BIOS Update per bootable USB-Stick

(see also: BIOS Update per Boot-CD)
(see also: BIOS Update per DOS-Boot-Diskette)
Download
Instruction to create a bootable USB-Stick
Starting the BIOS-Update from USB-Stick

A Bios update under Windows does not fail straight rarely! A cause can be e.g. a virus scanner, which tries to check an incoming email during the Bios update progress. Result: the flash timing comes totally out of order and the data content of the Bios chip is incomplete, and do not let the PC any longer start and the chip must externally reprogrammed.

For this reason i have published a guidance to create a bootable DOS-USB-Stick to make a BIOS Update.

Requirement

• The Laptop-/Mainboard-Bios must support bootable USB-Sticks - which should apply to most of all modells which are not older than 3-4 years. If an USB-Stick was recognized during the boot process, the Bios will integrate it as a removable drive, or as a normal drive.

Download

• bootbios.zip Ultimate BIOS-Boot-Edition (all-in-one: CD, Floppy, USB-Stick) 5.6MB
  The Ultimate BIOS-Boot-Edition contains the following files for creating a bootable USB-Stick:
  usbdos.zip (the archive contains the 3 MS-DOS system files command.com, io.sys and msdos.sys, which must be decompressed with a packer program like Winzip or Winrar)
  HP_USB_Boot_Utility.exe (the setup program contains Hewlett-Packard's Format-Utility for USB-Sticks under Windows)

Instruction to create a bootable USB-Stick

• Download the 2 files and extract usbdos.zip incl. the folder usbdos to your hard disk.
• Run the HP-Setup program and start the HP USB Disk Storage Format Tool.
• The tool shows your USB-Stick under Device.
• Choose FAT-32 under File system and activate the check mark Create a DOS startup disk.
• Insert the path to your usbdos folder under using DOS system files located at:.
• Press the Start button and wait until the tool has formatted the USB-Stick and has copied the 3 system files.
  
• Now you have got a bootable USB-Stick. At last copy your flash program and the Bios update onto the USB-Stick.

Starting the BIOS-Update from USB-Stick

• I advise less experienced users to read my Bios-Update-Howto.
• Let the USB-Stick placed into the USB-port and reboot into the Bios-Setup, where you have to do some important settings. Load the "Setup Defaults / Optimized Defaults Settings", to set all Bios-Settings to their default values (see also Bios-Update-Howto). Then you have to set the Bootsequence to USB-Drive (Option: Bootsequence, First Boot Device, etc...).
• Make sure, that there is no write-protection inside the Bios-Setup (Bios Write Protection), resp. a jumper on your mainboard, which must be disabled!
• Save the Bios settings and wait until the Bios reboots your PC. If all goes well, you will see the famous, old MS-DOS-Prompt (e.g. "C:\").
• Now you can run the flash program to create first of all a backup of your Bios-Chip content. After that you can go on to update your Bios. Tip: calling the flash program with parameter "flashxyz.exe /?" often shows a help screen with all available parameters (e.g. a backup parameter).

Happy flashing!