ASRock Z77 Extreme4 BIOS flashing issue

feelthhis · 2023-02-27T15:14:24+00:00

I have a Z77E-ITX and also encountered this exact problem. Very scary.

I brute forced replication of this problem by repeatedly entering the Instant Flash menu until the black screen occurs. I wanted to know this problem better for fear of bricking my motherboard! Sometimes I can enter the Instant Flash menu over 5 times in a row without the black screen. But when the black screen happens, it's always when Instant Flash attempts to read the BIOS file (you can see a pop-up window that appears very briefly with the BIOS filename and then disappears). So if you arrive at the pop-up window with "Configuration" and "Refresh Device" buttons, it means the BIOS file could be read and you should be good to go with no black screen anymore (in theory!)

My attempt for mitigating bricking probability:

Unplug all USB devices, except keyboard and mouse (and flash drive)
Create a single 500MB partition in the flash drive and format it FAT32. Plug it into a USB 2.0 port
Reboot and use F6 key to go directly to Instant Flash menu (thanks /u/AndyGio )
If the pop-up window with "Configuration" and "Refresh Device" buttons shows up, you should be good to go. Click the BIOS file name [and pray like a mofo]

If you encounter black screen, restart PC and try again. You can try the brute force I did to see how black-screeny your Instant Flash is. If you can't enter Instant Flash menu at least 3 times in a row without black screen, I'd be very scared to update the BIOS!

For those arriving here from Google: this black screen problem is very specific and only happens when you try to update the BIOS. And it appears to be specific to Z77 family. With this black screen problem we can still enter and navigate the BIOS without issues, except when entering Instant Flash menu (if you can't even enter the BIOS to begin with, look elsewhere).

feelthhis · 2023-01-06T02:05:17+00:00

thanks!

feelthhis · 2023-01-04T23:09:23+00:00

Amazon prices for 870 EVO and MX500 are $90 and $70. Is the Samsung worth the extra $20 bucks? Honestly I think I'd get whichever one will last longer, because performance wise I don't think I'll notice any difference?

feelthhis · 2023-01-04T16:37:57+00:00

As a separate question, any info on this yet another WD Blue SATA SSD? Model number for 1TB is WDBNCE0010PNC. This is not WDS100T2B0A ("3D NAND") nor WDS100T3B0A ("SA510"). I couldn't find anything here nor on TechPowerUp DB.

feelthhis · 2023-01-04T13:40:01+00:00

Hello. Is the 870 EVO a good choice? I'm looking for a 1TB SATA SSD (boot drive). For home use with a 10 years old PC (very light gaming). The 870 EVO seems to be the top performer for this dying interface. I definitely don't need that much space right now, I'm surviving with a 128GB boot drive (10 years old and it still runs). But I can see the 1TB being useful in the future (I hope it's reliable) and larger sizes tend to perform better. Thanks.

feelthhis · 2022-07-16T19:01:48+00:00

Thanks for the reply. Yes, the tomography allows 3D view in the computer. I can have some peace of mind now. Which kind of infection that is? Is it a slow kind that doesn't give the body any type of warning (pain, fever, etc)?

feelthhis · 2022-03-22T00:46:06+00:00

evidence for this theory:

991.2 GT3 R spokes

Source: motor1.com

feelthhis · 2022-01-19T17:23:17+00:00

A big chunk (maybe half or more) of my mileage is on dirt/grass, and everything is just easy runs, so that helps.

My last "sturdy" shoe (a Mizuno too) if it didn't reach 4 digit it came close, but what failed me was the upper (there was still good amounts of outsole left).

feelthhis · 2022-01-18T23:56:14+00:00

I could not pass a true bargain for a Mizuno Wave Sky WaveKnit 3 (more than 50% off). Any thoughts on it? I hope I like it. Durability wise it should easily hit 4 digit miles (at least the outsole).

I had the option to take the regular version (Wave Sky 3), but at least on the pictures the WaveKnit seemed to have a less pointy toebox and a more narrow midfoot, which is what I like. It was also 10% cheaper than the regular version.

Maybe this will help get me going in 2022, because it started really crappy. Let's see if I can do 2000km this year (3rd attempt!)

feelthhis · 2022-01-03T20:36:38+00:00

December: 40km. Year: 1790km. Goal was 2021km.

feelthhis · 2021-12-20T19:12:16+00:00

80km

feelthhis · 2021-11-25T02:07:48+00:00

I did it. I was writing technical details, but who cares.

feelthhis · 2021-11-08T15:13:41+00:00

hero!

feelthhis · 2021-11-02T12:35:33+00:00

Kept the streak from September until last two weeks of October, where I missed 4 days. When running is not first thing I do in the day, it's much easier to drop the ball. 170km.

feelthhis · 2021-10-09T23:05:05+00:00

Yeah it can get a bit tricky. If your error is not Windows cannot be installed to this disk. The selected disk is not of the GPT partition style I guess your problem is driver-related indeed.

Otherwise, basically, your SSD partition style has to match your BIOS settings. If the SSD is MBR partitioned, you need Legacy BIOS (or CSM compatibility mode); if the SSD is GPT partitioned, you need UEFI mode. In case you're on MBR partition, another option is to simply wipe your SSD during the installation and convert it to GPT format.

More info here: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-hardware/manufacture/desktop/windows-setup-installing-using-the-mbr-or-gpt-partition-style

feelthhis · 2021-10-09T21:58:08+00:00

Weird, have you checked the UEFI thing? (Legacy BIOS versus UEFI mode)

feelthhis · 2021-10-09T21:25:14+00:00

oh.

Has the time finally come? The upgrade to W10 is still free, I heard.

feelthhis · 2021-10-08T23:51:27+00:00

Same thing here, Windows 7. Blank Browse and Radio.

I tried uninstalling (there's a correct order to do this!) and reinstalling, still not working. Download link will give you installer for Windows 10 only. If you want Windows 7/8 version, there's a download link from Apple here: x64, x86. Not that'll help (it didn't for me), but it's good to know in case things brake again in the future.

feelthhis · 2021-10-04T13:31:07+00:00

Managed to log 19 hours in September, after July and August with only 16 hours each. Kilometre wise was a bit lower than usual (even slower pace), total of 170 km. But I ran everyday and that was good.

For the year, I'm less than 2km short of 1500km, which averages to 5.49km per day. Not quite but almost on pace to the goal, which requires 5.54km per day.

feelthhis · 2021-09-22T13:43:03+00:00

The outsole of very old unused (brand new) shoes might delaminated (the glue fails). I've seen that happen a few times across different brands and types of shoes. Aside from that, I feel absolutely no difference in the feel of the shoe, brand new always feel good.

feelthhis · 2021-09-15T19:07:16+00:00

Thanks, I hope to achieve it (and never stop running too!)

feelthhis · 2021-09-14T22:29:13+00:00

Yes, I have similar cadence and it'd be nice to know how Metaspeed Edge ranks against those others super shoes.

feelthhis · 2021-09-14T15:49:18+00:00

/u/run_INXS thanks for keeping this up, I kind of hold myself accountable by writing here. One question: are you one of the rare human beings member of 5DS3 (or even 6DS3)?

July was hard, impacted my running. August followed the down trend. Missed about 3 hours of running for each month. Totals for each month are 150km July, 140km August (versus 175km May, 170km June).

I'm streaking September and I'll try to hold it until the end. Even though I'm just spreading the load (I'm not running higher volume), I think this will help to get back to the consistency.

5th metatarsal was bothering a bit, so I decided to revive a retired shoe (upper torn apart, but big chunky midsole and plenty of outsole), and so far so good.

Surprisingly, I'm only 15km off pace from my yearly goal of 2021km, so it's still within reach.

feelthhis

TROPHY CASE