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- Bricked Z840 MB from BIOS update
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11-24-2019 10:05 AM - edited 11-24-2019 12:43 PM
Hi all,
I just updated the BIOS on my Z840 from the previous 02.48 to the new 02.50 by running sp100084.exe on Windows 10. Of course the reboot was done and flashing was completed off Windows as always at which point I got the standard message that after restart, lights will go on and off for a while etc.
Unfortunately upon restarting (automatically after the BIOS was updated) the board lights flashed, fans were spinning a bit and after only a few seconds (2 or 3) the machine shut down. It then started up again after a few seconds and shut down again. It repeated the same cycle over at least 6 minutes after which I decided to power it down. I've since tried clearing the CMOS, removing the battery, doing the Bootblock pin reset but I still get the same error cycle. Has anyone seen this before? The BIOS update completed fine and the program reset the workstation, can it be that it was not actually completed correctly?
11-24-2019 10:34 AM
We have that whole post here on Crisis Recovery. That includes links to the HP customer advisory on how to deal with this in the ZX40 family of workstations. Note that the crisis recovery jumper pin-load positioning is different for the Z840 versus the Z440/X640.
For others not in this crisis.... please take the time to learn how to update BIOS from within BIOS. The process is different for the ZX40 family versus the ZX20 family and earlier HP workstations. You need to create a very specific sequence of properly titled folders on your USB drive (which is best to be formatted as Fat32) in preparation to do this process with the ZX40 workstations.
The concept is that doing a BIOS update from within an OS adds a large degree of complexity to the process versus doing it from within BIOS (which is a much more primative built-in operating system).
11-24-2019 12:41 PM - edited 11-24-2019 12:45 PM
Thanks for the info, however as I noted, the update was technically done off Windows, meaning after I ran the update .exe on Windows the system restarted and did not load Windows but booted into the BIOS update screen where the update was done. After letting me know that the system will restart a few times, the system restarted and then the whole on and off thing began.
I know the post on Crisis Recovery since it has helped me in the past to bring a Z820 back to life that just died for no reason. Closed it down one night, never booted the next day. The difference here is that on my Z820 and indeed what is suggested in the Crisis post it involved the system powering on and staying on with the Fans spinning on max. In my case (for the Z840) the system stays on for a few seconds and powers down repeating this cycle, so no USB loading in the meantime.
11-24-2019 01:22 PM - edited 11-24-2019 01:34 PM
I get it. Yes, I have seen that apparent shift from OS to BIOS in ZX40 BIOS updates. However, I'm not sure that is exactly the same as having the BIOS update BIN file present on the thumb drive for BIOS updating. I'm going to stick with having the upgrade .bin file on a FAT32 thumb drive for all or our ZX40 BIOS upgrades, personally. You may be 100% right, however.
A ray of hope..... I've recently been working through an odd BIOS issue with a Z420 v2, and posted about it briefly in the Crisis post as a blown motherboard likely due to a static issue. I fixed that issue, and this might help others. The basic idea with the Crisis Recovery thread is to try to get as much detached and back to a primative state so that the feeble remaining intact BIOS might be able to recover. My Z420 BIOS would boot up to about 5 seconds in and hang. I'd power off, and try again over and over. Same hang 5 seconds into BIOS over and over. I did all the usual tricks but what allowed me to break beyond the first 5 seconds was from another unrelated post about what primative video card might get another forum member get out of a self induced dead end (converting both his video cards to compute rather than video). The solution was a HP NVS280 PCI (not PCIe) card, gotten off eBay for about 10.00 plus shipping/tax. It takes a DMS-59 to dual DVI Y splitter video adapter, with part number 338285-009, and the card is part number 350970-004 398686-001. The ZX20 workstations can fire up that card from their one PCI bottom slot. I don't think the Z840 has a PCI slot but the basic concept of an old slow PCIe card might work.
I was able to get past the freeze point with this card, with the thumb drive in a rear USB2 port ready to go, and was able to upgrade to the latest BIOS from within BIOS that way. Thereafter I have not had problems, having gone back to a normal video card.
There appears to be a series of BIOS problems that these various tricks might solve. I had ordered a used v2 replacement motherboard but now have that as a backup. There is a long list of how to go primative, including PS2 keyboard/PS2 laser mouse, 1 stick of RAM, old slow processor, HDD instead of SSD, unplugging all but essential peripherals, setting BIOS to factory defaults if possible, clearing CMOS with no motherboard battery in place, etc.
Good luck to you.....