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xRobert
Richmond |
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nVIDIA Reference BIOSs |
What exactly are they good for? |
July 2000
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Part 6: Can I Now Flash My Card?
Not really, as you'll need to build a recovery
disk. Commonly, if everything works with VGABIOS, you can support the BIOS after flashing. Most cards use nVidia's
Reference board design, so you won't have any problems. Some vendors have chosen to use rather odd board layouts
and chips, and might not work correctly with the flash utilities. These problem boards include most Elsa cards,
and a few Diamond v770 TNT2 Ultras. Don't panic too much if the flash fails, as you can usually recover you card
with a simple custom boot disk. The first program you need is DUMPBIOS.
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Part 7: I've Built the Disk, Can I Now Flash My Card?
Yes, you can now proceed with flashing your card's
BIOS.
Make sure to flash from a safe mode command prompt. The flash command follows exactly the same format as you used
in the autoexec.bat on your recovery disk. NVFLASH also has several other options, so you might want to check them
out. Run the flash program, and hopefully everything will work. If you get a message about having an unsupported
EEPROM, then you will have to try another flash utility. If the flash proceeds, make sure to wait for a few seconds,
as a flash can take up to one minute to complete. Hopefully, the next time you boot, you will have a brand new
Reference BIOS installed on your card. If you only get a blank screen, break out that recovery disk (be glad you
made one). |
Part 8: What are the Dangers / Disclaimers?
As when changing any hardware-level firmware,
you risk damaging not only the device, but the whole system as well.
The methods described above are accurate, but may not work for all people. These modifications are completely unsupported.
Neither myself, Romulus 2, nVidia, nor your video card vendor is responsible for any damages or problems that may
result from the above modifications, or similar techniques. Do not contact nVidia or your video card vendor if
something goes wrong, as they will not help. Also, no-one will give you a refund or replacement for a video card
that has been subjected to the techniques described here. If you don't understand any of the steps, do not attempt
to apply this guide.
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Part 9: Final Thoughts
If applied correctly, the Reference BIOS could
prove to be very beneficial for you. You may gain improved stability and performance. Hopefully this guide has
proved to be useful, and I wish you the best.
Robert Richmond |
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