Poll: How often and why do you update your bios?

[RandomSadness]

Poll applies to motherboards and GPUs. Feel free to detail and explain your choice.

 

[Aquinus]

I updated my motherboard BIOS when new ones are available because I can easily re-flash it using USB Flashback. I don't touch the BIOS on the GPUs I've owned for the opposite reason. I like being able to easily recover from catastrophe. It's also why I have a RAID-5 on both my tower and my gateway server. One catastrophe is enough for a lifetime IMHO.

 

[Drone]

If it fixes ....


If everything works I see no reason to update it.

 

[Jetster]

Only when necessary on a motherboard. On a gpu? Only if the manufacture tells me to

I have had a bios update hurt performance

 

[Bill_Bright]

Poll applies to motherboards and GPUs

Then you need two polls. That said, I don't like polls because they rarely have the answer I need - as is the case here.

I NEVER upgrade the BIOS (on either) just because a new BIOS is out there. In the case of motherboards, unless the board is a brand new model and revision 1.0, most upgrades simply add support for new CPUs. And I rarely upgrade CPUs. So I typically flash the motherboard BIOS when I first buy a new motherboard, then never after that unless (1) the new firmware addresses a security issue (which is very rare), (2) the new firmware addresses a problem I am having (rare) and (3), my BIOS somehow becomes corrupt (also very rare).

I cannot recall ever having to upgrade the "BIOS" on one of my graphics cards. Graphics "drivers", on the other hand I do occasionally update for my graphics but not as often as most "enthusiasts". This is because I am not a gamer and by far, most graphics updates just add support for new games - or new GPUs (since AMD and NVIDIA bundle most of their drivers into one driver install package).

So again, like BIOS updates, with graphics "drivers" (and most drivers on my systems) I don't update drivers just because a new one is out there. I read the change.log to see if the update affects me. If not, and I am not experiencing any problems, I follow the golden rule of electronics maintenance - "if it ain't broke, don't fix it".

 

[64K]

"if it ain't broke, don't fix it".

That's my philosophy too. I generally upgrade every 2 to 3 years on the mobo and GPU. I can't remember ever having an issue with a mobo BIOS and people sometimes end up bricking their GPU messing around with the BIOS.

 

[CAPSLOCKSTUCK]

Never.

 

[Disparia]

A thousand flashes later and only good results, though the only time I've done a GPU was setting clocks once stable speeds were established via software. Haven't done any that came from the manufacturer.

Most of these flashes happened awhile ago, back in the early-2000s when I built computers commercially. Asus and others did a lot of post-release improvements back then so nearly every update was desirable. The other biggies would be HD, SSD, and opticals.

"Just because you can" + "Twice or more in a year" best represents me today. I do them regardless of what they fix but not as soon as they come out. Every 3 months or so I'll dust/clean my computers and at that time I'll check for updates.

 

[Devon68]

I voted never. If it works out of the box why mess with it. If I were to choose the FX-8150 instead of the FX-6100 I would have had to upgrade it.

 

[peche]

If it fixes ....


If everything works I see no reason to update it.

this !

(3), my BIOS somehow becomes corrupt (also very rare).

odd situation...

 

[Frag_Maniac]

No need for a poll on this, and there are WAY too many vote options. As has always been the case for MBs, the rule of thumb that works is don't even attempt it unless you are experiencing problems that aren't fixed by any other means. Often times you can get a pretty good idea in the BIOS release notes on the DL page for the MB whether an update will fix your problem. Most MB BIOS updates are for compatibility with new CPU models, but sometimes they help with new GPU models that won't boot up. This was the case for many with the 900 series GPUs.

MB BIOS updating is quite safe and easy on many models of MBs now though. Most of them have a built in updater in the BIOS where you just DL the update, go into the BIOS, and use the updatte tool to search for it's location on your PC.

As for GPU BIOS, that is typically only done when trying to flash to a higher model, which is quite often more risk than it's worth.

 

[5DVX0130]

1. When I get/buy a new motherboard the first thing I do is update the BIOS. It's usually required if you buy an older board and a newer CPU.
2. If I have any issues and the BIOS might help. Were rarely does that happen and the update usually doesn't help/fix the issue. But it's at least worth a try.
3. After the board goes legacy (usually 2 years) I update to the last version. If nothing else in case I sell it the new buyer won't have to.

 

[Nordic]

For motherboards I flash only if I need to because it has issues.

I never upgrade gpu bios, I just get a new gpu.

 

[Bill_Bright]

odd situation...

That's why I said "very rare". In fact, I can think of only once it happened to me and that was years ago when making some changes in the BIOS Setup Menu when a co-worker tripped over the power cord. Not pretty.

 

[TheMailMan78]

Never update a bios unless you are having an issue. Updating a bios for "fun" is for idiots.........I know...........I used to be one.

 

[Bill_Bright]

Updating a bios for "fun" is for idiots.........I know...........I used to be one.

 

[Bow]

All of the above...

 

[flmatter]

unless I am having an issue never

 

[TheoneandonlyMrK]

I would update as soon possible but asus support ENDS abruptly in thus area after a couple of years max.

 

[SimpleTECH]

Almost always for me. I think it's an OCD thing. But then again, I like modding BIOSes so it comes with the territory.

Basically if anyone buys something from me, expect it to have the latest version (even if not publicly available).

 

[Whilhelm]

Made the mistake of updating my bios on the weekend. It broke both my raid 0 arrays and corrupted all of my data. Never again unless it is absolutely required.

 

[FordGT90Concept]

There's generally only two scenarios I update BIOS in:
1) there's a problem and a newer version is available
2) it's a brand new board for a custom build

 

[patrico]

if it upgrades or if it fixes, other wise no point

 

[RejZoR]

I keep all my stuff fully updated. Newer is better and I stick with that. Working with computers for more than 15 years, this rule has worked well. Apart with retarded Windows 10, but only that because it's forced upon you without the choice to easily decide what and when to update. Luckily BIOS remains under full control of the user...

 

[CTMxGMG]

For fixes and performance gains.