Re: Looking for BIOS Update

In news:haj6pv$gd0$,
Ben Myers typed on Wed, 07 Oct 2009 19:04:31 -0400:
> BillW50 wrote:
>> In news:Xns9C9CD651AEE84nospamnospaminvalid@188.40.43 .213,
>> Boris typed on Wed, 7 Oct 2009 04:04:05 +0000 (UTC):
>>> "BillW50" <> wrote in news:hag0og$j1q$-
>>> september.org:
>>>
>>>> In news:Xns9C9C6A04BF72nospamnospaminvalid@188.40.43. 213,
>>>> Boris typed on Tue, 6 Oct 2009 17:25:18 +0000 (UTC):
>>>>> I just tried that. Seems that it ignores the ESC key (probably
>>>>> supposed to), and just boots normally to Windows.
>>>> Well before you give up, the rest of the function keys that you
>>>> haven't tried yet. Also worth trying is holding down one of the
>>>> following: DEL, Insert, Tab, Shift, or CTRL right after the screen
>>>> lites up are also sometimes used to get to other menus like the
>>>> BIOS boot menu.
>>>>
>>> I tried them all:
>>>
>>> F1, BIOS Setup Utility
>>> F2, boots to Windows normally
>>> F3, boots to Windows normally
>>> F4, boots to Windows normally
>>> F5, give Windows Advanced Menu Setup (Safe Boot, etc.)
>>> F6, boots to Windows normally
>>> F7, boots to Windows normally
>>> F8, boots to Windows normally
>>> F9, boots to Windows normally
>>> F10, BIOS Setup Utility
>>> F11, boots to Windows normally
>>> F12, boots to Windows normally
>>> Del, BIOS Setup Utility
>>> ESC, boots to Windows normally
>>> Del, boots to Windows normally
>>> ALT, boots to Windows normally
>>> Shift, boots to Windows normally
>>> Pause/Break, nothing ever comes up, not even cursor against all
>>> black screen, held for a minute, when released, still nothing
>>
>> Both F8 or the CTRL key should show the Windows start menu. Holding
>> down the shift key while Windows boots should stop all programs from
>> auto-running.
>>
>> The Pause/Break key should freeze the screen output. And it will set
>> there until another key is pressed. It only works in the BIOS and DOS
>> though, maybe at the Command Prompt too under Windows. The old way
>> to do the very same is CTRL-Q to freeze and CTRL-S to continue.
>> These keys should still work today.
>>
>> Back in the early days, graphic cards were so slow that you could
>> see a list scrolling on the screen. Usually too fast to read, but
>> slow enough that you can pause and continue the list. Not too handy
>> nowadays, as you have to be really quick before the screen starts to
>> scroll off and you missed a lot of what you wanted to read. Although
>> they put a switch later on for most of those commands anyway to help
>> in these cases. Like "dir /p" for example.
>>
>
> True. But that is not his problem. His problem is getting the system
> to boot from a CD... Ben

Yes we know. I was just explaining FYI stuff.

--
Bill
Asus EEE PC 702G8 ~ 2GB RAM ~ 16GB-SDHC
Windows XP SP2

Ben Myers <> wrote in
news:haik2k$f1j$:

> Boris wrote:
>> Ben Myers <> wrote in
>> news:hah4j4$i2u$:
>>
>>> Boris wrote:
>>>> "BillW50" <> wrote in
>>>> news:hag0og$j1q$- september.org:
>>>>
>>>>> In news:Xns9C9C6A04BF72nospamnospaminvalid@188.40.43. 213,
>>>>> Boris typed on Tue, 6 Oct 2009 17:25:18 +0000 (UTC):
>>>>>> I just tried that. Seems that it ignores the ESC key (probably
>>>>>> supposed to), and just boots normally to Windows.
>>>>> Well before you give up, the rest of the function keys that you
>>>>> haven't tried yet. Also worth trying is holding down one of the
>>>>> following: DEL, Insert, Tab, Shift, or CTRL right after the screen
>>>>> lites up are also sometimes used to get to other menus like the
>>>>> BIOS boot menu.
>>>>>
>>>> I tried them all:
>>>>
>>>> F1, BIOS Setup Utility
>>>> F2, boots to Windows normally
>>>> F3, boots to Windows normally
>>>> F4, boots to Windows normally
>>>> F5, give Windows Advanced Menu Setup (Safe Boot, etc.)
>>>> F6, boots to Windows normally
>>>> F7, boots to Windows normally
>>>> F8, boots to Windows normally
>>>> F9, boots to Windows normally
>>>> F10, BIOS Setup Utility
>>>> F11, boots to Windows normally
>>>> F12, boots to Windows normally
>>>> Del, BIOS Setup Utility
>>>> ESC, boots to Windows normally
>>>> Del, boots to Windows normally
>>>> ALT, boots to Windows normally
>>>> Shift, boots to Windows normally
>>>> Pause/Break, nothing ever comes up, not even cursor against all
>>>> black screen, held for a minute, when released, still nothing
>>> This is the way the BIOS setup works on Intel D850-series
>>> motherboards (and many other Intel D845 and D865 boards). I worked
>>> on a Gateway board like yours some time ago, and I am nearly 100%
>>> certain that Gateway did not screw around with the Intel BIOS code.
>>> I know of no instance when a Gateway BIOS setup behaved differently
>>> from a generic Intel one. Gateway never had the software
>>> engineering expertise to modify BIOS code.
>>>
>>> Okay. So press F1 to enter the BIOS Setup Utility, then use the
>>> right arrow key to highlight the Boot menu. When the word Boot is
>>> highlighted, press Enter.
>>>
>>> The Boot submenu will allow you to choose the order in which the
>>> BIOS tries to boot from devices. The default is to try to boot from
>>> floppy, then CD-ROM, then hard drive, then network adapter.
>>>
>>> You can find the technical manual for your motherboard on the Intel
>>> web site in the category of archived (e.g. older) motherboards. It
>>> is worth reading, even if it tells you more than you need to know.
>>>
>>> In summary, your board is capable of booting from a CD-ROM. You
>>> just have not figured out how to get it to happen. Perhaps the
>>> above will help... Ben Myers
>>>
>>
>> Hi, Ben,
>>
>> I went here:
>>
>> http://www.intel.com/support/motherb.../CS-012681.htm
>>
>> and ran the tool. I got:
>>
>> "No Intel® Desktop Board was detected in this system."
>>
>> The instructions say, "If you get the message that an Intel desktop
>> board was not detected, you likely have an OEM desktop board."
>>
>> I do have the Gateway E4600 System Manual, and it has very little
>> information about the BIOS screens. All it says is to press F1 to
>> enter the BIOS Setup Utility. I've done this many times, and set it
>> as you've suggested, with no luck. I have BIOS version
>> GB85010A.15A.0011P13. I updated from P12 a few days ago.The Gateway
>> System Manual says I have an Intel 850 chipset and an Intel Pentium 4
>> fc-pga Socket 423 processor with a 400 MHz system.
>>
>> The GB850 motherboards listed by Intel are :
>> D850EMD2
>> D850EMV2
>> D850GB
>> D850MD
>> D850MV
>>
>> I checked all the manuals for the above boards, and they all say to
>> press F2 to enter the BIOS Setup Utility. My Gateway System Manual
>> says to press F1.
>>
>> I'm at my wits end with this, because it should be as simple as going
>> into the BIOS Setup Utility, to the BOOT menu, and setting to boot
>> from ATAPI-CD. I've done this with many, many machines, including
>> older Gateways (PII). This should be a no brainer.
>>
>> I do appreciate all the feed back.
>>
>> Boris
>>
>
> Boris,
>
> From the BIOS code, the E4600 board is a D850GB.
>
> Last ditch try. Unplug from wall. Remove the CR2032 battery. Let
> system sit there for a half hour. Put battery back in. You will
> surely be prompted to enter the BIOS setup because the CMOS settings
> have become corrupted due to loss of battery power to keep them OK.
>

With battery out for at least an hour, and then back in, the machine
booted with CMOS battery low, and forced me to hit F1 to enter setup.
All settings were same as before, but I had to reset system clock. The
machine then booted to the Windows desktop, even with the XP install CD
inserted into the CD-ROM, and the BIOS set to boot from CD, then floppy,
then IDE.

> Even before the last ditch try, power up the system and quickly hold
> down several keys on the keyboard at once. This should cause a
> keyboard error with the chance to enter the BIOS CMOS setup... Ben
> Myers

Nothing. Just rebooted to the Windows desktop.

Thanks, Ben.

"Boris" <> wrote in message
news:Xns9C9C69BF61F0Anospamnospaminvalid@188.40.43 .213...
> Ben Myers <> wrote in
> news:haehj5$mm8$:
>
>> Boris wrote:
>>> Ben Myers <> wrote in
>>> news:haat8h$2f8$:
>>>
>>>> Boris wrote:
>>>>> Ben Myers <> wrote in
>>>>> news:ha8g2m$6f3$:
>>>>>
>>>>>> Boris wrote:
>>>>>>> Justin Thompson <> wrote in
>>>>>>> news::
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> On Sat, 3 Oct 2009 17:06:08 +0000 (UTC), Boris
>>>>>>>> <> wrote:
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> I've got P4, E4600, 1.6MHz desktop.
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> The BIOS is version GB85010A.15A.0044.P12. I'm looking for an
>>>>>>>>> update, but all I can find is the P13 version here.
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> http://support.gateway.com/support/d...e.asp?id=16167
>>>>>>>>> &dscr=Pentium%204%20BIOS%20update%20GB85010A%20P13 &uid=223985369
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> Anyone know where I can find the P12 version?
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> Thanks.
>>>>>>>> Silly question - im sure - but you say you looking for an update
>>>>>>>> - you have found an update... but then say you dont want it???
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> im confused
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> I cant see any release notes from the link - so not sure what
>>>>>>>> changed in v13, but in general - you should expect a later
>>>>>>>> version to be better, more stable, recognise more CPUs etc. so
>>>>>>>> why you not want it?
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Cheers
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Hi,
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> I'm not aware that the P13 version is an update of the P12. I've
>>>>>>> always seen updates called out at v.1, v.2, etc. But maybe
>>>>>>> you're right. I'm not familiar with how Gateway numbers updates.
>>>>>>> Are you sure?
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Thanks.
>>>>>> With the Intel motherboards used in Gateway systems, Gateway
>>>>>> follows the same conventions as Intel does. P13 IS the latest,
>>>>>> last and only update for your Intel D850 motherboard. Note also
>>>>>> that the BIOS is slightly customized, but only with a Gateway
>>>>>> identifier. You CANNOT use a GENERIC BIOS update from the Intel
>>>>>> web site for this board... Ben Myers
>>>>> Nice to see you, Ben.
>>>>>
>>>>> I went into the BIOS and read the event log. There was one listing
>>>>> that said CMOS battery failure, but just one. There were a lot
>>>>> keyboard failure listings. I don't know why, because the keyboard
>>>>> always came up fine on the POST screen, and operated properly all
>>>>> the time when in Windows. But, since the CMOS battery was probably
>>>>> the original battery from circa 2001, I replaced it, thinking that
>>>>> that might cure my inability to boot from CD. Nope.
>>>>>
>>>>> Curiosity got to me, and I decided to clear the BIOS. I did, by
>>>>> removing the motherboard BIOS jumper, but still no boot from CD.
>>>>>
>>>>> Finally, I downloaded the BIOS update on the Gateway site. I was
>>>>> running with version P12, and the newest version was P13, dated
>>>>> August 2001. I had to put it on a FAT floppy (not NT), and the
>>>>> instructions said to boot from this floppy. When I tried, I got
>>>>> invalid BOOT diskette, insert proper diskette in A. Oh, no. I
>>>>> used the Win98SE floppy to boot up the machine into DOS, and then
>>>>> removed the Win98SE floppy, and inserted the BIOS 'boot' disk. I
>>>>> logged on to it, and clicked on the autoexec.bat on the floppy.
>>>>> The BIOS update program came up, and I installed the update
>>>>> successfully. When the update was completed, the instructions on
>>>>> screen were to remove the floppy and press enter, and the machine
>>>>> was supposed to reboot. I'm not sure how this was supposed to
>>>>> happen, since the machine was set to boot from floppy, and there
>>>>> would be no floppy in the machine. But I removed the boot floppy,
>>>>> and pressed enter. The screen said no operating system found on C
>>>>> (normally it would say invalid BOOT diskette if there's no floppy
>>>>> in A, and set to boot from floppy). I had to press the power
>>>>> button off, and restart into the BIOS (keeping my fingers crossed
>>>>> the BIOS upgrade worked -- it did report BIOS versin P13), and set
>>>>> to boot from the hard drive. I did, and it booted up just fine. I
>>>>> then restarted and set to boot from CD, but it still wouldn't boot
>>>>> from the XP CD. Oh, well. I tried. I'm calling it quits trying to
>>>>> solve this. It may be a hardware problem that I just can't
>>>>> diagnose, and it's not all the important. The only time I'd need to
>>>>> start from CD is if I was going to do a clean install. Maybe I'll
>>>>> just make an image of the system before I gunk it up too much. Oh,
>>>>> wonder if I have to be able to boot from CD to install an image.
>>>>>
>>>>> By the way, I just installed a Linksys WMP54G wireless adapter card
>>>>> in the machine. I didn't use the Linksys install CD, but instead
>>>>> let Windows install it's native drivers and networking interface.
>>>>> It works just fine, with excellent signal strength. Previously, I
>>>>> had it connected to a D-link wireless router, but sitting right
>>>>> next to the router connected with an ethernet cable. I was going
>>>>> to run ethernet into the garage, which is the final destination for
>>>>> this machine, but I thought I'd try a wireless card. I hope the
>>>>> signal is still good when I move it into the gargage, about 30'
>>>>> away. We'll see. If not, I'll run ethernet. (I don't mind
>>>>> running the cable, I just hate putting the connectors on. My eyes
>>>>> aren't what they used to be <g>.)
>>>>>
>>>>> Here are the items that the update addressed, per the readme.txt
>>>>> file within the update folder:
>>>>>
>>>>> Reason for Update
>>>>>
>>>>> Option to enable or disable the ISA Enable Bit on PCI bridges.
>>>>> Adds D-stepping core support for latest generation processors.
>>>>> Adds WFM 2.0 Remote Lockout support.
>>>>> Adds support for the Security Freeze Lock command on resume from S3
>>>>> to IDE devices that support the Security feature set.
>>>>> Adds workaround for Windows 98 SE issue where ATAPI devices are not
>>>>> reprogrammed on resume from Suspend-to-RAM (S3).
>>>>> Implements Force Network Boot feature that allows users to force
>>>>> the computer to start to network by pressing a hot key.
>>>>> Fixes issue where the computer was always reporting 80-conductor
>>>>> IDE cable type (regardless of actual cable type) when certain ATAPI
>>>>> devices were connected as the slave device on an IDE channel.
>>>>> Adds support for PCI IDE Bus Mastering (DMA) for BIOS INT 13h hard
>>>>> disk reads and writes on IDE devices that support IDE Bus
>>>>> Mastering. Adds Mode 5 (UDMA/100) option to the IDE UDMA Mode.
>>>>> Corrects functionality of IDE PIO Mode.
>>>>> Fixes issue where BIOS was incorrectly reporting UDMA modes on IDE
>>>>> devices that do not support UDMA.
>>>>> Sets ISA ENABLE bits on PCI bridges that do not have VGA behind
>>>>> them. Adds support for doing 32-bit IDE PIO mode data transfers
>>>>> inside BIOS INT 13h.
>>>>> Fixes issue where ATAPI Removable Devices that support UDMA modes
>>>>> were not getting programmed for UDMA mode.
>>>>> Updates the display of the processor BIOS update information to
>>>>> account for the new naming convention.
>>>>> Adds the display of UDMA mode for ARMD.
>>>>> Sets Wake on Modem Ring default to Power On.
>>>>> Fixes an issue where the Fault Tolerant Boot Block Test would fail
>>>>> and not be able to boot if ECC was enabled during the test.
>>>>> Fixes the incorrect display of hard disk drive capacity for larger
>>>>> hard disk drives.
>>>>>
>>>>> Boris
>>>> Did you change the boot order priority in the last screen of the
>>>> BIOS CMOS setup to boot first from CD, then from floppy, and then
>>>> from hard disk? If so, the computer should boot from CD. If not,
>>>> pressing F12 with a modern BIOS gets it to present a choice of boot
>>>> devices, from which you select one... Ben Myers
>>>>
>>>
>>> Hi,
>>>
>>> Yes, set it up just like you described. No luck.
>>>
>>> F12 gets me nothing.
>>>
>>> F8 gets me the Troubleshooting and Advanced Startup screen with Start
>>> Up options, as it should, such as Safe Mode, Enable Boot Logging,
>>> Debugging Mode, etc.
>>>
>>> F10 is weird. It gets me the BIOS screen, with the a message as if
>>> I've just made changes to the BIOS settings, "Do you want to save
>>> changes and exit?"
>>>
>>> F1 gets me the BIOS setup screen, as it should.
>>>
>>> By the way, when the machine boots up, it never shows "Hit F8 for
>>> Boot Options", or "Hit F1 for Setup" in the upper right hand corner,
>>> even if I have it set to go through the long POST, where it shows
>>> everything it finds as it boots up. The long boot does show that it
>>> found the CD-ROM when set to boot from CD-ROM.
>>>
>>> I think the book is closed on trying to get this to boot from CD-ROM.
>>
>> Maybe the CD-ROM drive is bad? The Intel D850 motherboards are new
>> enough that they should allow booting from CD-ROM. Most any P4 system
>> can, and even some P3 systems... Ben
>
> Hi,
>
> One of the first things I did after discovering that I couldn't boot from
> CD-ROM in this P4 was to install a known good CD-ROM from another my
> Dim4550, that did boot properly in the Dim4550. But, it wouldn't boot
> while in the P4.

Have you tried a different keyboard? You said in an earlier post that the
log was showing errors. Maybe there's a glitch in the one you're using. If
it's a USB one, try a PS2 one and see if that makes a difference.

SC Tom

Boris wrote:
> Ben Myers <> wrote in
> news:haik2k$f1j$:
>
>> Boris wrote:
>>> Ben Myers <> wrote in
>>> news:hah4j4$i2u$:
>>>
>>>> Boris wrote:
>>>>> "BillW50" <> wrote in
>>>>> news:hag0og$j1q$- september.org:
>>>>>
>>>>>> In news:Xns9C9C6A04BF72nospamnospaminvalid@188.40.43. 213,
>>>>>> Boris typed on Tue, 6 Oct 2009 17:25:18 +0000 (UTC):
>>>>>>> I just tried that. Seems that it ignores the ESC key (probably
>>>>>>> supposed to), and just boots normally to Windows.
>>>>>> Well before you give up, the rest of the function keys that you
>>>>>> haven't tried yet. Also worth trying is holding down one of the
>>>>>> following: DEL, Insert, Tab, Shift, or CTRL right after the screen
>>>>>> lites up are also sometimes used to get to other menus like the
>>>>>> BIOS boot menu.
>>>>>>
>>>>> I tried them all:
>>>>>
>>>>> F1, BIOS Setup Utility
>>>>> F2, boots to Windows normally
>>>>> F3, boots to Windows normally
>>>>> F4, boots to Windows normally
>>>>> F5, give Windows Advanced Menu Setup (Safe Boot, etc.)
>>>>> F6, boots to Windows normally
>>>>> F7, boots to Windows normally
>>>>> F8, boots to Windows normally
>>>>> F9, boots to Windows normally
>>>>> F10, BIOS Setup Utility
>>>>> F11, boots to Windows normally
>>>>> F12, boots to Windows normally
>>>>> Del, BIOS Setup Utility
>>>>> ESC, boots to Windows normally
>>>>> Del, boots to Windows normally
>>>>> ALT, boots to Windows normally
>>>>> Shift, boots to Windows normally
>>>>> Pause/Break, nothing ever comes up, not even cursor against all
>>>>> black screen, held for a minute, when released, still nothing
>>>> This is the way the BIOS setup works on Intel D850-series
>>>> motherboards (and many other Intel D845 and D865 boards). I worked
>>>> on a Gateway board like yours some time ago, and I am nearly 100%
>>>> certain that Gateway did not screw around with the Intel BIOS code.
>>>> I know of no instance when a Gateway BIOS setup behaved differently
>>>> from a generic Intel one. Gateway never had the software
>>>> engineering expertise to modify BIOS code.
>>>>
>>>> Okay. So press F1 to enter the BIOS Setup Utility, then use the
>>>> right arrow key to highlight the Boot menu. When the word Boot is
>>>> highlighted, press Enter.
>>>>
>>>> The Boot submenu will allow you to choose the order in which the
>>>> BIOS tries to boot from devices. The default is to try to boot from
>>>> floppy, then CD-ROM, then hard drive, then network adapter.
>>>>
>>>> You can find the technical manual for your motherboard on the Intel
>>>> web site in the category of archived (e.g. older) motherboards. It
>>>> is worth reading, even if it tells you more than you need to know.
>>>>
>>>> In summary, your board is capable of booting from a CD-ROM. You
>>>> just have not figured out how to get it to happen. Perhaps the
>>>> above will help... Ben Myers
>>>>
>>> Hi, Ben,
>>>
>>> I went here:
>>>
>>> http://www.intel.com/support/motherb.../CS-012681.htm
>>>
>>> and ran the tool. I got:
>>>
>>> "No Intel® Desktop Board was detected in this system."
>>>
>>> The instructions say, "If you get the message that an Intel desktop
>>> board was not detected, you likely have an OEM desktop board."
>>>
>>> I do have the Gateway E4600 System Manual, and it has very little
>>> information about the BIOS screens. All it says is to press F1 to
>>> enter the BIOS Setup Utility. I've done this many times, and set it
>>> as you've suggested, with no luck. I have BIOS version
>>> GB85010A.15A.0011P13. I updated from P12 a few days ago.The Gateway
>>> System Manual says I have an Intel 850 chipset and an Intel Pentium 4
>>> fc-pga Socket 423 processor with a 400 MHz system.
>>>
>>> The GB850 motherboards listed by Intel are :
>>> D850EMD2
>>> D850EMV2
>>> D850GB
>>> D850MD
>>> D850MV
>>>
>>> I checked all the manuals for the above boards, and they all say to
>>> press F2 to enter the BIOS Setup Utility. My Gateway System Manual
>>> says to press F1.
>>>
>>> I'm at my wits end with this, because it should be as simple as going
>>> into the BIOS Setup Utility, to the BOOT menu, and setting to boot
>>> from ATAPI-CD. I've done this with many, many machines, including
>>> older Gateways (PII). This should be a no brainer.
>>>
>>> I do appreciate all the feed back.
>>>
>>> Boris
>>>
>> Boris,
>>
>> From the BIOS code, the E4600 board is a D850GB.
>>
>> Last ditch try. Unplug from wall. Remove the CR2032 battery. Let
>> system sit there for a half hour. Put battery back in. You will
>> surely be prompted to enter the BIOS setup because the CMOS settings
>> have become corrupted due to loss of battery power to keep them OK.
>>
>
> With battery out for at least an hour, and then back in, the machine
> booted with CMOS battery low, and forced me to hit F1 to enter setup.
> All settings were same as before, but I had to reset system clock. The
> machine then booted to the Windows desktop, even with the XP install CD
> inserted into the CD-ROM, and the BIOS set to boot from CD, then floppy,
> then IDE.
>
>> Even before the last ditch try, power up the system and quickly hold
>> down several keys on the keyboard at once. This should cause a
>> keyboard error with the chance to enter the BIOS CMOS setup... Ben
>> Myers
>
> Nothing. Just rebooted to the Windows desktop.
>
> Thanks, Ben.

Wow! This is really strange. I still cannot understand why the system
will not let you get into the BIOS in the normal way, by holding down F1
or F2 or whatever. I can olny surmise that either the CD-ROM drive is
defective or the CD from which you are trying to boot is damaged... Ben

SC Tom wrote:
>
> "Boris" <> wrote in message
> news:Xns9C9C69BF61F0Anospamnospaminvalid@188.40.43 .213...
>> Ben Myers <> wrote in
>> news:haehj5$mm8$:
>>
>>> Boris wrote:
>>>> Ben Myers <> wrote in
>>>> news:haat8h$2f8$:
>>>>
>>>>> Boris wrote:
>>>>>> Ben Myers <> wrote in
>>>>>> news:ha8g2m$6f3$:
>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Boris wrote:
>>>>>>>> Justin Thompson <> wrote in
>>>>>>>> news::
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> On Sat, 3 Oct 2009 17:06:08 +0000 (UTC), Boris
>>>>>>>>> <> wrote:
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>> I've got P4, E4600, 1.6MHz desktop.
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>> The BIOS is version GB85010A.15A.0044.P12. I'm looking for an
>>>>>>>>>> update, but all I can find is the P13 version here.
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>> http://support.gateway.com/support/d...e.asp?id=16167
>>>>>>>>>> &dscr=Pentium%204%20BIOS%20update%20GB85010A%20P13 &uid=223985369
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>> Anyone know where I can find the P12 version?
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>> Thanks.
>>>>>>>>> Silly question - im sure - but you say you looking for an update
>>>>>>>>> - you have found an update... but then say you dont want it???
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> im confused
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> I cant see any release notes from the link - so not sure what
>>>>>>>>> changed in v13, but in general - you should expect a later
>>>>>>>>> version to be better, more stable, recognise more CPUs etc. so
>>>>>>>>> why you not want it?
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> Cheers
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Hi,
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> I'm not aware that the P13 version is an update of the P12. I've
>>>>>>>> always seen updates called out at v.1, v.2, etc. But maybe
>>>>>>>> you're right. I'm not familiar with how Gateway numbers updates.
>>>>>>>> Are you sure?
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Thanks.
>>>>>>> With the Intel motherboards used in Gateway systems, Gateway
>>>>>>> follows the same conventions as Intel does. P13 IS the latest,
>>>>>>> last and only update for your Intel D850 motherboard. Note also
>>>>>>> that the BIOS is slightly customized, but only with a Gateway
>>>>>>> identifier. You CANNOT use a GENERIC BIOS update from the Intel
>>>>>>> web site for this board... Ben Myers
>>>>>> Nice to see you, Ben.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> I went into the BIOS and read the event log. There was one listing
>>>>>> that said CMOS battery failure, but just one. There were a lot
>>>>>> keyboard failure listings. I don't know why, because the keyboard
>>>>>> always came up fine on the POST screen, and operated properly all
>>>>>> the time when in Windows. But, since the CMOS battery was probably
>>>>>> the original battery from circa 2001, I replaced it, thinking that
>>>>>> that might cure my inability to boot from CD. Nope.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Curiosity got to me, and I decided to clear the BIOS. I did, by
>>>>>> removing the motherboard BIOS jumper, but still no boot from CD.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Finally, I downloaded the BIOS update on the Gateway site. I was
>>>>>> running with version P12, and the newest version was P13, dated
>>>>>> August 2001. I had to put it on a FAT floppy (not NT), and the
>>>>>> instructions said to boot from this floppy. When I tried, I got
>>>>>> invalid BOOT diskette, insert proper diskette in A. Oh, no. I
>>>>>> used the Win98SE floppy to boot up the machine into DOS, and then
>>>>>> removed the Win98SE floppy, and inserted the BIOS 'boot' disk. I
>>>>>> logged on to it, and clicked on the autoexec.bat on the floppy.
>>>>>> The BIOS update program came up, and I installed the update
>>>>>> successfully. When the update was completed, the instructions on
>>>>>> screen were to remove the floppy and press enter, and the machine
>>>>>> was supposed to reboot. I'm not sure how this was supposed to
>>>>>> happen, since the machine was set to boot from floppy, and there
>>>>>> would be no floppy in the machine. But I removed the boot floppy,
>>>>>> and pressed enter. The screen said no operating system found on C
>>>>>> (normally it would say invalid BOOT diskette if there's no floppy
>>>>>> in A, and set to boot from floppy). I had to press the power
>>>>>> button off, and restart into the BIOS (keeping my fingers crossed
>>>>>> the BIOS upgrade worked -- it did report BIOS versin P13), and set
>>>>>> to boot from the hard drive. I did, and it booted up just fine. I
>>>>>> then restarted and set to boot from CD, but it still wouldn't boot
>>>>>> from the XP CD. Oh, well. I tried. I'm calling it quits trying to
>>>>>> solve this. It may be a hardware problem that I just can't
>>>>>> diagnose, and it's not all the important. The only time I'd need to
>>>>>> start from CD is if I was going to do a clean install. Maybe I'll
>>>>>> just make an image of the system before I gunk it up too much. Oh,
>>>>>> wonder if I have to be able to boot from CD to install an image.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> By the way, I just installed a Linksys WMP54G wireless adapter card
>>>>>> in the machine. I didn't use the Linksys install CD, but instead
>>>>>> let Windows install it's native drivers and networking interface.
>>>>>> It works just fine, with excellent signal strength. Previously, I
>>>>>> had it connected to a D-link wireless router, but sitting right
>>>>>> next to the router connected with an ethernet cable. I was going
>>>>>> to run ethernet into the garage, which is the final destination for
>>>>>> this machine, but I thought I'd try a wireless card. I hope the
>>>>>> signal is still good when I move it into the gargage, about 30'
>>>>>> away. We'll see. If not, I'll run ethernet. (I don't mind
>>>>>> running the cable, I just hate putting the connectors on. My eyes
>>>>>> aren't what they used to be <g>.)
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Here are the items that the update addressed, per the readme.txt
>>>>>> file within the update folder:
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Reason for Update
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Option to enable or disable the ISA Enable Bit on PCI bridges.
>>>>>> Adds D-stepping core support for latest generation processors.
>>>>>> Adds WFM 2.0 Remote Lockout support.
>>>>>> Adds support for the Security Freeze Lock command on resume from S3
>>>>>> to IDE devices that support the Security feature set.
>>>>>> Adds workaround for Windows 98 SE issue where ATAPI devices are not
>>>>>> reprogrammed on resume from Suspend-to-RAM (S3).
>>>>>> Implements Force Network Boot feature that allows users to force
>>>>>> the computer to start to network by pressing a hot key.
>>>>>> Fixes issue where the computer was always reporting 80-conductor
>>>>>> IDE cable type (regardless of actual cable type) when certain ATAPI
>>>>>> devices were connected as the slave device on an IDE channel.
>>>>>> Adds support for PCI IDE Bus Mastering (DMA) for BIOS INT 13h hard
>>>>>> disk reads and writes on IDE devices that support IDE Bus
>>>>>> Mastering. Adds Mode 5 (UDMA/100) option to the IDE UDMA Mode.
>>>>>> Corrects functionality of IDE PIO Mode.
>>>>>> Fixes issue where BIOS was incorrectly reporting UDMA modes on IDE
>>>>>> devices that do not support UDMA.
>>>>>> Sets ISA ENABLE bits on PCI bridges that do not have VGA behind
>>>>>> them. Adds support for doing 32-bit IDE PIO mode data transfers
>>>>>> inside BIOS INT 13h.
>>>>>> Fixes issue where ATAPI Removable Devices that support UDMA modes
>>>>>> were not getting programmed for UDMA mode.
>>>>>> Updates the display of the processor BIOS update information to
>>>>>> account for the new naming convention.
>>>>>> Adds the display of UDMA mode for ARMD.
>>>>>> Sets Wake on Modem Ring default to Power On.
>>>>>> Fixes an issue where the Fault Tolerant Boot Block Test would fail
>>>>>> and not be able to boot if ECC was enabled during the test.
>>>>>> Fixes the incorrect display of hard disk drive capacity for larger
>>>>>> hard disk drives.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Boris
>>>>> Did you change the boot order priority in the last screen of the
>>>>> BIOS CMOS setup to boot first from CD, then from floppy, and then
>>>>> from hard disk? If so, the computer should boot from CD. If not,
>>>>> pressing F12 with a modern BIOS gets it to present a choice of boot
>>>>> devices, from which you select one... Ben Myers
>>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Hi,
>>>>
>>>> Yes, set it up just like you described. No luck.
>>>>
>>>> F12 gets me nothing.
>>>>
>>>> F8 gets me the Troubleshooting and Advanced Startup screen with Start
>>>> Up options, as it should, such as Safe Mode, Enable Boot Logging,
>>>> Debugging Mode, etc.
>>>>
>>>> F10 is weird. It gets me the BIOS screen, with the a message as if
>>>> I've just made changes to the BIOS settings, "Do you want to save
>>>> changes and exit?"
>>>>
>>>> F1 gets me the BIOS setup screen, as it should.
>>>>
>>>> By the way, when the machine boots up, it never shows "Hit F8 for
>>>> Boot Options", or "Hit F1 for Setup" in the upper right hand corner,
>>>> even if I have it set to go through the long POST, where it shows
>>>> everything it finds as it boots up. The long boot does show that it
>>>> found the CD-ROM when set to boot from CD-ROM.
>>>>
>>>> I think the book is closed on trying to get this to boot from CD-ROM.
>>>
>>> Maybe the CD-ROM drive is bad? The Intel D850 motherboards are new
>>> enough that they should allow booting from CD-ROM. Most any P4 system
>>> can, and even some P3 systems... Ben
>>
>> Hi,
>>
>> One of the first things I did after discovering that I couldn't boot from
>> CD-ROM in this P4 was to install a known good CD-ROM from another my
>> Dim4550, that did boot properly in the Dim4550. But, it wouldn't boot
>> while in the P4.
>
> Have you tried a different keyboard? You said in an earlier post that
> the log was showing errors. Maybe there's a glitch in the one you're
> using. If it's a USB one, try a PS2 one and see if that makes a difference.
>
> SC Tom
>

Yes! That would be another reason why Boris could not enter the BIOS
CMOS setup. Worth a try... Ben

"SC Tom" <> wrote in news:1fFzm.32478$:

>
> "Boris" <> wrote in message
> news:Xns9C9C69BF61F0Anospamnospaminvalid@188.40.43 .213...
>> Ben Myers <> wrote in
>> news:haehj5$mm8$:
>>
>>> Boris wrote:
>>>> Ben Myers <> wrote in
>>>> news:haat8h$2f8$:
>>>>
>>>>> Boris wrote:
>>>>>> Ben Myers <> wrote in
>>>>>> news:ha8g2m$6f3$:
>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Boris wrote:
>>>>>>>> Justin Thompson <> wrote
>>>>>>>> in news::
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> On Sat, 3 Oct 2009 17:06:08 +0000 (UTC), Boris
>>>>>>>>> <> wrote:
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>> I've got P4, E4600, 1.6MHz desktop.
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>> The BIOS is version GB85010A.15A.0044.P12. I'm looking for
>>>>>>>>>> an update, but all I can find is the P13 version here.
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>> http://support.gateway.com/support/d...le.asp?id=1616
>>>>>>>>>> 7
>>>>>>>>>> &dscr=Pentium%204%20BIOS%20update%20GB85010A%20P13 &uid=2239853
>>>>>>>>>> 69
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>> Anyone know where I can find the P12 version?
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>> Thanks.
>>>>>>>>> Silly question - im sure - but you say you looking for an
>>>>>>>>> update - you have found an update... but then say you dont
>>>>>>>>> want it???
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> im confused
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> I cant see any release notes from the link - so not sure what
>>>>>>>>> changed in v13, but in general - you should expect a later
>>>>>>>>> version to be better, more stable, recognise more CPUs etc. so
>>>>>>>>> why you not want it?
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> Cheers
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Hi,
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> I'm not aware that the P13 version is an update of the P12.
>>>>>>>> I've always seen updates called out at v.1, v.2, etc. But
>>>>>>>> maybe you're right. I'm not familiar with how Gateway numbers
>>>>>>>> updates.
>>>>>>>> Are you sure?
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Thanks.
>>>>>>> With the Intel motherboards used in Gateway systems, Gateway
>>>>>>> follows the same conventions as Intel does. P13 IS the latest,
>>>>>>> last and only update for your Intel D850 motherboard. Note also
>>>>>>> that the BIOS is slightly customized, but only with a Gateway
>>>>>>> identifier. You CANNOT use a GENERIC BIOS update from the Intel
>>>>>>> web site for this board... Ben Myers
>>>>>> Nice to see you, Ben.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> I went into the BIOS and read the event log. There was one
>>>>>> listing that said CMOS battery failure, but just one. There were
>>>>>> a lot keyboard failure listings. I don't know why, because the
>>>>>> keyboard always came up fine on the POST screen, and operated
>>>>>> properly all the time when in Windows. But, since the CMOS
>>>>>> battery was probably the original battery from circa 2001, I
>>>>>> replaced it, thinking that that might cure my inability to boot
>>>>>> from CD. Nope.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Curiosity got to me, and I decided to clear the BIOS. I did, by
>>>>>> removing the motherboard BIOS jumper, but still no boot from CD.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Finally, I downloaded the BIOS update on the Gateway site. I was
>>>>>> running with version P12, and the newest version was P13, dated
>>>>>> August 2001. I had to put it on a FAT floppy (not NT), and the
>>>>>> instructions said to boot from this floppy. When I tried, I got
>>>>>> invalid BOOT diskette, insert proper diskette in A. Oh, no. I
>>>>>> used the Win98SE floppy to boot up the machine into DOS, and then
>>>>>> removed the Win98SE floppy, and inserted the BIOS 'boot' disk. I
>>>>>> logged on to it, and clicked on the autoexec.bat on the floppy.
>>>>>> The BIOS update program came up, and I installed the update
>>>>>> successfully. When the update was completed, the instructions on
>>>>>> screen were to remove the floppy and press enter, and the machine
>>>>>> was supposed to reboot. I'm not sure how this was supposed to
>>>>>> happen, since the machine was set to boot from floppy, and there
>>>>>> would be no floppy in the machine. But I removed the boot
>>>>>> floppy, and pressed enter. The screen said no operating system
>>>>>> found on C (normally it would say invalid BOOT diskette if
>>>>>> there's no floppy in A, and set to boot from floppy). I had to
>>>>>> press the power button off, and restart into the BIOS (keeping my
>>>>>> fingers crossed the BIOS upgrade worked -- it did report BIOS
>>>>>> versin P13), and set to boot from the hard drive. I did, and it
>>>>>> booted up just fine. I then restarted and set to boot from CD,
>>>>>> but it still wouldn't boot from the XP CD. Oh, well. I tried.
>>>>>> I'm calling it quits trying to solve this. It may be a hardware
>>>>>> problem that I just can't diagnose, and it's not all the
>>>>>> important. The only time I'd need to start from CD is if I was
>>>>>> going to do a clean install. Maybe I'll just make an image of
>>>>>> the system before I gunk it up too much. Oh, wonder if I have to
>>>>>> be able to boot from CD to install an image.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> By the way, I just installed a Linksys WMP54G wireless adapter
>>>>>> card in the machine. I didn't use the Linksys install CD, but
>>>>>> instead let Windows install it's native drivers and networking
>>>>>> interface. It works just fine, with excellent signal strength.
>>>>>> Previously, I had it connected to a D-link wireless router, but
>>>>>> sitting right next to the router connected with an ethernet
>>>>>> cable. I was going to run ethernet into the garage, which is the
>>>>>> final destination for this machine, but I thought I'd try a
>>>>>> wireless card. I hope the signal is still good when I move it
>>>>>> into the gargage, about 30' away. We'll see. If not, I'll run
>>>>>> ethernet. (I don't mind running the cable, I just hate putting
>>>>>> the connectors on. My eyes aren't what they used to be <g>.)
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Here are the items that the update addressed, per the readme.txt
>>>>>> file within the update folder:
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Reason for Update
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Option to enable or disable the ISA Enable Bit on PCI bridges.
>>>>>> Adds D-stepping core support for latest generation processors.
>>>>>> Adds WFM 2.0 Remote Lockout support.
>>>>>> Adds support for the Security Freeze Lock command on resume from
>>>>>> S3 to IDE devices that support the Security feature set.
>>>>>> Adds workaround for Windows 98 SE issue where ATAPI devices are
>>>>>> not reprogrammed on resume from Suspend-to-RAM (S3).
>>>>>> Implements Force Network Boot feature that allows users to force
>>>>>> the computer to start to network by pressing a hot key.
>>>>>> Fixes issue where the computer was always reporting 80-conductor
>>>>>> IDE cable type (regardless of actual cable type) when certain
>>>>>> ATAPI devices were connected as the slave device on an IDE
>>>>>> channel. Adds support for PCI IDE Bus Mastering (DMA) for BIOS
>>>>>> INT 13h hard disk reads and writes on IDE devices that support
>>>>>> IDE Bus Mastering. Adds Mode 5 (UDMA/100) option to the IDE UDMA
>>>>>> Mode. Corrects functionality of IDE PIO Mode.
>>>>>> Fixes issue where BIOS was incorrectly reporting UDMA modes on
>>>>>> IDE devices that do not support UDMA.
>>>>>> Sets ISA ENABLE bits on PCI bridges that do not have VGA behind
>>>>>> them. Adds support for doing 32-bit IDE PIO mode data transfers
>>>>>> inside BIOS INT 13h.
>>>>>> Fixes issue where ATAPI Removable Devices that support UDMA modes
>>>>>> were not getting programmed for UDMA mode.
>>>>>> Updates the display of the processor BIOS update information to
>>>>>> account for the new naming convention.
>>>>>> Adds the display of UDMA mode for ARMD.
>>>>>> Sets Wake on Modem Ring default to Power On.
>>>>>> Fixes an issue where the Fault Tolerant Boot Block Test would
>>>>>> fail and not be able to boot if ECC was enabled during the test.
>>>>>> Fixes the incorrect display of hard disk drive capacity for
>>>>>> larger hard disk drives.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Boris
>>>>> Did you change the boot order priority in the last screen of the
>>>>> BIOS CMOS setup to boot first from CD, then from floppy, and then
>>>>> from hard disk? If so, the computer should boot from CD. If not,
>>>>> pressing F12 with a modern BIOS gets it to present a choice of
>>>>> boot devices, from which you select one... Ben Myers
>>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Hi,
>>>>
>>>> Yes, set it up just like you described. No luck.
>>>>
>>>> F12 gets me nothing.
>>>>
>>>> F8 gets me the Troubleshooting and Advanced Startup screen with
>>>> Start Up options, as it should, such as Safe Mode, Enable Boot
>>>> Logging, Debugging Mode, etc.
>>>>
>>>> F10 is weird. It gets me the BIOS screen, with the a message as if
>>>> I've just made changes to the BIOS settings, "Do you want to save
>>>> changes and exit?"
>>>>
>>>> F1 gets me the BIOS setup screen, as it should.
>>>>
>>>> By the way, when the machine boots up, it never shows "Hit F8 for
>>>> Boot Options", or "Hit F1 for Setup" in the upper right hand
>>>> corner, even if I have it set to go through the long POST, where it
>>>> shows everything it finds as it boots up. The long boot does show
>>>> that it found the CD-ROM when set to boot from CD-ROM.
>>>>
>>>> I think the book is closed on trying to get this to boot from
>>>> CD-ROM.
>>>
>>> Maybe the CD-ROM drive is bad? The Intel D850 motherboards are new
>>> enough that they should allow booting from CD-ROM. Most any P4
>>> system can, and even some P3 systems... Ben
>>
>> Hi,
>>
>> One of the first things I did after discovering that I couldn't boot
>> from CD-ROM in this P4 was to install a known good CD-ROM from
>> another my Dim4550, that did boot properly in the Dim4550. But, it
>> wouldn't boot while in the P4.
>
> Have you tried a different keyboard? You said in an earlier post that
> the log was showing errors. Maybe there's a glitch in the one you're
> using. If it's a USB one, try a PS2 one and see if that makes a
> difference.
>
> SC Tom
>

Hi, SC Tom,

The machine wants a PS2 keyboard, and I was originally using a DIN keyboard
with a DIN-PS2 adapter, then I tried a USB keyboard (no adapter needed, the
machine has USB ports), and finally a Dell Quiet Key PS2, which is what I'm
running now.

The Dell Quiet Key is not quiet. It's quite 'clacky'.

Ben Myers <> wrote in
news:handtt$h64$:

> SC Tom wrote:
>>
>> "Boris" <> wrote in message
>> news:Xns9C9C69BF61F0Anospamnospaminvalid@188.40.43 .213...
>>> Ben Myers <> wrote in
>>> news:haehj5$mm8$:
>>>
>>>> Boris wrote:
>>>>> Ben Myers <> wrote in
>>>>> news:haat8h$2f8$:
>>>>>
>>>>>> Boris wrote:
>>>>>>> Ben Myers <> wrote in
>>>>>>> news:ha8g2m$6f3$:
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Boris wrote:
>>>>>>>>> Justin Thompson <> wrote
>>>>>>>>> in news::
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>> On Sat, 3 Oct 2009 17:06:08 +0000 (UTC), Boris
>>>>>>>>>> <> wrote:
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>> I've got P4, E4600, 1.6MHz desktop.
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>> The BIOS is version GB85010A.15A.0044.P12. I'm looking for
>>>>>>>>>>> an update, but all I can find is the P13 version here.
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>> http://support.gateway.com/support/d...etFile.asp?id=
161
>>>>>>>>>>> 67
>>>>>>>>>>> &dscr=Pentium%204%20BIOS%20update%20GB85010A%20P13 &uid=
223985
>>>>>>>>>>> 369
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>> Anyone know where I can find the P12 version?
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>> Thanks.
>>>>>>>>>> Silly question - im sure - but you say you looking for an
>>>>>>>>>> update - you have found an update... but then say you dont
>>>>>>>>>> want it???
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>> im confused
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>> I cant see any release notes from the link - so not sure what
>>>>>>>>>> changed in v13, but in general - you should expect a later
>>>>>>>>>> version to be better, more stable, recognise more CPUs etc.
>>>>>>>>>> so why you not want it?
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>> Cheers
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> Hi,
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> I'm not aware that the P13 version is an update of the P12.
>>>>>>>>> I've always seen updates called out at v.1, v.2, etc. But
>>>>>>>>> maybe you're right. I'm not familiar with how Gateway numbers
>>>>>>>>> updates.
>>>>>>>>> Are you sure?
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> Thanks.
>>>>>>>> With the Intel motherboards used in Gateway systems, Gateway
>>>>>>>> follows the same conventions as Intel does. P13 IS the latest,
>>>>>>>> last and only update for your Intel D850 motherboard. Note
>>>>>>>> also that the BIOS is slightly customized, but only with a
>>>>>>>> Gateway identifier. You CANNOT use a GENERIC BIOS update from
>>>>>>>> the Intel web site for this board... Ben Myers
>>>>>>> Nice to see you, Ben.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> I went into the BIOS and read the event log. There was one
>>>>>>> listing that said CMOS battery failure, but just one. There
>>>>>>> were a lot keyboard failure listings. I don't know why, because
>>>>>>> the keyboard always came up fine on the POST screen, and
>>>>>>> operated properly all the time when in Windows. But, since the
>>>>>>> CMOS battery was probably the original battery from circa 2001,
>>>>>>> I replaced it, thinking that that might cure my inability to
>>>>>>> boot from CD. Nope.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Curiosity got to me, and I decided to clear the BIOS. I did, by
>>>>>>> removing the motherboard BIOS jumper, but still no boot from CD.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Finally, I downloaded the BIOS update on the Gateway site. I
>>>>>>> was running with version P12, and the newest version was P13,
>>>>>>> dated August 2001. I had to put it on a FAT floppy (not NT),
>>>>>>> and the instructions said to boot from this floppy. When I
>>>>>>> tried, I got invalid BOOT diskette, insert proper diskette in A.
>>>>>>> Oh, no. I used the Win98SE floppy to boot up the machine into
>>>>>>> DOS, and then removed the Win98SE floppy, and inserted the BIOS
>>>>>>> 'boot' disk. I logged on to it, and clicked on the autoexec.bat
>>>>>>> on the floppy. The BIOS update program came up, and I installed
>>>>>>> the update successfully. When the update was completed, the
>>>>>>> instructions on screen were to remove the floppy and press
>>>>>>> enter, and the machine was supposed to reboot. I'm not sure how
>>>>>>> this was supposed to happen, since the machine was set to boot
>>>>>>> from floppy, and there would be no floppy in the machine. But I
>>>>>>> removed the boot floppy, and pressed enter. The screen said no
>>>>>>> operating system found on C (normally it would say invalid BOOT
>>>>>>> diskette if there's no floppy in A, and set to boot from
>>>>>>> floppy). I had to press the power button off, and restart into
>>>>>>> the BIOS (keeping my fingers crossed the BIOS upgrade worked --
>>>>>>> it did report BIOS versin P13), and set to boot from the hard
>>>>>>> drive. I did, and it booted up just fine. I then restarted and
>>>>>>> set to boot from CD, but it still wouldn't boot from the XP CD.
>>>>>>> Oh, well. I tried. I'm calling it quits trying to solve this.
>>>>>>> It may be a hardware problem that I just can't diagnose, and
>>>>>>> it's not all the important. The only time I'd need to start from
>>>>>>> CD is if I was going to do a clean install. Maybe I'll
>>>>>>> just make an image of the system before I gunk it up too much.
>>>>>>> Oh, wonder if I have to be able to boot from CD to install an
>>>>>>> image.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> By the way, I just installed a Linksys WMP54G wireless adapter
>>>>>>> card in the machine. I didn't use the Linksys install CD, but
>>>>>>> instead let Windows install it's native drivers and networking
>>>>>>> interface. It works just fine, with excellent signal strength.
>>>>>>> Previously, I had it connected to a D-link wireless router, but
>>>>>>> sitting right next to the router connected with an ethernet
>>>>>>> cable. I was going to run ethernet into the garage, which is
>>>>>>> the final destination for this machine, but I thought I'd try a
>>>>>>> wireless card. I hope the signal is still good when I move it
>>>>>>> into the gargage, about 30' away. We'll see. If not, I'll run
>>>>>>> ethernet. (I don't mind running the cable, I just hate putting
>>>>>>> the connectors on. My eyes aren't what they used to be <g>.)
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Here are the items that the update addressed, per the readme.txt
>>>>>>> file within the update folder:
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Reason for Update
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Option to enable or disable the ISA Enable Bit on PCI bridges.
>>>>>>> Adds D-stepping core support for latest generation processors.
>>>>>>> Adds WFM 2.0 Remote Lockout support.
>>>>>>> Adds support for the Security Freeze Lock command on resume from
>>>>>>> S3 to IDE devices that support the Security feature set.
>>>>>>> Adds workaround for Windows 98 SE issue where ATAPI devices are
>>>>>>> not reprogrammed on resume from Suspend-to-RAM (S3).
>>>>>>> Implements Force Network Boot feature that allows users to force
>>>>>>> the computer to start to network by pressing a hot key.
>>>>>>> Fixes issue where the computer was always reporting 80-conductor
>>>>>>> IDE cable type (regardless of actual cable type) when certain
>>>>>>> ATAPI devices were connected as the slave device on an IDE
>>>>>>> channel. Adds support for PCI IDE Bus Mastering (DMA) for BIOS
>>>>>>> INT 13h hard disk reads and writes on IDE devices that support
>>>>>>> IDE Bus Mastering. Adds Mode 5 (UDMA/100) option to the IDE UDMA
>>>>>>> Mode. Corrects functionality of IDE PIO Mode.
>>>>>>> Fixes issue where BIOS was incorrectly reporting UDMA modes on
>>>>>>> IDE devices that do not support UDMA.
>>>>>>> Sets ISA ENABLE bits on PCI bridges that do not have VGA behind
>>>>>>> them. Adds support for doing 32-bit IDE PIO mode data transfers
>>>>>>> inside BIOS INT 13h.
>>>>>>> Fixes issue where ATAPI Removable Devices that support UDMA
>>>>>>> modes were not getting programmed for UDMA mode.
>>>>>>> Updates the display of the processor BIOS update information to
>>>>>>> account for the new naming convention.
>>>>>>> Adds the display of UDMA mode for ARMD.
>>>>>>> Sets Wake on Modem Ring default to Power On.
>>>>>>> Fixes an issue where the Fault Tolerant Boot Block Test would
>>>>>>> fail and not be able to boot if ECC was enabled during the test.
>>>>>>> Fixes the incorrect display of hard disk drive capacity for
>>>>>>> larger hard disk drives.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Boris
>>>>>> Did you change the boot order priority in the last screen of the
>>>>>> BIOS CMOS setup to boot first from CD, then from floppy, and then
>>>>>> from hard disk? If so, the computer should boot from CD. If
>>>>>> not, pressing F12 with a modern BIOS gets it to present a choice
>>>>>> of boot devices, from which you select one... Ben Myers
>>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> Hi,
>>>>>
>>>>> Yes, set it up just like you described. No luck.
>>>>>
>>>>> F12 gets me nothing.
>>>>>
>>>>> F8 gets me the Troubleshooting and Advanced Startup screen with
>>>>> Start Up options, as it should, such as Safe Mode, Enable Boot
>>>>> Logging, Debugging Mode, etc.
>>>>>
>>>>> F10 is weird. It gets me the BIOS screen, with the a message as
>>>>> if I've just made changes to the BIOS settings, "Do you want to
>>>>> save changes and exit?"
>>>>>
>>>>> F1 gets me the BIOS setup screen, as it should.
>>>>>
>>>>> By the way, when the machine boots up, it never shows "Hit F8 for
>>>>> Boot Options", or "Hit F1 for Setup" in the upper right hand
>>>>> corner, even if I have it set to go through the long POST, where
>>>>> it shows everything it finds as it boots up. The long boot does
>>>>> show that it found the CD-ROM when set to boot from CD-ROM.
>>>>>
>>>>> I think the book is closed on trying to get this to boot from
>>>>> CD-ROM.
>>>>
>>>> Maybe the CD-ROM drive is bad? The Intel D850 motherboards are new
>>>> enough that they should allow booting from CD-ROM. Most any P4
>>>> system can, and even some P3 systems... Ben
>>>
>>> Hi,
>>>
>>> One of the first things I did after discovering that I couldn't boot
>>> from CD-ROM in this P4 was to install a known good CD-ROM from
>>> another my Dim4550, that did boot properly in the Dim4550. But, it
>>> wouldn't boot while in the P4.
>>
>> Have you tried a different keyboard? You said in an earlier post that
>> the log was showing errors. Maybe there's a glitch in the one you're
>> using. If it's a USB one, try a PS2 one and see if that makes a
>> difference.
>>
>> SC Tom
>>
>
> Yes! That would be another reason why Boris could not enter the BIOS
> CMOS setup. Worth a try... Ben

Well, I'v never had problems entering the BIOS setup. F1 always works,
as per the Gateway manual,to get me into the BIOS setup. I've also
never had problems modifying the BIOS, and the settings 'stick', but the
boot from CD just doesn't want to cooperate.

Twilight zone stuff.

"Boris" <> wrote in message
news:hann27$1qu$...
> "SC Tom" <> wrote in news:1fFzm.32478$:
>
>>
>> "Boris" <> wrote in message
>> news:Xns9C9C69BF61F0Anospamnospaminvalid@188.40.43 .213...
>>> Ben Myers <> wrote in
>>> news:haehj5$mm8$:
>>>
>>>> Boris wrote:
>>>>> Ben Myers <> wrote in
>>>>> news:haat8h$2f8$:
>>>>>
>>>>>> Boris wrote:
>>>>>>> Ben Myers <> wrote in
>>>>>>> news:ha8g2m$6f3$:
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Boris wrote:
>>>>>>>>> Justin Thompson <> wrote
>>>>>>>>> in news::
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>> On Sat, 3 Oct 2009 17:06:08 +0000 (UTC), Boris
>>>>>>>>>> <> wrote:
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>> I've got P4, E4600, 1.6MHz desktop.
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>> The BIOS is version GB85010A.15A.0044.P12. I'm looking for
>>>>>>>>>>> an update, but all I can find is the P13 version here.
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>> http://support.gateway.com/support/d...le.asp?id=1616
>>>>>>>>>>> 7
>>>>>>>>>>> &dscr=Pentium%204%20BIOS%20update%20GB85010A%20P13 &uid=2239853
>>>>>>>>>>> 69
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>> Anyone know where I can find the P12 version?
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>> Thanks.
>>>>>>>>>> Silly question - im sure - but you say you looking for an
>>>>>>>>>> update - you have found an update... but then say you dont
>>>>>>>>>> want it???
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>> im confused
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>> I cant see any release notes from the link - so not sure what
>>>>>>>>>> changed in v13, but in general - you should expect a later
>>>>>>>>>> version to be better, more stable, recognise more CPUs etc. so
>>>>>>>>>> why you not want it?
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>> Cheers
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> Hi,
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> I'm not aware that the P13 version is an update of the P12.
>>>>>>>>> I've always seen updates called out at v.1, v.2, etc. But
>>>>>>>>> maybe you're right. I'm not familiar with how Gateway numbers
>>>>>>>>> updates.
>>>>>>>>> Are you sure?
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> Thanks.
>>>>>>>> With the Intel motherboards used in Gateway systems, Gateway
>>>>>>>> follows the same conventions as Intel does. P13 IS the latest,
>>>>>>>> last and only update for your Intel D850 motherboard. Note also
>>>>>>>> that the BIOS is slightly customized, but only with a Gateway
>>>>>>>> identifier. You CANNOT use a GENERIC BIOS update from the Intel
>>>>>>>> web site for this board... Ben Myers
>>>>>>> Nice to see you, Ben.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> I went into the BIOS and read the event log. There was one
>>>>>>> listing that said CMOS battery failure, but just one. There were
>>>>>>> a lot keyboard failure listings. I don't know why, because the
>>>>>>> keyboard always came up fine on the POST screen, and operated
>>>>>>> properly all the time when in Windows. But, since the CMOS
>>>>>>> battery was probably the original battery from circa 2001, I
>>>>>>> replaced it, thinking that that might cure my inability to boot
>>>>>>> from CD. Nope.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Curiosity got to me, and I decided to clear the BIOS. I did, by
>>>>>>> removing the motherboard BIOS jumper, but still no boot from CD.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Finally, I downloaded the BIOS update on the Gateway site. I was
>>>>>>> running with version P12, and the newest version was P13, dated
>>>>>>> August 2001. I had to put it on a FAT floppy (not NT), and the
>>>>>>> instructions said to boot from this floppy. When I tried, I got
>>>>>>> invalid BOOT diskette, insert proper diskette in A. Oh, no. I
>>>>>>> used the Win98SE floppy to boot up the machine into DOS, and then
>>>>>>> removed the Win98SE floppy, and inserted the BIOS 'boot' disk. I
>>>>>>> logged on to it, and clicked on the autoexec.bat on the floppy.
>>>>>>> The BIOS update program came up, and I installed the update
>>>>>>> successfully. When the update was completed, the instructions on
>>>>>>> screen were to remove the floppy and press enter, and the machine
>>>>>>> was supposed to reboot. I'm not sure how this was supposed to
>>>>>>> happen, since the machine was set to boot from floppy, and there
>>>>>>> would be no floppy in the machine. But I removed the boot
>>>>>>> floppy, and pressed enter. The screen said no operating system
>>>>>>> found on C (normally it would say invalid BOOT diskette if
>>>>>>> there's no floppy in A, and set to boot from floppy). I had to
>>>>>>> press the power button off, and restart into the BIOS (keeping my
>>>>>>> fingers crossed the BIOS upgrade worked -- it did report BIOS
>>>>>>> versin P13), and set to boot from the hard drive. I did, and it
>>>>>>> booted up just fine. I then restarted and set to boot from CD,
>>>>>>> but it still wouldn't boot from the XP CD. Oh, well. I tried.
>>>>>>> I'm calling it quits trying to solve this. It may be a hardware
>>>>>>> problem that I just can't diagnose, and it's not all the
>>>>>>> important. The only time I'd need to start from CD is if I was
>>>>>>> going to do a clean install. Maybe I'll just make an image of
>>>>>>> the system before I gunk it up too much. Oh, wonder if I have to
>>>>>>> be able to boot from CD to install an image.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> By the way, I just installed a Linksys WMP54G wireless adapter
>>>>>>> card in the machine. I didn't use the Linksys install CD, but
>>>>>>> instead let Windows install it's native drivers and networking
>>>>>>> interface. It works just fine, with excellent signal strength.
>>>>>>> Previously, I had it connected to a D-link wireless router, but
>>>>>>> sitting right next to the router connected with an ethernet
>>>>>>> cable. I was going to run ethernet into the garage, which is the
>>>>>>> final destination for this machine, but I thought I'd try a
>>>>>>> wireless card. I hope the signal is still good when I move it
>>>>>>> into the gargage, about 30' away. We'll see. If not, I'll run
>>>>>>> ethernet. (I don't mind running the cable, I just hate putting
>>>>>>> the connectors on. My eyes aren't what they used to be <g>.)
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Here are the items that the update addressed, per the readme.txt
>>>>>>> file within the update folder:
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Reason for Update
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Option to enable or disable the ISA Enable Bit on PCI bridges.
>>>>>>> Adds D-stepping core support for latest generation processors.
>>>>>>> Adds WFM 2.0 Remote Lockout support.
>>>>>>> Adds support for the Security Freeze Lock command on resume from
>>>>>>> S3 to IDE devices that support the Security feature set.
>>>>>>> Adds workaround for Windows 98 SE issue where ATAPI devices are
>>>>>>> not reprogrammed on resume from Suspend-to-RAM (S3).
>>>>>>> Implements Force Network Boot feature that allows users to force
>>>>>>> the computer to start to network by pressing a hot key.
>>>>>>> Fixes issue where the computer was always reporting 80-conductor
>>>>>>> IDE cable type (regardless of actual cable type) when certain
>>>>>>> ATAPI devices were connected as the slave device on an IDE
>>>>>>> channel. Adds support for PCI IDE Bus Mastering (DMA) for BIOS
>>>>>>> INT 13h hard disk reads and writes on IDE devices that support
>>>>>>> IDE Bus Mastering. Adds Mode 5 (UDMA/100) option to the IDE UDMA
>>>>>>> Mode. Corrects functionality of IDE PIO Mode.
>>>>>>> Fixes issue where BIOS was incorrectly reporting UDMA modes on
>>>>>>> IDE devices that do not support UDMA.
>>>>>>> Sets ISA ENABLE bits on PCI bridges that do not have VGA behind
>>>>>>> them. Adds support for doing 32-bit IDE PIO mode data transfers
>>>>>>> inside BIOS INT 13h.
>>>>>>> Fixes issue where ATAPI Removable Devices that support UDMA modes
>>>>>>> were not getting programmed for UDMA mode.
>>>>>>> Updates the display of the processor BIOS update information to
>>>>>>> account for the new naming convention.
>>>>>>> Adds the display of UDMA mode for ARMD.
>>>>>>> Sets Wake on Modem Ring default to Power On.
>>>>>>> Fixes an issue where the Fault Tolerant Boot Block Test would
>>>>>>> fail and not be able to boot if ECC was enabled during the test.
>>>>>>> Fixes the incorrect display of hard disk drive capacity for
>>>>>>> larger hard disk drives.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Boris
>>>>>> Did you change the boot order priority in the last screen of the
>>>>>> BIOS CMOS setup to boot first from CD, then from floppy, and then
>>>>>> from hard disk? If so, the computer should boot from CD. If not,
>>>>>> pressing F12 with a modern BIOS gets it to present a choice of
>>>>>> boot devices, from which you select one... Ben Myers
>>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> Hi,
>>>>>
>>>>> Yes, set it up just like you described. No luck.
>>>>>
>>>>> F12 gets me nothing.
>>>>>
>>>>> F8 gets me the Troubleshooting and Advanced Startup screen with
>>>>> Start Up options, as it should, such as Safe Mode, Enable Boot
>>>>> Logging, Debugging Mode, etc.
>>>>>
>>>>> F10 is weird. It gets me the BIOS screen, with the a message as if
>>>>> I've just made changes to the BIOS settings, "Do you want to save
>>>>> changes and exit?"
>>>>>
>>>>> F1 gets me the BIOS setup screen, as it should.
>>>>>
>>>>> By the way, when the machine boots up, it never shows "Hit F8 for
>>>>> Boot Options", or "Hit F1 for Setup" in the upper right hand
>>>>> corner, even if I have it set to go through the long POST, where it
>>>>> shows everything it finds as it boots up. The long boot does show
>>>>> that it found the CD-ROM when set to boot from CD-ROM.
>>>>>
>>>>> I think the book is closed on trying to get this to boot from
>>>>> CD-ROM.
>>>>
>>>> Maybe the CD-ROM drive is bad? The Intel D850 motherboards are new
>>>> enough that they should allow booting from CD-ROM. Most any P4
>>>> system can, and even some P3 systems... Ben
>>>
>>> Hi,
>>>
>>> One of the first things I did after discovering that I couldn't boot
>>> from CD-ROM in this P4 was to install a known good CD-ROM from
>>> another my Dim4550, that did boot properly in the Dim4550. But, it
>>> wouldn't boot while in the P4.
>>
>> Have you tried a different keyboard? You said in an earlier post that
>> the log was showing errors. Maybe there's a glitch in the one you're
>> using. If it's a USB one, try a PS2 one and see if that makes a
>> difference.
>>
>> SC Tom
>>
>
> Hi, SC Tom,
>
> The machine wants a PS2 keyboard, and I was originally using a DIN
> keyboard
> with a DIN-PS2 adapter, then I tried a USB keyboard (no adapter needed,
> the
> machine has USB ports), and finally a Dell Quiet Key PS2, which is what
> I'm
> running now.
>
> The Dell Quiet Key is not quiet. It's quite 'clacky'.
>
>
>
Oh well, thought that might be it.
Another suggestion might be to re-flash your BIOS back to an older version,
boot up and set all BIOS settings to default, then re-flash it to the new
one. Don't have anything hooked up except basic stuff- keyboard, mouse, HDD,
and monitor. It's entirely possible the new flash didn't take even though it
said it did. This is not the safest thing in the world to do, so I would
certainly understand if you were reluctant to try it.

SC Tom

"SC Tom" <> wrote in news:2_Mzm.32587$:

>
> "Boris" <> wrote in message
> news:hann27$1qu$...
>> "SC Tom" <> wrote in
>> news:1fFzm.32478$:
>>
>>>
>>> "Boris" <> wrote in message
>>> news:Xns9C9C69BF61F0Anospamnospaminvalid@188.40.43 .213...
>>>> Ben Myers <> wrote in
>>>> news:haehj5$mm8$:
>>>>
>>>>> Boris wrote:
>>>>>> Ben Myers <> wrote in
>>>>>> news:haat8h$2f8$:
>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Boris wrote:
>>>>>>>> Ben Myers <> wrote in
>>>>>>>> news:ha8g2m$6f3$:
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> Boris wrote:
>>>>>>>>>> Justin Thompson <>
>>>>>>>>>> wrote in news::
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>> On Sat, 3 Oct 2009 17:06:08 +0000 (UTC), Boris
>>>>>>>>>>> <> wrote:
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>> I've got P4, E4600, 1.6MHz desktop.
>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>> The BIOS is version GB85010A.15A.0044.P12. I'm looking for
>>>>>>>>>>>> an update, but all I can find is the P13 version here.
>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>> http://support.gateway.com/support/d...File.asp?id=16
>>>>>>>>>>>> 16 7
>>>>>>>>>>>> &dscr=Pentium%204%20BIOS%20update%20GB85010A%20P13 &uid=22398
>>>>>>>>>>>> 53 69
>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>> Anyone know where I can find the P12 version?
>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>> Thanks.
>>>>>>>>>>> Silly question - im sure - but you say you looking for an
>>>>>>>>>>> update - you have found an update... but then say you dont
>>>>>>>>>>> want it???
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>> im confused
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>> I cant see any release notes from the link - so not sure
>>>>>>>>>>> what changed in v13, but in general - you should expect a
>>>>>>>>>>> later version to be better, more stable, recognise more CPUs
>>>>>>>>>>> etc. so why you not want it?
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>> Cheers
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>> Hi,
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>> I'm not aware that the P13 version is an update of the P12.
>>>>>>>>>> I've always seen updates called out at v.1, v.2, etc. But
>>>>>>>>>> maybe you're right. I'm not familiar with how Gateway
>>>>>>>>>> numbers updates.
>>>>>>>>>> Are you sure?
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>> Thanks.
>>>>>>>>> With the Intel motherboards used in Gateway systems, Gateway
>>>>>>>>> follows the same conventions as Intel does. P13 IS the
>>>>>>>>> latest, last and only update for your Intel D850 motherboard.
>>>>>>>>> Note also that the BIOS is slightly customized, but only with
>>>>>>>>> a Gateway identifier. You CANNOT use a GENERIC BIOS update
>>>>>>>>> from the Intel web site for this board... Ben Myers
>>>>>>>> Nice to see you, Ben.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> I went into the BIOS and read the event log. There was one
>>>>>>>> listing that said CMOS battery failure, but just one. There
>>>>>>>> were a lot keyboard failure listings. I don't know why,
>>>>>>>> because the keyboard always came up fine on the POST screen,
>>>>>>>> and operated properly all the time when in Windows. But, since
>>>>>>>> the CMOS battery was probably the original battery from circa
>>>>>>>> 2001, I replaced it, thinking that that might cure my inability
>>>>>>>> to boot from CD. Nope.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Curiosity got to me, and I decided to clear the BIOS. I did,
>>>>>>>> by removing the motherboard BIOS jumper, but still no boot from
>>>>>>>> CD.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Finally, I downloaded the BIOS update on the Gateway site. I
>>>>>>>> was running with version P12, and the newest version was P13,
>>>>>>>> dated August 2001. I had to put it on a FAT floppy (not NT),
>>>>>>>> and the instructions said to boot from this floppy. When I
>>>>>>>> tried, I got invalid BOOT diskette, insert proper diskette in
>>>>>>>> A. Oh, no. I used the Win98SE floppy to boot up the machine
>>>>>>>> into DOS, and then removed the Win98SE floppy, and inserted the
>>>>>>>> BIOS 'boot' disk. I logged on to it, and clicked on the
>>>>>>>> autoexec.bat on the floppy. The BIOS update program came up,
>>>>>>>> and I installed the update successfully. When the update was
>>>>>>>> completed, the instructions on screen were to remove the floppy
>>>>>>>> and press enter, and the machine was supposed to reboot. I'm
>>>>>>>> not sure how this was supposed to happen, since the machine was
>>>>>>>> set to boot from floppy, and there would be no floppy in the
>>>>>>>> machine. But I removed the boot floppy, and pressed enter.
>>>>>>>> The screen said no operating system found on C (normally it
>>>>>>>> would say invalid BOOT diskette if there's no floppy in A, and
>>>>>>>> set to boot from floppy). I had to press the power button off,
>>>>>>>> and restart into the BIOS (keeping my fingers crossed the BIOS
>>>>>>>> upgrade worked -- it did report BIOS versin P13), and set to
>>>>>>>> boot from the hard drive. I did, and it booted up just fine.
>>>>>>>> I then restarted and set to boot from CD, but it still wouldn't
>>>>>>>> boot from the XP CD. Oh, well. I tried. I'm calling it quits
>>>>>>>> trying to solve this. It may be a hardware problem that I just
>>>>>>>> can't diagnose, and it's not all the important. The only time
>>>>>>>> I'd need to start from CD is if I was going to do a clean
>>>>>>>> install. Maybe I'll just make an image of the system before I
>>>>>>>> gunk it up too much. Oh, wonder if I have to be able to boot
>>>>>>>> from CD to install an image.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> By the way, I just installed a Linksys WMP54G wireless adapter
>>>>>>>> card in the machine. I didn't use the Linksys install CD, but
>>>>>>>> instead let Windows install it's native drivers and networking
>>>>>>>> interface. It works just fine, with excellent signal strength.
>>>>>>>> Previously, I had it connected to a D-link wireless router, but
>>>>>>>> sitting right next to the router connected with an ethernet
>>>>>>>> cable. I was going to run ethernet into the garage, which is
>>>>>>>> the final destination for this machine, but I thought I'd try a
>>>>>>>> wireless card. I hope the signal is still good when I move it
>>>>>>>> into the gargage, about 30' away. We'll see. If not, I'll run
>>>>>>>> ethernet. (I don't mind running the cable, I just hate putting
>>>>>>>> the connectors on. My eyes aren't what they used to be <g>.)
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Here are the items that the update addressed, per the
>>>>>>>> readme.txt file within the update folder:
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Reason for Update
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Option to enable or disable the ISA Enable Bit on PCI bridges.
>>>>>>>> Adds D-stepping core support for latest generation processors.
>>>>>>>> Adds WFM 2.0 Remote Lockout support.
>>>>>>>> Adds support for the Security Freeze Lock command on resume
>>>>>>>> from S3 to IDE devices that support the Security feature set.
>>>>>>>> Adds workaround for Windows 98 SE issue where ATAPI devices are
>>>>>>>> not reprogrammed on resume from Suspend-to-RAM (S3).
>>>>>>>> Implements Force Network Boot feature that allows users to
>>>>>>>> force the computer to start to network by pressing a hot key.
>>>>>>>> Fixes issue where the computer was always reporting
>>>>>>>> 80-conductor IDE cable type (regardless of actual cable type)
>>>>>>>> when certain ATAPI devices were connected as the slave device
>>>>>>>> on an IDE channel. Adds support for PCI IDE Bus Mastering (DMA)
>>>>>>>> for BIOS INT 13h hard disk reads and writes on IDE devices that
>>>>>>>> support IDE Bus Mastering. Adds Mode 5 (UDMA/100) option to the
>>>>>>>> IDE UDMA Mode. Corrects functionality of IDE PIO Mode.
>>>>>>>> Fixes issue where BIOS was incorrectly reporting UDMA modes on
>>>>>>>> IDE devices that do not support UDMA.
>>>>>>>> Sets ISA ENABLE bits on PCI bridges that do not have VGA behind
>>>>>>>> them. Adds support for doing 32-bit IDE PIO mode data transfers
>>>>>>>> inside BIOS INT 13h.
>>>>>>>> Fixes issue where ATAPI Removable Devices that support UDMA
>>>>>>>> modes were not getting programmed for UDMA mode.
>>>>>>>> Updates the display of the processor BIOS update information to
>>>>>>>> account for the new naming convention.
>>>>>>>> Adds the display of UDMA mode for ARMD.
>>>>>>>> Sets Wake on Modem Ring default to Power On.
>>>>>>>> Fixes an issue where the Fault Tolerant Boot Block Test would
>>>>>>>> fail and not be able to boot if ECC was enabled during the
>>>>>>>> test. Fixes the incorrect display of hard disk drive capacity
>>>>>>>> for larger hard disk drives.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Boris
>>>>>>> Did you change the boot order priority in the last screen of the
>>>>>>> BIOS CMOS setup to boot first from CD, then from floppy, and
>>>>>>> then from hard disk? If so, the computer should boot from CD.
>>>>>>> If not, pressing F12 with a modern BIOS gets it to present a
>>>>>>> choice of boot devices, from which you select one... Ben Myers
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Hi,
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Yes, set it up just like you described. No luck.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> F12 gets me nothing.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> F8 gets me the Troubleshooting and Advanced Startup screen with
>>>>>> Start Up options, as it should, such as Safe Mode, Enable Boot
>>>>>> Logging, Debugging Mode, etc.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> F10 is weird. It gets me the BIOS screen, with the a message as
>>>>>> if I've just made changes to the BIOS settings, "Do you want to
>>>>>> save changes and exit?"
>>>>>>
>>>>>> F1 gets me the BIOS setup screen, as it should.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> By the way, when the machine boots up, it never shows "Hit F8 for
>>>>>> Boot Options", or "Hit F1 for Setup" in the upper right hand
>>>>>> corner, even if I have it set to go through the long POST, where
>>>>>> it shows everything it finds as it boots up. The long boot does
>>>>>> show that it found the CD-ROM when set to boot from CD-ROM.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> I think the book is closed on trying to get this to boot from
>>>>>> CD-ROM.
>>>>>
>>>>> Maybe the CD-ROM drive is bad? The Intel D850 motherboards are
>>>>> new enough that they should allow booting from CD-ROM. Most any
>>>>> P4 system can, and even some P3 systems... Ben
>>>>
>>>> Hi,
>>>>
>>>> One of the first things I did after discovering that I couldn't
>>>> boot from CD-ROM in this P4 was to install a known good CD-ROM from
>>>> another my Dim4550, that did boot properly in the Dim4550. But, it
>>>> wouldn't boot while in the P4.
>>>
>>> Have you tried a different keyboard? You said in an earlier post
>>> that the log was showing errors. Maybe there's a glitch in the one
>>> you're using. If it's a USB one, try a PS2 one and see if that makes
>>> a difference.
>>>
>>> SC Tom
>>>
>>
>> Hi, SC Tom,
>>
>> The machine wants a PS2 keyboard, and I was originally using a DIN
>> keyboard
>> with a DIN-PS2 adapter, then I tried a USB keyboard (no adapter
>> needed, the
>> machine has USB ports), and finally a Dell Quiet Key PS2, which is
>> what I'm
>> running now.
>>
>> The Dell Quiet Key is not quiet. It's quite 'clacky'.
>>
>>
>>
> Oh well, thought that might be it.
> Another suggestion might be to re-flash your BIOS back to an older
> version, boot up and set all BIOS settings to default, then re-flash
> it to the new one. Don't have anything hooked up except basic stuff-
> keyboard, mouse, HDD, and monitor. It's entirely possible the new
> flash didn't take even though it said it did. This is not the safest
> thing in the world to do, so I would certainly understand if you were
> reluctant to try it.
>
> SC Tom
>
>

Not a chance. <g>

But I do appreciate the keyboard thought. I was at work when I read it,
and I had to remember all the keyboards I've tried. Now I'm home, and sure
enough, I'm using the Dell QuietKey PS2 keyboard.

I'm happy with how I've got everything set up now. XP Pro SP3, Office
2000, Xnews, WMP10, OExpress, IE6 and FFox, Acrobat 6.0 and Primo PDF, and
wireless printing from the garage to the den upstairs. For a P4, 1.6GHz,
with only 512MB ram, and a 400MHz FSB, it's really snappy. Wireless
strength is excellent, pages load quickly. Drive has 8MB cache, one CD-
ROM, and a CD-R/W. I do have an extra DVD-R/W or two if needed, but doubt
it.

I'll make an image of the drive once I get all of my apps installed, but
I'm not sure if I can re-image the hard drive with the ability to boot from
the CD-ROM.

Thanks for the tip.

Boris

In news:Xns9C9FB9C7E1D38nospamnospaminvalid@188.40.43 .213,
Boris typed on Sat, 10 Oct 2009 01:16:26 +0000 (UTC):
> I'll make an image of the drive once I get all of my apps installed,
> but I'm not sure if I can re-image the hard drive with the ability to
> boot from the CD-ROM.
>
> Thanks for the tip.

It sure is interesting your CD drive won't boot, Boris. But some imaging
programs will either create a bootable CD or USB flash drive for a
recovery option. And the ones that doesn't allow for an USB option,
there are tools that will make them be anyway for free.

The next hurdle would be whether this machine can boot from USB? Your
problem is common among netbook users and they can use flash drives
instead of CD/DVD for booting. Most recent computers can do this too. So
there is hope here.

If everything else fails, there is still one standby trick that will
always work regardless what this computer will or will not allow you to
do. That is to make use of dual-booting. It can be an OS really small,
but gets the job done like BartPE. Or a lite version of Windows 98,
Windows 2000/XP or something. As something that your imaging program can
run under.

Say another thought is a lot of imaging software can restore the
partition it is running from. Both Paragon and Acronis True Image both
does this. Both have free versions too. The only catch of course is if
it becomes unbootable for whatever reason. In that case you need to
install some OS that the imaging program will run under. Then restore
and the original will be recovered that way.

--
Bill
Gateway MX6124 ('06 era) - Windows XP SP2