needed to shutdown, to which I clicked "OK". When I powered it back on, I got the Toshiba initial screen. I pressed "F2" to ensure that the BIOS was current, it just hung with the message "Please wait...". I let it sit for 10 minutes, no change. After powering it off and on again, I let it sit without touching any key. The initial screen stayed there, but the F2/F12 keys were disabled.

During power on, I can hit "esc" at the Toshiba screen, and from there I can hit "F2" and get into the BIOS panels. Changing values takes effect, but as soon as you leave BIOS it just goes back to hanging at the initial screen.

It really seems that BIOS 1.90 is corrupt. I suspect I am going to have to buy a replacement BIOS chip and install it into the laptop. I've owned 3 Toshiba's before this, flashed them all (incuding this one, up to 1.60), never had a problem before. The machine is not old, just 2 1/2 years, and in great shape - it's worth trying to fix the problem.

Did anyone figure out how to fix this ?
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