Re: [PCWorks] Booting up with flashdrive
- From: "Harold B." <haroldbraun@xxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: "PC Works_LIST" <pcworks@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Fri, 22 May 2009 11:46:08 -0400
Hello again ... I want to thank everyone offering help and I saved all your
postings. Coming from a teaching background it always amazes me that anything
can be accomplished when trying to give directions in email. Even face to face
it can be difficult. I remember many years ago, in a psych class, a student had
to draw a few overlapping geometric figures on a paper (the class couldn't see
it) and then he had to describe in detail what he had on that paper, and the
class members had to duplicate from his directions that figure on their own
papers. It was virtually impossible to make those directions clear enough for
the class members to get their diagram accurate. Conclusion: It is not easy. I
think when writing directions, one has to be proficient in creating flow charts
(if this, then go here; if that, then go there) and be able to give directions
step by step, even numbering them as I like to do, in order for directions to
be clearly followed.
First a note to Clint ... by "FD" I did mean "flashdrive" and not "floppy disk"
(I think they stopped making computers with floppy drives about four years ago
when I bought this Compaq I have.. And a note to Hugh ... I forgot I had a Help
resource on this baby and found that to access the BIOS one has to press F1 (as
you'll see below).
For newbies on the List (like myself, 13 years in this and still a newbie), I'm
putting some BIOS information below that I copied from my Help resource (hope
Clint doesn't mind this space usage; please delete any excess in any response).
I did get to the BIOS (first time I ever saw it) and my question now is what do
I do, what changes might I make in this BIOS that *might* fix this booting
problem?
For anyone needing the following BIOS information (and this is only for Compaq
as I have it), here is the following:
*********************
CHANGING BIOS SETTINGS . From Compaq Help
Caution: Changing BIOS settings can change how your PC starts up.
Incorrect settings may cause the PC to stop working. If this happens, return to
the original BIOS settings.
1.. Click Start on the taskbar.
2.. Click Turn Off Computer.
3.. Click Restart.
4.. Press the F1 key when the colored logo screen appears during startup.
(You have only a few seconds to press the F1 key before startup continues.) The
Entering SETUP message appears and the BIOS setup screen opens.
5.. Select the Main menu, if it is not already selected.
6.. Use the keyboard arrow keys to select menus and change settings. In some
menus, selecting an item and pressing the Enter key opens a submenu with more
options.
7.. After making changes, save them and exit BIOS: either press the F10 key,
or select the Exit menu and select Exit Saving Changes, and then follow the
onscreen instructions.
8.. The PC continues the startup.
WHAT IS BIOS?
BIOS (Basic Input/Output System) is a set of instructions that runs when you
start the PC. These instructions control communication between the operating
system and all hardware devices, such as the hard disk drive, keyboard, mouse,
printer, and monitor. When your PC starts, BIOS tests the PC hardware, starts
the operating system, and controls data transfer among hardware devices. The
BIOS also stores configuration information for device type, time, startup
order, date, memory size, and power modes. You can use BIOS to change this
information.
BIOS menus organize the PC configuration information. This table describes the
different menus.
Main
View or change basic options like time, date, and language; view memory
information, IDE drives, and the BIOS version.
Advanced
View or change advanced features like CPU, cache, and I/O devices.
Power
View or change power-management options. (Control Panel power option
settings override these BIOS settings.)
Boot
View or change the startup order.
Exit
Save or discard changes in setup.
WHEN DO I UPDATE THE BIOS?
Change the BIOS when HP releases an update for your PC model.
Note: To see what the current BIOS version is on your PC, click Start and then
choose Run. Enter msinfo32 into the Open text box and click OK. Under System
Summary, look for BIOS Version/Date.
To get the BIOS update, go to the HP Web site support page:
1. Open your Internet browser program.
2.. Type http://www.hp.com (or find the appropriate Web site URL for your
country/region in the Warranty and Support Guide that came with your PC) into
the Address box and press Enter on your keyboard.
3.. Find the support page and follow the links to find software and driver
updates.
4.. Find the BIOS update for your PC model.
5.. Click the name of the update file.
6.. Read the description of the BIOS update to make sure it is the correct
update for your PC, and then print the installation instructions.
7.. Download the BIOS executable (.exe) file.
The BIOS update usually includes specific instructions for updating your PC.
However, if installation instructions were not included on the Web site, follow
the appropriate steps below:
Caution: Do not update BIOS unless you are sure you have the correct BIOS
file for your PC, or it may cause the PC to stop working properly.
For Windows-based BIOS update files:
1.. Double-click the downloaded BIOS.exe file (usually appearing as an icon
on the PC desktop).
2.. Accept the license terms, and then click Next.
3.. If an Overwrite Protection message appears, click Yes to All.
4.. Wait for the update to complete.
5.. At the Windows Based BIOS Update window, click Yes to restart the PC.
If you see a System CMOS checksum bad error message during the restart of the
PC, follow these additional steps to complete the update:
6.. While the PC restarts, press and hold F1 for a few seconds to open the
BIOS Setup.
7.. Press F5 for a few seconds, choose Yes, and then press Enter to load the
BIOS defaults. Use the arrow keys on the keyboard to choose Yes, if necessary.
8.. Press F10 for a few seconds, choose Yes, and then press Enter to exit the
BIOS Setup and save the changes.
9.. Press Enter to confirm the save.
10.. If you see a System Settings Change message prompting you to restart
your PC, click Yes to restart the PC again.
For BIOS updates requiring the use of a blank diskette:
1.. Insert a blank formatted diskette into the diskette drive.
2.. Double-click the downloaded BIOS.exe file. Follow the onscreen
instructions to copy the files to the diskette.
3.. Leave the diskette in the drive and restart your PC. (To restart, click
Start on the taskbar, click Turn Off Computer, and then click Restart.)
4.. The BIOS utility starts. Follow the onscreen instructions to confirm that
your PC model number is listed. This step determines if this particular BIOS
update is intended for your PC.
5.. Follow the onscreen instructions to proceed with installing the BIOS
update. Do not remove the diskette until updating completes.
6.. When prompted that the update is complete, eject the diskette. (If you do
not remove the diskette, the PC continues to try to use it to restart.)
7.. Restart the PC.
8.. If CMOS checksum error appears, press the F2 key to bypass BIOS setup and
continue the startup process.
RETURNING TO ORIGINAL BIOS SETTINGS
If you have made changes to the PC BIOS settings that you no longer need, use
these steps to revert to the original factory settings.
1.. Click Start on the taskbar.
2.. Click Turn Off Computer.
3.. Click Restart.
4.. Press the F1 key when the colored logo screen appears during startup.
(You have only a few seconds to press the F1 key before startup continues.) The
Entering SETUP message appears and the BIOS setup screen opens.
5.. Select the Main menu, if it is not already selected.
6.. Use the arrow keys to select the Exit menu.
7.. Use the arrow keys to select Load Setup Defaults from the Exit menu,
press Enter; then select Yes for Load Optimized Defaults and press Enter to
load the default setup.
8.. Press the F10 key to save and exit BIOS, select Yes, and press Enter.
9.. The PC continues the startup.
---- Original Message ----- from: "Harold B."
Hello again ... for some time I've been using a 1GB Attaché flashdrive with no
trouble (with the extended line attached to a USB port at the rear of the
tower). Now my backups are getting more plentiful so I replaced the 1GB with a
4GB flashdrive, and now something strange occurs. When booting up the computer
or returning from hibernate, the process stops at the initial Compaq red logo
sign, and it sticks there until I remove the flash drive whereupon the booting
proceeds and I can immediately replace the drive. Note, this does not happen
when using the 1GB flashdrive. What's happening? --- Harold
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