BIOS settings GA-EP45-UD3R

[highcountryrider]

Relevant system specs:
GA-EP45-UD3R motherboard (BIOS version F4)
2 x WD Caviar 160 GB SATA2 HDD running as a RAID1 array
Windows XP Pro SP 3

I have a couple of questions regarding the current BIOS settings.

1. Currently the Onboard SATA/IDE Ctrl Mode is set to IDE. There are two other options to set it for AHCI or RAID/IDE. The system is setup to use RAID1 and this seems to be working fine.
   -IDE Set the SATA channel to IDE mode (default value)
   -AHCI Set the SATA channel to AHCI mode (Advanced Host Controller Interface)
   -RAID/IDE Set theSATA channel to RAID mode and IDE channel to IDE mode.
   Is there any reason to change the current setting to RAID/IDE mode? I have read in some other forums that this cannot be changed without a re-install of Win XP. Is that true? Also, with the setting at IDE the 2 SATA 3.O hard drives are not working at that speed:
   

   You lose NCQ in IDE mode. You lose SATA3 speed. You cannot switch among modes, you have to select the mode in BIOS prior to installing Windows and that's the mode you're stuck with until/unless you reinstall Win XP

2. USB mouse support is currently set as Disabled. What I've read about this is that when set to Enabled it allows use of a mouse in the BIOS and non-Windows environments. I'm using a Logitech cordless USB mouse and it's working fine. Is there any reason to set the USB mouse support to Enabled?

This was my first build and all has been working fine for the month it has been up. I have very little experience with BIOS settings and modifications so I'm reluctant to change anything since as the old saying goes: "If it ain't broke, don't fix it!".

Forgive me if there are obvious answers to these questions and thanks in advance for any responses.

[highcountryrider]

Re: BIOS settings GA-EP45-UD3R

1. Currently the Onboard SATA/IDE Ctrl Mode is set to IDE. There are two other options to set it for AHCI or RAID/IDE. The system is setup to use RAID1 and this seems to be working fine.
   -IDE Set the SATA channel to IDE mode (default value)
   -AHCI Set the SATA channel to AHCI mode (Advanced Host Controller Interface)
   -RAID/IDE Set theSATA channel to RAID mode and IDE channel to IDE mode.
   Is there any reason to change the current setting to RAID/IDE mode? I have read in some other forums that this cannot be changed without a re-install of Win XP. Is that true? Also, with the setting at IDE the 2 SATA 3.O hard drives are not working at that speed

OK, I think I might have figured this one out. Upon checking the EP45-UD3R manual it appears the above settings are relevant to the Gigabyte Onboard SATA 2 controller, not the Intel ICH10R SATA Controller. I'm using the Intel SATA controller so the Gigabyte SATA controller settings should be irrelavant. Is this correct?

This leads to another question. Could I configure the Gigabyte SATA controller to AHCI mode and then plug the connectors from the eSATA bracket supplied with the motherboard into the Gbyte SATA ports, then use external SATA drives in AHCI mode? This would allow hot swapping and would be great for external storage. Would the same issue with pre-installation of AHCI drivers proor to installation of Windows XP be the same if using the Gbyte SATA controller?

[crankerchick]

Re: BIOS settings GA-EP45-UD3R

It seems a lot of questions go unanswered here, but I think I know the answer to at least part of your questions.

Yes you can plug the eSATA bracket connections to the purple GIGABYTE sata ports and enable AHCI for those ports for hot-swapping. You should not have to reinstall the OS for this.

Also, from reading the manual, I think there are 2 places to enable RAID/AHCI in the bios. The screen has this option on the first line (for the Intel ports) and down near the bottom (for the gigabyte provided ones).

[highcountryrider]

Re: BIOS settings GA-EP45-UD3R

Thanks for the response. Good to hear that the OS doesn't need to be re-installed. I've also seen the 2 places in the BIOS to change the configuration for RAID/AHCI.

[SpeedEuphoria]

Re: BIOS settings GA-EP45-UD3R

As far as the USB question 2. I have a usb keyboard and mouse. I find that when I boot from a cd into memtest I need to have it enabled to use the keyboard in memtest, ect.. Otherwise it shouldn't matter. So I always enable it as it wont hurt you any otherwise.

If you dont use the gigabyte sata ports or the IDE/floppy ports then you can set it to disabled in bios.