AOpen MX3W-AWD User Manual

Chapter 4

Award BIOS

This chapter tells how to configure the system parameters. You may update
your BIOS via AWARD Flash Utility.

Important: Because the BIOS code is the most
often changed part of the mainboard design, the
BIOS information contained in this chapter
(especially the Chipset Setup parameters) may be
a little different compared to the actual BIOS that
came with your mainboard.

3-1

AWARD BIOS

4.1 Entering the Award BIOS Setup Menu

The BIOS setup utility is a segment of codes/routines residing in the BIOS
Flash ROM. This routine allows you to configure the system parameters and
save the configuration into the 128 byte CMOS area, (normally in the RTC chip

or directly in the main chipset). To enter the BIOS Setup, press during
POST (Power-On Self Test). The BIOS Setup Main Menu appears as follows.

Tip: Choose "Load Setup Defaults" for
recommended optimal performance. Choose
"Load Turbo Defaults" for best performance
with light system loading. Refer to section 3.7.

The section at the bottom of the screen tells how to control the screen. Use the
arrow keys to move between items, F9 to change language, ESC to exit, and
F10 to save the changes before exit. Another section at the bottom of the
screen displays a brief description of the highlighted item.

After selecting an item, press Enter to select or enter a submenu.

3-2

AWARD BIOS

4.2 Standard CMOS Setup

The "Standard CMOS Setup" sets the basic system parameters such as the
date, time, and the hard disk type. Use the arrow keys to highlight an item and

or to select the value for each item.

Standard CMOS à Date

To set the date, highlight the Date parameter. Press or to set the
current date. The date format is month, date, and year.

Standard CMOS à Time

To set the time, highlight the Time parameter. Press or to set the
current time in hour, minute, and second format. The time is based on the 24
hour military clock.

Standard CMOS à IDE Primary Master à Type
Standard CMOS à IDE Primary Slave à Type
Standard CMOS à IDE Secondary Master à Type
Standard CMOS à IDE Secondary Slave à Type

IDE Primary
Master

Auto
Manual
None

This item lets you select the IDE hard disk parameters that
your system supports. These parameters are Size, Number of
Cylinder, Number of Head, Start Cylinder for Pre­compensation, Cylinder number of Head Landing Zone and
Number of Sector per Track. The default setting is Auto,
which enables BIOS to automatically detect the parameters of
installed HDD at POST (Power-On Self Test). If you prefer to
enter HDD parameters manually, select Manual. Select None
if no HDD is connected to the system.

The IDE CDROM is always automatically detected.

3-3

AWARD BIOS

Tip: For an IDE hard disk, we recommend that you use
the "IDE HDD Auto Detection" to enter the drive
specifications automatically. See the section "IDE HDD
Auto Detection".

Standard CMOS à Drive A
Standard CMOS à Drive B

Drive A

None
360KB 5.25"

1.2MB 5.25"
720KB 3.5"

1.44MB 3.5"

2.88MB 3.5"

These items select floppy drive type. The available settings
and types supported by the mainboard are listed on the left.

Standard CMOS à Video

Video

EGA/VGA
CGA40
CGA80
Mono

This item specifies the type of video card in use. The default
setting is VGA/EGA. Since current PCs use VGA only, this
function is almost useless and may be disregarded in the
future.

Standard CMOS à Halt On

Halt On

No Errors
All Errors
All, But Keyboard
All, But Diskette
All, But Disk/Key

This parameter enables you to control the system stops in
case of Power-On Self Test (POST) error.

3-4

AWARD BIOS

4.3 Advanced BIOS Features

This screen appears when you select the option "BIOS Features Setup" from
the main menu.

Advanced BIOS Features à Virus Warning

Virus Warning

Enabled
Disabled

Type "Y" to accept write, or "N" to abort write

Set this parameter to Enabled to activate the warning
message. This feature protects the boot sector and
partition table of your hard disk from virus intrusion. Any
attempt during boot up to write to the boot sector of the
hard disk drive stops the system and the following warning
message appears on the screen. Run an anti-virus
program to locate the problem.

! WARNING !

Disk Boot Sector is to be modified

Award Software, Inc.

Advanced BIOS Features à CPU Internal Cache

CPU Internal
Cache

Enabled
Disabled

Enabling this parameter activates the CPU internal
cache. Disabling the parameter slows down the
system. Therefore, we recommend that you leave it
enabled unless you are troubleshooting a problem.

Advanced BIOS Features à External Cache

External Cache

Enabled
Disabled

Enabling this parameter activates the secondary
cache (currently, PBSRAM cache). Disabling the
parameter slows down the system. Therefore, we
recommend that you leave it enabled unless you are
troubleshooting a problem.

3-5

AWARD BIOS

Advanced BIOS Features à CPU L2 Cache ECC

CPU L2 Cache
ECC

Enabled
Disabled

This item lets you enable or disable L2 Cache ECC
checking.

Advanced BIOS Features à Quick Power On Self Test

Quick Power on
Self test

Enable
Disabled

This parameter speeds up POST by skipping some
items that are normally checked.

Advanced BIOS Features à First Boot Device

First Boot Device

A:
LS/ZIP
C:
SCSI
CDROM
D:
E:
F:
LAN
Disabled

This parameter allows you to specify the system boot
up search sequence. The hard disk ID are listed below:

C: Primary master
D: Primary slave
E: Secondary master
F: Secondary slave
LS: LS120
Zip: IOMEGA ZIP Drive

Advanced BIOS Features à Second Boot Device

Second Boot Device

A:
LS/ZIP
C:
SCSI
CDROM
D:
E:
F:
LAN
Disabled

3-6

This parameter allows you to specify the system boot
up search sequence. The hard disk ID are listed below:

C: Primary master
D: Primary slave
E: Secondary master
F: Secondary slave
LS: LS120
Zip: IOMEGA ZIP Drive

Advanced BIOS Features à Third Boot Device

AWARD BIOS

Third Boot Device

A:
LS/ZIP
C:
SCSI
CDROM
D:
E:
F:
LAN
Disabled

This parameter allows you to specify the system boot
up search sequence. The hard disk ID are listed below:

C: Primary master
D: Primary slave
E: Secondary master
F: Secondary slave
LS: LS120
Zip: IOMEGA ZIP Drive

Advanced BIOS Features à Boot Other Device

Boot Other Device

Enabled
Disabled

This parameter allows you to specify the system boot
up search sequence. The hard disk ID are listed below:

Advanced BIOS Features à Swap Floppy Drive

Swap Floppy Drive

Enabled
Disabled

This item 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.

Advanced BIOS Features à Boot Up NumLock Status

Boot Up NumLock
Status

On
Off

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 numeric keypad for
cursor control.

Advanced BIOS Features à Typematic Rate Setting

Typematic Rate
Setting

Enabled
Disabled

Set this parameter to Enable/Disable the keyboard
repeat function. When enabled, continually holding
down a key on the keyboard will generate repeatedly
keystrokes.

3-7

AWARD BIOS

Advanced BIOS Features à Typematic Rate (Chars/Sec)

Typematic Rate

6
8
10
12
15
20
24
30

This item allows you to control the speed of repeated
keystrokes. The default is 30 characters/sec.

Advanced BIOS Features à Typematic Delay (Msec)

Typematic Delay

250
500
750
1000

This parameter allows you to control the delay time
between the first and the second keystroke (where the
repeated keystrokes begin). The typematic delay
settings are 250, 500, 750, and 1000 msec.

Advanced BIOS Features à Security Option

Security Option

Setup
System

The System option limits access to both the System
boot and BIOS setup. A prompt asking you to enter
your password appears on the screen every time you
boot the system.

The Setup option limits access only to BIOS setup.
To disable the security option, select Password Setting

from the main menu, don't type anything and just press
<Enter>.

Advanced BIOS Features à OS Select for DRAM > 64MB

OS Select for
DRAM > 64MB

OS/2
Non-OS/2

3-8

Set to OS/2 if your system is utilizing an OS/2
operating system and has a memory size of more
than 64 MB.

AWARD BIOS

4.4 Advanced Chipset Features

The "Chipset Features Setup" includes settings for the chipset dependent
features. These features are related to system performance.

Caution: Make sure you fully understand the
items contained in this menu before you try to
change anything. You may change the
parameter settings to improve system
performance. However, it may cause system
unstable if the setting is not correct for your
system configuration.

Advanced Chipset Features à SDRAM CAS Latency Time

SDRAM CAS
Latency Time

2
3

These are timing of SDRAM CAS Latency and RAS
to CAS Delay, calculated by clocks. They are
important parameters affects SDRAM performance,
default is 2 clocks. If your SDRAM has unstable
problem, change 2/2 to 3/3.

Advanced Chipset Features à SDRAM Cycle Time

SDRAM Cycle Time

5/7
6/8

This item will affect SDRAM performance. If the
system fails to bootup, please set this item to 6/8.

Advanced Chipset Features à SDRAM RAS-to-CAS Delay

SDRAM RAS-to-CAS
Delay

3
2

SDRAM RAS-to-CAS Delay is an important
parameter that affects SDRAM performance. If the
system fails to bootup, please set this item to 3.

3-9

AWARD BIOS

Advanced Chipset Features à SDRAM RAS Precharge Time

SDRAM RAS
Precharge Time

3
2

The RAS Precharge means the timing to inactive
RAS and the timing for DRAM to do precharge before
next RAS can be issued. RAS is the address latch
control signal of DRAM row address. The default
setting is 3 clocks.

Advanced Chipset Features à Video BIOS Cacheable

Video BIOS
Cacheable

Enabled
Disabled

Allows the video BIOS to be cached to allow faster
video performance.

Advanced Chipset Features à Video RAM Cacheable

Video RAM
Cacheable

Enabled
Disabled

This item lets you cache Video RAM A000 and B000.

Advanced Chipset Features à Memory Hole At 15M-16M

Memory Hole At
15M-16M

Enabled
Disabled

This option lets you reserve system memory area for
special ISA cards. The chipset accesses code/data
of these areas from the ISA bus directly. Normally,
these areas are reserved for memory mapped I/O
card.

Advanced Chipset Features à Delayed Transaction

Delayed Transaction

Enabled
Disabled

3-10

This item lets you control the Delayed Transaction
function of the PIIX4 chipset (Intel PCI to ISA bridge).
This function is used to meet latency of PCI cycles to
or from ISA bus. Try to enable or disable it, if you
have ISA card compatibility problem.

Advanced Chipset Features à On-Chip Video

AWARD BIOS

On-Chip Video

Enabled
Disabled

This item is used to enable or disable the onchip
AGP.

Advanced Chipset Features à On-Chip Video Window Size

On-Chip Video
Window Size

64MB
32MB

This item is used to select graphic display cache
window size.

Advanced Chipset Features à Cas# Latency

Cas# Latency

2
3

Cas# Latency is an important parameter that affects
SDRAM performance. If the system fails to bootup,
please set this item to 3.

Advanced Chipset Features à Paging Mode Control

Paging Mode Control

Slow
Fast

This item will affect SDRAM performance. If the
system fails to bootup, please set this item to Slow.

Advanced Chipset Features à RAS-to-CAS Override

RAS-to-CAS
Override

Slow
Fast

This item will affect SDRAM performance. If the
system fails to bootup, please set this item to Slow.

Advanced Chipset Features à RAS# Timing

RAS# Timing

Slow
Fast

This item will affect SDRAM performance. If the
system fails to bootup, please set this item to Slow.

3-11

AWARD BIOS

Advanced Chipset Features à RAS# Precharge

RAS# Precharge

Slow
Fast

This item will affect SDRAM performance. If the
system fails to bootup, please set this item to Slow.

3-12

AWARD BIOS

4.5 Integrated Peripherals

The following screen appears if you select the option "Integrated Peripherals"
from the main menu. This option allows you to configure the I/O features.

Integrated Peripherals à On-Chip Primary PCI IDE
Integrated Peripherals à On-Chip Secondary PCI IDE

On-Chip Primary
PCI IDE

Enabled
Disabled

This parameter lets you enable or disable the IDE
device connected to the primary IDE connector.

Integrated Peripherals à IDE Primary Master PIO
Integrated Peripherals à IDE Primary Slave PIO
Integrated Peripherals à IDE Secondary Master PIO
Integrated Peripherals à IDE Secondary Slave PIO

IDE Primary Master
PIO

Auto
Mode 1
Mode 2
Mode 3
Mode 4

Setting this item to Auto activates the HDD speed
auto-detect function. The PIO mode specifies the
data transfer rate of HDD. For example: mode 0 data
transfer rate is 3.3MB/s, mode 1 is 5.2MB/s, mode 2
is 8.3MB/s, mode 3 is 11.1MB/s and mode 4 is

16.6MB/s. If your hard disk performance becomes
unstable, you may manually try the slower mode.

Caution: It is recommended that you connect
the first IDE device of each channel to the
endmost connector of the IDE cable. Refer to
section "Connectors" for details on how to
connect IDE device(s).

3-13

AWARD BIOS

Integrated Peripherals à IDE Primary Master UDMA
Integrated Peripherals à IDE Primary Slave UDMA
Integrated Peripherals à IDE Secondary Master UDMA
Integrated Peripherals à IDE Secondary Slave UDMA

IDE Primary Master
UDMA

Auto
Disabled

This item allows you to set the Ultra DMA/33 mode
supported by the hard disk drive connected to your
primary IDE connector.

Integrated Peripherals à USB Controller

USB Controller

Enabled
Disabled

This item lets you enable or disable the USB
controller.

Integrated Peripherals à USB Keyboard Support

USB Keyboard
Support

Enabled
Disabled

This item lets you enable or disable the USB
keyboard driver within the onboard BIOS. The
keyboard driver simulates legacy keyboard command
and let you use USB keyboard during POST or after
boot if you don't have USB driver in the operating
system.

Caution: You can not use both USB driver
and USB legacy keyboard at the same time.
Disable "USB Legacy Support" if you have
USB driver in the operating system.

Integrated Peripherals à Init Display First

Init Display First

PCI Slot
Onboard

If you installed a PCI VGA card, this item lets you
decide which one is the initial display card.

Integrated Peripherals à AC97 Audio

AC97 Audio

Enabled
Disabled

3-14

This item is used to enable or disable the onboard
audio.

Integrated Peripherals à AC97 Modem

AWARD BIOS

AC97 Modem

Enabled
Disabled

The item is used to enable or disable the AC97
modem. If disabled, an AMR modem card can’t work
properly.

Integrated Peripherals à IDE HDD Block Mode

IDE HDD Block
Mode

Enabled
Disabled

This feature enhances disk performance by allowing
multisector data transfers and eliminates the interrupt
handling time for each sector. Most IDE drives,
except with old designs, can support this feature.

Integrated Peripherals à Power On Function

Power On Function

Any Key
Button Only
Keyboard 98
Password
Hot Key
Mouse Left
Mouse Right

This item is used to select Wake on Keyboard/Mouse
mode.

Any Key: This function allows you wake up the
system by clicking any key.
Button Only: Disable Wake on KB/MS function. You
can boot up your system by power button only.
Keyboard 98: If selecting this option, you can boot
up the system by power button and the “Wake” key
on Keyboard 98.
Password: Disable the function of power button and
let the system can only be powered on through the
preset keys (like a password).
Hot Key: If selecting this option, you also need to
specify the hot key from “Hot Key Power On” item.
Mouse Left: This function allows you wake up the
system by clicking left mouse button twice
successively.
Mouse Right: This function allows you wake up the
system by clicking right mouse button twice
successively.

Caution: To implement Wake On Keyboard/Mouse
function, you must set JP28 to Enabled.

Caution: Wake On Mouse function applies to PS/2
mouse only.

Caution: If you set a Password but forget it, please
clear CMOS.

3-15

AWARD BIOS

Integrated Peripherals à KB Power On Password

KB Power On
Password

You can specify 1-5 keys as a password.

Integrated Peripherals à Hot Key Power On

Hot Key Power On

Ctrl-F1
Ctrl-F2
Ctrl-F3
Ctrl-F4
Ctrl-F5
Ctrl-F6
Ctrl-F7
Ctrl-F8
Ctrl-F9
Ctrl-F10
Ctrl-F11
Ctrl-F12

If you select “Hot Key” option in “Power On
Function” Item, you need to specify a hot key here.

Integrated Peripherals à Onboard FDC Controller

Onboard FDC
Controller

Enabled
Disabled

Setting this parameter to Enabled allows you to
connect your floppy disk drives to the onboard
floppy disk connector instead of a separate
controller card. Change the setting to Disabled if
you want to use a separate controller card.

3-16

AWARD BIOS

Integrated Peripherals à Onboard Serial Port 1
Integrated Peripherals à Onboard Serial Port 2

Onboard Serial Port 1

Auto
3F8/IRQ4
2F8/IRQ3
3E8/IRQ4
2E8/IRQ3
Disabled

This item allow you to assign address and interrupt
for the board serial port. Default is Auto.

Note: If you are using a network card, make
sure that the interrupt does not conflict.

Integrated Peripherals à UART Mode Select

UART Mode Select

IrDA
ASKIR
Normal

This item is configurable only if the "Onboard UART
2" is enabled. This allows you to specify the mode of
serial port2. The available mode selections are:

• ASKIR - Select this setting if you installed an Infrared module via IrDA

connector (refer to section 2.3 "Connectors"). This ASKIR setting allows
infrared serial communication at a maximum baud rate of 56K baud.

• HPSIR - Select this setting if you installed an Infrared module in your

system via IrDA connector (refer to section 2.3 "Connectors"). The HPSIR
setting allows infrared serial communication at a maximum baud rate of
115K baud.

• FIR - Select this setting if you installed an Infrared module via IrDA

connector (refer to section 2.3 "Connectors"). This FIR (Fast IR) setting
allows infrared serial communication at a maximum baud rate of 4M baud.

• Normal - Sets serial port 2 to operate in normal mode. This is the

default setting.

3-17

AWARD BIOS

Integrated Peripherals à RxD, TxD Active

RxD, TxD Active

Hi, Hi
Hi, Lo,
Lo, Hi
Lo, Lo

Integrated Peripherals à IR Transmission Delay

This item is used to select RxD (Receive Data) and
TxD (Transmit Data) mode for UART, for instance, IR
device, modem, etc. Normally, we suggest you keep
the default setting. Please see the documentation that
comes with your device.

IR Transmission
Delay

Enabled
Disabled

If Enabled is selected, there will be a 4 character
delay when SIR is changed from TX mode to RX
mode.

Integrated Peripherals à Onboard Parallel Port

Onboard Parallel
Port

3BC/IRQ7
378/IRQ7
278/IRQ5
Disabled

This item controls the onboard parallel port address
and interrupt.

Note: If you are using an I/O card with a
parallel port, make sure that the addresses
and IRQ do not conflict.

Integrated Peripherals à Parallel Port Mode

Parallel Port Mode

SPP
EPP
ECP
ECP + EPP

This item lets you set the parallel port mode. The
mode options are SPP (Standard and Bidirection
Parallel Port), EPP (Enhanced Parallel Port) and ECP
(Extended Parallel Port). SPP is the IBM AT and PS/2
compatible mode. EPP enhances the parallel port
throughput by directly writing/reading data to/from
parallel port without latch. ECP supports DMA and
RLE (Run Length Encoded) compression and
decompression.

3-18

Integrated Peripherals à EPP Mode Select

AWARD BIOS

EPP Mode Select

EPP1.7
EPP1.9

This item lets you select EPP mode.

Integrated Peripherals à ECP Mode Use DMA

ECP Mode Use DMA

3
1

This item lets you set the DMA channel of ECP mode.

Power Management à PWRON After PWR-Fail

PWRON After PWR­Fail

Former-Sts
On
Off

A traditional ATX system should remain at power off
stage when AC power resumes from power failure.
This design is inconvenient for a network server or
workstation, without an UPS, that needs to keep
power-on. This item is used to solve this problem.
Selecting On lets the system can automatically
power-on after AC power resumes; in the other hand,
the system will power-off if you select Off. If Former­Sts option is selected, the system will power-on or
power-off based on the original state.

Integrated Peripherals à Game Port Address

Game Port Address

Disabled
201
209

This item is used to assign an address for the Game
port.

Integrated Peripherals à MIDI Port Address

MIDI Port Address

Disabled
330
300

This item is used to assign an address for the MIDI
port.

3-19

AWARD BIOS

Integrated Peripherals à MIDI Port IRQ

MIDI Port IRQ

5
7

This item is used to assign an IRQ for the MIDI port.

3-20

AWARD BIOS

4.6 Power Management Setup

The Power Management Setup screen enables you to control the mainboard
green features. See the following screen.

Power Management à ACPI Function

ACPI Function

Enabled
Disabled

If your OS is ACPI enabled you have to set this item
to Enabled, or there may be unexpected errors. If
your OS is APM mode, you can remain the Disabled
setting.

Power Management à Power Management

Power Management

Max Saving
Mix Saving
User Define
Disabled

Mode Doze Standby Suspend HDD Power Down

Min Saving 1 hour 1 hour 1 hour 15 min
Max Saving 1 min 1 min 1 min 1 min

This function allows you to set the default parameters
of power-saving modes. Set to Disable to turn off
power management function. Set to User Define to
choose your own parameters.

Power Management à Video Off Method

Video Off Method

V/H SYNC + Blank
DPMS
Blank Screen

This determines the way that the monitor is off. Blank
Screen writes blanks to video buffer. V/H
SYNC+Blank allows BIOS to control VSYNC and
HSYNC signals. This function applies only for DPMS
(Display Power Management Standard) monitor. The
DPMS mode uses DPMS function provided by VGA
card.

3-21

AWARD BIOS

Power Management à Video Off In Suspend

Video Off In Suspend

No
Yes

The item is used to decide whether the video is off in
the suspend mode.

Power Management à Suspend Type

Suspend Type

PWRON Suspend
Stop Grant

You can select suspend mode by this item. If
PWRON Suspend is selected, the CPU will enter into
Doze mode. If Stop Grant is selected, the CPU clock
will enter into Sleep mode. In both of these modes,
the system activities are detected by monitoring the
IRQ signals or I/O.

Power Management à Modem Use IRQ

Modem Use IRQ

3
4
5
7
9
10
11
N/A

This item lets you set an IRQ for the modem.

Power Management à Suspend Mode

Suspend Mode

Disabled
1 Min
2 Min
4 Min
8 Min
12 Min
20 Min
30 Min
40 Min
1 Hour

3-22

This item lets you set the period of time after which
the system enters into Suspend mode. The Suspend
mode can be Power On Suspend or Suspend to Hard
Drive, selected by "Suspend Mode Option".

Power Management à HDD Power Down

AWARD BIOS

HDD Power Down

Disabled
1 Min

.....

15 Min

This option lets you specify the IDE HDD idle time
before the device enters the power down state. This
item is independent from the power states previously
described in this section (Standby and Suspend).

Power Management à Soft-Off by PWR-BTTN

Soft-Off by PWR­BTTN

Delay 4 sec.
Instant-Off

This is a specification of ACPI and supported by
hardware. When Delay 4 sec. is selected, the soft power
switch on the front panel can be used to control power
On, Suspend and Off. If the switch is pressed less than
4 sec during power On, the system will go into Suspend
mode. If the switch is pressed longer than 4 sec, the
system will be turned Off. The default setting is Instant-
Off, soft power switch is only used to control On and Off,
there is no need to press 4 sec, and there is no
Suspend.

Power Management à Wake On LAN

Wake On LAN

Enabled
Disabled

This option lets you specify enable or disable LAN Wake
Up function.

Power Management à CPU THRM-Throttling

CPU THRM­Throttling

87.5%

75.0%

62.5%

50.0%

37.5%

25.0%

Clock Throttling means at the Doze/Standby state, the
CPU clock count in a given time (not the frequency) is
reduced to the ratio specified in this parameter. Actually,
the period per CPU clock is not changed. For example, a
66MHz CPU clock remains the same 30ns clock period
when system goes into Doze/Suspend. The chipset
generates the STPCLK (stop clock) signal periodically to
prevent CPU for accepting clock from clock generator. For
full power on, the CPU can receive 66M count in one
second. If the Slow Clock Ratio is set to 50%, the CPU
will only receive 33M clock count in one second. This will
effectively reduce CPU speed as well as CPU power.

3-23

AWARD BIOS

Power Management à Resume By Alarm

Resume By Alarm

Enabled
Disabled

This option lets you enable or disable the RTC Wake
Up function.

Power Management à Date (of Month)

Date (of Month)

0
1

.....

31

This item is displayed when you enable the Wake On
RTC Timer option. Here you can specify what date
you want to wake up the system. For Example, setting
to 15 will wake up the system on the 15th day of
every month.

Note: Setting this item to 0 will wake up the
system on the specified time (which can be
set in the Wake On RTC Timer item) every
day.

Power Management à Time (hh:mm:ss)

Time (hh:mm:ss)

hh:mm:ss

This item is displayed when you enable the Wake ON
RTC Timer option. Here you can specify what time
you want to wake up the system.

Power Management à Primary IDE 0
Power Management à Primary IDE 1
Power Management à Secondary IDE 0
Power Management à Secondary IDE 1
Power Management à FDD, COM, LPT Port
Power Management à PCI PIRQ [A-D] #

Primary IDE 0

Enabled
Disabled

3-24

These items enable or disable the detection of IDE,
floppy, serial and parallel port activities for power
down state transition. Actually it detects the read/write
to/from I/O port.

AWARD BIOS

4.7 PNP/PCI Configurations

The PNP/PCI Configuration Setup allows you to configure the ISA and PCI
devices installed in your system. The following screen appears if you select the
option "PNP/PCI Configurations" from the main menu.

PNP/PCI Configuration à Reset Configuration Data

Reset Configuration
Data

Enabled
Disabled

In case conflict occurs after you assign the IRQs or
after you configure your system, you can enable this
function, allow your system to automatically reset your
configuration and reassign the IRQs, DMAs, and I/O
address.

PNP/PCI Configuration à Resources Controlled By

Resources Controlled
by

Auto
Manual

Setting this option to Manual allows you to individually
assign the IRQs and DMAs to the ISA and PCI
devices. Set this to Auto to enable the auto­configuration function.

PNP/PCI Configuration à IRQ3 (COM2)
PNP/PCI Configuration à IRQ4 (COM1)
PNP/PCI Configuration à IRQ5 (Network/Sound or Others)
PNP/PCI Configuration à IRQ7 (Printer or Others)
PNP/PCI Configuration à IRQ9 (Video or Others)
PNP/PCI Configuration à IRQ10 (SCSI or Others)
PNP/PCI Configuration à IRQ11 (SCSI or Others)
PNP/PCI Configuration à IRQ12 (PS/2 Mouse)
PNP/PCI Configuration à IRQ14 (IDE1)
PNP/PCI Configuration à IRQ15 (IDE2)

IRQ 3

Legacy ISA
PCI/ISA PnP

If your ISA card is not PnP compatible and requires a
special IRQ to support its function, set the selected
IRQ to Legacy ISA. This setting informs the PnP
BIOS to reserve the selected IRQ for the installed
legacy ISA card. The default is PCI/ISA PnP. Take
note that PCI cards are always PnP compatible
(except old PCI IDE card).

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PNP/PCI Configuration à PCI/VGA Palette Snoop

PCI/VGA Palette
Snoop

Enabled
Disabled

Enabling this item informs the PCI VGA card to keep
silent (and to prevent conflict) when palette register is
updated (i.e., accepts data without responding any
communication signals). This is useful only when two
display cards use the same palette address and
plugged in the PCI bus at the same time (such as
MPEQ or Video capture). In such case, PCI VGA is
silent while MPEQ/Video capture is set to function
normally.

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4.8 PC Health Status

The PNP/PCI Configuration Setup allows you to configure the ISA and PCI
devices installed in your system. The following screen appears if you select the
option "PNP/PCI Configurations" from the main menu.

PC Health Status à CPU Warning Temperature

CPU Warning
Temperature

Disabled
50
53
56

This item is used to specify a CPU warning
temperature. When the CPU’s temperature is higher
than this predefined value, the CPU’s speed will
automatically slow down and there will be a warning
from BIOS.

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4.9 Frequency/Voltage Control

The PNP/PCI Configuration Setup allows you to configure the ISA and PCI
devices installed in your system. The following screen appears if you select the
option "PNP/PCI Configurations" from the main menu.

Frequency/Voltage Control à Clock Spread Spectrum

Clock Spread
Spectrum

Enabled
Disabled

This item is used to set clock spread spectrum for
EMI testing. Normally, you don’t need to change the
default setting.

Frequency/Voltage Control à Clock Speed Setup

Clock Speed Setup

66.8, 72, 75, 83.3, 90,
95, 100.2, 105, 107,
110, 112, 114, 117,
119, 121, 124, 125,
127, 129, 130, 133.6,
136, 138, 140, 145,
150, and 155 MHz.

x 3, x 3.5, x 4, x 4.5, x
5, x 5.5, x 6, x 6.5, x 7,
x 7.5, and x8

The item is used to select the CPU clock speed.

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4.10 Load Setup Defaults

The "Load Setup Defaults" option loads optimized settings for optimum system
performance. Optimal settings are relatively safer than the Turbo settings. All
the product verification, compatibility/reliability test report and manufacture
quality control are based on "Load Setup Defaults". We recommend that you
use this settings for normal operation. "Load Setup Defaults" is not the slowest
setting for this motherboard. If you need to verify an unstable problem, you
may manually set the parameter in the "BIOS Features Setup" and "Chipset
Features Setup" to get slowest and safer setting.

4.11 Load Turbo Defaults

The "Load Turbo Defaults" option gives better performance than "Load Setup
Defaults". It is provided for the convenience of power user who wants to push
the motherboard to get better performance. Turbo setting does not go though
all the detail reliability and compatibility test, it is tested only with limited
configuration and loading (for example, a system that contains only a VGA card
and two DIMMs). Use Turbo setting only when you fully understand the items in
Chipset Setup menu. The performance improvement of Turbo setting is
normally around 3% to 5%, depending on the chipset and the application.

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4.12 Set Password

Password prevents unauthorized use of your computer. If you set a password,
the system prompts for the correct password before boot or access to Setup.

To set a password:

1. At the prompt, type your password. Your password can be up to 8
alphanumeric characters. When you type the characters, they appear as
asterisks on the password screen box.

2. After typing the password, press Enter.

3. At the next prompt, re-type your password and press again to confirm the
new password. After the password entry, the screen automatically reverts
to the main screen.

To disable the password, press when prompted to enter the password. The
screen displays a message confirming that the password has been disabled.

4.13 Save & Exit Setup

This function automatically saves all CMOS values before leaving Setup.

4.14 Exit without Saving

Use this function to exit Setup without saving the CMOS value changes. Do
not use this option if you want to save the new configuration.

4.15 Load EEPROM Defaults

Except "Load Setup Default" and "Load Turbo Default", you may also use
"Save EEPROM Default " to save your own settings into EEPROM, and reload
by using this item.

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4.16 Save EEPROM Defaults

You may use this item to save your own settings into EEPROM. Then, if the
data in CMOS is lost or you forget the previous settings, you may use "Load
EEPROM Default " to reload.

4.17 How to Upgrade the BIOS

AOpen Easy Flash is more user friendly than traditional flash method. The
BIOS binary file and flash routine are combined together and you simply run a
single file to complete the flash process.

1. Get new BIOS upgrade program from AOpen's web site. For example,

MX3W200.EXE.

2. Reboot the system to DOS mode without loading any memory handler (such as

EMM386) or device driver. It needs around 520K free memory space.

3. Execute A:> MX3W200

DO NOT turn off the power during FLASH PROCESS.

4. Reboot the system by turn off the power after flash is completed.

5. Reload the "BIOS SETUP DEFAULT" and reconfigure other items as

previous set. Save & Exit. Done!

Note: The upgrade of new BIOS will
permanently replace your original BIOS
content after flashing. The original BIOS
setting and Win95/Win98 PnP information will
be refreshed and you probably need to re­configure your system.

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