GA-880GA-UD3H - unlock cores on Phenom II 555 BE

[absic]

Hi B_Force,

I'm not really sure what tests you can try. If the core unlocking option isn't working properly through BIOS I'm not sure what else you can do.

I have to agree that it seems strange that Gigabyte are saying that the cores can be unlocked but that you are struggling so much. As you say, it could be due to the different revisions but like you, I'm not sure of the differences between them and Gigabyte are always reluctant to specify what they might be.

I will speak to AMD tomorrow and see if they are aware of any problems with unlocking the 555 CPU on the 8 Series motherboards.

[Dark Mantis]

To be honest I would have thought that Gigabyte would have tested with the exact same board. They must keep a library of the different boards for testing purposes.

[b_force]

To be honest I would have thought that Gigabyte would have tested with the exact same board. They must keep a library of the different boards for testing purposes.

From one test I'm sure they had the rev.1 board.
According to the information they give off-course.



Speaking of BIOS updating.
Does the board have backup system. So when you BIOS updating goes wrong, the board will go to the old BIOS?
(most modern motherboard have that option). Can't find it on the manual/website, but I never tested it 

[Dark Mantis]

Yes it does. It is supposed to kick in automatically if the main BIOS gets corrupted but it doesn't always work as it should and needs a little nudge.


Please also confirm for me your BIOS chips have matching BIOS versions in them, if not this can sometimes cause problems.
To check, go into the BIOS and on the MAIN page press F9 for system info.   You should see both BIOS versions listed, if they do not match please update the backup BIOS to match the current.

To do that, reboot and where you would normally press DEL to enter the BIOS, instead press Alt + F12, this will flash the Backup BIOS with the MAIN BIOS contents.   Do not worry when you see a recovery comment, that is normal and means it is flashing the backup BIOS.
If it doesn't happen first time just redo it.

[b_force]

I only see the "boot from" menu  
(and yes, i've the ALT pressed)

[Dark Mantis]

That is because you are only pressing F12 you must press ALT + F12
I can't understand why you are not getting the ALT function.
Check you haven't got Caps Lock on.

[b_force]

That is because you are only pressing F12 you must press ALT + F12
I can't understand why you are not getting the ALT function.
Check you haven't got Caps Lock on.

Read my post better, I was pressing ALT.
But after a few retries, it worked.
Nevertheless, not able to see 4 cores.



...wondering what hidden short-cuts there are
_{I also saw something with "patch amd tlb erratum" in the BIOS file some time ago}  

[Dark Mantis]

Whilst in the BIOS main menu you can press CTRL + F1 for more options.

[b_force]

Whilst in the BIOS main menu you can press CTRL + F1 for more options.

Yes, That's a really old trick

But I think we go a little bit offtopic? 

[domino]

@ domino
I can disable one core of the two, so in other words, running a X2 555 with only one core.

I don't know how similar the core unlocking feature is for the ASUS and GIGABYTE boards, but did you try it with the core unlocker enabled?  Put core unlocker to enabled and then disable the extra cores to 1/2 cores?

[absic]

OK,

I have spoken to the Tech guys at AMD and they are not aware of any specific problems with unlocking cores on the 8 series chipsets and according to them, if the CPU can be unlocked it is probably a BIOS issue.

With that in mind and also the fact that GTS have said they can do it using BIOS F5 would it be possible for you to upload some screen shots of your BIOS? Unfortunately I do not actually have access to this board so can't do any hands on testing, but there might be something that you are missing when attempting to unlock your CPU and the only way of knowing that is looking at the options available from within BIOS that you are running.

I have also asked runn3R, the Forum  moderator who works for Gigabyte, to look in on this thread as he might be able to offer another insight to the issues being faced.

[Dark Mantis]

Unfortunately I do not actually have access to this board so can't do any hands on testing, but there might be something that you are missing when attempting to unlock your CPU and the only way of knowing that is looking at the options available from within BIOS that you are running.

Yes, it is always much more difficult to fault find remotely when you don't have access to the same hardware that the OP is using. It instead all comes down to theory.

[b_force]

I've big news from the technical Gigabyte staff.

They actually called with gigabyte HQ about this problem and they were shocked.
In conclusion, they asked me to send my CPU + motherboard combination for testing. (great deal, but the problem is that I need it every day for my study Bachelor of Engineering Physics, so we are looking for a solution)

When the staff can confirm the problem, they will investigate the issue and they also asked me to send the other motherboard where unlocking is working.

Seems that Gigabyte is damn serious about this problem!  
big bonus points for gigabyte from me!!  

@ mods
If I tell to much inside information, please don't hesitate to delete it (than also send me a PB please)

@ absic
Maybe you can refer to my issue and this thread if you contact the technical staff?
I will send a PB with the issue number if you like.

[absic]

You can never post too much information. It's how you use that knowledge that might cause a problem. 

I'm pleased to see that Gigabyte are taking the problem seriously but it seems strange that they want your Mobo, CPU and the MSI board too so they can do the testing. Hopefully they will offer a good solution to help you out.

[Dark Mantis]

Ah you know what it is, they want to copy the BIOS on the MSI board and save themselves a lot of time and trouble