Flashing BIOS help - IRQL NOT LESS OR EQUAL

Pinkusateru · Jun 1, 2005, 07:22 PM

Hello, this is my first time here and I really need some help. First off i'm a Mac user but just because i prefer an Apple doesn't mean I'm ignorant with Windows, I was using them for over 15 years, so i'm far from begginer level, now the issue is I have a friends computer, a rather old one, AMD 450Mhz and a SiS 6532 4M Byte video card and some other junky components ( 10Gb HDD etc.)

now first off she was having issues with the computer, she was running Windows 98 SE, she wanted to get Windows XP on the system, now I installed XP on many a system that were Deemed to inferior for XP, Intel I 300Mhz with 64MB Ram 1MB card etc, i never had much issues or conflicts, at least till I tweaked it so it would run faster on the hardware thatwas avaiable,

now that that was said, for an old computer her was better than most old system I put XP on but hers is the most *!%$ up I seen, first off while going thorugh installation I kept recievng IRQL NOT LESS OR EQUAL messages,

now I removed everything except HDD, CD-ROM and Video Card, it still did it, i tried again and it went through... wierd as I said, i had XP running and installed i than preceaded to install the Cards I took out. Sound, USB Hub etc.. all was fine... that the next day, IRQL NOT LESS OR EQUAL, and it happens alot, sometimes right after POST and sometimes an hour into XP being turned on...

now I ran Varifier.exe from RUN command and there is no Unsigned drivers and it seems they are all fine, i updated the ones I ccould, I even replaced the ram from 2x64 MB to 1x512 and than 2 x 256 and once again same issues, I even had one of my 250GB Mac Drives set as Slave and Used a program called Transmac to send some files over, it read the HDD and it worked fine, as soon as I disconnected and rebooted it did it again... so i thought maybe the HDD is an issue, even though IRQL is typically DRIVER issues

I installed a windows 98 SE 7GB HDD on the system, and i still got a Blue Screen with IRQL.... now thats strange, i put a 2GB windows 95 HDD in, it worked.. but the video card is only displaying in 16 colors.... so the only thing I can figure is the BIOS is out of whack... its an Award BIOS 4.51PG with a Aladdin5 Red Fox Mother board... I searched for hours for updates or Flash Bios programs and I can't find a bloody thing

the QUESTION i mainly have is anyone know if it is TRUELY the BIOS thats the issue and if so where i can get a newer BIOS, i read that Award has a Bios v6.00 which obvisouly is better then v.4.51 but i cannot find it to download anywhere.....

I apologize for the length of this and all the mispelling etc. but I just wanted to get everything down at once instead of people telling me to try this and that when I have done alot already.. thanks

mkk · Jun 1, 2005, 10:47 PM

Try loading setup defaults in the BIOS. Tweaking the settings can make the system unstable, and an unstable system could get that error message on bootup.

Geminiwave · Jun 2, 2005, 02:29 AM

Also start trying to disable stuff in the BIOS. disable anything you dont need.

Oh yeah and typically it lists what the IRQL problem is. For example: on my board that I RMAd, the problem was ALWAYS kmixer.dll.

See what file it is in your case.

Pinkusateru · Jun 2, 2005, 06:08 PM

Okay, I did reset both BIOS and Setup in the BIOS back to default, still same issue, I already did disable everything I didn't need in the bios, was one of the first steps I took, nothing, as for the the error message, none, other that ***STOP 0a000 or some digit string very similiar, it never once gave me the exact error message, no Driver message, no reg.sys heck no .sys at all only STOP, now heres the thing 99% of the time I recieved that Blue Screen IRQL message it flashes immediatly, maybe 3/4 a second than its gone, 1 out of 10 times will it allow me to read the message, which is strange..... any ideas people, she did tell me she wanted XP but it seems like it isn't going to happen, think I should load the next best thing, 2k?

Jun 1, 2005, 07:22 PM	#1
Pinkusateru DriverHeaven Newbie Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Glace Bay, Nova Scotia, Canada Posts: 2 Rep Power: 0	Flashing BIOS help - IRQL NOT LESS OR EQUAL Hello, this is my first time here and I really need some help. First off i'm a Mac user but just because i prefer an Apple doesn't mean I'm ignorant with Windows, I was using them for over 15 years, so i'm far from begginer level, now the issue is I have a friends computer, a rather old one, AMD 450Mhz and a SiS 6532 4M Byte video card and some other junky components ( 10Gb HDD etc.) now first off she was having issues with the computer, she was running Windows 98 SE, she wanted to get Windows XP on the system, now I installed XP on many a system that were Deemed to inferior for XP, Intel I 300Mhz with 64MB Ram 1MB card etc, i never had much issues or conflicts, at least till I tweaked it so it would run faster on the hardware thatwas avaiable, now that that was said, for an old computer her was better than most old system I put XP on but hers is the most !%$ up I seen, first off while going thorugh installation I kept recievng IRQL NOT LESS OR EQUAL messages, now I removed everything except HDD, CD-ROM and Video Card, it still did it, i tried again and it went through... wierd as I said, i had XP running and installed i than preceaded to install the Cards I took out. Sound, USB Hub etc.. all was fine... that the next day, IRQL NOT LESS OR EQUAL, and it happens alot, sometimes right after POST and sometimes an hour into XP being turned on... now I ran Varifier.exe from RUN command and there is no Unsigned drivers and it seems they are all fine, i updated the ones I ccould, I even replaced the ram from 2x64 MB to 1x512 and than 2 x 256 and once again same issues, I even had one of my 250GB Mac Drives set as Slave and Used a program called Transmac to send some files over, it read the HDD and it worked fine, as soon as I disconnected and rebooted it did it again... so i thought maybe the HDD is an issue, even though IRQL is typically DRIVER issues I installed a windows 98 SE 7GB HDD on the system, and i still got a Blue Screen with IRQL.... now thats strange, i put a 2GB windows 95 HDD in, it worked.. but the video card is only displaying in 16 colors.... so the only thing I can figure is the BIOS is out of whack... its an Award BIOS 4.51PG with a Aladdin5 Red Fox Mother board... I searched for hours for updates or Flash Bios programs and I can't find a bloody thing the QUESTION i mainly have is anyone know if it is TRUELY the BIOS thats the issue and if so where i can get a newer BIOS, i read that Award has a Bios v6.00 which obvisouly is better then v.4.51 but i cannot find it to download anywhere..... I apologize for the length of this and all the mispelling etc. but I just wanted to get everything down at once instead of people telling me to try this and that when I have done alot already.. thanks Last edited by Pinkusateru; Jun 1, 2005 at 07:31 PM.*

Jun 2, 2005, 02:29 AM	#3
Geminiwave I Have lovely Breasts Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: In the closet... Posts: 5,395 Rep Power: 64	Also start trying to disable stuff in the BIOS. disable anything you dont need. Oh yeah and typically it lists what the IRQL problem is. For example: on my board that I RMAd, the problem was ALWAYS kmixer.dll. See what file it is in your case. __________________

Jun 1, 2005, 10:47 PM	#2
mkk Cthulhu/Dagon 2012 Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Gefle, Sweden Posts: 4,495 Rep Power: 132 System Specs	Try loading setup defaults in the BIOS. Tweaking the settings can make the system unstable, and an unstable system could get that error message on bootup.

Jun 2, 2005, 06:08 PM	Thread Starter #4
Pinkusateru DriverHeaven Newbie Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Glace Bay, Nova Scotia, Canada Posts: 2 Rep Power: 0	Okay, I did reset both BIOS and Setup in the BIOS back to default, still same issue, I already did disable everything I didn't need in the bios, was one of the first steps I took, nothing, as for the the error message, none, other that ***STOP 0a000 or some digit string very similiar, it never once gave me the exact error message, no Driver message, no reg.sys heck no .sys at all only STOP, now heres the thing 99% of the time I recieved that Blue Screen IRQL message it flashes immediatly, maybe 3/4 a second than its gone, 1 out of 10 times will it allow me to read the message, which is strange..... any ideas people, she did tell me she wanted XP but it seems like it isn't going to happen, think I should load the next best thing, 2k?