Free 6.xx software for windows

BIOS Patcher 4.23 is a useful software that allows you to find and fix errors in your system BIOS (only AWARD BIOS for now)
WHAT DOES IT MAKE?

• BIOS Patcher scans rom file. If it finds any known errors it fixes the errors. If it finds any closed features it opens it. Also if it is started with any keys for add new features than it should add it.
  

HOW DOES IT WORK?

• AWARD BIOS consists of several LHA-packed parts. For scan patcher extracts parts that it needs into RAM and looks for parts of code that it knows and that contains errors. If it finds something looks like an error it should check this error by several other signals and if all is allright patcher will signalize about it. If patcher has some mishmash about this error it shouldnt fix it.
  

WHY DOES IT WORK?

• It is rather big question. Ill try to tell about shortly. Programmers who writes AWARD Bios sells it to motherboard manufacturers, who can change and/or add new features. It seems clear that nobody will write BIOS from the very beginning (Simple not every company has their own programmers and money for them :-))
• Thats why BIOSes of most motherboards looks like others. That is why all that motherboards has seldom updates of their BIOSes. And thats why most of them has identical errors and thats why patcher works more effective with this BIOSes.
• "Adult" companies make changes (a lot and serious). Patcher can distinguish brand BIOSes such as Gigabyte or Asus.
• I havent information but it seems to me that Asus has rights to AWARD BIOSes and it writes their own BIOSes (with AWARD logo). It means that Asus has their own standarts and often has no any connection with "normal" AWARD BIOSes. So that is why such tools as cbrom or modbin cant work with Asus BIOSes. And also I want to stress that Asus has no problem with programmers and their BIOSes often seems like an art. (that is why almost a third part of patcher is a database of all features of Asus BIOSes).
• And as an answer to this question - patcher works because of most general roots of all Award BIOSes (a great part of them hasnt changed since 1990).
  

WHAT IS CHANCE OF FAILURE?

• Possibility of failure presents every time. But as I told above for identification of errors patcher uses many signals and error cant be because of work of patcher.

Major Features:

1. Works with BIOSes:
   
   • 1Mbit (128kB), 2Mbit (256kB), 4Mbit (512kB)
   • Award 4.5x, Award(Phoenix) 6.xx
   • Pentium Socket5, Socket7, SuperSocket7; Pentium II/III Socket8, Slot1, Socket370 (PPGA/FC-PGA/FC-PGA2), AMD K7 Slot-A, SocketA; Pentium 4 (Socket423/Socket478)
   • "Asus standart" of packing BIOS modules (in CUSL/TUSL etc)
2. Add support of CPU:
   
   • AMD K6/K6-2/K6-III/K6-2+/K6-III+
   • Intel Pentium Pro/Pentium II/Pentium III/Celeron
   • AMD K7/K75/Athlon/Duron/Athlon 4/Athlon MP/Athlon XP (tested)
   • Intel Pentium 4/Celeron-478 (in progress)
   • Support means not only names of CPUs (which shows with kernel name and can be change) but correct init of L2-cache, FSB, Multiplyer, support of different steppings. There are many thing that patcher makes, and all of them that the manufacturer didn't make for correct support of CPU.
3. Make support of big HDD (up to 137 Gb)
   
4. Add much more choice of frequencies in BIOS SETUP
   
5. Add ASYNC mode of memory on VIA 693A,694X,694T (+PCI) and on VIA 693 and less (-PCI), Interleaving (2/4 way), minimal timings (2-2-2-5-2), IOQ Depth (8) and so on.
   
6. Changes default choice on exit from BIOS (from N to Y) in old (AWARD 4.5x) BIOSes, default date is 2003 and others little but useful thing for people who work with a great quantity of boards (people like me :-)).
   
7. Unlock the choice of this menu in BIOS Setup for ANY CPU.

   WareSeeker Editor