I received this email a few days ago from M Kendrick:
"Hi Tim - quick question. I can't find BIOS anywhere. I know I need to open it to change how my computer looks at my DVD drive but I can't find the program anywhere. Is there something I need to type to open it? I had to do that once with another program I had. Can you help??"
and here's what I told him:
"M, BIOS isn't actually a "program" in the typical sense. It's not located inside Windows at all. In fact, you don't even have to have an operating system installed to use BIOS. BIOS is actually software that's stored in a chip on your motherboard and you can access it immediately after your computer turns on. Here's some more info: How to Access BIOS."
Confusions about what BIOS is and how to get to it are common among computer users that haven't yet had the opportunity to work with PC hardware.
Anyone else have any other questions about BIOS?
Actually, when someone says ‘go to the BIOS’, they are really referring to the ‘CMOS’. The BIOS is both a piece of hardware (Flash ROM memory chip)and software called ‘firmware’ that has the motherboard / computer manufacturers instructions for the possible hardware that can be installed / attached to the motherboard. You don’t actually access the BIOS when you go into ‘Setup’ during the boot process – you are working with the CMOS RAM. The changes that are made in setup / are saved and kept current with the assistance of the CMOS battery. The configuration of the computer – date/time, hardware (drives/memory/processor), bus speeds, video cards, interfaces, etc., are determined by the BIOS and the physical characteristics of the motherboard… but the actual devices (types of drives, memory, boot sequence, etc.) are stored in the CMOS. RAM requires power to keep it’s settings. ROM keeps it’s information even without power. The CMOS is RAM, while the BIOS is ROM. In any case – most people will say to ‘go to the BIOS’, when actually, in Windows operating systems, it would be more accurate to say ‘go to setup’.