Optimizing a PC's BIOS, Part 2

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Last week, in part 1 of this two-part Recipe, I discussed what a BIOS is and why you need to configure it correctly to achieve both the fastest and most reliable scenario for your customers' computers. If you have not yet read Part 1, it is imperative that you do so before continuing. Part 1 can be found here.

This week, I will discuss advanced features of the BIOS. These include proper configuration of built-in peripherals, as well as power-management issues to consider. Let's dig in.

Advanced: Integrated Peripherals

This section of the BIOS contains settings for built-in peripherals included with the motherboard. This includes serial and parallel ports, as well as audio, LAN, and USB ports. Unused ports are a significant drain on resources and should be disabled.

Primary VGA BIOS: This setting is used only when there are two video cards installed in the PC: One AGP (accelerated graphics port) and one PCI (peripheral component interconnect). The system wants to know which card to initialize first and make its "main" card. If you only have one video card, it is most likely AGP. For most people, the default setting is wrong and should be changed to AGP VGA Card. If you have two video cards, select the video card that you want to be the "main" or primary card. The primary video card will show the Windows splash screen and POST results during initial boot-up.

USB Controllers: This feature allows you to limit your AGP functionality. You may choose to allow only AGP 1.1, AGP 1.1 & 2.0, or disable AGP altogether. Most people will want to set this to AGP 1.1 & 2.0 for maximum versatility.

USB Legacy Support: This setting must be enabled if the PC has a USB keyboard and the user wants to use this keyboard either in a DOS environment or before the operating system loads (boot menus, for example). If this setting is disabled, then booting to a floppy disk or CD-ROM will render the keyboard useless. Also, ironically, trying to enter the PC's BIOS may be impossible if this setting is disabled and a USB keyboard is involved. If the PC has a USB keyboard with a rectangular connector, then set this to Enabled. If it has a PS/2 keyboard (round connector), set this to Disabled. Be aware that enabling this feature may result in problems with the computer waking up from Standby or Hibernate mode, or the computer may not shut down properly. In other words, enable this only if you must.

USB Mouse Support: Same as above. Disabled is the preferred setting.

Onboard AC97 Audio Controller: If a sound card such as a Soundblaster Audigy has been added to the PC, or the system does not have speakers, be sure to Disable the motherboard's on-board sound card. This will free up precious resources and prevent potential conflicts. For most systems, however, this feature should be set to Enabled.

Onboard AC97 Modem Controller: Some motherboards are sold with built-in or proprietary dial-up modems. This is rare on white-box systems, but many tier-one manufacturers utilize these devices. If the system lacks a modem, or if the modem is plugged into a standard PCI slot on the motherboard, then this setting should be Disabled. Otherwise, it should be Enabled.

Onboard LAN (nVidia): This lets you enable or disable the built-in network interface card (NIC). The options are Auto or Disabled. The ASUS motherboard I used for this Recipe has two built-in network interface cards. This is particularly useful for people who want to use the PC as a router to share their high-speed broadband Internet connection. One NIC plugs into the cable modem, while the other NIC plugs into a hub, switch, or other PC via a crossover cable. If your customer, like most people, uses only one NIC, disable the one they are not using to free up valuable resources. Note: Both NICs are created equal, and there is no benefit to using one over the other.

Onboard LAN (3Com): This is the second built-in network interface card (NIC), as mentioned above. If the customer doesn't use both NICs, disable the one they are not using to free up system resources.

Onboard 1394 Device (Firewire): This feature enables or disables the built-in IEEE 1394 (also known as Firewire) port on the PC. If the system does not have any Firewire devices, or if the Firewire connector is not plugged into the motherboard (some motherboard manufacturers sell them separately), disable this device to free up valuable resources.

Floppy Disk Access Controller: Most PCs today do not have floppy drives. If that's the case for your customer's PC, or if they never use their floppy drive and would rather have resources available for other things, then disable this device. Note: If your customer has a floppy drive and decides to disable it here, the drive will not function unless you go back in to the BIOS and re-enable it.

Onboard Serial Port 1: Most people no longer use serial ports for connecting external peripherals, as most serial devices have been replaced by USB equivalents. If your customer does not use the system's serial ports, disable the ports and free up the resources for other things. On the other hand, if your customer does use the serial port, then this setting should be set to 3F8/IRQ4.

Onboard Serial Port 2: Same as above if your customer does not use this. If they do use it, then set this to 2F8/IRQ3.

UART2 Use As: A UART (Universal Asynchronous Receiver/Transmitter) is a chip that receives and transmits data serially; each serial port you have will use one, though it is possible that several may be integrated onto one chip. Many motherboards offer an infrared device to use in place of Serial Port 2. This is where you can make that decision. You will need the infrared adapter installed on your specific motherboard, usually sold separately, to utilize the Infrared feature.

Onboard Parallel Port: This setting lets you decide whether to select parallel port mode resources or disable the parallel port completely. If your customer has nothing plugged into the parallel port, disabling it will free up valuable system resources. But if they use the parallel port, then I recommend you set it to: 378/IRQ7.

Parallel Port Mode: If you have disabled the parallel port, then this setting is irrelevant. However, if the parallel port is enabled, you should configure it to run in EPP (enhanced parallel port) or ECP (enhanced capabilities port) mode. EPP mode is recommended if the system has just one device, such as a printer, plugged into its parallel port. Select ECP if you have daisy-chained more than one device -- such as an external Zip drive, scanner, printer, or tape drive -- to the system's parallel port. To take full advantage of these settings, make sure you're using IEEE-1284-compliant parallel cables.

ECP DMA Select: If you select ECP or EPP plus ECP as your parallel port mode above, then this option is made available to you. With it, you can select which DMA (Direct Memory Access) channel you want it to use. I recommend the default setting of 3.

Onboard Game Port: If your customer has added a sound card to the system, or if they do not use either MIDI-devices or obsolete joysticks, then this feature should be disabled to free up resources. If, however, they do use the onboard game port, then I recommend the default setting of 201.

Onboard MIDI I/O: MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) defines the standard that lets musical instruments, computer hardware, and software communicate. If your customer doesn't use their computer for making or playing MIDI music, you can safely disable this device. Otherwise, I recommend the default setting of 330.

Onboard MIDI IRQ: Same as above. If enabled, I recommend the default setting of 10.

Advanced - Power Management Setup

This area of the BIOS seems to be the most misunderstood. It is primarily responsible for systems that do not shut down correctly or that enter or awaken from the Standby or Hibernate mode when these settings are not properly configured. Since Windows has built-in power management, you'll want to disable all power management in the BIOS. Otherwise, the two fight with each other, and neither works properly. Motherboard manufacturers don't assume everyone is using Windows, and many of these settings exist for non-Windows users.

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