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Hi all
I hope I can get this cleared up, we had a bit of an argument last night at my A+ course. Unfortunately the teacher is less than...coherant shall we say.
What is BIOS and CMOS?
Are they classed as Hardware or Software?
What functions do they perform?
ROM and RAM...which is which and what do data do each store?
Thanks for any inputs.
Hong
A+ certifactaion is way overated.
Yes, some may agree but back to the original question...
What is BIOS?
What is CMOS?
They are classed as Firmware (a combination of Hardware and Software)
so basically they do the same thing, just that the Cmos uses less energy and that makes them attractive for Laptops?:(
I gotta get my head straight, I have so much info on BIOS and CMOS the last few days I am gettin into a right muddle...
Urgh.
Right. My understanding of this in the first place was:
The BIOS is the name of the ROM Chip that holds all the data about how to start the computer up, and perform POST, etc.
And the CMOS was a software located on the BIOS Chip that enabled a UI for one to change the BIOS settings, ie like time, date, other settings.
I'm pretty sure I am wrong on that.
Now, I have been led to believe BIOS and CMOS are two different chips.
HELP!
Hong
The BIOS is held in the CMOS chip and the CMOS chip receives power from the CMOS battery.
This could turn out to be a usefull thread for many people perhaps. You're not alone in you confusion hongman.
So in that case, is the CMOS chip nothing more than a container for the BIOS?Quote:
The BIOS is held in the CMOS chip and the CMOS chip receives power from the CMOS battery.
Thank you!! ;)Quote:
This could turn out to be a usefull thread for many people perhaps. You're not alone in you confusion hongman.
Hong
As far as I know, yes.Quote:
Originally posted by hongman
So in that case, is the CMOS chip nothing more than a container for the BIOS?
What is BIOS? (Mini-FAQ)
Quote:
To perform its tasks, the BIOS need to know various parameters (hardware configuration). These are permanently saved in a little piece (64 bytes) of CMOS RAM (short: CMOS). The CMOS power is supplied by a little battery, so its contents will not be lost after the PC is turned off. Therefore, there is a battery and a small RAM memory on board, which never (should...) lose its information. The memory was in earlier times a part of the clock chip, now it's part of such a highly Integrated Circuit (IC). CMOS is the name of a technology which needs very low power so the computer's battery is not too much in use.
Bios code [ Firmware not software] is retained on a CMOS [Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor] ram chipQuote:
And the CMOS was a software located on the BIOS Chip that enabled a UI for one to change the BIOS settings, ie like time, date, other settings.
EDIT:
BIOS as firmware
Quote:
BIOS is sometimes called firmware because it is an integral part of the system hardware. Before 1990 or so BIOSs were held on ROM chips that could not be altered. As their complexity and the need for updates grew, BIOS firmware is stored on EEPROM or flash memory devices that can be upgraded by the user. However, a failure in updating a BIOS can render a computer unusable. To avoid BIOS corruption, some new motherboards have a backup BIOS.
A computer system may contain several BIOS firmware chips. In addition to the boot BIOS, which contains code to access fundamental hardware components such as the keyboard or the floppy drive, plug-in adapter cards such as SCSI or USB hard disk adapters or video boards may include their own BIOS, complementing or replacing the system BIOS code for the given component.
Quote:
While the name BIOS is an acronym, it is also a play on the Greek word βιος (bios) life.
Thanks 10. That has made it a little clearer but I am going to have to read it a few times to grain it into my head... I have too much false info placed in my head.
Its like trying to unlearn an old habit...
So is the tutor doing this as a form of torture or do they actually not know the correct answer? :D
Both :mad: :(