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Information Sheet 1.1-6: The Four Main Functions of A PC BIOS
Information Sheet 1.1-6: The Four Main Functions of A PC BIOS
1.1-6
Basic Input Output System
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
After reading this INFORMATION SHEET, YOU MUST be able to:
1. Know how to configure a computer basically.
2. Set the computer system properly
INTRODUCTION
Basic Input/output System, the BIOS, ROM BIOS, or System BIOS is a chip
located on all motherboards that contain instructions and setup for how your
system should boot and how it operates. In the picture below, is an example
of what a BIOS chip may look like on your computer motherboard. In this
example, this is a picture of an early AMIBIOS, a type of BIOS manufactured
by the AMI. Another good example of a BIOS manufacturer is Phoenix.
Setup Utility displays the system’s configuration status and provides you with
options to set system parameters. The parameters are stored in battery-backed-
up CMOS RAM that saves this information when the power is turned off. When
the system is turned back on, the system is configured with the values you
stored in CMOS.
The settings made in the Setup Utility affect how the computer performs. Before
using the Setup Utility, ensure that you understand the Setup Utility options.
The Standard Configuration
A standard configuration has already been set in the Setup Utility. However, we
recommend that you read this chapter in case you need to make any changes in
the future.
This Setup Utility should be used:
when changing the system configuration
when a configuration error is detected and you are prompted to make
changes to the Setup Utility
when trying to resolve IRQ conflicts
when making changes to the Power Management configuration
when changing the password or making other changes to the Security
Setup
UEFI
The Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) is a specification that
defines a software interface between an operating system and platform
firmware. UEFI is meant to replace the Basic Input/Output System (BIOS)
firmware interface, present in all IBM PC-compatible personal computers. In
practice, most UEFI images provide legacy support for BIOS services. UEFI can
support remote diagnostics and repair of computers, even without another
operating system.
The original EFI (Extensible Firmware Interface) specification was developed by
Intel. Some of its practices and data formats mirror ones from Windows. In
2005, UEFI deprecated EFI 1.10 (final release of EFI). The UEFI specification is
managed by the Unified EFI Forum.
UEFI may be faster than the BIOS. Various tweaks and optimizations in the
UEFI may help your system boot more quickly it could before. For example:
With UEFI you may not have to endure messages asking you to set up
hardware functions (such as a RAID controller) unless your immediate input is
required; and UEFI can choose to initialize only certain components. The degree
to which a boot is sped up will depend on your system configuration and
hardware, so you may see a significant or a minor speed increase.
Technical changes abound in UEFI. UEFI has room for more useful and usable
features than could ever be crammed into the BIOS. Among these are
cryptography, network authentication, support for extensions stored on non-
volatile media, an integrated boot manager, and even a shell environment for
running other EFI applications such as diagnostic utilities or flash updates. In
addition, both the architecture and the drivers are CPU-independent, which
opens the door to a wider variety of processors (including those using the ARM
architecture, for example).
However, UEFI is still not widespread. Though major hardware companies have
switched over almost exclusively to UEFI use, you still won't find the new
firmware in use on all motherboards—or in quite the same way across the
spectrum. Many older and less expensive motherboards also still use the BIOS
system.
A master boot record (MBR) is a special type of boot sector at the very
beginning of partitioned computer mass storage devices like fixed disks or
removable drives intended for use with IBM PC-compatible systems and
beyond. The concept of MBRs was publicly introduced in 1983 with PC DOS
2.0.
BIOS Environment (Asus UEFI BIOS Utility)
The boot device options vary depending on the devices you installed
to the system.
The Boot Menu(F8) button is available only when the boot device is
installed to the system.
Menu Bar
The menu bar on top of the screen has the following main items:
Exit menu
The Exit menu items allow you to load the optimal default values for the BIOS
items and save or discard your changes to the BIOS items. You can access the
EZ Mode from the Exit menu.
TASK SHEET 1.1-6
Equipment : Computer
Steps/Procedure:
1. Read information sheet 1.1-5 Basic Input Output
System
2. Read Motherboard Manual.
3. Start your computer
4. During POST, Press F2, DEL, or F12. You may referrer
to the motherboard manual for the equivalent keyword.
5. Set the current time.
6. Configure the boot order.
7. Save file
8. Restart your computer
Assessment Method:
Demonstration, Observation
Performance Criteria Checklist 1.1-6
CRITERIA YES NO
1. Is BIOS setting configured properly?
2. Are tools, equipment and materials listed?
3. Did the trainee set the current date?
4. Did the trainee configured the proper boot
order?
5. Did the trainee saved the configuration
properly?