Question Should I get a motherboard with a BIOS Flashback button ?

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smalltech

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Apr 10, 2009
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Hi, initially I was interested in the Asus PRIME B550M-A WiFi then I realised it does not have BIOS Flashback button. I am wondering if I should get a motherboard with BIOS Flashback button.

I saw another more expensive model with BIOS Flashback button, the Asus TUF GAMING B550M-PLUS WIFI II.

PRIME B550M-A (WI-FI) https://www.asus.com/motherboards-components/motherboards/prime/prime-b550m-a-wi-fi/

TUF GAMING B550M-PLUS WIFI II https://www.asus.com/motherboards-components/motherboards/tuf-gaming/tuf-gaming-b550m-plus-wifi-ii/

Q1. Is BIOS Flashback button important? Should I get a motherboard with a BIOS Flashback button?

Q2. When do you need to flash BIOS (I am a noob to BIOS flashing) ?

I read some people seem to struggle without BIOS Flashback:


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Just bought the parts for my daughter's new PC, and I can't get it to POST. Just put it together on the bench to test, but no go I'm afraid. Asus Prime B550M-A 16GB Corsair Vengeance RGB Pro (CMW16GX4M2D3600C18) Ryzen 5600G Samsung 256GB 980 Pro M.2 NVME Corsair CX750F RGB PSU The CPU fan spins u...
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Thanks
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Update FYI: How to use USB BIOS FlashBack https://www.asus.com/support/faq/1038568/
 
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smalltech said:
Q1. Is BIOS Flashback button important? Should I get a motherboard with a BIOS Flashback button?

Q2. When do you need to flash BIOS (I am a noob to BIOS flashing) ?
Click to expand...

It might relieve anxiety if you attempt a flash. Is that enough reason?

Downside: it might lull you into complacency, thinking the flashback button lowers your risk of a bad outcome a lot.

You can find yourself in a very bad position with or without a flashback button.

Do you envision yourself being unable to resist flashing the BIOS frequently or are you a "if it ain't broke" type?

I'm 8 years on the same BIOS with zero issues, so I would not make a motherboard choice based on whether or not it had a flashback button.

Your mileage will vary and I'd encourage you to buy whatever suits you in the last few seconds while looking at the "buy now" button and don't look back.
 
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Lafong said:
It might relieve anxiety if you attempt a flash. Is that enough reason?

Downside: it might lull you into complacency, thinking the flashback button lowers your risk of a bad outcome a lot.

You can find yourself in a very bad position with or without a flashback button.

Do you envision yourself being unable to resist flashing the BIOS frequently or are you a "if it ain't broke" type?

I'm 8 years on the same BIOS with zero issues, so I would not make a motherboard choice based on whether or not it had a flashback button.

Your mileage will vary and I'd encourage you to buy whatever suits you in the last few seconds while looking at the "buy now" button and don't look back.
Click to expand...
I am the type if it ain't broke I will not touch it. I did not flash my BIOS in my old pc for 14 years because I do not know how to do it. The pc did become faulty a few times and I managed to solve the pc problems by replacing components. Recently it became faulty and I am unable to solve the problem, I am not sure if it is a bios problem and I do not know how to flash bios so I decided to buy a new pc so I was thinking if there is a bios button, maybe when I have failed all troubleshooting options I could flash bios as a last try, because if I do not do anything the pc will still be faulty, so just try luck to flash bios before I send it to repair or buy a new pc.
 
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I've never needed the feature but I see it as a good fallback. If you practice good hygiene with your system, chances are you won't need to use it but it can't hurt to have it as a backup option. I bought my current mobo (ASUS Prime B450M-A II) because it was budget-friendly, had good reviews, and would serve my needs. The fact that it has flashback as an option is just a nice added feature. I probably wouldn't pay too much extra for it, though.
 
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thestryker said:
With the way Intel and AMD both do microcode updates and security updates via BIOS just sitting on a BIOS isn't necessarily a good idea anymore (I used to all the time). Personally I wouldn't buy a new board without some flashback capability (a button isn't necessary for flashback). As it is most boards worth buying are typically going to have it as a feature.
Click to expand...
Do you update your BIOS even if your pc is working fine? How often do you update BIOS?
 
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The bios flashback button is a means to flash your bios without having a cpu installed.
The main time when this comes into play is when you buy a new gen processor for which there is no support in the bios.
Motherboards will include the latest bios available at the time of manufacture so the window for such a flash capability may not be necessary.

If you have a processor in mind, go to the support site for a prospective motherboard.
It will tell you what bios level is needed to support your processor.
Look at the history of bios updates and determine what date that level was released.
If it was more than 3 months ago, you likely will get a supported motherboard.

The fall back is to borrow a supported processor to do the needed flash.

On a new build, I will flash to currency. The recovery issues are minimal if there is a problem.
When flashing, be patient. It will look like nothing is going on for up to 20 minutes..
Do not interrupt the process.

Once running well, I do not update the bios unless the update contains a fix for a problem that is impacting me.
 
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geofelt said:
The fall back is to borrow a supported processor to do the needed flash.
Click to expand...
I assume it is likely that you will need to go to a computer repair shop to borrow a supported processor correct? I assume the process is install the borrowed supported processor with thermal paste and cpu cooler, then later remove it, then later install the new gen processor.

geofelt said:
Once running well, I do not update the bios unless the update contains a fix for a problem that is impacting me.
Click to expand...
Once running well, what problem do you experience that requires a bios update to fix it?
 
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thestryker said:
If everything is running perfectly and I'm not installing any new hardware then I leave it alone unless there's a security reason to update.
Click to expand...
What new hardware requires update of BIOS?

I googled and it seems like installing a new CPU is the only component that may require update of BIOS? I assume other components (e.g. ram, hard disk, psu, gpu, cooler, fan... etc) all do not need to update BIOS, correct me if I am wrong.
 
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smalltech said:
What new hardware requires update of BIOS?

I googled and it seems like installing a new CPU is the only component that may require update of BIOS? I assume other components (e.g. ram, hard disk, psu, gpu, cooler, fan... etc) all do not need to update BIOS, correct me if I am wrong.
Click to expand...
DRAM compatibility is a big one, but not necessarily the only thing. A lot of the time motherboard makers just do generic notes like "improved system stability" so I'd do an update if installing a component like a brand new video card (meaning newly released not necessarily new to me).
 
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