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CHAPTER 3.
AWARD BIOS SETUP
The Basic Input / Output System (BIOS) is a program that takes care of the basic level of
communication between the processor and peripherals. In addition, the BIOS also
contains codes for various advanced features found in the system board. Award' s ROM
BIOS provides a built-in Setup program that allows user to modify the basic system
configuration and settings. The modified data will be stored in a battery-backed CMOS
RAM so that the data will be retained even when the power is turned off. In general,
the information saved in the CMOS RAM stay unchanged unless there is configuration
change in the system, such as hard drive replacement or new equipment is installed.
3.1 R
UNNING
AWARD BIOS
The Setup Utility is stored in the BIOS ROM. When the power of the computer system
is turned on, a screen message appears to give you an opportunity to call up the Setup
Utility; while the BIOS will enter the Power On Self Test (POST) routines. The POST
routines perform various diagnostic checks while initializing the board hardware. If the
routines encounter an error during the tests, the error will be reported in either of the two
different ways, you may hear a series of short beeps or see an error message on the
screen display. There are two kinds of error: fatal or non-fatal. The system can
usually continue to boot up sequence with the non-fatal errors. Non-fatal error
messages usually appear on the screen along with the following instructions:
“ Press <F1> to RESUME ”
Write down the message and press the F1 key to continue the boot up sequence. After
the POST routines are completed, the following message appears:
“ Press DEL to enter SETUP ”
Entering Setup
Turn on the power of the computer system and press <Del> immediately. If you don’ t
have the chance to respond, reset the system by simultaneously typing the <Ctrl>, <Alt>
and <Delete> keys, or by pushing the ‘ Reset ’ button on the system cabinet. You can
also restart by turning the system OFF then ON.