User-Configurable BIOS settings

Using the BIOS setup, you can configure and change the settings of many hardware components. Some of the settings can give you performance boosts if done right. If done wrong, they can cause rapid overheating and can fry your system. While we have tried to keep everything as accurate as possible, it should be noted that the BIOS options in your system may radically differ from what we have described here. Also, we cannot be sure on how these options are implemented in your system.
Make any changes one at a time or in the smallest increments. Test system stability by booting into Windows and working on it for 5 to 10 minutes after each change. If the system becomes unsta­ble, revert to the previous settings. Using these settings is at your own risk!

Memory Options
15M—16M Memory Hole / Memory Hole
Options: Enabled, Disabled
Recommended Setting: Disabled
Explanation: Older ISA cards used the 15th megabyte of memory
for their own purposes. Modern EISA, PnP-ISA and PCI cards don’t
need this, with one exception: Sound Blaster PCI128 and Sound
Blaster Live cards. If you have these cards, leave this enabled.

Autodetect DIMM/PCI Clock
Options: Enabled, Disabled
Recommended Setting: Enabled
Explanation: Turns off unused slots. It may also slightly reduce
power usage.

Bank Interleave Options: Disabled
2-Way, 4-Way
Recommended Setting: Depends on the memory modules you have.
Explanation: Interleaving requests to different RAM banks can give you a performance boost. 64 MB and lower RAM modules have two banks. Larger modules have four banks. Check your RAM mod­ules and decide.

Data Integrity Mode
Options: ECC, Non-ECC
Recommended Setting: ECC
Explanation: Both the chipset (motherboard) and the RAM have to
support ECC. If you don’t know, then it should be set to Non-ECC.

Delay DRAM Read Latch Options: Auto, No Delay, 0.5ns, 1.0ns, 1.5ns
Recommended Setting: Depends on the memory modules you have.
Explanation: Tweaks for high RAM loads. Two-sided 256MB mod­ules are high-load, one-sided memory modules are not. For lower RAM loads, set it at No Delay. For high RAM loads, you need to increase the delay. If you are getting crashes after you install new RAM, this is the first place to look.

DRAM CAS Latency Time / DRAM Cycle Length
Options: 2, 2.5, 3
Recommended Setting: Depends on the memory modules
you have.
Explanation: CAS latency is part of the wait between the chipset
requesting data and the RAM modules getting ready to send it.
Shorter delays are better. A lower number is therefore better if
your RAM is able to handle it. 2.5 is only available with DDR RAM.

Fast R-W Turnaround
Options: Enabled, Disabled
Recommended Setting: Depends on system stability
Explanation: When the CPU switches from reading to writing there is a delay. Enabling it reduces the delay. Disable it if it caus­es system instability.

Force 4-Way Interleave
Options: Enable, Disable
Recommended Setting: Disabled
Explanation: This is supposed to force the chipset to use 4-way
interleave even if it does not detect it. The chipset will most likely
turn on 4-way interleave if it is specified in the Bank Interleaving
setting, so you can leave this disabled.

MD Driving Strength/Memory Data Drive
Options: Low, High
Recommended Setting: Depends on the memory modules
you have.
Explanation: Change from low to high if the signal strength,
under high RAM Load, is insufficient. Changing this setting may
affect system stability.

Read Around Write
Options: Enabled, Disabled
Recommended Setting: Enabled
Explanation: Out-of-order read-write commands result in higher
performance.

Read Wait State/Read Latency
Options: 0, 1
Recommended Setting: 0 if there is no instability.
Explanation: When a device reads from the RAM, the chipset holds the data for one cycle. Setting it to zero cycles increases per­formance, but the device may not be ready to receive the data-resulting in instability.
Refresh Interval/Refresh Mode Select Options: 7.8 µsec, 15.6 µsec, 31.2 µsec, 64 µsec, 128 µsec Recommended Setting: 128 µsec; depends on the memory mod­ules you have.
Explanation: Every cell in SDRAM and DDR are refreshed every 64 milliseconds. But trying to refresh everything together will result in a power surge which is not good, so it is staggered. 128 MB and smaller modules are refreshed every 15.6 microseconds. 256 MB modules every 7.8 microseconds (µsec). Today’s RAM modules can handle more than the recommended 64 µsec between refreshes. A setting of 128 µsec increases performance and reduces power consumption.

SDRAM Command Leadoff
Options: 3, 4
Recommended Setting: Depends on system stability
Explanation: 3 is better.

SDRAM Idle Limit/SDRAM Idle Timer
Options: Disabled, 0 cycles, 8 cycles, 12 cycles, 16 cycles, 24 cycles,
32 cycles, 48 cycles
Recommended Setting: 12 cycles for less than 512 MB, 32 cycles for
all others
Explanation: The idle time before SDRAM recharge. Higher values
postpone the recharge and reduce RAM latency. Use this together
with the Refresh Interval setting for best results.

SDRAM Precharge Control/SDRAM Page Control
Options: Enabled, Disabled
Recommended Setting: Enabled. Disable it if there is instability.
Explanation: This checks whether the RAM or the chipset
should control the refreshing. Enable for RAM to control the
refresh. Can cause instability with large amounts of RAM or
poor-quality RAM.

Video RAM Cacheable
Options: Enabled, Disabled
Recommended Setting: Disabled
Explanation: Enabling this causes video data to be cached in the
L2 cache. Can cause a performance bottleneck when enabled.

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