BIOS is short
for Basic Input Output System. It is much more than the name
suggests. One might think that BIOS controls input and output system. But the
BIOS does much more and it is not possible for any operating system to continue
without a proper BIOS in place. Today, we will see what is BIOS in
computers.
BIOS has been there in our
computers since the days of DOS – Disk Operating System… even prior to the
structured DOS created by Microsoft. It is one of the most important components
of the computer though it does not take the credit by appearing on your screen
regularly. This post also looks at the most basic component of computers and
explains why is it required in computers for computers to work.
What is BIOS
BIOS is a firmware, in short.
It is stored on a chip on a part of the computer motherboard and is basically, a
set of instructions that run to help load the operating system. You OS would
fail to load, if not for the BIOS!
When you turn on the computer,
BIOS instructions are initiated. These instructions make it check the RAM and
the Processor (for faults) on your computer.
- It enumerates the RAM by checking each compartment to see if all of them are working.
- After checking out RAM and Processor, it checks for other devices attached to the computer
- It detects all the peripherals, including the keyboard and mouse and then checks for the boot options
- Boot options are checked in the sequence configured on your BIOS: Boot from CD-ROM, Boot From Hard Drive, Boot from LAN etc.
- It checks for bootstraps on the devices in the order you or the machine vendor configured the BIOS.
- It passes reigns of the computer to operating system by loading the essential parts of the OS into the random access memory (RAM) reserved for the OS, after bootstrap is located.
This is not a comprehensive
list of functions of the BIOS. It also checks up CMOS, and other chips to set up
the date and time on the computer, and to load the device drivers into the
memory. It checks and uploads input and output interrupts (signals) to the RAM
so that the operating system knows what is happening. For example, if a user
presses a key, an interrupt request is created and passed on to the BIOS which
sends it to the operating system. The operating system then decides what action
to take, according to the way it is programmed.
The reason why operating
system cannot work without BIOS is because the former resides on hard disk or a
removable disk. It is the BIOS that loads the drivers of the hard disks and
removable disk drives, so that they are functional. It then loads the primary
portions of the operating system such as the MBR, GPT, FAT, etc, into memory, so
that the operating system can continue loading itself.
Making Changes to BIOS
It is easy to make changes to
BIOS when required. The most common changes people make in BIOS is to change the
BOOT ORDER. While the computer is booting, press DEL key on your keyboard to
enter BIOS. From there, you can see different options grouped under different
headers. Use tab and arrow keys to navigate. Sometimes Page Up and Page Down
keys are required to change values of essential items. When you are done, press
F10 to save changes and exit. The options are displayed on right or bottom on
the screen so that you know what keys to press for saving or discarding changes.
The options also specify what keys to use for changing values.
How to Update BIOS
As the computing scenario
changes, new devices etc are introduced. To make a computer work with these
devices, the BIOS has to be upgraded. If your operating system fails to detect a
new peripheral, it is possible because BIOS doesn’t know how to handle it. If
you face any such issues, it might be a good idea to check if any BIOS updates
are available.
You have to check the BIOS
version first. This can be done by entering BIOS at the time of booting, by
pressing DEL. Once you have the version of your computer BIOS, you visit the
website of your computer manufacturer to see if there is any updated version of
BIOS is available. If there is, download it and run it. The process is generally
wiping off all the previous information on the BIOS chip and rewriting it with
the new information.
Make sure you have power
backup while upgrading the BIOS. Because if the computer turns off during the
process, the BIOS may be corrupted and you will need a technician to fix it.
Your boot CD/DVD may or may not help depending upon how the BIOS stands after a
powercut or a sudden system turn off while rewriting the BIOS.
IMPORTANT: If your computer is working properly, you do not need to update or
flash your BIOS. In any case, should you wish to, we recommend that you do not
try to update your BIOS yourself, but instead take it to a computer technician
who may be better equipped to do it.
THANKS TO INDIA POST PARIWAR
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