Bios Flash

[Mark Fuller]

Can I flash the bios of an inspirion 5100 that won't boot from another computer?

 

[DelJo63]

I think you are asking, Can I flash computer A using computer B.

 

[Mark Fuller]

Yes, the reason why is because I have a new unformatted hdd and the computer won't boot to the cdrom for some reason to format the hdd. I am thinking there is something wrong in the bios because it won't boot from a flash drive either. the old hdd is fried.

 

[Mark Fuller]

While I am at it, may I ask if you can format the new hdd with another computer using a usb hdd adaptor that I just bought? Also, would a bad cmos battery stop the computer from booting from a cd or flash?

 

[DelJo63]

While I am at it, may I ask if you can format the new hdd with another computer using a usb hdd adaptor that I just bought? Also, would a bad cmos battery stop the computer from booting from a cd or flash?

Yes, formatting on another system will work, just be sure to perform a FULL (not quick) NTFS format.

If the system will respond to a boot and bring up anything, then IMO the cmos battery is not an issue. Seeing that you're already into the guts, replace it anyway!

 

[Mark Fuller]

Thanx a lot jo

 

[Mark Fuller]

I booted to w7 dvd, where do I choose what hdd to format? All I found was the partitions on drive 0 and no other options.