Why and when should you flash gpu BIOS

CAPSLOCKSTUCK · Apr 8, 2013

Under what circumstances should you flash gpu BIOS.?
What does flashing achieve?
Should we all be flashing reguarly?

Sorry i only have the questions and none of the answers.

erocker · Apr 8, 2013

1. If the manufacturer says so. If you are going for ballz out overclocking and you need a bios that has no limits. If there is an inherent flaw with the original bios.

2. Particular things such as above.

3. No, there is no reason to. It's a silly practice.

Jstn7477 · Apr 8, 2013

I don't recommend people flashing GPU BIOSes (or any BIOSes for that matter) unless they are encountering a certain hardware issue that is KNOWN to be corrected by a new BIOS revision, and they must know how to do it properly as well as revert from a bad flash. Usually people end up doing it despite this and then they fill TPU with crap threads about how they screwed over their card because they weren't thinking and didn't back up the original BIOS.

Frogger · Apr 8, 2013

Jstn7477 said:
and they must know how to do it properly as well as revert from a bad flash. Usually people end up doing it despite this and then they fill TPU with crap threads about how they screwed over their card because they weren't thinking and didn't back up the original BIOS.

If only they would use the 'SEARCH' button :wtf:

FRIST

AlienIsGOD · Apr 8, 2013

Jstn7477 said:
I don't recommend people flashing GPU BIOSes (or any BIOSes for that matter) unless they are encountering a certain hardware issue that is KNOWN to be corrected by a new BIOS revision

unless your buying EVGA mobos

BIOS updating is a must

the54thvoid · Apr 8, 2013

Over at Overclock.net there are many people flashing the BIOS on their Titan cards. I've flashed mine but flashed it back again. The Titan is artificially restricted to a lower power consumption, it means it would go faster with a little more juice but Nvidia have been very conservative.
For regular gaming though flashing should only be done to correct faults and usually at the vendors recommendation.

Black Panther · Apr 8, 2013

I'd say never do it unless you really know that your card has a problem which can only be solved through flashing.
I had that issue with my 5970. It used to go grey-screen while in 2D mode when it under-clocked. Found on more than one source that bios flashing to a more recent bios which had been developed specifically to solve that problem would solve it (I had bought mine very early on release) so I flashed both gpu's bios and it worked fine since then.

Otherwise, I'd say if it ain't broke don't try to fix it

manofthem · Apr 8, 2013

I bet I'm not the only one who first flashed a VGA bios when the 6950->6970 bios trick came out. Admittedly I was nervous about it, but cards having dual bioses really takes away some of the anxiety and uncertainty.

And always save your original bios before any flashing.

Jetster · Apr 8, 2013

When the warranty covers it

tokyoduong · Apr 9, 2013

CAPSLOCKSTUCK said:
Under what circumstances should you flash gpu BIOS.?
What does flashing achieve?
Should we all be flashing reguarly?

Sorry i only have the questions and none of the answers.

1. There are no circumstances where you SHOULD flash gpu bios and manufacturers don't normally recommend flashing. It's very rare that there's a critical bios update for gpus. You should contact customer service first before proceeding. It could void warranties.
You can flash for OC/unlock benefits at your own risk

2. OC benefits or unlocking.

3. No, do not flash regularly. BIOS are not released regularly like drivers. Update your drivers in windows, that is something you want to do on a regular basis.

cadaveca · Apr 9, 2013

tokyoduong said:
There are no circumstances where you SHOULD flash gpu bios and manufacturers don't normally recommend flashing. It's very rare that there's a critical bios update for gpus. You should contact customer service first before proceeding. It could void warranties.
You can flash for OC/unlock benefits at your own risk

Except for right now. We are in a weird transition period with UEFI BIOSes, and many VGAs require BIOS updates in order to be fully compliant with UEFI and Windows8.

Also, Gigabyte has BIOSes on their product pages for many of their current VGAs, precisely because of this UEFI issue, as well as to offer "free" upgrades to older cards to newer "boost" clocks(AMD 7-series GPUS).

As a user, I have contacted three different VGA manufacturers in recent weeks over various issues, and each and every time, BOS flashing to the GPU was the first step taken after ensuring that the system was stable.

Otherwise, I agree, most users don't need to flash BIOSes. As an enthusiast, I'll ALWAYS try different BIOSes for my VGAs, but I know the risks involved, and I know how and have the hardware to recover from a bad flash.

CAPSLOCKSTUCK · Apr 9, 2013

Im glad i asked the questions and appreciate the concise nature and quality of the answers.

I think the moral is, If it aint broke dont fix it.

d1nky · Apr 9, 2013

I have a question, can a bios become corrupted through constant crashes?

erocker · Apr 9, 2013

d1nky said:
I have a question, can a bios become corrupted through constant crashes?

Yes, but most likely there's another problem if there's "constant crashes".

xvi · Apr 9, 2013

Black Panther said:
I'd say never do it unless you really know that your card has a problem which can only be solved through flashing.
I had that issue with my 5970. It used to go grey-screen while in 2D mode when it under-clocked. Found on more than one source that bios flashing to a more recent bios which had been developed specifically to solve that problem would solve it (I had bought mine very early on release) so I flashed both gpu's bios and it worked fine since then.

Otherwise, I'd say if it ain't broke don't try to fix it

+1 to everything here, especially the last part.

d1nky said:
I have a question, can a bios become corrupted through constant crashes?

~~No. The BIOS is pretty much read-only unless you're flashing it. A bit like a CD or DVD.~~
Edit: Erocker says yes. Erocker is probably right.

d1nky · Apr 9, 2013

when overclocking and driver crashes (my own fault pushing too far for benches) then it hangs/restarts and the clocks are stuck on previous clocks. then needs bios switched over and driver sweep to fix problem, usually loops like that.

but im talking near death overclocks 1250/1800.... I had to beat some guy on 3dmark 2013

erocker · Apr 9, 2013

xvi said:
+1 to everything here, especially the last part.

~~No. The BIOS is pretty much read-only unless you're flashing it. A bit like a CD or DVD.~~
Edit: Erocker says yes. Erocker is probably right.

Nah, it's a very slim chance. Instability can cause all kinds of weird issues.

d1nky · Apr 9, 2013

im certain its bios as normal clocks are fine, same scores on benches. but soon as it starts getting on this weird crash/clock loop it sticks and any oc crashes. but soon as I switch to the other bios, and driver sweep its fine, till im stupid again

xvi · Apr 9, 2013

erocker said:
Nah, it's a very slim chance. Instability can cause all kinds of weird issues.

Well, that's always true. I suppose it's just that it "shouldn't" write to the BIOS, but there's always that chance.

Something along the lines of unstable memory corrupts the address of a write request to the GPU BIOS, I would imagine? I'll admit I don't know as much as I'd like on this subject.

erocker · Apr 9, 2013

xvi said:
Well, that's always true. I suppose it's just that it "shouldn't" write to the BIOS, but there's always that chance.

Something along the lines of unstable memory corrupts the address of a write request to the GPU BIOS, I would imagine? I'll admit I don't know as much as I'd like on this subject.

Me neither!

d1nky · Apr 9, 2013

makes me laugh how many people probably sign up to this forum (and others) saying ive flashed my gpu and its gone wrong.

EarthDog · Apr 9, 2013

d1nky said:
makes me laugh how many people probably sign up to this forum (and others) saying ive flashed my gpu and its gone wrong.

LOL, I feel the same way about people delidding their Ivybridge CPUs... :slap:

Frick · Apr 9, 2013

Never. If you have to ask you probably should not do it.

Widjaja · Apr 9, 2013

There are instances where flashing is required.
If the GPU manufacturer states you should.

Or in my situation:-
I have flashed the BIOS of one of my old cards after installing an Acrtic Twin Turbo on it.
Turns out the fans would not spin without Rivatuner due to weak original fan profile.
I did not want to rely on software for fans to work.
So I had to edit the BIOS to have a more aggressive fan profile to make sure the fans kicked in on the new cooler.

d1nky said:
makes me laugh how many people probably sign up to this forum (and others) saying ive flashed my gpu and its gone wrong.

Most of these people don't even have the idea to back up their original BIOS.

Never assume everything is going to go ahead smoothly is the number one rule to assume.

D4S4 · Apr 9, 2013

there were also the good old days when you could flash your card to unlock moar shaders.

EarthDog said:
LOL, I feel the same way about people delidding their Ivybridge CPUs...

i really don't get all the fuss about delidding, i did it on an athlon64 3000+ couple of years ago using nothing but a scalpel blade and vice to press the blade through the glue ffs. these new sockets need a shim, boo hoo.

System Name	Party On
Processor	Xeon w 3520
Motherboard	DFI Lanparty
Cooling	Big tower thing
Memory	6 gb Ballistix Tracer
Video Card(s)	HD 7970
Case	a plank of wood
Audio Device(s)	seperate amp and 6 big speakers
Power Supply	Corsair
Mouse	cheap
Keyboard	under going restoration

Processor	AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D
Motherboard	ASUS TUF x670e
Cooling	EK AIO 360. Phantek T30 fans.
Memory	32GB G.Skill 6000Mhz
Video Card(s)	Asus RTX 4090
Storage	WD m.2
Display(s)	LG C2 Evo OLED 42"
Case	Lian Li PC 011 Dynamic Evo
Audio Device(s)	Topping E70 DAC, SMSL SP200 Headphone Amp.
Power Supply	FSP Hydro Ti PRO 1000W
Mouse	Razer Basilisk V3 Pro
Keyboard	Tester84
Software	Windows 11

System Name	Awesomesauce 4.3 \| Laptop (MSI GE72VR 6RF Apache Pro-023)
Processor	Intel Core i7-5820K 4.16GHz 1.28v/3GHz 1.05v uncore \| Intel Core i7-6700HQ @ 3.1GHz
Motherboard	Gigabyte GA-X99-UD5 WiFi LGA2011-v3\| Stock
Cooling	Corsair H100i v2 w/ 2x EK Vardar F4-120ER + various 120/140mm case fans \| Stock
Memory	G.Skill RJ-4 16GB DDR4-2666 CL15 quad channel \| 12GB DDR4-2133
Video Card(s)	EVGA GTX 1080 Ti Hybrid SC2 11GB @ 2012/5151 boost \| NVIDIA GTX 1060 6GB +200/+500 + Intel 530
Storage	Samsung 840 EVO 500GB + Seagate 3TB 7200RPM + others \| Kingston 256GB M.2 SATA + 1TB 7200RPM
Display(s)	Acer G257HU 1440p 60Hz AH-IPS 4ms \| 17.3" 1920*1080 60Hz wide angle TN notebook panel
Case	Fractal Design Define XL R2 \| MSI
Audio Device(s)	Creative Sound Blaster Z \| Realtek with quad stereo speakers and subwoofer
Power Supply	Corsair HX850i Platinum \| 19.5v 180w Delta brick
Software	Windows 10 Pro x64 \| Windows 10 Home x64

System Name	MONEY PIT
Processor	i7-3770K @ 4800 1.20v batch #3231B415 Delided
Motherboard	ASrock Z77 OC Formula w onboard waterblocks
Cooling	Apogee HD, MCP655,rad MCR320-XP,Micro Rev2 res
Memory	G,skill Trident X F3-2400C10D-16GTX
Video Card(s)	EVGA GTX 980 Ti Classified with EK nickel/acetal waterblock installed
Storage	2x120gig Wildfire raid0 2x120gig VERTEX3 raid0
Display(s)	3/ Samsung2343bwx + 65in LG 4K
Case	NZXT Phantom White w/red
Audio Device(s)	ReCon3d fatal1ty pro, Logitech z906 THX
Power Supply	corsair AX860i
Mouse	Rat7
Software	64bit ++++ win 10

System Name	Aliens Ryzen Rig \| 2nd Hand Omen
Processor	Ryzen R5 5600 \| Ryzen R5 3600
Motherboard	Gigabyte B450 Aorus Elite (F61 BIOS) \| B450 matx
Cooling	DeepCool Castle EX V2 240mm AIO\| stock for now
Memory	8GB X 2 DDR4 3000mhz Team Group Vulcan \| 16GB DDR4
Video Card(s)	Sapphire Pulse RX 5700 8GB \| GTX 1650 4GB
Storage	Adata XPG 8200 PRO 512GB SSD OS / 240 SSD + 2TB M.2 SSD Games / 1000 GB Data \| SSD + HDD
Display(s)	Acer ED273 27" VA 144hz Freesync \|TCL 32" 1080P w/ HDR
Case	NZXT H500 Black \| HP Omen Obelisk
Audio Device(s)	Onboard Realtek \| Onboard Realtek
Power Supply	EVGA SuperNOVA G3 650w 80+ Gold \| 500w
Mouse	Steelseries Rival 500 15 button mouse w/ Razor Goliathus Chroma XL mousemat \| Logitech G502
Keyboard	Logitech G910 Orion Spark RGB w/ Romer G tactile keys \| Logitech G513 Carbon w/ Romer G tactile keys
Software	Windows 10 Pro \| Windows 10 Pro

Why and when should you flash gpu BIOS

CAPSLOCKSTUCK

Spaced Out Lunar Tick

erocker

*

Jstn7477

Frogger

AlienIsGOD

Vanguard Beta Tester

the54thvoid

Intoxicated Moderator

Black Panther

manofthem

WCG-TPU Team All-Star!

Jetster

tokyoduong

cadaveca

My name is Dave

CAPSLOCKSTUCK

Spaced Out Lunar Tick

d1nky

erocker

*

xvi

d1nky

erocker

*

d1nky

xvi

erocker

*

d1nky

EarthDog

Frick

Fishfaced Nincompoop

Widjaja

D4S4

Processor	Ryzen 7800X3D
Motherboard	MSI MAG Mortar B650 (wifi)
Cooling	be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 4
Memory	32GB Kingston Fury
Video Card(s)	Gainward RTX4070ti
Storage	Seagate FireCuda 530 M.2 1TB / Samsumg 960 Pro M.2 512Gb
Display(s)	LG 32" 165Hz 1440p GSYNC
Case	Asus Prime AP201
Audio Device(s)	On Board
Power Supply	be quiet! Pure POwer M12 850w Gold (ATX3.0)
Software	W10

Processor	3900X @ 4.0
Motherboard	Asus ROG Strix X570-E
Cooling	DeepCool Castle 360EX
Memory	G Skill Trident Z Neo 32GB 3600
Video Card(s)	RX 5700 XT Pulse
Storage	Sabrent Rocket Q 1TB
Display(s)	LG 34UC88
Case	Thermaltake P3
Power Supply	Super Flower Leadex III 750w
Mouse	Logitech G900
Keyboard	G Skill KM570 MX Silver
Software	Windows 10 Pro

System Name	Juliette // HTPC
Processor	Intel i7 9700K // AMD Ryzen 5 5600G
Motherboard	ASUS Prime Z390X-A // ASRock B550 ITX-AC
Cooling	Noctua NH-U12 Black // Stock
Memory	Corsair DDR4 3600 32gb //G.SKILL Trident Z Royal Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) 3600
Video Card(s)	ASUS RTX4070 OC// GTX 1650
Storage	Samsung 970 EVO NVMe 1Tb, Intel 665p Series M.2 2280 1TB // Samsung 1Tb SSD
Display(s)	ASUS VP348QGL 34" Quad HD 3440 x 1440 // 55" LG 4K SK8000 Series
Case	Seasonic SYNCRO Q7// Silverstone Granada GD05
Audio Device(s)	Focusrite Scarlett 4i4 // HDMI to Samsung HW-R650 sound bar
Power Supply	Seasonic SYNCRO 750 W // CORSAIR Vengeance 650M
Mouse	Cooler Master MM710 53G
Keyboard	Logitech 920-009300 G512 SE
Software	Windows 10 Pro // Windows 10 Pro

System Name	Desktop
Processor	i5 3570k
Motherboard	Asrock Z77
Cooling	Corsair H60
Memory	G Skill 8gb 1600 mhz X 2
Video Card(s)	Sapphire Radeon 7850 X 2
Storage	1 TB Velociraptor, 240GB 840 Samsung
Display(s)	27" Samsung LED X 2
Case	Thermaltake V9
Power Supply	Seasonic 620 W, CX600M on stand by
Software	Win 8.1 64
Benchmark Scores	Benches are silly

System Name	Zotan
Processor	i9-10850K
Motherboard	Gigabyte Z490 Gaming X AX
Cooling	H100
Memory	32GB Viper 3200
Video Card(s)	Zotac RTX3080
Case	Airflow 275R
Power Supply	RMX850
Benchmark Scores	d1nky@hwbot.org

System Name	Rainbow
Processor	Intel Core i7 8700k
Motherboard	MSI MPG Z390M GAMING EDGE AC
Cooling	Corsair H115i, 2x Noctua NF-A14 industrialPPC-3000 PWM
Memory	G. Skill TridentZ RGB 4x8GB (F4-3600C16Q-32GTZR)
Video Card(s)	ZOTAC GeForce RTX 3090 Trinity
Storage	2x Samsung 950 Pro 256GB \| 2xHGST Deskstar 4TB 7.2K
Display(s)	Samsung C27HG70
Case	Xigmatek Aquila
Power Supply	Seasonic 760W SS-760XP
Mouse	Razer Deathadder 2013
Keyboard	Corsair Vengeance K95
Software	Windows 10 Pro
Benchmark Scores	4 trillion points in GmailMark, over 144 FPS 2K Facebook Scrolling (Extreme Quality preset)

System Name	Black MC in Tokyo
Processor	Ryzen 5 5600
Motherboard	Asrock B450M-HDV
Cooling	Be Quiet! Pure Rock 2
Memory	2 x 16GB Kingston Fury 3400mhz
Video Card(s)	XFX 6950XT Speedster MERC 319
Storage	Kingston A400 240GB \| WD Black SN750 2TB \|WD Blue 1TB x 2 \| Toshiba P300 2TB \| Seagate Expansion 8TB
Display(s)	Samsung U32J590U 4K + BenQ GL2450HT 1080p
Case	Fractal Design Define R4
Audio Device(s)	Line6 UX1 + some headphones, Nektar SE61 keyboard
Power Supply	Corsair RM850x v3
Mouse	Logitech G602
Keyboard	Cherry MX Board 1.0 TKL Brown
VR HMD	Acer Mixed Reality Headset
Software	Windows 10 Pro
Benchmark Scores	Rimworld 4K ready!

System Name	Darth Obsidious
Processor	Intel i5 2500K
Motherboard	ASUS P8Z68-V/Gen3
Cooling	Cooler Master Hyper 212+ in Push Pull
Memory	2X4GB Corsair Vengeance DDR3 1600
Video Card(s)	ASUS R9 270x TOP
Storage	128GB Samsung 830 SSD, 1TB WD Black, 2TB WD Green
Display(s)	LG IPS234V-PN
Case	Corsair Obsidian 650D
Audio Device(s)	Infrasonic Quartet
Power Supply	Corsair HX650w
Software	Windows 7 64bit and Windows XP Home
Benchmark Scores	2cm mark on bench with a razor blade.

Processor	C2D E8400@3.9GHz (488x8, 1.4v :( )
Motherboard	Abit IP35-E
Cooling	Thermaltake Sonic Tower+120mm fan
Memory	2GB kingmax ddr1066@976MHz 5-5-5-15
Video Card(s)	Radeon X1800GTO @700/1400MHz with Accelero S1+Glacialtech fancard
Storage	2xSeagate Barracuda 7200.10 160GB
Display(s)	Samsung SyncMaster 793s... just you laugh...
Case	some Aplus case
Audio Device(s)	Realtek ALC888
Power Supply	Chieftec 450W
Software	Win7 x64