Hey tmod !

TexTex Dallas/Ft. Worth
edited October 2003 in Hardware
I need programs to dump a running computers bios into a "bin" file we could take to a eprom burner and burn new bios chips with without having to pull the chip from the good computer.

I know they exist but... are they bios maker specififc or is there a genric one to dump any bios or what have ya got dude? This is a old pentium class computer with we think a Phoenix bios if that helps.

Tex

Comments

  • TmodTmod
    edited October 2003
    Just use the utility that you use to flash the bios and save the bios to XXXXXX.bin and there you have it.

    Most if not all good EEPROM programmers have the ability to use the bin file as the source file to write.
  • TexTex Dallas/Ft. Worth
    edited October 2003
    Do all flash utilies include a backup option? I knew soem did but this is an old POS machine. He has a dead one and a running one. They control huge million doolor printing presses and he needs to get the dead one up really not flash the new one. And if anything went wrong using a flash utilty and it didn't give a backup option but just flashed .... and the computer didn't come up he woudl be dead meat. It costs big bucks when the presses are down for even hours and the damn computer maker is in germany for god sakes. He was worried about pulling the chip to program another but I think thats route I would go at this point. As the computer maker does not want them to flash the bios. They want them to pay 5 to 7 thousand bucks (no I'm not kidding) to ship the whole thing to germany and have them fix it. 7 grand to repair a 8 yearold pentium 90 computer. Or they will sell them a new one for 40 grand no probs.

    So he is getting zero support and found a bios and flash utility on the web he thinks will work but.... See the prob now?

    Thats why dumping the current bios with software soemhow to try and flash the otherone with possibly screwing up the running one was so important. When it costs big bucks when the presses don't run this is sorta scary for me. Thisi s a good buddy and I have helped him before to keep from sending these sorry POS computers back to germany but.... I want the chip pulled and copied is my vote since we have no docs and no nothing about the phoenic bios flash utiltiy he found.

    Tex
  • TmodTmod
    edited October 2003
    Pulling the chip and reading it via the EEPROM programmer would be the best (safest) bet.

    I have never heard of anyone screwing up there bios by reading it with a flash utility. But in this case better safe than sorry!
  • TexTex Dallas/Ft. Worth
    edited October 2003
    I am just not sure what his flash software is gonna do? What if you hit return and it didn't ask ya to back up the old and just started to flash it? Thats what I was worried about as he is not sure the bios he got from the web will wotk for sure. Thats why he is trying to copy the old one and flash it with his prom burner.

    Cheers and thanks
  • TmodTmod
    edited October 2003
    Can you post the link where he downloaded that file?
  • TexTex Dallas/Ft. Worth
    edited October 2003
    I have no idea right now. The problem is the computer is built by Siemens in germany. We have searched for hours trying to find info and it looks like Asus ran the same motherboard for awhile. The MB model no was the same and the layout of teh compnets on the MB and stuff look identical and I think thats what he has. And the guys who sold the computer have done just enough monkey buisnees in the past that I wouldn't doubt they had done soemthing to the bios too. And I don't mean Siemens but the company that sells the huge presses and charges so much to fix these suckers. It has a old DAC eisa scsi cacjing controller that they pulled on of the roms off and replaced with their own with some additional microcode so that you can't load their friggin Sorix OS without it seeing taht rom on the controller and al kinds of stupid stuff like that trying to make you always go back to them and their ridiculous repair fees for support. Sorix is a old unix clone and I have hacked around a bunch of their B.S. and done some repairs and cheap replacements for him but their are issues I have not gotten around also.

    Tex
  • TmodTmod
    edited October 2003
    Here is a image of Phlash.exe and switches. (Phoenix Flash Utility)
  • TexTex Dallas/Ft. Worth
    edited October 2003
    excellant thanks!

    Tex
  • TmodTmod
    edited October 2003
    BTW: There is no assurance that you will be able to read the chip if you do remove it as some of them have a lockout on them.

    Any part number on the chip for me?
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