Geforce 256 bios flash

[cyberey66]

My old geforce 256 is half dead, it works but has distortion and freezes when you change video settings in windows. Someone suggested flashing the bios, so I figured I might as well try. Anyone know where to look for the flash software?

[redduc900]

You can find Nvidia Reference BIOS's, Manufacturer's BIOS's, Nvidia's BIOS editing tool, and all the necessary BIOS files for flashing your cards' BIOS here at Ray Adam's site...

http://www.x-bios.3dgames.ru/

This link will take you directly to the file archive...

http://www.x-bios.3dgames.ru/index.php3?shpage=show&ini=1&lang=eng

If you're interested, here's the link to a thread with instructions on flashing your cards' BIOS...

http://forums.overclockers.ws/vb/showthread.php?threadid=29687

[dolemitecomputer]

I am planning on flashing the BIOS of my VisionTek Geforce 2 card but for different reasons. Do you need to have a "reference BIOS" or can you just make a dump of the current BIOS and use that? I have all the files I need I just do not know what commands to use to flash the BIOS. Also is it better to do this in pure DOS or is it ok under windows?

[redduc900]

You don't need to use a reference BIOS when flashing, the manufacturer's BIOS update will probably work just fine for you. If you do decide to flash to a reference BIOS, make sure you read through the post I linked to previously...you definitely don't want to make any mistakes (like using NvFlash, before testing the reference BIOS using VGABios beforehand), or you might have a dead card on your hands.

Normally these files (there might be a difference AFA which files you'll need to flash your particular card, the below files are needed to flash a Leadtek card) are included with the manufacturer's BIOS, and should all be copied to a floppy...

Bios.bat (or a batch file with a *.bat extension)
xxxx.exe (the BIOS executable)
dos4gw.exe (the DOS loader)
tvtype.exe (the executable which determines the TV type...Chrontel, Brooktree, or Phillips)
NvFlash.exe (the Nvidia flash program)
xxxx.rom (the actual BIOS file)

VERY IMPORTANT...Make sure your card is not overclocked, and make sure you set your CPU to it's default frequency before flashing your card's BIOS.

You'll need to flash the BIOS from pure DOS, normally you'll just need to execute the batch file which is included with the *.rom file...and you won't have to do anything else. The batch file will probably create a backup of the BIOS you're replacing and write it's contents to the floppy you'll be using to flash from. It's not a bad idea to make a dump of the current BIOS before flashing, just in case the dump file isn't created by the install program.

[dolemitecomputer]

I was able to do it. I only used NVFLASH and the DOSGW after modifing the BIOS with the Nvidia edit program. By default the VisionTek card I have diables the boot screen so I only enabled that and changed the message. When I flashed it my monitor gives a no signal message and all the lights on the keyboard flashed for 10 seconds. After that it was completed and seemed to work great.

[cyberey66]

Thanks I'll try that tonight. Dammit though, I don't have a floppy drive, I guess I'll have to rip the hdd out of my 486 and boot dos from that.

[cyberey66]

Ok, i got the files i think,
the nvidia flash, dos4gw, but the only bios I could find was the reference. I have a GF256, no tv out.

[cyberey66]

OK. i flashed my bios, but no help. I guess my cards dead. The person that put on the hs/f did a really bad job, there's a huge gap between gpu and hs. Thats probally why my card died. Heres a print screen with my dead card.*edit*
http://www.geocities.com/cyberey66/video.jpg

[dolemitecomputer]

Why don't you just install a different heatsink? Using a blue orb with a little thermal paste might help. Have you ever tried updating your video drivers?

[cyberey66]

i dont think is a driver issue It's not a driver issue, sorry bout the dead picture, it'll be up in 5 min.