The document discusses BIOS, UEFI, POST and the CMOS chip. It provides the following key points: - BIOS initializes hardware at startup and finds a boot device, while UEFI is a newer standard that offers improvements over BIOS like a graphical interface. - The POST tests hardware for errors before booting the OS. Passing yields a single beep while errors produce unique beep codes. - Settings are stored in the CMOS chip, which needs a battery to retain them when off. The BIOS chip holds the low-level software.

1. BIOS, UEFI & POST

2. 2
• Basic Input Output System (BIOS)
• Power On Self Test (POST)
• Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI)
• Complementary Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor (CMOS)
• CMOS Chip
• CMOS Battery
• What we can do from BIOS/UEFI interface
• Operating System Installation Method
EXAM

3. BASIC INPUT/OUTPUT SYTEM (BIOS)
3
AMIBIOS (American Megatrends) in a Winbond chip
American Megatrends BIOS, source: eComputerz.com
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4. 4
• BIOS:
• Is a Firmware that is built into the motherboard.
• It initialize the computer’s hardware as the computer is
being booted.
• Then it search for a boot device (such as an optical
drive, storage device) to boot the load the operating
system into the memory and run it.
Example of BIOS on the Motherboard, Source The
Tech Revolutionist
BIOS Chip
EXAM

5. • The BIOS Software is stored on a BIOS chip on the motherboard
(EEPROM as per today technology, around 128Mb – 256Mb).
• The BIOS Chip is non-volatile.
• The content of the chip is retained even after turning off the power.
• However the computer need to maintain certain setting such as
(Date & Time, Boot Sequence, chipset, hard disk type, keyboard
and display types and other specific hardware settings), in other
orders, the custom setting that you have configured in the BIOS
Bios Chip, Source: ru.wikipedia.org
Bios Chip for Dell Vostro
motherboard, Source: lelong.com.my
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6. Award Legacy BIOS Interface, Source: Wikipedia.com
Legacy BIOS Interface, Source: UUkeys
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7. CMOS Chip / CMOS RAM
7
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8. • The custom settings that you have configured on the BIOS are stored in the
motherboard on a special chip called a CMOS chip or traditionally called CMOS
RAM (because it uses a volatile, low-power complementary metal-oxide-
semiconductor (CMOS) SRAM ).
• The typical capacity of CMOS RAM 256 Bytes.
• The CMOS RAM and the real-time clock have been integrated as a part of the
southbridge chipset and it may not be a standalone chip on modern motherboards.
EXAM

9. • Unlike the BIOS chip which is non-volatile, the
CMOS chip is volatile, meaning, it needs constant
power to maintain its content or settings.
• In order for the CMOS to maintain its settings while
the computer is turned off, it uses a battery, known
as, CMOS battery.
CMOS RAM
EXAM

10. CMOS BATTERY
10

11. • The CMOS battery is:
• A Small Button lithium coin cell battery (CR2032), 3 Volts
• Can be seen on the surface of the motherboard, basically it
is the same type of battery that is being used on wrist
watches.
• If the battery is removed then is reattached, the BIOS will
reset back to its default settings from the manufacturer and
erase any customs settings that you have configured.
Example of CMOS 3V Battery
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12. • The CMOS battery is:
• The memory battery has an estimated life of 3 years when
power supply unit (PSU) is unplugged or when the PSU
power switch is turned off. The longer you computer
remained off, the faster that CMOS battery is going to be
drained out.
• This battery type, contrary to popular belief, is not
rechargeable and trying to do so may result in an explosion. Example of CMOS 3V Battery
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13. Difference between BIOS & CMOS:

14. • BIOS is the actual firmware or program that comes with your
motherboard, that Firmware is store inside the Bios chip
128Mb-256Mb.
• The settings that changes on the Bios interface, such as date
and time, boot-order/boot-sequence, fans speed, those settings
are retained in the CMOS chip (CMOS RAM).
• On modern motherboard, the CMOS chip is integrated with
the Real Time Clock (RTC) on the south-bridge/PCH chipset.
BIOS Chip
CMOS Chip
CMOS Battery
Clarification of confusion between different devices
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15. • Dual BIOS:
• Recently, some motherboard feature
dual BIOS chips, so in case one of the
BIOS software is corrupted, the other
one can act as a back-up as a good
working version that actually allow the
system to boot Operating system.
• Usually there is a physical switch or
jumper that allow the user to switch
between the two BIOS Chips that hold
different BIOS software versions. DUAL BIOS EEPROM Chip on the
motherboard. Source: TechPowerUp
EXAM

16. An Intel dual channel Motherboard with Dual Bios Chips, Source: Hardware Canucks
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17. Power On Self Test (POST)
17

18. • When you turn on your computer, it performs what we call a
Power On Self Test (POST)
• Which it run by the BIOS.
• It test the computer to check that all the requirement are met and the
hardware is working correctly before starting the operating system.
EXAM

19. • If the computer passes the POST
test:
• The internal speaker will make a
short single beep,
• Which indicate that the computer
has passed the test and it is
booting up normally.
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20.  The results of the POST may be displayed on a panel that is part of the device,
output to an external device, or stored for future retrieval by a diagnostic tool.
 Since a self-test might detect that the system's usual human-readable display is
non-functional, an indicator lamp or a speaker may be provided to show error
codes as a sequence of flashes or beeps.
 In addition to running tests, the POST process may also set the initial state of
the device from firmware

21. • However if there is no beep, or multiple beeps, then that mean that
the computer has failed the test and something is wrong, and the
computer need troubleshooting to find out what the problem is.
• The computer will generate a beep code to help you pinpoint the
problem
• Refer to the manufacturer documentation to find a list of beep codes
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22. Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI)
22

23. • Most of modern motherboards are chipped with the new type of
BIOS known as UEFI
Graphical User interface for both the legacy BIOS and Modern UEFI side by side

24. • Like BIOS, UEFI is installed at the time of manufacturing and is
the first program that runs when a computer is turned on.
• It checks to see what hardware components the computing device
has, wakes the components up and hands them over to the
operating system.
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25. • The new UEFI specification addresses several limitations of BIOS, including
• User friendly graphical user interface that support different colors and animation
• Restrictions on hard disk partition size (Bigger than 2TB)
• Amount of time the BIOS takes to perform its task
• Support Mouse and projectors
• Support for secure boot: which stops any digitally unsigned drivers from loading
and helps to stop malicious software, such as rootkits.
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26. What we can do from BIOS/UEFI interface

27. • Change the Boot sequence or Boot order.
• Enable and Disable motherboard connectors (USB2/3/3.1, SATA, Ethernet, Thunderbolt).
• Enable or Disable CPU based GPU (IGP).
• Monitor current component temperature, voltages and fan speed.
• Set-up and administrator password
• Update the UEFI or the BIOS (Flash the BIOS), check current version
• Overclock the Processor (Raise frequency)
• Overclock the memory (Enable XMP profile, raise frequency & reduce timing)
• Change the cooling profile and fans speed (silent, performance, etc.).
• Enable or disable sound controller, wired/wireless network controller/ Bluetooth controller
• Enable or disable Virtualization, Execute, secure boot, power beeps, RAID mode Wake On LAN feature.
• Check current hardware configuration and health status
• Etc.

29. Example of UEFI User friendly Interface

30. Windows Operating System Requirement,
upgrade path and installation methods
30

31. • Check OS System Requirement in term of CPU and DRAM
• Check OS Compatibility with the current version you have
• Download / or Buy a hard copy (DVD, Blu-ray) of the OS.
• Extract/capture your current OS’s license & serial number.
• Backup your data on a different physical disk.

32. 32
Different Version of Windows Vista

33. 33
Different Version of Windows 7

34. 34
Different Version of Windows 8

35. BitLocker Hyper-V AppLocker
Domain
Member
Cortana
Remote
Desktop
Max x86
RAM
Max x64
RAM
Home No No No No Yes
Client
Only
4GB 128GB
Pro Yes Yes No Yes Yes
Client and
Host
4GB 2 TB
Enterprise Yes Yes Yes Yes
Yes,
except
LTSB
Client and
Host 4GB 2 TB
Education Yes Yes Yes Yes
Yes, with
1703
Client and
Host 4GB 2 TB
35
Different Version of Windows 10

36. 36
Windows Vista Requirement
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37. 37
Windows 7 Requirement
EXAM

38. 38
Windows 8/8.1 Requirement
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39. 39
Windows 10
Minimum requirement (x86)
Windows 10
Minimum requirement (x64)
Processor 1 gigahertz (GHz) or faster processor with support for PAE,
NX, and SSE2
RAM
1 (GB) for 32-bit 2 GB for 64-bit
Hard disk space
16 GB for 32-bit OS 20 GB for 64-bit OS
Graphics card
DirectX 9 or later with WDDM 1.0 driver
Display
800x600
Windows 10 Requirement
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40. 40
• PAE:
• Gives 32-bit processors the ability to use more than 4 GB of physical
memory on capable versions of Windows, and is a prerequisite for NX.
• NX:
• Helps your processor guard the PC from attacks by malicious software.
• SSE2:
• Is a standard instruction set on processors that is increasingly used by
third-party apps and drivers.
EXTRA

41. 41
• 32-bit vs. 64-bit
• Hardware drivers are specific to the OS version (32-bit / 64-bit)
• 32-bit OS cannot run 64-bit apps
• 64-bit OS can run both 32-bit and 64-bit apps
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42. WINDOWS UPGRADE PATH
42
EXAM

43. 43
Windows Vista/7 Upgrade-Path
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44. 44
Windows 8/8.1 Upgrade-Path
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45. 45
Windows 10 Upgrade-Path
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46. Microsoft Windows installation methods
46
EXAM

47. 47
• From a Bootable media (Optical disk, Flash drive)
• From an ISO image on a hypervisor (Oracle virtual box, VMware workstation)
• Via Windows Update from one version to another
• From a recovery partition
• Via network
Exam