Processor upgrade

TV2 said:

The process is just as bobkn described.

To avoid problems with the flash, do the following:

• Download the 3 files you need, and save them to an easy to find location - Desktop, etc. You will need BIOS version F32, BIOS version F50, and the EC FW update utility.
• You will need a blank USB thumb drive (nothing on it). The thumb drive needs to be formatted FAT32 (the standard for most thumb drives), not NTFS.
• Step one is to flash to BIOS F32, so copy the F32 BIOS file to the thumb drive. Only the file, not the entire folder if it comes zipped up.
• Perform the Flash as directed in the instructions.
• When the flash is done, don't forget to do the last step: "Load Optimized Defaults" .
• Then Install the EC FW update utility. Always best to restart the PC after the installation.
• Then delete the F32 BIOS from the flash drive and copy over the F50 Bios to it.
• Then install the F50 BIOS.

And then you are ready to upgrade the processor.

Note: always a good idea, after installing the processor and entering BIOS to check it out, to Load Optimized Defaults again, then Save & Exit.
Make any BIOS customizations after you have tested the system and Windows and all is good.

I should've waited on your reply. I unleashed a s#!t storm of trouble when I just tried to install that EC thingy. Now, my system won't start. I'm gonna have to create a flash drive to boot to in order for it to start. It keeps saying "Automatic Repair" and then "Start up repair couldn't fix your system" or some BS. It won't go System Restore like it did earlier, saying system protection needs to be enabled. Grrrr.....

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TV2 said:

The process is just as bobkn described.

To avoid problems with the flash, do the following:

• Download the 3 files you need, and save them to an easy to find location - Desktop, etc. You will need BIOS version F32, BIOS version F50, and the EC FW update utility.
• You will need a blank USB thumb drive (nothing on it). The thumb drive needs to be formatted FAT32 (the standard for most thumb drives), not NTFS.
• Step one is to flash to BIOS F32, so copy the F32 BIOS file to the thumb drive. Only the file, not the entire folder if it comes zipped up.
• Perform the Flash as directed in the instructions.
• When the flash is done, don't forget to do the last step: "Load Optimized Defaults" .
• Then Install the EC FW update utility. Always best to restart the PC after the installation.
• Then delete the F32 BIOS from the flash drive and copy over the F50 Bios to it.
• Then install the F50 BIOS.

And then you are ready to upgrade the processor.

Note: always a good idea, after installing the processor and entering BIOS to check it out, to Load Optimized Defaults again, then Save & Exit.
Make any BIOS customizations after you have tested the system and Windows and all is good.

I tried to install the F32, and it has files that won't open or run. I'm on my laptop now, so I need to make a bootable USB from MCT to get this thing going. I need it tonight, with, or without the CPU.

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bobkn said:

According to Gigabyte, you have to:

Update the BIOS to F32.

Run the EC FW update utility. (It's in the "utility" section of the downloads. Too bad they didn't include a link to it from the BIOS page.) B450 AORUS PRO WIFI (rev. 1.0) | Motherboard - GIGABYTE U.S.A. Its version number is B19.0606.1, which is more recent than the one given in the instructions for F40.

Then you can update to F50 directly.

What was up with your earlier link (Utility | Service / Support - GIGABYTE Global) ? That was for an Intel board. Nothing to do with your B450 motherboard.

It would not update to F32. When it restarted, after installing that EC FW Update utility, it went into start up repair, and it won't do it (start up). It changed my Boot Options, and I had to go into Setup, and reinstate the M2 drive qas the start up. It restarted to Repair again. I went to Advanced Options and chose System Restore. It restored me to last night. I then attempted to install the Update utility again, and when it restarted, all hell had broken loose. That's where I am now: Waiting for my USB Drive to make so I can get to my system again. I obviously did something irregular to your process, and it really didn't work!

TV2 said:

It is important to understand that Flashing the BIOS has nothing to do with Windows (Using Q-Flash). The BIOS and Windows are two completely different environments.

You can download the files and prepare the flash drive in Windows, but the flash is done in BIOS.
Normally a BIOS flash does not affect the Windows installation.

Now that EC FW thing I am not familiar with. Whether it installs from Windows or is also installed in BIOS I don't know.
If installing it affected your Windows installation then it is a whole another issue to deal with. You may need to get some advice on recovering Windows before doing anything else. Stop here until there is a plan.

Do you have a backup image of your Windows installation?

I didn't, but I will now. This has turned into a dumpster fire!

TV2 said:

When you tried to install the EC FW Update tool from the Gigabyte page, did you use the B19.0606.1 version listed?
That is a utility installed from within Windows (exe).

Did you run ECFwUpdate.exe , or IFU_XE32_V1310.exe ?

The update utility.

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TV2 said:

To be clear: The PC with the Ryzen 3 installed, Windows was working fine,
then you installed the EC FW Update Tool from within Windows,
then restarted the PC,
and it would not start Windows.
Correct?

If anything else happened in that sequence, including any messages, please let us know.

That's it basically. After the restart, all heck broke loose. I've reinstalled Win10 now, and am going out trying to get it ready for my meetings tonight. I'll be back on it after 9.

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TV2 said:

Have you ever made any changes in the BIOS settings since you've owned this PC?
Could there be a settings change to default, like on the SATA controller, that could have changed when this utility was installed?
Would you recognize the change in settings if you went through the BIOS settings?

I did a BIOS update late last year. Had I been looking for it, I would've. But I wasn't. I hadn't been in the BIOS for a little while.