Should I update my BIOS?

[PackYourBaggins]

Just built a new PC, but my BIOS is out of date. Doing literally anything in the BIOS terrifies me, especially updating it. On my old system several years ago, I only tried to update the BIOS once, and it messed up a lot of stuff on my PC. I ended up rolling back to the previous version. Been traumatized ever since. That board was an ASUS Maximus VI Formula (Z87). My current board is a Gigabyte X870 GAMING X WIFI 7. Obviously there's a huge gap between these boards, and updating is probably less risky than it used to be. But if based on my current version of my BIOS vs the newest, if I could avoid updating and not miss much I'd still like to do that. My current BIOS version is F2, released August 16th, 2024. The newest version on Gigabyte's website is F4, released March 13th, 2025. What do you y'all think? Would I be good not updating, or should I suck it up and update? I looked at the notes for each BIOS version update, but don't know enough to know if I would get any benefit from updating. 

 

Here is the support page listing all BIOS versions for my board: https://www.gigabyte.com/Motherboard/X870-GAMING-X-WIFI7/support#support-dl-bios

[strange13930]

24 minutes ago, PackYourBaggins said:

Just built a new PC, but my BIOS is out of date. Doing literally anything in the BIOS terrifies me, especially updating it. On my old system several years ago, I only tried to update the BIOS once, and it messed up a lot of stuff on my PC. I ended up rolling back to the previous version. Been traumatized ever since. That board was an ASUS Maximus VI Formula (Z87). My current board is a Gigabyte X870 GAMING X WIFI 7. Obviously there's a huge gap between these boards, and updating is probably less risky than it used to be. But if based on my current version of my BIOS vs the newest, if I could avoid updating and not miss much I'd still like to do that. My current BIOS version is F2, released August 16th, 2024. The newest version on Gigabyte's website is F4, released March 13th, 2025. What do you y'all think? Would I be good not updating, or should I suck it up and update? I looked at the notes for each BIOS version update, but don't know enough to know if I would get any benefit from updating. 

 

Here is the support page listing all BIOS versions for my board: https://www.gigabyte.com/Motherboard/X870-GAMING-X-WIFI7/support#support-dl-bios

You shouldn’t have to update it, you usually do if it’s causing problems or you swap cpus.

[OhioYJ]

Updating the BIOS on most all boards will wipe your settings, meaning many times the PC won't boot until you set the BIOS up again. This has gotten a little better than it used to be, but you still need to restore some settings at times to make things boot. 

 

BIOS updates fix stability and security issues. There is a security patch in fact in that latest update for your board. 

 

As for benefit, that's debatable. I think there is. However to you, it may not be worth the risk. If your PC is running fine, leave it if you want. 

[PackYourBaggins]

4 minutes ago, OhioYJ said:

Updating the BIOS on most all boards will wipe your settings, meaning many times the PC won't boot until you set the BIOS up again. This has gotten a little better than it used to be, but you still need to restore some settings at times to make things boot. 

 

BIOS updates fix stability and security issues. There is a security patch in fact in that latest update for your board. 

 

As for benefit, that's debatable. I think there is. However to you, it may not be worth the risk. If your PC is running fine, leave it if you want. 

This is what I was thinking, but wasn't sure. I haven't changed very many settings in my BIOS to begin with, but I also haven't done so yet BECAUSE I wasn't sure if some settings could possibly be unstable on an older version? But based off what little I know from reading update notes on Gigabyte's website, it doesn't seem to mention anything about specific settings.

[Dedayog]

2 minutes ago, PackYourBaggins said:

This is what I was thinking, but wasn't sure. I haven't changed very many settings in my BIOS to begin with, but I also haven't done so yet BECAUSE I wasn't sure if some settings could possibly be unstable on an older version? But based off what little I know from reading update notes on Gigabyte's website, it doesn't seem to mention anything about specific settings.

Update it.

 

They are still tweaking and perfecting am5.

 

It's easy, doesn't hurt anything, and won't damage anything

 

 

When it's done, verify xmp/ram is set right.  PBO/CO again if you want.

 

That's if t even resets things, which it most likely wont.

 

[Levent]

Your motherboard has QFLASH PLUS. You can recover from failures easily. I personally keep bioses of my device update.

[OhioYJ]

5 minutes ago, PackYourBaggins said:

 it doesn't seem to mention anything about specific settings.

It's not going to. Some times it will just be RAM compatibility issues things like that. For example, I keep slow RAM on hand because the NUCs that I used to use for firewalls wouldn't boot with "good" RAM until the BIOS had been updated. Sometimes they just mess with voltage curves of CPUs to help with stability. I've seen BIOS updates just to change fan curves to help cooling and deal with noise. 

 

As for what settings you need to change that would always be dependent on your setup. 

 

Occasionally though you do actually get security patches. Those I would say are a bit more important. However most of those vulnerabilities I've seen require attackers to have physical access to the machine, so again decide if updating is right for you. 

[PackYourBaggins]

26 minutes ago, Levent said:

Your motherboard has QFLASH PLUS. You can recover from failures easily. I personally keep bioses of my device update.

That definitely sounds convenient. I assume the manual would tell me how I can do use this QFLASH?

[podkall]

1 hour ago, PackYourBaggins said:

Just built a new PC, but my BIOS is out of date. Doing literally anything in the BIOS terrifies me, especially updating it.

 

1 hour ago, PackYourBaggins said:

My current BIOS version is F2, released August 16th, 2024.

It's alright, but I'd still update the BIOS if your PC is high-end, and definitely you can take advantage of qflash.

 

You can find BIOS update guide or someone could even give you summary how to do it step by step if you ask.

[PackYourBaggins]

28 minutes ago, Dedayog said:

Update it.

 

They are still tweaking and perfecting am5.

 

It's easy, doesn't hurt anything, and won't damage anything

 

 

When it's done, verify xmp/ram is set right.  PBO/CO again if you want.

 

That's if t even resets things, which it most likely wont.

 

Yeah I guess with AM5 still being new, that would probably be best. The BIOS terrifies me, but based on what other people have said now I'll make it my mission for the weekend to update.

[podkall]

1 minute ago, PackYourBaggins said:

That definitely sounds convenient. I assume the manual would tell me how I can do use this QFLASH?

It's quite possible.

 

The fastest summary on flashing BIOS:

• Getting USB drive
• Official Motherboard website, the exact model
• Support page with drivers/BIOS
• Latest BIOS most likely
• Rest will more or less followup on the manual instructions on MB

[PackYourBaggins]

48 minutes ago, podkall said:

 

It's alright, but I'd still update the BIOS if your PC is high-end, and definitely you can take advantage of qflash.

 

You can find BIOS update guide or someone could even give you summary how to do it step by step if you ask.

I'm thinking I will update after hearing what some have had to say. Here's a summary of my build:

 

CPU: AMD Ryzen 9 9900X

RAM: 2X16 32GB Corsair Vengeance 6000Mhz

Mobo: Gigabyte X870 GAMING X WIFI 7

GPU: EVGA SC2 1080 Ti (9070 XT is on the way)

[podkall]

5 minutes ago, PackYourBaggins said:

Mobo: Gigabyte X870 GAMING X WIFI 7

https://www.gigabyte.com/Motherboard/X870-GAMING-X-WIFI7/support#support-dl-driver

[PackYourBaggins]

43 minutes ago, podkall said:

https://www.gigabyte.com/Motherboard/X870-GAMING-X-WIFI7/support#support-dl-driver

I was trying to find a YouTube tutorial on using Q-FLASH, but all the ones I saw were 1-3 years old for some older boards. Would the process still be the same across all of them, including mine? I wanna follow a complete step-by-step guide to ensure I don't mess anything up.

[podkall]

50 minutes ago, PackYourBaggins said:

I was trying to find a YouTube tutorial on using Q-FLASH, but all the ones I saw were 1-3 years old for some older boards. Would the process still be the same across all of them, including mine? I wanna follow a complete step-by-step guide to ensure I don't mess anything up.

Yeah it's quite similar.

 

• Get the driver file on USB, not in folder straight in USB, or an empty one
• The file can't be comprimed, or zip or anything, if it came in zip file you unpack the file into the USB
• Q-Flash so you can turn off PC
• Locate specific USB port in the back of the case on motherboard, it probably even should be labeled on it
• with USB in the right port you press the flash button
• there should be LED or some blinking light
• the indication of progress might depend on motherboard if it's blinking or shining for each, should be in manual
• let it update until the progress light turns into finished light
• if it's success the BIOS should be updated, you can check version and see if the PC is stable after the update

[PackYourBaggins]

1 hour ago, podkall said:

Yeah it's quite similar.

 

• Get the driver file on USB, not in folder straight in USB, or an empty one
• The file can't be comprimed, or zip or anything, if it came in zip file you unpack the file into the USB
• Q-Flash so you can turn off PC
• Locate specific USB port in the back of the case on motherboard, it probably even should be labeled on it
• with USB in the right port you press the flash button
• there should be LED or some blinking light
• the indication of progress might depend on motherboard if it's blinking or shining for each, should be in manual
• let it update until the progress light turns into finished light
• if it's success the BIOS should be updated, you can check version and see if the PC is stable after the update

Ok, seems straightforward enough. Someone in this thread mentioned that using Q-FLASH is really safe because it makes it easier to rollback? Do you know how I can do this in the event my PC is unstable after updating? I couldn't seem to find anything on how to do this in the manual.

 

Additionally, I downloaded the file from the support page, but it downloaded multiple files. Not entirely sure which file is the one I need, but I wanna say it's the F4 file? 

[PackYourBaggins]

3 hours ago, Levent said:

Your motherboard has QFLASH PLUS. You can recover from failures easily. I personally keep bioses of my device update.

If something were to go wrong during the update process, how does this protect me? Like, how do I take advantage of Q-FLASH PLUS if updating causes me issues? I tried to find something about this in the manual, but couldn't find anything.

[podkall]

21 minutes ago, PackYourBaggins said:

Ok, seems straightforward enough. Someone in this thread mentioned that using Q-FLASH is really safe because it makes it easier to rollback? Do you know how I can do this in the event my PC is unstable after updating? I couldn't seem to find anything on how to do this in the manual.

rollback works this way,

 

• something bad happens during BIOS install, power loss or something
• when power loses during an update or something wrong happens it can corrupt BIOS
• corrupt BIOS usually means the whole motherboard is bricked and can't function at all
• But, motherboard with Q-flash, can just re-do everything
• If it has corrupted BIOS, the updating doesn't change through q-flash
• You plug USB, initiate update with BIOS on the USB drive, and it should just install itself again replacing the corrupted BIOS

 

Basically, with Q-Flash if your BIOS becomes corrupted, which doesn't happen unless something goes wrong or power loss which isn't very likely. You could easily just try again. Unless there's weird specific compatibility issue with USB stick, but that is also rare. (and you can just fix that issue by using different USB)

 

3 minutes ago, PackYourBaggins said:

If something were to go wrong during the update process, how does this protect me? Like, how do I take advantage of Q-FLASH PLUS if updating causes me issues? I tried to find something about this in the manual, but couldn't find anything.

Q-Flash Plus is even better. Fun fact about Q-Flash plus, doesn't need GPU or CPU to update BIOS through Q-Flash Plus.

[PackYourBaggins]

3 hours ago, podkall said:

rollback works this way,

 

• something bad happens during BIOS install, power loss or something
• when power loses during an update or something wrong happens it can corrupt BIOS
• corrupt BIOS usually means the whole motherboard is bricked and can't function at all
• But, motherboard with Q-flash, can just re-do everything
• If it has corrupted BIOS, the updating doesn't change through q-flash
• You plug USB, initiate update with BIOS on the USB drive, and it should just install itself again replacing the corrupted BIOS

 

Basically, with Q-Flash if your BIOS becomes corrupted, which doesn't happen unless something goes wrong or power loss which isn't very likely. You could easily just try again. Unless there's weird specific compatibility issue with USB stick, but that is also rare. (and you can just fix that issue by using different USB)

 

Q-Flash Plus is even better. Fun fact about Q-Flash plus, doesn't need GPU or CPU to update BIOS through Q-Flash Plus.

That makes me feel a lot better for sure. Also, my USB drive is a little old. Should I be worried about that? It's probably about a 7-8 year old 16GB PNY USB drive. It says it's USB 2.0 when looking at its properties. Not sure if that matters or not. The only thing I know for sure is that it should be formatted to FAT32, which it is.

 

EDIT: Follow up question: Should I update using the regular Q-FLASH from within the BIOS? I watched a guide video on using Q-FLASH Plus, and he stated that it’s better to use Q-FLASH Plus on a completely bare motherboard with only power cables connected, and CPU out of socket. He said you can do it this way with the PC already built, but that it’s riskier to do it like this because one of the components could stop the flash from happening.

[podkall]

12 hours ago, PackYourBaggins said:

That makes me feel a lot better for sure. Also, my USB drive is a little old. Should I be worried about that? It's probably about a 7-8 year old 16GB PNY USB drive. It says it's USB 2.0 when looking at its properties. Not sure if that matters or not. The only thing I know for sure is that it should be formatted to FAT32, which it is.

Not bad, old USB can actually work better.

 

12 hours ago, PackYourBaggins said:

EDIT: Follow up question: Should I update using the regular Q-FLASH from within the BIOS? I watched a guide video on using Q-FLASH Plus, and he stated that it’s better to use Q-FLASH Plus on a completely bare motherboard with only power cables connected, and CPU out of socket. He said you can do it this way with the PC already built, but that it’s riskier to do it like this because one of the components could stop the flash from happening.

It's fine with components, and it's fine to do it in BIOS or with USB, it doesn't really matter.

[PackYourBaggins]

54 minutes ago, podkall said:

Not bad, old USB can actually work better.

 

It's fine with components, and it's fine to do it in BIOS or with USB, it doesn't really matter.

Ok. I guess worst case scenario if things go REALLY wrong somehow I can always just remove my CMOS battery.

[podkall]

2 hours ago, PackYourBaggins said:

Ok. I guess worst case scenario if things go REALLY wrong somehow I can always just remove my CMOS battery.

Yeah, or just retry flashing the BIOS.

[PackYourBaggins]

2 hours ago, podkall said:

Yeah, or just retry flashing the BIOS.

Update: I have updated the BIOS, turned on PBO, and enabled XMP. It was pretty easy, but I was still sh***ing bricks the whole time. Everything appears to be stable though. Guess now I should download some chipset drivers and such. I appreciate the help!

 

EDIT: Figured I'd ask just in case, but is there anything I should look out for as possible signs of instability from updating? Or is updating the BIOS one of those things where I'd know immediately if it went wrong, and not later?

[podkall]

8 minutes ago, PackYourBaggins said:

EDIT: Figured I'd ask just in case, but is there anything I should look out for as possible signs of instability from updating? Or is updating the BIOS one of those things where I'd know immediately if it went wrong, and not later?

Usually it'd be during use you notice weird stuff, maybe. You can check with basic stuff like benchmarks or stress tests if it's holding up.

[PackYourBaggins]

52 minutes ago, podkall said:

Usually it'd be during use you notice weird stuff, maybe. You can check with basic stuff like benchmarks or stress tests if it's holding up.

Well I ran a little bit of Final Fantasy 14, and everything seemed well. I think I even saw some marginal performance gains. Most likely as a result of PBO and XMP. I think the only odd thing I saw (which is probably unrelated) was my 2nd monitor went black for like 2 seconds after I got into Windows after the update. But that either could have been a one-off coincidence or related to something else, and it only happened once. But otherwise, I'm completely stable as of now. Thanks, again!