PC Cooling issues

The current crop of P4 CPUs (except the "M" class) use over 100 watts of power. In fact, they generate more heat than a kitchen hot plate.

Intel specifies that the internal temps of the case should remain near 40 Centigrade.

Typical cooling mechanism is to force hot air out of the case with a fan, allowing cooler air to enter.

Modern cases include multiple openings for air flow.

Fans alone aren't enough, so modern PCs have heat sinks that "absorb and dissipate heat produced by electrical components."
Cooling Fins that transfer heat away from CPU. Rely on convection (warm air rising away)

Heat Pipes - small tubes filled with fluid that expand and rise to a different area for cooling. (No pump needed).

Water pumps - typically just for gaming PCs.

Peltier coolers - different mechanism than convective coolers (which won't work when the outside air is warmer that the air inside the case).

BIOS VII: Recovering from a failed BIOS update

Options for recovering from a failed BIOS update:

• Use the backup created by the flash util to restore the previous version
• Have an emergency floppy disk on hand that includes the "boot block" section of your BIOS. This has sufficient support to boot your PC from the floppy. No video is displayed. Once the PC has booted from the floppy and copied the correct BIOS over the corrupts one, reboot your PC.
• Flash Recovery Jumper Switch: Some mfgs include one of these on the mobo. You set the switch to the recovery position, insert the system upgrd into the drive and reboot. The system will boot from the disk and copy original BIOS over the corrupted one. Reset the jumper switch back to normal and reboot again.
• If none of the above work, will might need to replace the BIOS chip with a new one from your mfg.

Here's another source of advice from technibble

How To Recover From A Bad BIOS Update

BIOS VI: BIOS update failures (cautions)

Cautions for the BIOS update process:

• Don't update BIOS unless you must.
• Never turn off the PC in the middle of a BIOS upd.
  
• Make sure that power doesn't go off in the middle of an upd. (ie, UPS)
• Do not press Ctrl+Alt+Del during the update.
• Make sure you have the correct BIOS Flash utility from your PC mfgs web site
• Follow the flash utilities instructions exactly.
• Be sure you have the right version for your operating system, since flash utils typically only work with one version of Windows.
  
• Make sure you back up your BIOS before updating. (Most flash utils offer this option.)
  

BIOS V: Flashing the BIOS

This will depends on your getting an executable from the PC mfg.

1. Use the System Information tool(or MSINFO32) to determine your current BIOS version.
   
2. Visit the mfgs web site support pages to locate their BIOS update files. Compare their version # and release date with the info from the System Information tool to see if a new BIOS version is available.
   
3. Download the new BIOS installation executable.
   
4. If it isn't part of the installation pkg, also download the "flashing utility" from the website.
   
5. Close all open applications
6. Open and run the flashing utility and follow its instructions.
   
7. Restart PC when prompted.
   

BIOS IV: Version determination

MSINFO32 run cmd

Or
Start -> Programs -> Accessories -> System Tools -> System Information

• Record the value listed in the BIOS version
• Record the value listed in the SMBIOS field. SMBIOS is used by PC inventory pgms to collect data about your PC. (Not all PCs include this).

BIOS III: Updates

Normally the BIOS that ships with the PC is all you need. But sometimes you might need updates.

• You have device problems or bugs that your PC mfg identifies as BIOS based.
• You have device problems that seem to have no other cause than the BIOS, and you have exhausted all other avenues.
• You need to use new hardware options that are supported by your mobo but are NOt supported by BIOS.

The BIOS mfgs do not provide updates to consumers. They provide the BIOS to the mfgs in an incomplete state. The PC mfgs make the final mods and tailor the BIOS to their hardware. This "tailored" BIOS is what you get.

BIOS II: Upgrades

The BIOS is provided in a form of memory chip (EEPROM) that does not lose its contents when the power is turned off. A BIOS can either in a ROM chip or a flash memory (EEPROM).

ROM based BIOS is programmed at the factory. It can't be changed without replacing the chip.

Flash-memory BIOS can be updated using a special program provided by the mfg.

"Flashing The Bios"