BIOS update before CPU upgrade

[cupiddps]

I have an HP Pavilion 500-560no with a Memphis2-S motherboard.
I want to upgrade my CPU from "Intel Core i5-4460" to "Intel Core i7-4790".
My model number L1U51EA#UUW.
My current BIOS Version/Date is "AMI 80.06, 2015-04-01"
I need to update my BIOS before the upgrade.
Can you provide me with the correct file?

[Bill_To]

Greetings @cupiddps 

Welcome to the HP Forum.

HP indicates, at this Site, there are no driver updates for your PC.

But this HP Site states a 4790 should work using the initial factory BIOS.

Have you tried installing the 4790 using the currently installed BIOS?

Regards

[cupiddps]

Hi Bill_To

No, I have not tried installing the 4790 using the currently installed BIOS.
I was researching things to know/do before upgrading a CPU and I found out that it is a good idea to upgrade to the last BIOS first.

During researching, I found out that;
The critical factor is not the chipset, but the motherboard manufacturer's BIOS implementation.

I also found out that;
The Intel Core i7-4790 is from the "Haswell Refresh" line.
They require a slightly updated microcode/instruction set to function properly. A BIOS that lacks this specific microcode will not recognize the CPU and will fail to boot.

My motherboard was manufactured and put into computers before the Haswell Refresh CPUs were released.
Therefore, the initial BIOS version "80.06 from April 2015" was created without the necessary microcode for the i7-4790.

I also found out that some users reported Black screen or no POST when installing i7-4790 on BIOS 80.06.
They only succeded after updating to BIOS 80.07 or 80.0A.

[Bill_To]

Greetings @cupiddps 

Very good research.

Maybe a different Forum member can find a newer BIOS update for your MB.

I can't find any official HP drivers for your MB.

Regards

[Paul_Tikkanen · Accepted solution]

Hi, @cupiddps 

I should be able to come up with a BIOS update for your PC but I need some more information from you.

What is your PC motherboards SSID?

To find the motherboard SSID do the following:

In the search feature on the Windows taskbar:

Type: System Information

Run the app and look for the Baseboard Product line about 1/3 of the way down on the report.

The baseboard product info is the same as the motherboard SSID.

[cupiddps]

Hi Paul_Tikkanen

My BaseBoard Product is  2B2C

[Paul_Tikkanen]

Hi:

I was able to find a BIOS update for your PC's motherboard:

Here are the info and exe file links to BIOS version A0.17:

https://ftp.hp.com/pub/softpaq/sp87501-88000/sp87681.html 

https://ftp.hp.com/pub/softpaq/sp87501-88000/sp87681.exe

What concerns me are three things...

1. The update does not specifically list the 500-5xx model series

2. You are on 80.06 and the revision changes to A0.17

3. You cannot go back to an earlier version after this update is installed.

But the BIOS update does indicate it is good for that motherboard SSID.

[cupiddps]

Hey Paul_Tikkanen, thanks for the effort

I am unable to do the update.
The setup.exe did not work.
I tried running the FWUpdLcl64.exe, but it also did not work.

An error file was generated in the folder which reads "Error 8716: Invalid usage"

A little internet search says that it is a "safety lock by HP" that is preventing it from running.

[Paul_Tikkanen]

You're very welcome.

Sorry that didn't work.

I dug around some more for older BIOS updates and came across this one that you may want to try -- A0.08 which is only several months newer than the version you have installed.

But my concerns as before still apply to this one.

Info:

https://ftp.hp.com/pub/softpaq/sp74001-74500/sp74051.html 

Exe:

https://ftp.hp.com/pub/softpaq/sp74001-74500/sp74051.exe 

I don't get it...these BIOS updates are supposed to be working on the motherboards with the 2B2C SSID, so I have no idea what the problem is.

[cupiddps]

Hi Paul_Tikkanen

The sp74051.exe ran smoothly. But after my system restarted, the BIOS Version/Date remained the same "AMI 80.06, 2015-04-01".
I restarted the system a second time and checked again but it is still the same.

I also just noticed that sp74051.exe does not updates the microcode like sp87681.exe does according to the html links.