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Z68 Extreme7 Gen3 - First time updating BIOS, some questions

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  • Z68 Extreme7 Gen3 - First time updating BIOS, some questions

    Hey there,

    This is the first time I've ever updated a motherboard's BIOS and I wanted to make sure I have everything correct before I dive in.

    Specs -

    Motherboard: Z68 Extreme7 Gen3
    Bios: P1.30, 9/21/2011, the BIOS my motherboard came with
    OS: Windows 8.1
    CPU: i7-2700K Sandy Bridge CPU
    HD: Samsung 840 EVO 500 GB
    GPU: GTX 780 Ti
    Ram: 16 GB DDR3 1600

    And here's link to the BIOS downloads:
    http://www.asrock.com/mb/Intel/Z68%2...wnload&os=BIOS

    From what I've gathered I should update to 2.10 first, be sure to leave the USB in after the reboot for the Intel firmware to install then update to 2.3. Is that correct?

    I also have some questions about the beta BIOSes, listed here:

    http://www.asrock.com/mb/Intel/Z68%2...x.asp?cat=Beta

    Should I be in the clear to update to a beta BIOS (after I update to 2.3) with my setup? I'm interested because of the Ultra Fast boot feature. Also, when updating the BIOS is it correct to go in sequential order, so in this case I would go from L2.22A to L2.33A to L2.32, or is it okay to jump straight to the newest one?

    Thanks.

  • #2
    Re: Z68 Extreme7 Gen3 - First time updating BIOS, some questions

    Have you read http://forums.tweaktown.com/asrock/5...er-boards.html
    #1 - Please, when seeking help, enter the make and model of ALL parts that your system is comprised of in your Signature, or at least the model #'s in your System Specs, then "Save' it.
    ____If you are overclocking, underclocking, or undervolting any parts, informing us of this and their values would prove beneficial in helping you.


    #2 - Consider your PSU to be the foundation from which all else is built upon. Anything built upon a weak foundation is poorly built.

    Comment


    • #3
      Re: Z68 Extreme7 Gen3 - First time updating BIOS, some questions

      Originally posted by Zornack View Post
      Hey there,

      This is the first time I've ever updated a motherboard's BIOS and I wanted to make sure I have everything correct before I dive in.

      Specs -

      Motherboard: Z68 Extreme7 Gen3
      Bios: P1.30, 9/21/2011, the BIOS my motherboard came with
      OS: Windows 8.1
      CPU: i7-2700K Sandy Bridge CPU
      HD: Samsung 840 EVO 500 GB
      GPU: GTX 780 Ti
      Ram: 16 GB DDR3 1600

      And here's link to the BIOS downloads:
      ASRock > Z68 Extreme7 Gen3

      From what I've gathered I should update to 2.10 first, be sure to leave the USB in after the reboot for the Intel firmware to install then update to 2.3. Is that correct?

      I also have some questions about the beta BIOSes, listed here:

      ASRock > Z68 Extreme7 Gen3

      Should I be in the clear to update to a beta BIOS (after I update to 2.3) with my setup? I'm interested because of the Ultra Fast boot feature. Also, when updating the BIOS is it correct to go in sequential order, so in this case I would go from L2.22A to L2.33A to L2.32, or is it okay to jump straight to the newest one?

      Thanks.
      Yikes!! Sorry, just shuddering that you, as your first UEFI/BIOS update, happen to be performing the one update that can cause more frustration compared to any other, at least among ASRock mother boards. No offense, but that is a nightmare scenario for me.

      But the good news is, you have prepared yourself appropriately, rather than flashing first and asking questions later. Given that, you should be fine.

      Yes, flash to 2.10 first and simply leave the USB flash drive in the PC while Windows boots. No hurry or reason to remove it, just leave it in.

      You probably saw this message with in the BIOS flashing instructions, but just in case:

      If you encounter problems while updating the new BIOS, DO NOT turn off your system since this corrupt BIOS might cause your system failed to boot up. Just repeat the process, and if the problem still persists, update the original BIOS file. If the Flash Memory Writer utility was not able to successfully update a complete BIOS file, your system may not be able to boot up. If this happens, your system will need service.

      Don't forget you need to update the Intel IME software, Intel graphics driver (which it appears you don't use, so never mind), and the ASRock utilities that are listed with the 2.10 BIOS update. Before updating these drivers, I suggest creating a Windows Restore point you can use if something goes wrong, or a Windows backup if you do that now. Not that you can rollback this BIOS update, but just some insurance for your Windows installation.

      After you do the 2.10 update, verify that your PC is functioning normally before moving on to other updates. I don't mean a five minute idle at the desktop check, I mean run things, do your standard activities, shutdown and restart the PC at least once to be sure all is well. I don't know if you OC your CPU or memory, but I would suggest letting the PC boot with default BIOS settings, except for any settings you must have, such as selecting your video card as the video source, boot order, SATA setting, etc.

      Actually, once you flash to BIOS 2.10, all the BIOS settings will be set to defaults, and you should be prompted/required to go into the BIOS to at least save the current default settings, or change what you need to be set. That is normal with any BIOS update, and will happen with every one you do, so don't forget to reset things that you require.

      Once you apply the 2.30 update, then you can do the beta BIOS updates. While the latest beta version should have all the other updates in it, I don't use your board, so don't know. You should be fine applying L2.22A and L2.33A for Windows 8, and could skip L.2.32.

      Slightly off topic, who makes your GTX 780 Ti? If not EVGA, you will need to check if its VBIOS is GOP compatible before you can use Ultra Fast boot.

      Comment


      • #4
        Re: Z68 Extreme7 Gen3 - First time updating BIOS, some questions

        Originally posted by - wardog - View Post
        Yup, and boy am I glad I came across it. It looks like I'd be in some trouble if I had gone into this process without that information

        Originally posted by parsec View Post
        Yikes!! Sorry, just shuddering that you, as your first UEFI/BIOS update, happen to be performing the one update that can cause more frustration compared to any other, at least among ASRock mother boards. No offense, but that is a nightmare scenario for me.

        But the good news is, you have prepared yourself appropriately, rather than flashing first and asking questions later. Given that, you should be fine.

        Yes, flash to 2.10 first and simply leave the USB flash drive in the PC while Windows boots. No hurry or reason to remove it, just leave it in.

        You probably saw this message with in the BIOS flashing instructions, but just in case:

        If you encounter problems while updating the new BIOS, DO NOT turn off your system since this corrupt BIOS might cause your system failed to boot up. Just repeat the process, and if the problem still persists, update the original BIOS file. If the Flash Memory Writer utility was not able to successfully update a complete BIOS file, your system may not be able to boot up. If this happens, your system will need service.

        Don't forget you need to update the Intel IME software, Intel graphics driver (which it appears you don't use, so never mind), and the ASRock utilities that are listed with the 2.10 BIOS update. Before updating these drivers, I suggest creating a Windows Restore point you can use if something goes wrong, or a Windows backup if you do that now. Not that you can rollback this BIOS update, but just some insurance for your Windows installation.

        After you do the 2.10 update, verify that your PC is functioning normally before moving on to other updates. I don't mean a five minute idle at the desktop check, I mean run things, do your standard activities, shutdown and restart the PC at least once to be sure all is well. I don't know if you OC your CPU or memory, but I would suggest letting the PC boot with default BIOS settings, except for any settings you must have, such as selecting your video card as the video source, boot order, SATA setting, etc.

        Actually, once you flash to BIOS 2.10, all the BIOS settings will be set to defaults, and you should be prompted/required to go into the BIOS to at least save the current default settings, or change what you need to be set. That is normal with any BIOS update, and will happen with every one you do, so don't forget to reset things that you require.

        Once you apply the 2.30 update, then you can do the beta BIOS updates. While the latest beta version should have all the other updates in it, I don't use your board, so don't know. You should be fine applying L2.22A and L2.33A for Windows 8, and could skip L.2.32.

        Slightly off topic, who makes your GTX 780 Ti? If not EVGA, you will need to check if its VBIOS is GOP compatible before you can use Ultra Fast boot.
        It's an EVGA card so I should be good on that front.

        When I click on the Intel ME driver it tells me to download before doing the 2.10 BIOS update it directs me to what looks like, from the file name (ME_Win7-64_Win7_Vista64_Vista_XP64_XP(v8.0.2.1410_1.5M)), a driver for XP through 7. If I instead navigate to Drivers&Utilities Download - Windows 8 64bit I find an Intel ME driver for Windows 8. Should I go with the newer 8 driver or the older one?

        Thanks for all the information and help!
        Last edited by Zornack; 04-22-2014, 08:42 AM.

        Comment


        • #5
          Re: Z68 Extreme7 Gen3 - First time updating BIOS, some questions

          Use the Windows 8 IME driver, that is a mistake on the the ASRock BIOS download page, they forgot the possibility of Windows 8.

          In order to use Ultra Fast boot, you must have a true UEFI booting Windows 8 installation, that must be configured when Windows is installed. Did you do that?

          Given the Windows 8 Fast Startup feature, Ultra Fast boot only gets you a few seconds faster, and that depends upon not having any HDDs in the PC to slow down POST.

          Comment


          • #6
            Re: Z68 Extreme7 Gen3 - First time updating BIOS, some questions

            Originally posted by parsec View Post
            In order to use Ultra Fast boot, you must have a true UEFI booting Windows 8 installation, that must be configured when Windows is installed. Did you do that?.
            I didn't at the time but I happened to be about to reinstall windows on a new SSD so I went ahead and did a UEFI booting installation.

            I'm on the other side and everything seems to be working fine! Thank again for the help.

            I have one last question, though. When I'm in ultra fast boot mode the only bootable device that shows up is "Windows Boot Manager." If I have fast/ultra fast turned off my selectable boot devices are what they used to be, AHCI: Samsung EVO, USB, etc. Is this normal, is Windows Boot Manager supposed to be my boot device for a UEFI booting setup? From the videos I've watched my boot seems to be normal compared to other ultra fast boots and once I'm in windows everything works as it should, I'd just like to double check that this windows boot manager situation is normal and no amount of googling is finding me the answer.
            Last edited by Zornack; 04-23-2014, 06:21 PM.

            Comment


            • #7
              Re: Z68 Extreme7 Gen3 - First time updating BIOS, some questions

              Yes that is normal, all my UEFI booting installations identified the boot drive as "Windows Boot Manager".

              When I cloned an installation like this to another drive, and did not remove the source drive, I had two Windows Boot Manager entries in the boot order list, and no real way to tell them apart besides their relative location in the list. I tried to change the names a little bit but failed, and have not spent enough time figuring that out.

              It's also normal to have the boot devices identified with the prefix "AHCI:", but for me that happens when I disable UEFI booting with the CSM option, not by disabling Fast Boot. I can set Fast Boot to Disabled, and still boot with the EFI bootloader, so I'm not sure what you are describing. That might be happening with your somewhat older board as an automatic option change when you don't use the Fast Boot options. Does your UEFI/BIOS have an option called "CSM", sometimes in the ACPI configuration menu, or the Boot menu?

              Windows UEFI booting installations include a "protective MBR" (Microsoft's terminology), so they will function normally with non-UEFI utilities like memtest, as Microsoft describes the reason for it. That also allows non-UEFI booting of the same Windows installation (called Legacy or BIOS booting), which IMO is a good thing but that is frowned upon by some experts, since it apparently violates the EFI booting "rules".

              I'm not surprised you could not find information about this, UEFI booting is still uncommon and the few guides I've found about it are lacking in some of the details like this. I can't blame them for that, since the way the options for enabling UEFI booting (Secure Boot, CSM, and now possibly Fast Boot) are not consistent between mother board manufactures and their UEFI/BIOS implementations.

              Glad that the UEFI/BIOS update worked for you (relieved too), and thanks for letting us know that it worked for you without any problems. Did you install the recommended version of the Intel IME software?

              Comment

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