The chip is identified by UniFlash as Winbond W29C020(C) /5v
UniFlash does report the flash as a success and as I say on boot-up the bios does seem to be ok until it suddenly hangs.
It is interesting that the bios savior flashed successfully first time but the on-board chip fails every time.
Bilko
* The mist seems to be lifting now (thanks to replies). Just one question...where is the best place to go to get a Winbond 29C020 chip?
I live in the UK.
Thanks
Bilko
BIOS Flash failing. Help Needed
If it's flashed OK, then there are no problems with ASD chip. It looks like some bug in the BIOS making it incompatible with that chip. Tried some other BIOS?
Patched and tested BIOSes are at http://wims.rainbow-software.org
UniFlash - Flash anything anywhere
UniFlash - Flash anything anywhere
That seems to sum it up perfectly. The ASD chip is ok but incompatible with the new bios. If only I had saved the original bios I could have flashed it back again and things would be fine. As it is I have no idea what the original bios was or how to find it. It just goes to show that even with a bios savior you can still have a costly failure if you dont make a backup of your bios. I have tried to flash using a different bios but so far without success.
Bilko
Bilko
Update
I have tried to flash the bios with the old rom files but with no success.
Today, I got a new Winbond chip delivered and put it in the board. I flashed the chip using my bios savior but the same thing happened as before. The computer boots up successfully to start with. It correctly identifies the bios string and the cpu and does a memory check. Then it gives a beep, reports a cmos checksum error, and says to press F1. When I press F1, all I get is a flashing cursor in the top left of the screen.
So it seems to me that the old ASD chip was not the problem. Something else is going on here but I haven't got a clue what it is. Anyone got any new ideas before I bin the mobod?
Bilko
I have tried to flash the bios with the old rom files but with no success.
Today, I got a new Winbond chip delivered and put it in the board. I flashed the chip using my bios savior but the same thing happened as before. The computer boots up successfully to start with. It correctly identifies the bios string and the cpu and does a memory check. Then it gives a beep, reports a cmos checksum error, and says to press F1. When I press F1, all I get is a flashing cursor in the top left of the screen.
So it seems to me that the old ASD chip was not the problem. Something else is going on here but I haven't got a clue what it is. Anyone got any new ideas before I bin the mobod?
Bilko
Update
I cleared the cmos and removed and shorted the battery but still the system hangs. So far (I think) I have established that:
1. The chip is ok. (It is a new Winbond)
2. The bios rom file is ok. (It worked fine with the bios savior).
3. The cmos settings are not interfering with things.
But still there is something going wrong. I fail to see how it can boot up fine with the bios savior but not with the onboard bios chip.
Thanks to all for your help. The crazy thing is that in the six weeks that I have been trying to sort this problem out I have never once been able to make contact with the pc chips support department. They have a web site but no one that can be contacted for advice. I'll bet they know exactly what the problem is - but instead of helping their customers they leave them to flounder in ignorance.
Bilko
I cleared the cmos and removed and shorted the battery but still the system hangs. So far (I think) I have established that:
1. The chip is ok. (It is a new Winbond)
2. The bios rom file is ok. (It worked fine with the bios savior).
3. The cmos settings are not interfering with things.
But still there is something going wrong. I fail to see how it can boot up fine with the bios savior but not with the onboard bios chip.
Thanks to all for your help. The crazy thing is that in the six weeks that I have been trying to sort this problem out I have never once been able to make contact with the pc chips support department. They have a web site but no one that can be contacted for advice. I'll bet they know exactly what the problem is - but instead of helping their customers they leave them to flounder in ignorance.
Bilko
Isn't the Savior bad?
Patched and tested BIOSes are at http://wims.rainbow-software.org
UniFlash - Flash anything anywhere
UniFlash - Flash anything anywhere