B550M PRO-VDH - CMOS Clearing on every boot

[vicentepellicer1155102da]

Hello,

I have a B550M PRO-VDH that I bought back in early 2022. Recently - few months ago, I upgraded my main PC to AM5, so the motherboard mentioned kept unused for a while until I started a new build last weekend.

After assembling everything - the same old CPU and RAM I've been using since 2022 (Ryzen 5600X + 2x8GB 3600MHz) - I noticed that everytime this new PC boots, the BIOS tells me that "Devices Changed (CPU or Memory)", which both stayed the same as before, or "CMOS have been Cleared.", and I haven't touched the CMOS Jumper at all. BIOS message attached as image file.

The PC is totally functional, but since the BIOS settings can't be stored, I can't use the memories at their full clock speeds. And with the BIOS message before booting, the PC takes a while to startup the OS.

For a few days now I've tried everything:
- Updating BIOS
- Swapping battery
- Swapping memories
- Reseating the memories
- Reseating the CPU Cooler
- Clearing CMOS manually
- Cleaning CPU, CPU socket, Memories and Memory Sockets
- Running different BIOS configurations
- Enabling/disabling XMP
- etc...

The motherboard have been unplugged for 3~4 months, is it enough time to the battery started failing? I had 5 extra batteries still sealed in the package, but these batteries were basically forgotten for 2~3 years, there is a chance they are malfunctioning too? If so, I just bought and tested a brand new battery from a local store, and the issue persists, but if the batteries can lose their voltage within time, I assume it can also happen with brand new batteries abandoned in a store's shelf.

There is anything I could do to solve or at least bypass this BIOS message?

P.s.: just sent a ticket for MSI Support too, I'm in a little rush to fix this or get a new board.

 

[vicentepellicer1155102da]

Some extra stuff that I think it is worth mentioning:

• - The memories I have here are 3600 MHz, if I load optimized defaults, it won't include XMP enabled, so it will run at 2666 MHz, it also happens with the other 2x8GB kit that I tested (both are 3000 MHz), loading optimized defaults runs at 2400 MHz.
• - If I press F1 to run the BIOS setup, enable XMP -> Save & Exit, the Windows boots up normally, and the memories run at 3600 MHz, but once I restart the system, the EZ Debug LEDs flashes a little longer for RAM, I get a black screen for some seconds, the message pops up and it resets to 2666 MHz (or 2400 MHz for the other kit).
• - If I go to the setup to enable XMP and load optimized defaults by pressing F6, it includes a setting that forces the system to restart, so... everything resets and the messages shows up again.
• - Any of this imply that the higher memory clock can be the problem? I don't think so, but who knows.
• - I was really hoping the new battery that I just bought few hours ago would solve the issue, but after swapping batteries three times I don't think the problem is with the battery.
• - The only storage unit running is a 1TB Kingston SSD, and the GPU is a RTX 2060. I tried unplugging any unnecessary cables, and I'm turning on the PC with a screwdriver on the power jumper - no progress made.
• - Windows installed and drivers updated.

 

[citay]

Those batteries last 5-10 years, in my experience. I suspect something else being at play. I would test the board outside of the case, on a wooden table for example, to rule out a short with the case somewhere.

 

[vicentepellicer1155102da]

Those batteries last 5-10 years, in my experience. I suspect something else being at play. I would test the board outside of the case, on a wooden table for example, to rule out a short with the case somewhere.

I also suspected that the case could be the problem - this other case I got is kinda problematic with the screws...
Tested on my wooden desk and nothing, CMOS kept clearing.

 

[citay]

Hmm, that's a difficult one then. I would assume that the BIOS chip is not getting standby power from the CMOS battery for some reason (other than a dead battery). Maybe inspect the battery holder if you see something. You can probably find out more with a multimeter and a datasheet of the BIOS chip to see which pin is for VCC (power supply).

 

[vicentepellicer1155102da]

Hmm, that's a difficult one then. I would assume that the BIOS chip is not getting standby power from the CMOS battery for some reason (other than a dead battery). Maybe inspect the battery holder if you see something. You can probably find out more with a multimeter and a datasheet of the BIOS chip to see which pin is for VCC (power supply).

Unfortunately I don't have the knowledge neither the gear to proceed with this kind of test
I'm sending it to a technician monday, hope he's not a clueless guy that knows less than me - could be true since I don't live in a big city and these local guys are a bit sus.