AOpen AX53-3 User Manual

Chapter 3

AMI BIOS Utility

This chapter tells how to configure the system by setting the BIOS parameters.

3.1 Entering the AMI BIOS Setup

To enter the AMI BIOS Setup, press c. The AMI BIOS Setup Main Menu
appears as shown below.

The AMI BIOS is in Windows form. You can use either the keyboard or a
mouse to move between the items.
To select among the Setup menu groups, use v to highlight the selected group
or simply click on the icon of the selected Setup menu.

3-1

AMI BIOS Utility

To select among the options, you can either use the arrow keys to move the
highlight bar or simply click on the icon of the desired option.
After making your selection, press e or double-click on the icon to open the
selected menu option.

You can press h to enter the BIOS Setup screen. This
procedure allows you to do the following::

• Resolve an address conflict due to an IRQ

address assigned to multiple slots. For more
information on IRQ assignment, see the section

3.2.3 (Chipset Features Setup).

• Reset to BIOS default settings if the PnP BIOS

does not recognize the hardware modifications
under Windows 95.

3.2 Setup Menu

The screen below shows the Setup menu window. Use the arrow keys to
highlight an option.

3.2.1 Standard Setup

The following screen appears if you select Standard from the Setup
options:

3-2

AMI BIOS Utility

This menu allows you to input configuration values such as date, time and disk
types.

PRIMARY MASTER AND SLAVE/

SECONDARY MASTER AND SLAVE

These parameters allow you to configure the hard disks and the IDE devices
connected to your IDE connectors. To configure the hard disk connected to
the master port of the primary IDE connector, select Primary Master

and press e. The following screen appears:

To configure the hard disk connected to the slave port of the primary IDE
connector, select Primary Slave.
The secondary IDE connector also supports two IDE devices. To configure
the hard disk or the IDE device connected to the master port, select

Secondary Master. Choose Secondary Slave to configure the

device connected to the slave port.
The following are the parameters that you need to set to configure your hard
disks or the IDE devices:

Type

This parameter lets you set the IDE device type that your system supports.
The options are User, Auto, CD-ROM, Type 1-46, and Not

Installed. Select Auto to automatically configure the installed hard

3-3

AMI BIOS Utility

disk or IDE device. Select CD-ROM or Auto if you have a CD-ROM
installed in your system. If you have an old type HDD installed, you may need
to enter the HDD parameters manually. To do this, you must set this
parameter to User. Set this to Not Installed to bypass the function.

LBA/Large Mode

This enhanced IDE feature allows the system to use a hard disk with a capacity
of more than 528 MB. This is made possible through the Logical Block
Address (LBA) mode translation. Set the parameter to Off to disregard the
feature.

This parameter becomes non-configurable when the HDD Type parameter is
set to Auto.

3-4

AMI BIOS Utility

Block Mode

This function enhances disk performance depending on the hard disk in use. If
enabled, it allows data transfers in block (multiple sectors) by increasing the
data transfer rate to 256 bytes/cycle. However, if your hard disk does not
support this function, set this parameter to Off.

This parameter becomes non-configurable when the HDD Type parameter is
set to Auto.

32-bit Mode

Enabling this parameter improves system performance by increasing the hard
disk access to 32-bit mode. However, make sure that your hard disk supports
this function before you enable the parameter. The default setting is Off.

PIO Mode

Setting this parameter to On allows the system to use a faster hard disk drive.
If your hard disk does not support the PIO mode feature, set this parameter to

Off.

This parameter becomes non-configurable when the HDD Type parameter is
set to Auto.

3-5

AMI BIOS Utility

HARD DISK TYPES

After you have set all the necessary parameters, press e. A list of the HDD
drive parameters appears:

Select your hard disk type. Press w or y to move among the selections. After
you have made your selection, press e.
If you cannot find your hard disk drive type on the list, select User. This
allows you to enter the disk parameters manually.

DATE/TIME

To set the date and time, highlight Date/Time and press e. The following
screen appears:

Use the arrow keys to move among the items. Press or click on + or - to set
the current time and date. Press e or double-click on the Control menu box in
the upper-left corner of the window.

FLOPPY DRIVES A AND B

To configure the first floppy drive, select Floppy A. The following values
appear on screen:

3-6

AMI BIOS Utility

After selecting the proper setting, press e.
Select Floppy B and follow the same procedure to configure the second
floppy drive.

3.2.2 Advanced CMOS Setup

The following screen appears if you select the option Advanced from the
Setup menu:

The first screen does not show all the parameters of the Advanced
Configuration menu. To scroll down the rest of the parameters, press }. Press

w or y to highlight the desired parameter.

3-7

AMI BIOS Utility

Do not change the settings of the Advanced Setup
parameters if you are not a qualified technician.
Doing so may cause fatal system failure.

Quick Boot

During the system boot process, the system performs power-on self test
(POST) routines. Enable the parameter if you want to skip some POST
routines during boot-up process. Set this to Disabled to let the system
perform all the POST routines and follow the specified boot-up sequence.

3-8

AMI BIOS Utility

Power-on Delay

This parameter lets you set the POST waiting time for the HDD motor to
stabilize before system boot. The settings are from 1 to 15 seconds and

Disabled. The default setting is Disabled.

Boot-up Sequence

The boot-up sequence allows you to specify the system search sequence. The
selections are C:, A:, CD-ROM / A:, CD-ROM, C: / A:,

C:, CD-ROM / C:, CD-ROM, A: / CD-ROM, A:, C:,

and CD-ROM, C:, A:. If you have a bootable CD-ROM installed, you

may set the CD-ROM as the first priority. The default is A:, C:, CD-

ROM.

Boot-up Numlock

Setting this parameter to On enables the numeric function of the numeric
keypad. Set this parameter to Off to disregard the function. Disabling the
numeric function allows you to use the cursor control numeric keypad. The
default setting is Off.

Floppy Drive Swap

This parameter allows you to swap floppy drives. For example, if you have
two floppy drives (A and B), you can assign the first drive as drive B and the
second drive as drive A or vice-versa. Disable the parameter to bypass the
function. The default is Disabled.

Floppy Drive Seek

When enabled, the BIOS detects whether there is a floppy disk drive installed
in the system. Disable the parameter to skip the function.

Typematic Rate

This parameter determines the number of characters that can be entered per
second. The default is 30.

System Keyboard

Set this parameter to Present if there is a keyboard connected to the
system. Otherwise, select Absent.

3-9

AMI BIOS Utility

Primary Display

This function detects the type of VGA in use. The selections are VGA/EGA,

CGA 40 x 25, CGA 80 x 25, Mono, and Absent. The

default setting is VGA/EGA.

Password Check

This parameter lets you set when to check for the password. When set to

Always, a password prompt appears every time you turn on the computer or

when you enter Setup. When set to Setup, the password prompt appears
when you try to enter setup. The Optimal and Turbo default setting is

Setup.

Parity Check

Set this parameter to Enabled if you install SIMMs with parity in your
system. Otherwise, set this parameter to Disabled. Since the DRAM can
still operate without enabling the parity scheme for SIMMs with parity, this
function is normally set to Disabled.

OS/2 Compatible Mode

Enable the parameter if your system is utilizing an OS/2 operating system and
has a memory size of more than 64 MB. Otherwise, set this to Disabled.
The default setting is Disabled.

Internal Cache

This function lets you enable or disable the internal cache.

External Cache

This function lets you enable or disable the external cache.

3-10