[SOLVED] Do I have to update my bios before upgrading my cpu from Ryzen 5 to Ryzen 7 3700X?

[Daveelouiee]

I recently bought a Ryzen 7 3700x cpu to upgrade my cpu. I am new to upgrading a gaming pc by myself and I was not aware that I was supposed to update bios before updating your cpu. Without knowing about updating Bios first, I already installed my new Ryzen 7 from Ryzen 5. It was fine, it started like normal. I had it only run for about 5 hours. Would I need to still update my bios according to my motherboard or is It okay as is? If I do have to update Bios, is there a way to update it without installing back my stock processor (Ryzen 5) or would I have to put it back and install the bios? Also, would I have to install bios in order or just go ahead with the current Bios? Thank you and appreciate the help, hope I hear back soon

Some info:
Bios Version/Date: American Megatrends Inc. P1.50, 10/14/2019
SMBios Version: 3.2
Bios Mode: UEFI
Baseboard Manufacturer: MSI
Baseboard Product: B450M Gaming
Processor: AMD Ryzen 7 3700x
Stock/old Processor: AMD Ryzen 5 3600
Ram: 16 GB

 

[Mickieg1994]

If the pc booted up then the BIOS already supported the new CPU, you may still need to update it though as keeping the current version has other benefits, the issue comes when the BIOS does not support the new processor at stock, then you would be presented with a black screen until you updated it, you will not need to install your old cpu to update the BIOS, it can be done in a few ways, i'd recommend checking your manufacturers website or the motherboard manual on how to do this, also youtube videos and google are a good source

 

[Daveelouiee]

If the pc booted up then the BIOS already supported the new CPU, you may still need to update it though as keeping the current version has other benefits, the issue comes when the BIOS does not support the new processor at stock, then you would be presented with a black screen until you updated it, you will not need to install your old cpu to update the BIOS, it can be done in a few ways, i'd recommend checking your manufacturers website or the motherboard manual on how to do this, also youtube videos and google are a good source

I heard that I can update my Bios without the old cpu by using a usb flash drive? Like download the appropriate bios update for my mobo, then restart pc while usb is plugged in and update through bios. Would it damage my mobo or cpu if I don’t update it in the long run? Also, would I lose any info or files if I don’t update the bios? I wish someone wouldve told me about this hehe smh

 

[Mickieg1994]

With some motherboards, they will have a feature that allows you to update the BIOS with no cpu installed, it's handy but only really necessary if the CPU needs the update to run and you do not have any other alternative, you don't need to do this

Yes that is correct, you need a usb drive with the motherboard BIOS update on there, plug it into the back of the pc, there may be a usb port labelled FLASH BIOS, as there is on my Mortar Max motherboard, yours may be different but that is where it will need to be, then you will need to access the BIOS and boot to the USB or use the software already in your BIOS to update from the USB, these resources will help, nothing bad will happen immediately if you do not do it, but little niggling issues can arise down the line as usually BIOS are updated for good reason

If you need help accessing the BIOS

https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/bios-keys-to-access-your-firmware,5732.html

 

[drea.drechsler]

I heard that I can update my Bios without the old cpu by using a usb flash drive? Like download the appropriate bios update for my mobo, then restart pc while usb is plugged in and update through bios. Would it damage my mobo or cpu if I don’t update it in the long run? Also, would I lose any info or files if I don’t update the bios? I wish someone wouldve told me about this hehe smh

Both your original and new processors are Zen2 arch. so if it works with one it will work with the other. You can update BIOS with either of your processors, there's no reason to go back to the older one. And while your board does have a 'BIOS Flashback' feature you're best approach to update BIOS is to do it through the BIOS utility itself...M-Flash. That BIOS Flashback is a last-resort in case something goes horribly wrong.

If your board is the B450M Gaming Plus PRE-MAX only update if BIOS is prior to 7B87v1B. If it's already at that version then there's no reason to update.

If yours is the B450M Gaming Plus MAX board the BIOS version number will be 7B86vH6 to update to but only if not at that version already.

 

[geofelt]

Go to the msi web site and look for support for your motherboard.
Look for bios downloads.
There should be a list of bios updates and a description of what the update fixes.
I would not update a bios unless it contains a fix that is impacting me.
A failed bios update can render your motherboard useless until you can figure out how to recover.
Often not an easy process.
Since you are running well now, I would not touch it.