Stupid BIOS?

[SufferWell1396]

I have a BIOS in my Compaq Deskpro that is just annoying... it only boots 50% of the time... I dont have the exact model number and i dont know how to get it, all i know is that it is BIOS 686P0 V1.16

How can i fix this?

[kiosk]

I have limited experience with Compaqs (bad experience, that is.) The models I saw came with a soldered-in ROM chip with BIOS, which was non-upgradeable.

[amysiko]

SufferWell1396:=I have a BIOS in my Compaq Deskpro that is just annoying... it only boots 50% of the time... I dont have the exact model number and i dont know how to get it, all i know is that it is BIOS 686P0 V1.16
what do you mean it only boots 50% of the time?? do you can enter BIOS menu??

[EnzoMatrix]

So what you're saying is that you're getting inconsistent post tests and the OS only loads half of the time based on a random series of pressing the power/reset button correct?

1. When the OS fails to load at any time. Is there a message, series of beeps, or nothing at all.
2. Does the POST complete? Meaning that it checks RAM, sees the drives, and moves on.
3. Any funny noises coming from your HD lately?

The last time I dealt with a quirky loading situation, it was the HD. A 120 gig had a few sectors that had gone bad, so I bought a new HD, reinstalled XP, transfered all my data, and reformatted the bad HD to not include the bad sectors which still gave me well over 100 gigs of storage. If this be the case, my suggestion would be to run a sector scan on the HD either from windows when it boots, or slave it off of a working computer and do it there (much better results this way usually.)

[Sylvander]

Which is the earliest step that fails in the following Startup list?
And the step prior to that [the last one to succeed] is?

A typical and successful startup sequence
1. Start of Boot Troubleshooting Walkthrough
http://www.pcguide.com/ts/x/boot/walk/index.htm
2. Yes: The system power supply is functioning
http://www.pcguide.com/ts/x/boot/walk/power1.htm
------------------------------------------------------
You should hear a single short beep at about this point indicating the successful running/completion of the POST.
Some PC’s beep much later, possibly as late as just before step 12.
------------------------------------------------------
3. Yes: Something is being written to the screen during boot up [This may be only a flashing cursor]
http://www.pcguide.com/ts/x/boot/walk/video1.htm
4. The video BIOS message is displayed on the screen for a few seconds and then clears from the screen, or more messages display under it
http://www.pcguide.com/ts/x/boot/walk/vbios1.htm
5. Yes: The system BIOS startup screen is appearing
http://www.pcguide.com/ts/x/boot/walk/bios1.htm
6. The memory test completes successfully
http://www.pcguide.com/ts/x/boot/walk/ram1.htm
7. The BIOS accesses the floppy drives and the boot continues
http://www.pcguide.com/ts/x/boot/walk/seek1.htm
8. The system is able to autodetect IDE devices successfully
http://www.pcguide.com/ts/x/boot/walk/auto1.htm
9. The system is not Plug and Play compatible, has no Plug and Play devices, or has PnP devices but identifies them properly
http://www.pcguide.com/ts/x/boot/walk/pnp1.htm
10. Boot sequence is A: before C: (floppy disk first)
http://www.pcguide.com/ts/x/boot/walk/seqAC.htm
11. The floppy disk makes a noise and the light comes on
http://www.pcguide.com/ts/x/boot/walk/fd1.htm
12. The floppy disk light goes off and the hard disk light comes on as it starts booting
http://www.pcguide.com/ts/x/boot/walk/fd1hdd.htm
13. The hard disk boot process will continue here, if you want to follow it.
http://www.pcguide.com/ts/x/boot/walk/hd1.htm
14. The system continues booting from the hard disk and the message "Starting MS-DOS" or "Starting Windows" is displayed
http://www.pcguide.com/ts/x/boot/walk/hd1os.htm
15. Operating System Loaded From Hard Disk. The system has found a boot sector on the hard disk and is now starting the load of the operating system. The hard disk is working. You have successfully completed the hardware part of the boot process. Any problems encountered after this point should be diagnosed by looking for a more specific problem with a component, or under the section that contains run-time error messages.