Question Question for experienced pc builders.

[Thomas-98]

For those of you that have built lots of computers and have lots of experience, have any of you ever had to update the bios of your motherboard so it would be compatible with your cpu? For example it is obvious that if you were buying i5-9400f that you would need to pair it with a socket lga 1151 motherboard and that the motherboard would need to be a 300 series chipset motherboard because coffee lake processors (8th and 9th generation) are only compatible with 300 series chipsets, but to me it is a bit of a gray area weather or not a motherboard would need a bios update to be compatible. I know that you can look at the cpu support list on the motherboard manufacturers website under support, and it will tell you that so and so processor has been compatible with that motherboard since bios version whatever, but I don't know what bios version a motherboard comes with in the first place. I've read reviews of motherboards where customers say their motherboard didn't need a bios update because their motherboard already came pre updated to a later or newer bios version so they didn't need to update the bios for cpu compatibility, where as other customers sometimes gave a review saying they received old stock of a motherboard and it came with the first bios version and the cpu isn't compatible. So I'm wondering for any of you that have more experience, is this anything that you had to deal with before? PLEASE respond. Thank you.

 

[Quanticriver]

Most of the time you don't need a bios update unless specifically stated in the mobo cpu compability list

Personally i never had any issues

But in the "old stock case" thinking of amd, you may run into problems if the bios is not on the specific biosversion needed e.g. a 450 mobo with a 3600 cpu

you would need a previous gen cpu in order to access the bios and perform a bios update

 

[Math Geek]

you'll never know what specific BIOS version is installed or when the board was made. when looking at older hadware it is a bit easier though. you can know roughly when they stopped making old chipsets and then look at when various BIOS versions were released. obviously if they stopped making 300 chipsets 2 years ago and a needed BIOS version was released last month, then its safe to assume it won't be on that mobo when it comes out of the box.

but newer stuff is tough. with new AMD mobo's they put a sticker on the box if it is updated for the newer chips. if its not there, then you can assume you'll need to update it before a new chip will work.

many new boards come with the ability to update the BIOS without needing a cpu installed. if in doubt and you don't have an older cpu to install, looking for one with this option would be a good idea. this way you can simply update it before building and be done with it.

it is however, not much of an issue for intel cpu's since they change chipsets/sockets so fast. rarely does a new gen chip work with last gen socket/chipset anyway. so it would be rare for this to happen to you as you'll likely be buying a new socket anyway.

AMD with the am4 socket though is a different story since it can work with so many different chips. older boards were made before the new chips were even announced so of course they would not have been made with those in mind and an update should be expected to be needed if you're trying to work with an old board and a new chip.

 

[HappyTrails]

Have no run into problem with that after many years. Although AMD did mention something odd about updating bios for new gen 3 cpu's. They say if you flash bios to new you can't go backwards which makes a little sense in a way. Someone had to explain it to me though.

New pc 3 months old here and was surprise it did come with somewhat older bios for a brand new mobo. Had to update it. People say generally they dont update unless they need it. Think some manufacturers have mention this in past as well.

 

[Math Geek]

considering you can't go backward it makes sense to not ship the board with the 5000 series BIOS installed. then it would not work with older chips it is supposed to work with.

if you are using the 5000 series, then update it yourself and move on. no biggie really.

 

[Wolfshadw]

I've never had any issues with BIOS and compatibility, but I take a very simple approach: Assume that a motherboard comes with the initial BIOS, If the motherboard you're looking at requires a BIOS update in order to be compatible with the processor you want, do you have the ability to update the BIOS? Does the motherboard have a BIOS flashback function? Do you have or can you temporarily get a natively supported processor? If the answer is "No" to these questions, then you need to rethink your plans.

-Wolf sends