Upgrading The Bios - HP xw Series Setup And Troubleshooting Manual

NOTE: If you restore your system using the Restore Plus! CD, some settings, such as your power management settings
(such as the Energy Star® settings), will need to be reapplied.
3.3 Verifying System After First Boot
HP continually strives to implement new enhancements that will increase functionality, performance, and reliability of
your HP Workstation. To ensure that your workstation takes advantage of the latest enhancements, HP recommends that
you install the latest BIOS, driver and software updates on a regular basis.
After successfully booting your system for the first time:
• Verify you have the latest system BIOS loaded. Refer to section 3.3.1 "Upgrading the BIOS" for instructions.
• Verify you have the latest drivers for your system. Refer to section 3.3.2 "Installing or Upgrading Device Drivers"
for instructions.
• Review "Locating HP Resources" on page 5 to become familiar with your available HP resources.
Also, consider the following:
• Subscribe to Driver Alerts at www.hp.com/subscriberchoice.
• Purchase a subscription to the Support Software CD kit. Refer to section 3.7 "Subscribing to Software Support"
for ordering information.

3.3.1 Upgrading the BIOS

After the first boot, it is a good practice to verify your system is operating with the latest BIOS.
To check the current BIOS on the system:
During power up, wait for the prompt F10=setup to appear on the lower right corner of the screen. After the prompt
appears, press the F10 key to enter F10 setup. The F10 Setup Utility displays and lists the BIOS version under File >
System Information. Note this number so that you can compare it with what is on the HP Web site.
To check the latest BIOS available:
Go to www.hp.com/go/workstationsupport.
1.
2. Select your HP Workstation from the list.
From the "I would like to" section, click download drivers and software.
3.
4. In the "select operating system" section, select your OS.
From the "quick jump to downloads by category..." area, click the BIOS link.
5.
6. Click the link below the "description" area.
If the BIOS on the Web site is the same as the version on the system, no further action is required.
If the BIOS on the Web site is a later version, then upgrade the system BIOS using the later version.
To download and upgrade the BIOS:
1. From the HP Web site, click the Download button next to the appropriate system BIOS.
2. From the File Download window, click Open.
3. From the InstallShield Wizard window, click Next.
Accept the license agreement and click Next.
4.
5. Enter the location where you want the files to be saved to. Click Next.
At this point, there are several options available to upgrade the system BIOS. You can save the files to bootable devices
such as a 3.5-inch diskette or a USB device. The shortest and most efficient way is to use the HPQFlash utility that is
available on your system. This utility is not available on Windows XP Professional x64 Edition.
32-bit Operating System
To run HPQFlash, browse to the folder where you saved the BIOS SoftPaq earlier. Locate and click on the
HPQFlash.exe file to initiate the HPQFlash utility. Follow the on-screen instructions. The current system BIOS and the
system BIOS that is about to be loaded is displayed. You will be notified after the BIOS upgrade is complete.
NOTE: A SoftPaq is a file (usually a zip or executable file) that contains support software, which can be a collection of
device drivers, configuration programs, flashable ROM images, utilities, agents, and so on.
20 Software Setup for Microsoft® Windows®