Hardware question
Dr. Deb
Is it possible to get into the BIOS at any other time that Startup? If so,
how?
I bought a wireless keyboard some months ago and it blew my PS/2 ports.
Since the BIOS was set to recognize them as primary I have no keyboard
input, until the system starts to boot and a driver is loaded in the system
to pick up the USB keyboard I am presently using.
Thanks
Deb
Aragorn
as Dr. Deb wrote...
> Is it possible to get into the BIOS at any other time that Startup?
Nope. At least, not from within a protected mode operating system with
a legacy real mode BIOS.
> If so, how?
As far as I know, it's not possible. There might be some protected mode
software out there that allows you to flash the BIOS, but entering a
real mode BIOS set-up program is not possible. You can't even do that
from a DOS-emulator because accessing the BIOS set-up program would be
a privileged instruction and those are discarded by any emulator for
obvious reasons.
> I bought a wireless keyboard some months ago and it blew my PS/2
> ports.
Care to elaborate on that? If it shorted something, then chances are
that other components of your motherboard would be hosed as well...
> Since the BIOS was set to recognize them as primary I have no
> keyboard input, until the system starts to boot and a driver is loaded
> in the system to pick up the USB keyboard I am presently using.
So you are thinking of trying to enter the BIOS via a /ssh/ login or
something?
The only thing you could try - without any guarantee that it'll work -
is to reset the CMOS memory by temporarily removing the battery.
Depending on the type of BIOS you have, this might re-enable the
support for USB keyboards and mice in real mode - actually, the
processor then switches back and forth between real mode and
so-called "unreal mode" - otherwise known as "systems management mode"
to support the input from the USB keyboard and mouse, because real mode
itself doesn't support that.
Still, if I were you, I wouldn't trust that motherboard anymore without
a thorough inspection by a hardware specialist... :-/
--
*Aragorn*
(registered GNU/Linux user #223157)
Baron
Its possible that the fuse for the port has blown.
--
Best Regards:
Baron.
Dr. Deb
There is a fuse on a PS2 port?
Deb
Darklight
Was this the factory default setting or did you set this setting. if you set
this setting take out the bios battery for 30 seconds and then replace to
reset the motherboard/bios back to factory/default settings. then you might
get access to the bios settings page.
philo
I have seen some mobo's with fuses
BTW: you might want to simply reset your bios by using the jumper
if you specifically set your bios to use ps/2 as primary...if that was
not the default setting...resetting the bios will set the board back to
defaults
Dr. Deb
Excellent suggestion, however, PS2 is the default setting. The really sad
thing is that this mobo is probably one of the most stable I have ever had.
I replaced it after the PS2 ports blew, but kept it up in the closet. The
Asus board I replaced it with lasted about a year. I was then left with
two choices, put the Gigabyte board in or get a new one. Putting the Giga
back in was both quicker and cheaper. After I retired that has become one
of my mantras :-)
The good news is I have regained enough access that I "think" I can make a
selection off the bootloader. Failing that one can always change the boot
order in Grub once the system loads.
Thanks to all
Deb
Snowbat
> Dr. Deb wrote:
>> There is a fuse on a PS2 port?
> I have seen some mobo's with fuses
A blown trace is also a possibility. Bridging the break might be all
that's needed to effect a repair (eg. if the +5V line got shorted to
ground outside the socket and the trace couldn't handle the current).
Baron
Yes ! There are a number of fuses on mainboards. Mostly for keyboard,
mice & USB. In the old days there was just one. On the keyboard port.
1.5 or 1.75 amp if I remember. It was a very common failure mechanism
for non working keyboards.
--
Best Regards:
Baron.
philo
Good luck to you!