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[Kristal_Rose63]

How to setup BIOS with only USB ports, keyboard not recognized?

I have a new Wind PC (bought months ago, but only now opened).

My Wind PC was doing fine with Linux Mint installed, but I wanted to install my copy of Windows Xp instead.
I hoped to boot from CD, repartition, and install Xp, but machine booted from harddrive instead.

So I figured I would change boot order in the BIOS.

My machine only has usb ports, no PS/2, and I could not enter into the BIOS using 'delete' or any other keys..

..So I followed the instructions to clear the BIOS CMOS by using the jumper (hoping that the default really was to recognize legacy USB).

This was partially succesfull, as now, instead of booting, a text screen appears claiming to find my hardware and initialize usb controllers.


It lists my USB mouse and storage device, but not my keyboard.
It says:
"CMOS Data wrong", "CMOS Date/time not set"
and asks:
"F1 to setup", "F2 to use default"

... and this is as far as I can get. It will not recognize my keyboard, but a PS/2 keyboard is not an option on this chassis.

{Before this condition, but after my first attempt at using the jumper, I was given the option "Press any key to boot from CD". I pressed the space bar, and could see '.'s appearing, but it proceeded to boot Linux from the HDD anyhow}.

What a Catch-22. From what I read on other sites, I get the idea that the BIOS default is to read USB, but not USB keyboards, which would explain the keyboard not being listed (the keyboard was working after linux loaded).  I can't see why a mfgr would ship out a usb-only mobo with bios usb keyboard off by default. That essentially makes OS installs via CD impossible. If this is true, hopefully it's a grand oversight, and not by design.

Perhaps there are jumper pins to attach a PS/2 keyboard, or maybe a way to change the bios configuration by loading from a thumb drive which does not require pressing a key to launch?

So now I am stuck. The PC insists that I set up the BIOS, but there is no way I know to do so.

Thanks in advance for any advice which makes my new machine usable.

using AMIBIOS 8.00.14

[Stu]

What keyboard do you have? Can you try any other one?

It says:
"CMOS Data wrong", "CMOS Date/time not set"
and asks:
"F1 to setup", "F2 to use default"

... and this is as far as I can get.

So pressing F1 or F2 does nothing?

[Kristal_Rose63]

Yay, help.

F1, F2... No, I have never seen any keyboard response to any booting circumstance. Keyboard only seems to be available after Linux has loaded (which  I can't get to anymore).

I have a couple PS/2 keyboards around, but only the one small USB keyboard. It does at least have all the F1 and Delete sorts of buttons, even if small.

Reading the BIOS text though, it appears that the mouse and memory(?) are the only usb devices found. I'm guessing Linux installs a legacy usb keyboard driver or something, an option the BIOS supposedly has, if I could ever get into it.

[Stu]

I have a couple PS/2 keyboards around, but only the one small USB keyboard.

That doesn't really answer my question... what keyboard is it, make, model? There are an awful lot of USB keyboards out there, and not all of them play nicely outside of Windows or Linux. So do you have any other USB keyboard you can borrow for testing?

[Kristal_Rose63]

It's a Solid Tek made by Solid Year Co. around a decade ago.

I'll look into borrowing another, but I've been up all night and day, so after a long sleep.

I suppose it's possible that the keyboard could respond to Linux, but not to BIOS. So many people on this forum have said though that usb keyboard is off by default in the BIOS, and I'm not sure what the default achieved by the jumper pin is. I'm sure I reset it though, because the behavior changed afterwards. Before that BIOS didn't even notice there was a CD to boot from.

[Ex Forum Mod]

 Maybe try hitting the 'F Lock' key and try again. I had to install XP after my Beta W7 ran out and  discovered I had accidentally hit that key and had the same problem you describe. Flustered me for a couple of minutes but figured it out quick enough, hopefully that's your problem.

[Kristal_Rose63]

I don't think the keyboard is even powered up to be operative until Linux kicks in. When I'm stuck at BIOS, the LEDs for things like num-lock no longer work.

[Ex Forum User 3]

Try a different keyboard.

[Kristal_Rose63]

That is my agenda this morning, to head off to the thrift-store computer center and try out a few different usb keyboards. Crossing my fingers.

If that works however, then the AMI documentaion is incorrect. I hope so.

I can't believe what I am reading: http://www.ami.com/support/doc/AMIBIOS8_Flash_Recovery_Whitepaper_v10.pdf

Apparently a flash-drive BIOS recovery tool exists built into amibios8, but incredulously when you need it most, like if a CMOS battery died, it too is shut off by default. Either I'm missing something here, or the software engineers are busy keeping themselves, ICSP hardware burning service techs, and board manufacturing workers employed, simply with their absurd choice of default disable settings.

[Kristal_Rose63]

I took it into a PC repair shop and they said the only cure for it was to flash a different BIOS, I think from the SP1 port or something. The price is rather steep. Guess I need to see if I have any options with MSI first.