How to Flash a VGA BIOS

A video card

A VGA BIOS (NVidia) is a part of the video card that holds simple instructions for the hardware. Flashing the BIOS fixes bugs and, for some users, improves the performance of the the video card. Flashing the VGA BIOS on a video card is a delicate procedure. It must be done carefully, or it can render the video card unusable.

Things You'll Need

• Blank floppy disk

Instructions

1. Download the NVidia flash utility file. This is the executable that actually flashes the BIOS. Save this file to a location on the hard drive.

2. Insert the floppy disk into the drive and open a DOS prompt. Type "format a: /s" into the DOS prompt. This creates a bootable floppy that's required for flashing the BIOS. Copy the file from step 1 onto the floppy disk.

3. Download the flash file from MVKTech.net (see Resources). This file must match the version of the NVidia card, so ensure that you download the file labeled with your video card version. Once the file is downloaded, copy it to the floppy disk that was formatted in step 2.

4. Backup the old BIOS settings. This is beneficial if the flash process fails. The backup file is copied, so any failures can be fixed by reverting to the old settings. To backup the current BIOS, type "nvflash.exe -b backup.rom" into the DOS prompt.

5. Keep the floppy disk in the drive and reboot the computer. This starts the computer and boots it to the DOS prompt. You flash the video card from the DOS prompt. Type "nvflash -p -u -f <filename>" into the prompt when the computer boots. Replace "<filename>" with the name of the BIOS file downloaded in step 3.

6. Wait a few minutes while the flash process finishes. Ensure the computer is not turned off while the BIOS is flashed, or it can cause the hardware to fail. Once finished, remove the floppy disk and reboot the computer.

References

• Sparkle.com.tw
• PCStats.com

Resources

• MVKTech.net