The GOP version will only be used and shown, if you are running your OS in UEFI mode using the GUID Partition Table (GPT) instead of the LEGACY mode Master Boot Record (MBR) partition table.
This may explain the differences between your clean installed Win8.1 and the updated OEM Win8.
The GOP version will only be used and shown, if you are running your OS in UEFI mode using the GUID Partition Table (GPT) instead of the LEGACY mode Master Boot Record (MBR) partition table.
This may explain the differences between your clean installed Win8.1 and the updated OEM Win8.
As far as I know I am in UEFI mode… I installed Win8.1 from a GPT Fat32 USB 3.0 stick on a 3.0 port… My 840 SSD is in GPT as well… I have a Recovery partition, then EFI, MSR, C: and D: BCDedit shows the BootLoader as the EFI partition… MSinfo32 shows BIOS as being UEFi… And in the BIOS itself does show the GOP instead of vBIOS… I have Fast Boot enabled and CSM disabled… When I boot my laptop I get the Asus UEFI splash screen and then directly the logon screen… Which I set to bypass with Netplwiz… I don’t understand why Win8.1 doesn’t pick up the GOP… If I enable CSM the BIOS shows vBIOS instead of GOP and Win8.1 then does detect the vBIOS… I assume that’s why I have problems with my HD 4000 in UEFI mode because the GOP isn’t being picked up… Hence not installing the drivers correctly… And causing Dx11 not to function correctly or at all even… I mean when I installed Win8.1 I selected Automatic Dynamic Updates… So Win8.1 will pick them up during install… But it never happens that way… I always get the Basic Display Driver and then a forced driver 10.18.10.3308… Consequently giving me horrible display resolution and quality… Any ideas???
Not really.
I don’t think so. A clean OS installation is always the better choice than doing an upgrade. Furthermore the Intel VGA ROM module will not be used by the Intel HD4000 graphics adapter, if you are running the OS in UEFI mode with disabled CSM.
I don’t think so. A clean OS installation is always the better choice than doing an upgrade. Furthermore the Intel VGA ROM module will not be used by the Intel HD4000 graphics adapter, if you are running the OS in UEFI mode with disabled CSM.
Yeah that’s what I figured too… Could it be that my BIOS is maybe one of those Legacy UEFI/BIOS or something??? Or just an early version or just very limited functionality set by Asus??? I mean the "UEFI" looks like a Legacy BIOS… Blue background with White lettering… And very few settings… For example, in the BOOT section I have:
Fast Boot: Enabled/Disabled
Launch CSM: Enabled/Disabled (If enabled I get: Legacy PXE OpROM: Enabled/Disabled beneath it.)
Nothing anywhere says UEFI, except and only if I have a USB stick or external HDD I get the Boot Order list with [UEFI] + "ADATA S102 USB3.0" for example… And the option at the save + exit section that says "Load EFI Shell From File System Device" I believe… But nothing having to do with a UEFI configuration other than the Fast Boot option and CSM Option… Or could it be that a prior BIOS flash corrupted something??? I really have no idea why Win8 OEM does detect everything normally and a clean install of Win8.1 doesn’t… Could it be that I’m missing something in the EFI partition that’s OEM related??? If I remember correctly, I explored the OEM HDD EFI partition with EaseUS PM and there is an "Asus" folder in it, as well as some other stuff that’s not in my current Win8.1 EFI partition…
All mobile systems have very limited BIOS options.
AFAIK the usually hidden "ASUS" partition will only be used, if you are going to recover the stock installation done by ASUS. I don’t believe, that anything from withi this hidden partition will be used during normal booting into the system partition, which is on drive C.
@@JSebastian
I already replied 2 days ago to your private message. Since you haven’t replied back, I can only assume that you have ignored the same conversation you started. This was my reply:
"Rename the modded BIOS to K55A.bin by hand. The checksums should have been corrected by MMTool, but it could be that your BIOS has a security check to prevent modding. Can you post a screenshot of the error, to see what it says?
Try to update only Intel OROM and flash this. If you have an error, then your BIOS is locked. It could still be by-passed by using FPT, recovery flash or security patched, but you increase your chances of failing."
Maybe I should have kept this private, even though it contains nothing personal, but it is my strongly recommendation that you should try to post everything here, to help each other, to let others share their thoughts.
I then saw your cross-post here, which makes me consider if I should help you further. My reply still stands and I think you will eventually waste someones time by asking for mods that you don’t test or report back.
This is another try: do you understand the double risk of modding and custom flashing your BIOS, do you fully agree to test no matter what?
@lordkag
Hey, here’s a shot of WinFlash when trying to flash the modded BIOS I named K55A.BIN… With updated IRST OROM v12.7 and EFI GOP’s… I left the vBIOS alone for now… I did make sure that the new medded BIOS file is the exact same size as the original file prior to the mods… I will also include the modded BIOS as well as the original here ok… Maybe you can check it over and verify that it’s ok, please…
K55A.rar (2.55 MB)
K55AAS.rar (2.55 MB)
@Fernando
I think I read somewhere that when performing a “Clean” install of Win8/8.1, (depending on the type of UEFI/BIOS) some drivers need to be installed with CSM Enabled and Fast Boot Disabled (Take my BIOS type for example) I only have those 2 options… And with Secure Boot Disabled and if possible in SETUP mode not USER… Do you have any insight on this??? I know as another example, Device Manager shows “ACPI x64-based PC” followed by “Microsoft ACPI-compliant System” Shouldn’t I see a “Firmware” entry in the device tree??? Or something related to UEFI??? Or is that just for “FULL” UEFI based boards/systems??? I noticed in DxDiag report that it shows my GPU as a “Hybrid Graphics GPU: Integrated” and no mention anywhere of GOP… I will upload my latest DxDiag Report for you to check it out please… I never expected so many things changing on Win8.1… So many incompatibility issues for a lot of hardware… From what I have seen all over the internet… And I had never really looked into the whole “EFI/UEFI” BIOS related to Win8/8.1… Everything seems so much less complicated with Win7 Ultimate… Maybe I’m just confusing myself and making things more complicated than they actually are… LOL… I have ran into a bunch of issues running Win8.1 Pro or maybe it’s just my laptop… I mean my USB 2.0 port is recognized and controlled by the Intel® USB 3.0 eXtensible Host Controller - 0100 (Microsoft) / USB Root Hub (xHCI) stack… 3.0 ports are are running at 2.0 speeds… The whole iGPU issue, and the most interesting is that ALL devices have a ACPI “Location Path” in there respective properties (Details Tab) ALL other laptops/PC’s I have checked, their devices ALL have a PCI Location Path… Except of coarse the devices that are controlled by ACPI, like the battery and CPU’s… But not the devices listed under the PCI Express Root Complex…
One doubt… the BIOS Update file from Asus is K55AAS.407 ok… Could it be that I might have to change the extension to .BIN? Like the original BIOS file K55A.BIN that’s on my OEM Win8 HDD hiiden in C:. Does that matter any??? Just curious…
DxDiag_16-03-2014.txt (73.2 KB)
No, I haven’t.
Haven’t you tried to flash the modded BIOS with both BIOS file names (K55A.bin and K55AAS.407)?
If the usual flashing procedure by using the ASUS tool should fail with both BIOS names, you probably will only be able to get a modded BIOS by using another BIOS flash tool (for details you may look >here<).
@@JSebastian
Do you also get all those unknown sections with the original K55A.bin? The security check happens in WinFlash.exe and I think it can be by-passed with replacing first ja with jmp.
But this is quite dangerous and should be your last step, also a programmer is a must. Luckily, you have other safer methods. The first one is to try CodeRush’s guide, which Fernando pointed. The /GAN command should be avoided, as it might not work with your laptop.
The second method is to use Intel FPT. Download the attached rar (many thanks to CodeRush for FTK, I just updated the components to 8.1.40.1456 and added metest+flash bat) and use the appropriate folder. First use spiinfo.bat and post the screenshot. Then use backup.bat or biosbck.bat and update the .bin file you obtained with UBU or MMTool, while keeping the same name. To flash the modded BIOS use the corresponding -flash.bat with the updated bin file. But it is better to wait and only report the outcome of spiinfo.bat, backup.bat and biosbck.bat
As stated before, it is your full responsibility how you use the files and information provided here.
FTK_dump.rar (1.15 MB)
No, if I try with any original BIOS file like K55A.BIN from the OEM Win8 C:\ or the current K55AAS.407 update… WinFlash.exe comes up normal… Here’s a shot:
I’ll try this after SPIINFO.BAT, BACKUP.BAT & BIOSBCK.BAT
I will give this a try and post back my results!
Yes, I understand the consequences and usage of these tools and information… That’s why I’m being very, very careful and following your advice to the letter, also avoiding the pursuit of the more dangerous methods… I’ll post back in a bit ok…
I have an off-topic question though… You’re in a European Time-Zone correct??? It’s just that since I’m in Mexico City (GMT -6:00) It’s hard for me to estimate what time (Local) you are online here… Trying to minimize the lag in between posts & replies… LOL… Usually I’m awake till the wee hours local time (4 AM - 6 AM) Noticing that you guys are usually online then… I want to coordinate the time differences…
@lordkag
Here’s a screenshot of SPIINFO.BAT… How does it look???
Here’s a shot of Backup.BAT (Top) & BIOSbck.BAT (Bottom):
Now, what do I do with the BIOSBCK.BIN file created??? Do I use that with UBU and modify it?
Spiinfo shows that your BIOS has standard semi-locked access. You have full access to BIOS and GbE regions, only read to descriptor - when using Intel FPT. This is good, since your only concern is BIOS region. You are now at the last step: either use the first method with afudos, or use this one with FPT to flash your modded BIOS.
I give this later method a slight edge, since you have an Intel chipset and AMI must have followed Intel guidelines. Before attempting any modding, flash back the file you obtained by using biosbck-flash.bat. This is to test that the flashing works and to rule out a bad flashing. Restart the system and check if everything is OK. Just a fair warning: while there shouldn’t be any problems with flashing the backup bin, you just can’t be 100% sure.
Use the biosbck.bin for modding with UBU or MMTool, keep the same name when saving. Place this modded biosbck.bin in the same folder you obtained it, by replacing the original one. Be sure to save the original biosbck.bin to a USB flash, also save the original BIOS file as K55A.bin and place it in the same USB. This is to have them for recovery.
Run biosbck-flash.bat with the modded biosbck.bin and restart, load BIOS defaults, shutdown. Have the power cord connected the whole time. If this works, we can move to drivers, device manager and other problems.
As a last warning, you must have the original hidden partitions your system had when bought; if the BIOS has its own checks for a secure image, it will attempt to flash a backup K55A.bin from one of those hidden EFI partition.
Here’s the only problem, I’m on an SSD with a Clean install of Win8.1 Pro NOT the OEM Win8 that’s on the HDD… My current EFI partition is however Win8.1 configured it… Hence, missing the OEM Asus info that are on the HDD EFI partition… Which I verified DOES include the original K55A.BIN that’s part of the OEM install… I gather by NOT having the OEM Win8 install and partitions, that its the cause of the "Launch EFI Shell from Filesystem Device" NOT working??? Last night I placed SHELL_FULL.EFI (Renamed SHELLX64.EFI) on a USB stick and nothing happens… Just boots into Win8.1 normally… NO EFI Shell… Or maybe it’s because I have Launch CSM Disabled… Anyways… Am I safe enough having the original K55A.BIN and the original BIOSBCK.BIN on a USB stick, just in case??? Or do I have to have it in the EFI partition??? BTW, I also don’t have a "RESTORE" partition at the end of my SSD… Just the Recovery one created by Win8.1…
Let me first try to flash the Un-Modded BIOSBCK.BIN just to be sure… Then the modded one… I will report back in a few minutes…
@lordkag
Hey one doubt, just to minimize any chance of an error… With MMTool I extracted the CSMCORE to verify the IRST OROM version… And its v11.0 ok… Now, is it ok if I update to v12.7 from UBU??? Or is it best to update with a same version series? Like using v11.6???
First thing first is to flash that original biosbck.bin to test the flasher. Then you can update only RAID OROM to 12.7 and test if the BIOS has checks embedded. Since the RAID OROM is not used, flashing this modded BIOS should have no problems. If it works, do again a biosbck.bat backup and check the version of Intel RAID. Lastly, update any components you like and do again a backup of this flashed BIOS to check if everything is updated.
I don’t think Asus could have hardcoded a specific partition to be a recovery one. Rather than that, it should seek all partitions for a recovery K55A.bin. So, if you have that original hidden partition on any HDD/SSD, it will use it - if it has checks from the BIOS file itself.
@lordkag
Hey! I just flashed the original BIOSBCK.BIN using biosbck-flash.bat and everything went perfect! Forgot to take a screenshot, but it worked! I restarted, entered BIOS, F9 Optimized… Saved and Rebooted successfully into Win8.1… Now I updated the BIOSBCK.BIN with these mods: IRST OROM v11.6 and ONLY EFI GOP’s ok… Nothing else… Is that ok??? Or should I just update the GOP’s???
And is it ok if I only have the original K55A.BIN on C:??? That’s where it is on the OEM HDD but that also has it in the EFI partition or the Recovery partition… My current SSD doesn’t have it on ANY partition… ONLY on the Root of C:\ where I put it…
Should I go ahead and Flash the modded BIOSBCK.BIN???
@Fernando @lordkag
I flashed the modded BIOS SUCCESSFULLY!!! I forgot to take a screenshot, but gimme a minute and I’ll re-flash it to post my results… Thx a lot for all your help!!! I’m truly grateful!!! Now, let’s move on to the next step! I already updated ME 8 Firmware a while back… Can you guys help me Unlock the ME region? So I can have full access to ME functions??? Or completely unlocking my BIOS to have more features???
Should I do anything else now that I flashed the modded BIOS??? Like reinstall drivers or something for IRST and HD 4000???
@Fernando @lordkag
Here’s a shot of the BIOS Mod success…
I did notice one possible side-affect… After the flash I entered the BIOS and loaded “Optimized Defaults” set my personal settings and rebooted… Right when it started to boot the CPU Cooling Fan revved up to I assume MAX RPM’s and then slowed down to idle speeds… I immediately opened Aida64 and checked the sensor data… CPU Fan was at 4500 RPM’s… Now it back to 2000 RPM’s idle speed… Hopefully for some odd reason the Modded BIOS FIXED an issue I was having with the fan… It was always stuck between 2000 - 2100 RPM’s no matter what I did… It sometimes revved up to 2400 RPM’s or 2600 RPM’s when running Aida64 CPU Benchmarks… Now it seems to be working as it did when I bought my laptop… Cool Huh!!!
@ JSebastian:
Congratulations!
I am glad, that you succeeded at least!
@ lordkag:
Thanks for the amazing assistance!