Question BIOS updating and RAID setup ?

[DuneStar]

Hello!

I'm looking to update the BIOS on my pre-built MSI desktop. I noticed there's a newer version than the one I'm using and the new one supports the Re-size BAR function to enhance GPU performance which I've been looking to do for some time.

My dilemma: While I've built my share of desktops in the past, I was never very comfortable with messing around in the BIOS. To make matters even more complicated, this pre-built system came with a RAID 0 setup from the place I ordered it that puts two M2 SSDs together to run as one.

What exactly happens when I update to a newer version of BIOS? Does it erase any and all settings from the current BIOS? Won't that mean that the current RAID 0 setup will be gone? If that's the case, won't that screw things up severely potentially not even being able to boot into Windows afterwards?

As far as going ahead with the update, I downloaded the new BIOS version and am looking to use MSI's M-FLASH function that's found in their BIOS using a thumb drive. Unless there's a better suggestion.

Is there no way to save the current settings and somehow bring them over to the new version?

I'm such a BIOS noob.

Please help me!

Thanks!

 

[Lafong]

Can we assume you want to stay with RAID for whatever reason?

 

[USAFRet]

To make matters even more complicated, this pre-built system came with a RAID 0 setup from the place I ordered it that puts two M2 SSDs together to run as one.

While there are probably configurations worse than a RAID 0 with 2x M.2 SSDs, it is hard to think of one.

 

[USAFRet]

A BIOS update sometimes just updates the BIOS, and keeps whatever settings it had.
Sometimes, though, it updates and returns settings to the default.

But be very careful of BIOS updates in general.
Don't do this unless absolutely necessary.

 

[DuneStar]

Can we assume you want to stay with RAID for whatever reason?

Yes, I like having it as one big drive as the C drive instead of multiples.

 

[USAFRet]

Yes, I like having it as one big drive as the C drive instead of multiples.

And what is your actual backup situation?

A RAID 0 significantly increases the fail potential .

 

[DuneStar]

A BIOS update sometimes just updates the BIOS, and keeps whatever settings it had.
Sometimes, though, it updates and returns settings to the default.

But be very careful of BIOS updates in general.
Don't do this unless absolutely necessary.

How do I know if it will keep the settings or return to default settings?

In my case it's just going from version 810 to 820. The 810 is dated 2020 and the 820 is 2021.

 

[USAFRet]

How do I know if it will keep the settings or return to default settings?

In my case it's just going from version 810 to 820. The 810 is dated 2020 and the 820 is 2021.

Only way to maybe know is if it is stated in the BIOS instructions.

Most BIOS upgrades keep whatever settings.
Most.

 

[DuneStar]

And what is your actual backup situation?

A RAID 0 significantly increases the fail potential .

None. The C drive is just for games and Windows. I have my important documents and files on a different mechanical one.

 

[USAFRet]

None. The C drive is just for games and Windows. I have my important documents and files on a different mechanical one.

You do know that with most of the current game platforms, Steam in particular, you can designate other drives as the default install location.
Rather than this RAID thing.

 

[DuneStar]

What were to happen if I went ahead with the update and the RAID setup from BIOS gets reset?
How will the two drives be split up? Will they even be usable or require formatting? Windows is installed on that partition.

 

[USAFRet]

What were to happen if I went ahead with the update and the RAID setup from BIOS gets reset?
How will the two drives be split up? Will they even be usable or require formatting? Windows is installed on that partition.

You'd have to reset all the settings regarding the RAID config., and hope it works.

Write them down NOW (on paper), before you go ahead with the update.

I'd suggest a full drive backup Image before you start.

 

[DuneStar]

Only way to maybe know is if it is stated in the BIOS instructions.

Most BIOS upgrades keep whatever settings.
Most.

Here are the only BIOS instructions I could find:

It mentions loading optimized defaults after flashing the BIOS. I don't know if that means the settings will remain the same.

What do you think?

In any case, I will take lots of pictures with my phone of the current settings before I do the update.

 

[dwd999]

Which specific motherboard are you updating? And have you examined all of the options in its Tools (or similar) menu? Many motherboards have options to update without requiring a usb; you simply download the new bios onto your internal drive and use the menu options to locate it on your internal drive and update. Many motherboards also have an option to store the old bios settings on a usb so that they can be reloaded into the new bios. But we can't tell what would be best without knowing the specific motherboard you're using.

 

[Endre]

Hello!

I'm looking to update the BIOS on my pre-built MSI desktop. I noticed there's a newer version than the one I'm using and the new one supports the Re-size BAR function to enhance GPU performance which I've been looking to do for some time.

My dilemma: While I've built my share of desktops in the past, I was never very comfortable with messing around in the BIOS. To make matters even more complicated, this pre-built system came with a RAID 0 setup from the place I ordered it that puts two M2 SSDs together to run as one.

What exactly happens when I update to a newer version of BIOS? Does it erase any and all settings from the current BIOS? Won't that mean that the current RAID 0 setup will be gone? If that's the case, won't that screw things up severely potentially not even being able to boot into Windows afterwards?

As far as going ahead with the update, I downloaded the new BIOS version and am looking to use MSI's M-FLASH function that's found in their BIOS using a thumb drive. Unless there's a better suggestion.

Is there no way to save the current settings and somehow bring them over to the new version?

I'm such a BIOS noob.

Please help me!

Thanks!

Hello!

I am using 3 Samsung 970 Pro 1 TB M.2 NVMe drives in RAID_0.

Yes. If you update the BIOS, you'll lose the RAID configuration & all of your files!

My advice:
Save all of your personal files on another drive, then load BIOS default settings.
Then, update the BIOS.
(The RAID volume becomes unusable after updating the BIOS).
Then, delete the RAID volume, then, re-create the RAID setup (follow the steps described in the manual of your motherboard).
Then, reinstall Windows (you must have it on a bootable USB flash drive).

I hope this helps...

 

[Misgar]

It's been a long time since I set up RAID 0 on four 73GB Ultra320 SCSI drives, but I would have thought your array would still be visible, after checking the RAID settings are the same in the updated BIOS. Eventually one of my 73GB disks died and the whole array became junk, but it was only a experiment so no data was lost.

Does anyone know if there is some volatile configuration data for the array stored in the motherboard BIOS (as opposed to on the drives themselves) that gets deleted during a BIOS update?

Are your three 1TB M.2 drives installed directly on the MSI motherboard or in a PCIe card?

Just to be on the safe side, clone the RAID0 array on to a spare 3TB hard disk (or 4TB SATA SSD) using Acronis or Macrium Reflect and make sure you can boot into Windows with all three RAID drives unplugged. That way you could restore the C: drive back to the array if it becomes totally scrambled after updating the BIOS. Alternatively you could image the C: drive instead and create a bootable USB key to restore the image.

I had no trouble moving eight 2TB SAS drives in a RAID-Z2 array from an HP server to a desktop PC, which was probably a much bigger change than leaving disks in the same computer and simply updating the BIOS.

So far I haven't "bricked" any motherboards installing a new BIOS, but I run the computers on a UPS in case of power cuts during the update. I usually have to dive into the new BIOS and tweak a few settings, e.g. set the drive boot order, enable Virtualisation, reset the fan curves, check XMP, etc.

I don't use RAID0 now because of the risks involved. Modern 4TB M.2 drives are getting cheaper, if you need a large C: drive.

https://forums.tomshardware.com/threads/raid-1-not-working-after-bios-update.3761526/
Re-enable raid in the bios then save and reboot.
If you used the bios to create the array, the raid info is written to the drives and it should work fine afterwards.

 

[DuneStar]

Hello!

I am using 3 Samsung 970 Pro 1 TB M.2 NVMe drives in RAID_0.

Yes. If you update the BIOS, you'll lose the RAID configuration & all of your files!

My advice:
Save all of your personal files on another drive, then load BIOS default settings.
Then, update the BIOS.
(The RAID volume becomes unusable after updating the BIOS).
Then, delete the RAID volume, then, re-create the RAID setup (follow the steps described in the manual of your motherboard).
Then, reinstall Windows (you must have it on a bootable USB flash drive).

I hope this helps...

OMG... I had a feeling it was going to be like this.
This might just keep me from updating! 😢
Why would the RAID volume become unusable after the new BIOS? There's no way to just set it back again after updating? WTF?!?
This is such a pain...
I want to unlock the BAR!

 

[DuneStar]

Which specific motherboard are you updating? And have you examined all of the options in its Tools (or similar) menu? Many motherboards have options to update without requiring a usb; you simply download the new bios onto your internal drive and use the menu options to locate it on your internal drive and update. Many motherboards also have an option to store the old bios settings on a usb so that they can be reloaded into the new bios. But we can't tell what would be best without knowing the specific motherboard you're using.

I don't know the name of the motherboard. I recently opened up the PC to replace the liquid CPU cooler and re-apply thermal paste and I could not see any writing on the board. It might be a propriety one Msi used for this pre-built. It's whatever was used in the Meg Aegis Ti5 10TE-036US model.

 

[Lafong]

MSI MEG Aegis Ti5 Review

MSI's MEG Aegis Ti5 pushes 4K frame rates with ease, but its massive, cyborg design might send members of your household, not your enemies, running for cover.

www.pcmag.com

Above review says "MSI doesn't provide a service manual", so you may be forced to speculate on the board.

I guess you can't expect too much for over 6000 dollars?

Here's a data sheet the doesn't provide much data:

https://storage-asset.msi.com/datasheet/desktop/global/MEG-Aegis-Ti5-10th.pdf

 

[DuneStar]

Maybe I should reach out to the online store I purchased the PC from and had setup the two drives in RAID 0 to ask? It's been 2 years and if they're still in business I don't know I'd they'd give me the time of day.

 

[dwd999]

I don't know the name of the motherboard. I recently opened up the PC to replace the liquid CPU cooler and re-apply thermal paste and I could not see any writing on the board. It might be a propriety one Msi used for this pre-built. It's whatever was used in the Meg Aegis Ti5 10TE-036US model.

Well the cpu tells us that its socket 1200 but all of MSI's currently listed MEG series socket 1200 motherboards have wifi so its not a model currently in the lineup and possibly a stripped down Z490 Ace which also has 2 lan ports. Those models do use the MSI Dragon Center software so you should be able to update the bios without having to resort to a usb. There also appears to be a way of saving overclocking profiles to a usb and then reloading them after the bios update but there's no way of telling if that includes a raid configuration. At this point it appears that the best option may be to copy everything from your drives that's irreplaceable onto an external non-raid drive before the bios update and after that you'll have to hope for the best.

 

[Endre]

OMG... I had a feeling it was going to be like this.
This might just keep me from updating! 😢
Why would the RAID volume become unusable after the new BIOS? There's no way to just set it back again after updating? WTF?!?
This is such a pain...
I want to unlock the BAR!

Hello!

Though there are some steps to follow, it isn't as hard as you might think.

Just follow these steps:

1. Find the manual of your motherboard. On one of its pages it gives you the instructions to create & to delete an NVMe RAID volume.
2. Create a Windows 10 or 11 bootable USB flash drive.
3. Backup your personal files on a separate drive.
4. Update the BIOS. (If after the update, the PC boots into Windows, then it means that the RAID volume is still intact, if the PC boots into BIOS, then you'll know that the RAID volume became unusable).
5. Delete the RAID volume (follow the steps written in the manual).
6. Restart PC.
7. Create a new RAID volume (I suppose you want speed, so you'll create a RAID_0 volume).
Or, you could choose not to create a RAID volume again.
8. Insert the bootable USB flash drive. Install Windows.
9. Connect to the internet & download the drivers for your PC.
10. Copy back your files into your PC.

That's it!

I hope this helps...

 

[Endre]

Well the cpu tells us that its socket 1200 but all of MSI's currently listed MEG series socket 1200 motherboards have wifi so its not a model currently in the lineup and possibly a stripped down Z490 Ace which also has 2 lan ports. Those models do use the MSI Dragon Center software so you should be able to update the bios without having to resort to a usb. There also appears to be a way of saving overclocking profiles to a usb and then reloading them after the bios update but there's no way of telling if that includes a raid configuration. At this point it appears that the best option may be to copy everything from your drives that's irreplaceable onto an external non-raid drive before the bios update and after that you'll have to hope for the best.

Hello!

The safest way to update the BIOS is by copying the BIOS file on a USB flash drive, formatted as FAT32, and following the steps in the manual of your motherboard.

Using other tools, even if provided by the vendor of your motherboard, isn't as safe!

WARNING:
If, for any reason, the PC is being disconnected during the BIOS update, you'll end up with a bricked motherboard!

 

[Endre]

Hello!

MSI does provide a manual for this PC (though I found nothing about RAID in it).
Here is the link:

MSI Global - The Leading Brand in High-end Gaming & Professional Creation

As a world leading gaming brand, MSI is the most trusted name in gaming and eSports. We stand by our principles of breakthroughs in design, and roll out the amazing gaming gear like motherboards, graphics cards, laptops and desktops.

www.msi.com

MSI also provided a link for BIOS upgrades support:
http://wwwsiom/ support/

I hope this helps...

 

[DuneStar]

Hello!

MSI does provide a manual for this PC (though I found nothing about RAID in it).
Here is the link:

MSI Global - The Leading Brand in High-end Gaming & Professional Creation

As a world leading gaming brand, MSI is the most trusted name in gaming and eSports. We stand by our principles of breakthroughs in design, and roll out the amazing gaming gear like motherboards, graphics cards, laptops and desktops.

www.msi.com

MSI also provided a link for BIOS upgrades support:
http://wwwsiom/ support/

I hope this helps...

That isn't my PC but I was able to find mine here: https://download.msi.com/archive/mnu_exe/desktop/B931v1.0_English.pdf

It's mostly a description of all of the ports and how to plug it in. Nothing about setting up RAID. What I was able to find is that they do use a proprietary motherboard and there is no manual for that to be found.

Thank you for your efforts though as they brought me to find this:

https://download.msi.com/archive/mnu_exe/pdf/2021/Mflash2021.pdf

I still don't know and couldn't find what's going to happen to my RAID setup after the update. I wish someone with a MSI motherboard that went through this could chime in.