CMOS auto reset

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Originally posted here by YoungNobody
[B]Good response ZT3000,

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Thanks.

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But what is memory sharing and why do you advise me to turn it off?.

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Nowadays, a better term is shadowing, as lots of BIOS contain PCI slot sharing options and PCI slot options are something we don't want to change.

Look for and turn off VGA shadowing, Shadow RAM, stuff that reads like that. There will probably at most be 2 entries like this in your CMOS options.

Reason to turn them off is: These options tell the BIOS to play parlour tricks with RAM caching and RAM swapping as it pertains to stored VGA memory and upper memory filing/storing (above 640K and below 1024K). Memory manipulation using BIOS routines are notoriously slow and were once useful for slow video cards with very low onboard memory and also useful for switching stored code in and out of certain memory spots.

The computers of today do not need any of these old tricks and, in my experience and opinion, cause more problems.

Know that a computers BIOS routines are only useful on initial OS install and when a computer first boots up, if using XP. XP has it's own code in replacement of hardware BIOS and doesn't use the BIOS again. (although I believe there is an exception, right now I can't remember what it was.)

Heh..it's only 18 years of PC computer troubleshooting/repair experience talking.
Gawd, I'm getting old.

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You must spread your AntiPoints around before giving it to ZT3000 again.

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A power strip cannot protect you from the damage a brownout can cause. Brownouts cause more damage to a computer than a total blackout.
Either way, brownout or blackout, regardless what the computer does, you need to run a scandisk on C: drive and any other hard drive partition.

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I am continually pissed at how media and sales people sprog of the need and importance of SUrge Protection.. Most of the products are sugar pills.. (the only Surge protector that has ever worked for me was Durex).

Most Surge Protectors are no more trhan a MOV, that offers some over voltage protection, usually handy to reduce Spikes and (by blowing a Fuse) prevent damage from Voltage rises.
These devices offer next to no protection from Lightning stike.. (bit like a 20lb hammer to a grape). Many of these devices offer no inline filtering, and if they do it is so poorly designed it may as well not be there. These cant provide protection to power drops, or droops (brown-out), nor are they able to prevent noise getting through.
In the case of a Inductive load connecting or disconnecting (equipment motor), this situation creates a combination of Noise, transient spikes and a droops. The Noise and Droop will have been the likey contributer to your situation.. the CMOS Battery could be getting ill, but the design of the Backup circuit could allow a the noise to cause a reset of the CMOS.
The design of Computer PSU's, while allowing a wide range of input voltages, in some cases perfect regulation from supply input of 90V AC to 260V AC..BUT will allow a transient spike and Noise through without hesitation.
The only 100% reliable method of preventing this situation is a run the computer from an inverter supplied by a bank of batteries..
and as for the $9.99 surge protector.. you know these are only good for one surge..?.. many, even those with the OK lamp, are non functional after the first belt....