# Meltdown and Spectre Patched BIOS for X58 Motherboards



## Regeneration (Jul 19, 2018)

Linked below is a database of modified BIOSes for X58 motherboards patched with the latest microcode (0x1F for Westmere, 0x1D for Bloomfield) against Meltdown and all variants of Spectre. Make sure the operating system is also updated to be fully protected from speculative execution side-channel vulnerabilities (CVE-2017-5715, CVE-2017-5753, CVE-2017-5754).

While most of Nehalem CPUs received a new microcode from Intel, there is an early stepping (C0) that hasn't and therefore still vulnerable at the moment. However, these very few CPUs will also benefit from increased security and stability due to more recent microcode. In addition, the ROMs feature TRIM support for SSDs in RAID0 and extended CPU compatibility table for all motherboards.

*Unofficial ROMs! use at your own risk.

ASRock ***updated on 11/8/2018**

ASRock X58 Deluxe
ASRock X58 Deluxe3
ASRock X58 Extreme
ASRock X58 Extreme3
ASRock X58 Extreme6
ASRock X58 SuperComputer
*ASUS *updated on 11/8/2018**

ASUS P6T
ASUS P6T SE
ASUS P6T Deluxe
ASUS P6T Deluxe V2
ASUS P6TD Deluxe
ASUS P6T Deluxe/OC Palm
ASUS P6T6 WS Revolution
ASUS P6T7 WS SuperComputer
ASUS P6T WS Professional
ASUS P6X58D Premium
ASUS P6X58D-E
ASUS P6X58-E WS
ASUS P6X58-E PRO
ASUS Rampage II Gene
ASUS Rampage II Extreme
ASUS Rampage III Gene
ASUS Rampage III Formula
ASUS Rampage III Extreme
ASUS Rampage III Black Edition
ASUS Sabertooth X58
ASUS Z8NA-D6
ASUS Z8NA-D6C
ASUS Z8NR-D12
ASUS Z8NH-D12
ASUS Z8PE-D12
ASUS Z8PE-D12X
ASUS Z8PE-D18
ASUS Z8PH-D12 SE/QDR
ASUS Z8PH-D12/IFB
*Biostar *updated on 11/8/2018**

Biostar TPower X58
Biostar TPower X58A
*DFI *updated on 11/3/2019**

DFI LANParty DK X58-T3eH6
DFI LANParty DK X58-T3eH6-A
DFI LANParty JR X58-T3H6
DFI LANParty UT X58-T3eH8
*ECS *updated on 19/8/2018**

ECS X58B-A
ECS X58B-A2
ECS X58B-A3 SLI
*EVGA *updated on 11/8/2018**

EVGA X58 SLI Micro (121-BL-E756)
EVGA X58 SLI3 (131-GT-E767)
EVGA X58 SLI (132-BL-E758)
EVGA X58 FTW3 (132-GT-E768)
EVGA X58 SLI LE (141-BL-E757)
EVGA X58 SLI Classified (141-BL-E759)
EVGA X58 SLI Classified (141-BL-E760)
EVGA X58 SLI Classified (141-BL-E761)
EVGA X58 SLI Classified Hydro Copper (141-BL-E764)
EVGA X58 SLI Classified Hydro Copper (141-BL-E769)
EVGA X58 Classified3 (141-GT-E770)
EVGA X58 Classified 4-Way SLI (170-BL-E762)
EVGA Classified SR-2 (270-WS-W555)
*Foxconn *updated on 11/8/2018**

Foxconn Bloodrage
Foxconn Bloodrage GTI
Foxconn FlamingBlade
Foxconn FlamingBlade GTI
Foxconn Renaissance
Foxconn Renaissance II
*Gigabyte *updated on 11/8/2018**

Gigabyte G1.Assassin
Gigabyte G1.Sniper
Gigabyte G1.Guerrilla
Gigabyte GA-X58A-OC
Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD9
Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD7
Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD7 (Revision 2.0)
Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD5
Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD5 (Revision 2.0)
Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD3R
Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD3R (Revision 2.0)
Gigabyte GA-X58-USB3
Gigabyte GA-EX58-EXTREME
Gigabyte GA-EX58-UD5
Gigabyte GA-EX58-UD4P
Gigabyte GA-EX58-UD4
Gigabyte GA-EX58-DS4
Gigabyte GA-EX58-UD3R-SLI
Gigabyte GA-EX58-UD3R
Gigabyte GA-EX58-UD3R (Revision 1.6/1.7)
*Jetway *updated on 6/4/2021**

Jetway BI-600
*MSI *updated on 11/8/2018**

MSI X58 Pro
MSI X58 Pro SLI
MSI X58 Pro-E
MSI X58 Pro-E SLI
MSI X58 Pro-E USB3
MSI X58 Platinum
MSI X58 Platinum SLI
MSI X58A-GD45
MSI X58A-GD65 (M)
MSI X58A-GD65 (N)
MSI X58M
MSI X58M SLI
MSI Eclipse Plus
MSI Eclipse SLI
MSI Big Bang-XPower
*Sapphire *updated on 11/8/2018**

Sapphire Pure Black X58
*Shuttle *updated on 19/8/2018**

Shuttle SX58H7
Shuttle SX58H7 Pro
Shuttle SX58J3
*XFX *updated on 19/8/2018**

XFX X58i
*Zotac *updated on 19/8/2018**

Zotac X58SLI-A-E
*Other useful downloads*

Gigabyte @BIOS (flash with this utility if you get errors with Q-Flash or SPI Flash on Gigabyte motherbards)
Intel Microcode Boot Loader (alternative method to update microcode in case your motherboard isn't listed)
Enable/Disable Meltdown and Spectre Protections (try this if the system appears vulnerable after flashing patched ROM)
GRC's InSpectre
Rufus 3.1 Portable (to create bootable USB flash drive with DOS)
Intel Chipset Device Software 9.4.0.1017
Intel Rapid Storage Technology 11.7.4.1001
All of ROMs are mirrored in this location just-in-case.

Some 3DMark and AIDA64 benchmark results are available here.


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## Arrakis9 (Jul 19, 2018)

Thank you for taking the time to do this for the community.


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## shifter (Jul 19, 2018)

Regeneration said:


> Attached below is a collection of modded BIOSes for all ASUS X58 motherboards patched with the latest microcode (0x1F for Westmere, 0x1D for Bloomfield) against Meltdown and all variants of Spectre.
> 
> Unofficial ROMs! use at your own risk.


No Asus Rampage II Extreme


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## agent_x007 (Jul 19, 2018)

shifter said:


> No Asus Rampage II Extreme



Official BIOS : LINK.
Adding "beta", with updated OpRoms would be nice touch...


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## Tomgang (Jul 19, 2018)

I am not so sure i am gonna update. Dont wanna lose performance and oc stability.

Have others update and exsperiencet any stability problems?


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## shifter (Jul 19, 2018)

I


Tomgang said:


> I am not so sure i am gonna update. Dont wanna lose performance and oc stability.
> 
> Have others update and exsperiencet any stability problems?


I don't mind loosing minor perf. for improving security.


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## Bill_Bright (Jul 19, 2018)

Tomgang said:


> I am not so sure i am gonna update. Dont wanna lose performance and oc stability.


I cannot speak for the unofficial/unauthorized updates, but I note most who have upgraded with the official updated codes have not experienced any "noticeable" performance degradation.


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## Regeneration (Jul 19, 2018)

I added Rampage II Extreme to the collection.

The forum attachment limit gave me a hard time, so I moved it to MediaFire.

OC stability seems normal. Expect the usual performance degradation.


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## agent_x007 (Jul 19, 2018)

I'm pretty sure you only need IDE mode on controller, and a FAT32 file system, for EZ Flash 2 to see partition on a hard drive. I can be wrong though...


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## Regeneration (Jul 19, 2018)

agent_x007 said:


> I'm pretty sure you only need IDE mode on controller, and a FAT32 file system, for EZ Flash 2 to see partition on a hard drive. I can be wrong though...



EZ Flash 2 works with AHCI and NTFS. But only the first HDD is visible.


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## Vario (Jul 19, 2018)

Regeneration said:


> Linked below is a collection of modded BIOSes for all ASUS X58 motherboards patched with the latest microcode (0x1F for Westmere, 0x1D for Bloomfield) against Meltdown and all variants of Spectre.
> 
> Unofficial ROMs! use at your own risk.
> 
> ...


Thanks for your work, considering using this ROM on our P6X58D-E but waiting for more feedback in the meantime I downloaded it.


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## Regeneration (Jul 19, 2018)

*Computer Specifications*
Intel Xeon W3680 @ 4.4 GHz
ASUS P6T (vanilla)
12GB G.Skill DDR3 10-12-12-31-1T @ 2266 MHz
Nvidia GeForce GTX 970 @ 1516 MHz / 7364 MHz
Windows 7 up-to-date

*3DMark Fire Strike*
Original ROM: 11177
Patched ROM: 11149

*AIDA64
Memory Read*
Original ROM: 24179 MB/s
Patched ROM: 24618 MB/s

*Memory Write*
Original ROM: 20646 MB/s
Patched ROM: 20648 MB/s

*Memory Copy*
Original ROM: 27227 MB/s
Patched ROM: 26809 MB/s

*Memory Latency*
Original ROM: 51.0 ns
Patched ROM: 51.0 ns

*CPU Queen*
Original ROM: 68989
Patched ROM: 68958

*CPU PhotoWorxx*
Original ROM: 14755 MPixel/s
Patched ROM: 14749 MPixel/s

*CPU ZLib*
Original ROM: 440.9 MB/s
Patched ROM: 438.4 MB/s

*CPU AES*
Original ROM: 14873 MB/s
Patched ROM: 14871 MB/s

*CPU Hash*
Original ROM: 3821 MB/s
Patched ROM: 3821 MB/s

*FPU VP9*
Original ROM: 6238
Patched ROM: 3688

*FPU Julia*
Original ROM: 21861
Patched ROM: 21843

*FPU Mandel*
Original ROM: 10531
Patched ROM: 10530

*FPU SinJulia*
Original ROM: 9074
Patched ROM: 9072

*FP32 RayTrace*
Original ROM: 3135 KRay/s
Patched ROM: 3135 KRay/s

*FP64 RayTrace*
Original ROM: 1734 KRay/s
Patched ROM: 1734 KRay/s


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## Tomgang (Jul 19, 2018)

shifter said:


> I
> I don't mind loosing minor perf. for improving security.



Well i do and according to notes for old CPU's. performance loss can be up to 10 % or maybe even higher. I am not ready to lose that from my system.



Bill_Bright said:


> I cannot speak for the unofficial/unauthorized updates, but I note most who have upgraded with the official updated codes have not experienced any "noticeable" performance degradation.



Then i have to ask how old cpu´s has the patch been tested on then.
Cause what i have read the older CPU, the higher performance loss. With the oldest gen like mine is shut get the biggest hit from these patch.


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## PurSpyk!! (Jul 20, 2018)

Thanks for making these modified BIOS files, does this support fixes for the i7 990x? I have an ASUS P6T Deluxe motherboard.

If I am not happy with any performance loss, can I reflash to the official BIOS with no side effects?


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## Regeneration (Jul 20, 2018)

PurSpyk!! said:


> Thanks for making these modified BIOS files, does this support fixes for the i7 990x? I have an ASUS P6T Deluxe motherboard.
> 
> If I am not happy with any performance loss, can I reflash to the official BIOS with no side effects?



Yes, and yes. You can backup the stock ROM within EZ Flash.


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## PurSpyk!! (Jul 20, 2018)

Thanks, are these just the default bios with the fix, or are there any other updates included?


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## Regeneration (Jul 20, 2018)

PurSpyk!! said:


> Thanks, are these just the default bios with the fix, or are there any other updates included?



Just original BIOS rom with Intel's most updated microcode.


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## Deleted member 178884 (Jul 20, 2018)

Yeah I'll pass - Spectre is BS and it's easier to hack a system with a virus - nobody has been recorded using spectre to hack systems before it got hyped


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## hat (Jul 20, 2018)

Xx Tek Tip xX said:


> Yeah I'll pass - Spectre is BS and it's easier to hack a system with a virus - nobody has been recorded using spectre to hack systems before it got hyped



For now. I feel like we're still in the early stages of this hardware vulnerability nonsense...


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## Deleted member 178884 (Jul 20, 2018)

hat said:


> For now. I feel like we're still in the early stages of this hardware vulnerability nonsense...


Exactly - out of the millions and millions of viruses released each day that can infect systems I can guarantee it's no more than 0.1% using spectre before the discovery and taking a performance impact however minimal is pathetic. My x58 system is never online anyway - I've got nothing to lose.


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## shifter (Jul 20, 2018)

Thank you @Regeneration !


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## R-T-B (Jul 20, 2018)

Xx Tek Tip xX said:


> and taking a performance impact however minimal is pathetic.



Or you know, smart, depends on your use case really.


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## hat (Jul 20, 2018)

Xx Tek Tip xX said:


> Exactly - out of the millions and millions of viruses released each day that can infect systems I can guarantee it's no more than 0.1% using spectre before the discovery and taking a performance impact however minimal is pathetic. My x58 system is never online anyway - I've got nothing to lose.



The point I was trying to make is that these vulnerabilities could potentially get a lot _worse_ in the future. Maybe attackers using Spectre will be commonplace in days to come. Of course don't know nearly enough about hardware design or anything like that to say whether that can or can't happen, just saying it wouldn't surprise me. I think many of us were surprised to learn that processors as far back as the Pentium Pro could be affected... so this has been possible for a very long time, just unknown. Now that it's known I'm sure the bad guys are trying to figure out how to use it, use it more effectively, and try to find other similar attacks.

Of course... it's a moot point if your system is offline anyway. It would be pretty hard to hack a system that's not even connected to the Internet. That said, if it's still connected to your network, only with Internet access disabled, it could still be vulnerable if another device on your network becomes compromised.


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## Deleted member 178884 (Jul 20, 2018)

hat said:


> The point I was trying to make is that these vulnerabilities could potentially get a lot _worse_ in the future. Maybe attackers using Spectre will be commonplace in days to come. Of course don't know nearly enough about hardware design or anything like that to say whether that can or can't happen, just saying it wouldn't surprise me. I think many of us were surprised to learn that processors as far back as the Pentium Pro could be affected... so this has been possible for a very long time, just unknown. Now that it's known I'm sure the bad guys are trying to figure out how to use it, use it more effectively, and try to find other similar attacks.
> 
> Of course... it's a moot point if your system is offline anyway. It would be pretty hard to hack a system that's not even connected to the Internet. That said, if it's still connected to your network, only with Internet access disabled, it could still be vulnerable if another device on your network becomes compromised.


Correct, that's thanks to trojans and worms that can pass through to other devices. I still think hackers won't use hardware vulnerabilities yet - take a look how long it took to discover Spectre and it affects old processors and it's been a vulnerability for years. Thing is it takes too long to discover hardware vulnerabilities and it's more practical for a hacker to create a virus that exploits software vulnerabilities.


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## hat (Jul 20, 2018)

If a tree falls in the forest, does it make a sound? "Traditional" viruses are far more prevalent, sure... and you're right that it took a long time for anybody to find out about Spectre (or Meltdown for that matter), but now that it's known, I fully expect the bad guys to try to use it. They didn't know about it before, so they couldn't use it... but now they can, because they know about it. I also expect the bad guys to try to find other hardware vulnerabilities now, since they seem to be a popular thing these days. Have you ever thought about what _else_ inside your computer may be affected by some as of yet unknown security vulnerability? Though not quite the same thing, I remember reading some months ago about some game or something that could potentially link up with your wireless router and use the radio to try to make a map of your house, so advertisers could use that data to target you with specific ads. It was here on TPU, in the news section I think... right around the time that big uproar about microtransactions in games was fresh. Though not the same thing as Spectre/Meltdown, I mention it to bring up the possibilities of what can be done. It would be pretty hard to surprise me with anything like that anymore.


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## Regeneration (Jul 20, 2018)

Hackers use any means necessary to achieve their goal including hardware vulnerabilities and even pretending to be hot single girls (social engineering). I happen to know a start-up that was targeted by Silent Bob is Silent exploit. Sophisticated attacks are usually performed against high-value targets. There is no much to gain from targeting individuals. Hardware vulnerabilities are best used for privilege escalation. If its possible to seal a security hole, do it, better safe than sorry... the performance degradation is not a big deal.


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## Bill_Bright (Jul 20, 2018)

Tomgang said:


> Then i have to ask how old cpu´s has the patch been tested on then.
> Cause what i have read the older CPU, the higher performance loss. With the oldest gen like mine is shut get the biggest hit from these patch.


That would require getting into specific CPUs and with there being dozens, that's too involved (for me anyway) to research and report on. Please note I did not make a blanket statement that there were NO performance losses. I specifically said (with *bold underlined* emphasis added this time for clarification), 





Bill_Bright said:


> *most* who have upgraded with the official updated codes have not experienced any *"noticeable"* performance degradation.



So again, for *most* users, they did not *notice* any performance hit. That is not the same as performance losses showing up on benchmarks.


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## Zyll Goliat (Jul 21, 2018)

If someone is interested I can confirm that win 10(1803 latest patch) working perfectly fine and without any issue after I patched my BIOS...I am using  ASUS P6X58D Premium  and so far didn´t notice any problems and benchmarking resluts difference is almost negligible few points lower here&there....


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## vailr (Jul 21, 2018)

Can you post a link to the software tools that were used?; that might be useful.
An MSI X58 board that I have should probably also have a microcode update against the Spectre/Meltdown security issue.
The UBU (UEFI Bios Updater) Tool only works on AMI UEFI bioses, which the MSI X58 board pre-dates the non-UEFI to UEFI bios switch-over.
The UEFI Bios Updater is English language software written by a Russian & downloadable from a Russian web site:
https://cloud.mail.ru/public/9SSs/YJbsWyC2V/


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## Regeneration (Jul 21, 2018)

vailr said:


> Can you post a link to the software tools that were used?; that might be useful.



Hex editor and microcode samples. I don't have a MSI X58 motherboard around, but if you're willing to take a risk and beta test a modified BIOS, I can try to patch one for you, and eventually to all MSI X58 owners.


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## vailr (Jul 21, 2018)

Okay, well: thanks for offering. MSI X58 Pro-E is the specific model of board; most recent bios is 8F, dated 2011-03-19:
https://us.msi.com/Motherboard/support/X58_ProE
direct download link:  http://download.msi.com/bos_exe/mb/7522v8F.zip


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## Regeneration (Jul 22, 2018)

Thanks to vailr, now there are BIOSes for MSI X58 as well.


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## tbob22 (Jul 24, 2018)

Great work! Good to see life being extended for this platform.

Asus support has been useless...
"Please be reminded that since the X79 DELUXE and Z8NA-D6C is already an End of life product, our product engineers were unable to create a fix with Intel for the vulnerabilities. "

Could you try to patch the Z8NA-D6C? https://www.asus.com/Commercial-Servers-Workstations/Z8NAD6C/HelpDesk_BIOS/

I'm guessing UEFI requires a different process to patch, a bit sad as my x79 Deluxe is barely four years old.

I also have a P6T Deluxe v2 and P6T6, I'll give these a shot when I get a chance.


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## tbob22 (Jul 24, 2018)

Thanks! I'll see how it goes.

Interestingly, ASUS has announced that the ASUS Z8PE-D12X will be patched. None of the other boards are listed.

https://www.asus.com/support/FAQ/1035538/


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## Regeneration (Jul 24, 2018)

This makes sense since not all 1st generation i7s and Xeons received a microcode patch from Intel.

Only CPUs with the following IDs: 106A5, 206C2, 206E6, 206F2.

Please verify CPUID before flashing.


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## tbob22 (Jul 24, 2018)

Doesn't the Z8PE-D12X and ASUS Z8NA-D6C support the same CPUs? I find it odd that they'd exclude the newer boards. I have two x5670 206C2 in the Z8NA-D6C.


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## Regeneration (Jul 24, 2018)

tbob22 said:


> Doesn't the Z8PE-D12X and ASUS Z8NA-D6C support the same CPUs? I find it odd that they'd exclude the newer boards. I have two x5670 206C2 in the Z8NA-D6C.



Both boards support exactly the same CPUs. As far as I know, HP is the only vendor to issue BIOS updates even for legacy products.


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## tbob22 (Jul 24, 2018)

Yeah, it just blows my mind how little motherboard manufacturers seem to care about these issues.


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## Regeneration (Jul 26, 2018)

Added ROMs for more vendors. Enjoy.


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## Gasaraki (Jul 26, 2018)

Wow, thank you! I'm still running my P6T6 WS Revolution with a Xeon so thank you very much.


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## ReelMcCoy (Jul 26, 2018)

Thanks for putting these BIOSs out. I'd like to throw in the motherboard I have into the mix of getting an update. It's the MSI XPower Big Bang (https://www.msi.com/Motherboard/Big_BangXPower.html). I know the site mentions a v1.7 but there was a 1.81 floating around somewhere that I've been running on two systems for years. Not sure where I got it but I still have the file downloaded back in 10/2012 if interested.


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## jsfitz54 (Jul 26, 2018)

ReelMcCoy said:


> Thanks for putting these BIOSs out. I'd like to throw in the motherboard I have into the mix of getting an update. It's the MSI XPower Big Bang (https://www.msi.com/Motherboard/Big_BangXPower.html). I know the site mentions a v1.7 but there was a 1.81 floating around somewhere that I've been running on two systems for years. Not sure where I got it but I still have the file downloaded back in 10/2012 if interested.



Just sent a PM regarding same board to OP.


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## HTC (Jul 26, 2018)

Xx Tek Tip xX said:


> Yeah I'll pass - Spectre is BS and it's easier to hack a system with a virus - *nobody has been recorded using spectre to hack systems before it got hyped*



I think you are confused: the *real problem* with anyone *under attack* from spectre / meltdown is that one is *unaware* one is under attack because both spectre and meltdown aren't viruses and don't leave traces. One can know if one is vulnerable or not to the attacks, and that's it.

Ofc, being targeted by this is quite unlikely for general users but, just because it's unlikely doesn't make it impossible.

Companies OTOH are much more likely to fall under attack but, because both spectre and meltdown don't leave traces, those attacked don't know they've been attacked, which is why these types of issues are of such high security risk.


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## ReelMcCoy (Jul 26, 2018)

jsfitz54 said:


> Just sent a PM regarding same board to OP.



And lookie there! There's something for the XPower now. Might be 1.7 based but hey! I'll try it.


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## jsfitz54 (Jul 26, 2018)

ReelMcCoy said:


> And lookie there! There's something for the XPower now. Might be 1.7 based but hey! I'll try it.



He did it on the 1.7 version.  If you can get him the 1.81 maybe he will be willing to update.  I gave him the direct link to MSI bios page.  You may be able to find the 1.81 in the forums?  I did a quick search and could not locate.


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## ReelMcCoy (Jul 26, 2018)

jsfitz54 said:


> He did it on the 1.7 version.  If you can get him the 1.81 maybe he will be willing to update.  I gave him the direct link to MSI bios page.  You may be able to find the 1.81 in the forums?  I did a quick search and could not locate.



I found this post that mentions the 1.81 BETA. Please note I had to use FireFox and login before the BIOS link was visible. - https://forum-en.msi.com/index.php?topic=163903.msg1191049#msg1191049


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## Regeneration (Jul 26, 2018)

Thank you for sending me the link. I updated the XPower ROM to 1.81 beta since it features improved memory compatibility.

On another note, anyone having problems flashing Gigabyte ROMs should re-download.


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## lexluthermiester (Jul 27, 2018)

Bill_Bright said:


> I cannot speak for the unofficial/unauthorized updates, but I note most who have upgraded with the official updated codes have not experienced any "noticeable" performance degradation.


Utter rubbish. It depends on the system and the care taken to implement the patches correctly, which is not always the case.


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## droopyRO (Jul 27, 2018)

Thank you so much!
I just patched my Rampage II. I see no performance hit with the patched BIOS.


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## Spudz76 (Jul 28, 2018)

Cool waste of time!

Speaking of time, your processor is still """vulnerable""" for about half a second before BIOS loads the microcode.  As """vulnerable""" as it would be for the five seconds or so it takes before the OS would have loaded the same microcode into it, if you've installed system updates on any current OS (and most outdated ones too) in the last 3 to 6 months.  Thus, risking it and flashing BIOS is only protecting you from exploits in a five second window, where nothing can even happen because you aren't booted into an OS yet.  Besides that this bug only matters on large hypervisors really, so if you don't run the servers at Amazon S3 or similar you don't need to patch for this, at all.  You might as well get a car alarm for your 1992 Geo Metro, or a full-on armed bank guard service for your piggy bank... nobody is targeting the useless contents of your personal computer, it's far easier to trick idiots with regular worms or fake portal login pages.  They want the big high density apartment condos since this lets them see through walls, fiddling with Xray vision in your ranch house where you live alone nets them no cool data.

But it's entertaining to watch everyone chase their tails as if doing something positive.  I'm just sad nobody bricked a board yet doing these better safe than sorry voodoo rituals on their flash, and losing their warranty in the process.  Don't you think if it mattered whatsoever to have current microcode in BIOS, the board manufacturer would slip a new approved version out so it wouldn't void warranty?  They didn't, both because it's unimportant to load it that early (unless it breaks boot handoff to the OS / supports a newer CPU), and the OS providers released patches, so you're already running new microcode unless you intentionally blocked the updates or reverted (to keep your performance).  Therefore I bet you morons are benchmarking the same microcode and then claiming no degradation - well yeah you've tested apples against apples of course there is no difference.  You've just moved when the patched microcode got loaded by a few seconds, both events happen well before you can even login.  You would have to ensure the OS is not loading any new microcode, run "before" benchmarks, flash the hacked warranty blaster BIOS from here and then do the "after", to see a real result.  It can be tough to trace which MS KB# installed various microcode versions into Windows in order to revert them, to get an accurate test, but you would have to have done that to test real unpatched microcode (or run the before benchmark last year before any paranoid-panic-OS-vendor-patchfest happened).

You might as well wear full body armor on top of bubble wrap to go to the store, you know, good old better safe than sorry.  Also, walk, because driving is more risky than leaving this bug unfixed.  But don't cross any streets as that is probably more unsafe than driving.  Oh and wear a helmet too, so regular people know you're "insane about safety" (they would only suspect regular insanity otherwise).


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## Regeneration (Jul 28, 2018)

@Spudz76

First generation i7s didn't receive a microcode update from MS or hardware manufacturers.

The MS KBs are for 2nd generation CPUs and above, it must be loaded during boot (before the kernel).

The X58 platform is considered "old", unsupported and out of warranty.

Westmere Xeons deliver good performance, overclock well, and extremely cheap (6C/12T for $50).

The changes made to the BIOSes were minimal to ensure boards won't brick.

BIOS flashing utilities perform integrity and checksum check before writting data to the chip.


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## tbob22 (Jul 28, 2018)

@Spudz76
There is currently no official microcode fix from Microsoft for Spectre for any chip prior to Sandy Bridge, so they are still vulnerable without a bios patch at this time.
https://support.microsoft.com/en-us...or-windows-10-version-1803-and-windows-server

Those are some pretty big assumptions you're making about not being targeted. The problem with this kind of exploit is that you wouldn't even know if you had been compromised already or not.

If it's something easy enough to exploit and the system hasn't been patched then there's a chance it's already been compromised, this quite common on the web with so many zero day exploits these days.

Luckily it doesn't seem like Spectre/Meltdown are easy to exploit at this time, but in the future it may be easier as tools are developed, etc. It may be as easy as your browser running some JS on a malicious/compromised site.


----------



## dorsetknob (Jul 28, 2018)

Spudz76 said:


> . I'm just sad nobody bricked a board yet doing these better safe than sorry voodoo rituals on their flash, and losing their warranty in the process.


These X58 Boards are out of warranty and therefor will not receive any Official Support

AND BY THE WAY


Spudz76 said:


> Therefore I bet you morons


"NOT COOL TO CALL PEOPLE MORONS"


----------



## Spudz76 (Jul 28, 2018)

Apologies for the 'morons' bit.
But I get real tired of this "afraid of the boogeyman" thing it's identical to terrorism.  0.0001% chance anything is going to happen and we do 101% effort to stop it from happening just in case, just because it feels like the thing to do.
But seriously nothing will happen regardless which route you choose, all you are doing is forming another false bandwagon for people to jump on, paranoia and panic.

It does not need to be loaded prior to kernels, whatsoever.  It needs to be loaded prior to multiuser access.


----------



## R-T-B (Jul 28, 2018)

Spudz76 said:


> Cool waste of time!
> 
> Speaking of time, your processor is still """vulnerable""" for about half a second before BIOS loads the microcode.  As """vulnerable""" as it would be for the five seconds or so it takes before the OS would have loaded the same microcode into it, if you've installed system updates on any current OS (and most outdated ones too) in the last 3 to 6 months.  Thus, risking it and flashing BIOS is only protecting you from exploits in a five second window, where nothing can even happen because you aren't booted into an OS yet.  Besides that this bug only matters on large hypervisors really, so if you don't run the servers at Amazon S3 or similar you don't need to patch for this, at all.  You might as well get a car alarm for your 1992 Geo Metro, or a full-on armed bank guard service for your piggy bank... nobody is targeting the useless contents of your personal computer, it's far easier to trick idiots with regular worms or fake portal login pages.  They want the big high density apartment condos since this lets them see through walls, fiddling with Xray vision in your ranch house where you live alone nets them no cool data.
> 
> ...



So you are certain you know better than the engineers who make the microcode?

Cool story bro.  Now step aside please, grown up types are talking.

There are X58 hosted machines still running around, hence these patches ARE useful.


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## Spudz76 (Jul 28, 2018)

I'm certain the engineers caved to the marketing types and made patched microcode whether it was actually and technically necessary or not, yes.

If the news says "omg new bugz, hackers everywhere, no one is safe!" and then your engineers say "meh, theoretical hole no big deal, we don't need to do anything" your marketing (aka PR) department loses their composure.  So even if it were completely pointless the engineers had to do something as a face saver motion against the dumbass half-story/clickbait/alarmist news going around about it.

If they really wanted to secure the microcode, it would just load up and halt the CPU.  100% secure!  You know, better safe than sorry.


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## Mrunderwonder (Jul 29, 2018)

Anyone have any solid info on which i7s were updated with this? From my research the 106A5 were all Nehalem Xeons and the 206C2 were all Westmere Xeons. The Bloomfield and Gulftown i7s are still not being supported. Great that the Xeons were updated and some are compatible with x58 but for those of us with i7s its a real kick in the nuts from intel.


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## Regeneration (Jul 29, 2018)

206c2 = Westmere/Gulftown (Xeons, hexacore i7s)
106a5 = Bloomfield (quadcore i7s stepping D0)


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## mad1394 (Jul 29, 2018)

I too believe that they are exagerating with these hacks. But more choice is always good, gotta admire Regeneration for his work. 
Will maybe patch my laptop once more people beta test it )


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## R-T-B (Jul 29, 2018)

Spudz76 said:


> I'm certain the engineers caved to the marketing types and made patched microcode whether it was actually and technically necessary or not, yes.
> 
> If the news says "omg new bugz, hackers everywhere, no one is safe!" and then your engineers say "meh, theoretical hole no big deal, we don't need to do anything" your marketing (aka PR) department loses their composure.  So even if it were completely pointless the engineers had to do something as a face saver motion against the dumbass half-story/clickbait/alarmist news going around about it.



That's really not how it works.  But believe what you want.

@Regeneration, any chance of getting support for Intel boards like the DX58SO2?


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## Regeneration (Jul 29, 2018)

Intel X58 motherboards use a variety of checksum checks since earlier boards were targeted for businesses. But I'm working on a solution.


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## Fangio1951 (Jul 29, 2018)

Regeneration said:


> Intel X58 motherboards use a variety of checksum checks since earlier boards were targeted for businesses. But I'm working on a solution.



hi Regeneration,

Keep up the excellent work m8.

It's a shame that some people don't appreciate the work that people like you do for others, on a voluntary basis.

I've been in the IT industry since 1985 - the old 8086 IBM XT pc days an know how complicated things can be - so it's hats off to people like you.

regards


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## R-T-B (Jul 30, 2018)

Regeneration said:


> Intel X58 motherboards use a variety of checksum checks since earlier boards were targeted for businesses. But I'm working on a solution.



I'm aware, tried updating it myself but failed.  Was hoping you had some magic skills I missed...  lol.

Really good of you to do this.  As a fellow bios modder I can say this stuff is thankless, and pretty hard to recover from when you screw something up.  Everyone should view him doing this as a community service.


----------



## Trafalgar (Jul 30, 2018)




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## Regeneration (Jul 31, 2018)

Added ROMs for DFI X58 series. Had to use 3rd party websites since the company is KIA.


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## Fangio1951 (Jul 31, 2018)

Regeneration said:


> Added ROMs for DFI X58 series. Had to use 3rd party websites since the company is KIA.


hi m8,

KIA or MIA ?


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## tbob22 (Aug 1, 2018)

Had a few hiccups but all seems fine on my Z8NA-D6C with x5670's. Thanks for the help Regeneration!


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## Trafalgar (Aug 4, 2018)

i7 920 D0 + Gigabyte X58A-UD3R rev 2.0


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## tbob22 (Aug 4, 2018)

@Regeneration I wonder if the official update for Z8PE-D12X differs from your version.

https://www.asus.com/Commercial-Servers-Workstations/Z8PED12X/HelpDesk_BIOS/


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## Regeneration (Aug 4, 2018)

tbob22 said:


> @Regeneration I wonder if the official update for Z8PE-D12X differs from your version.
> 
> https://www.asus.com/Commercial-Servers-Workstations/Z8PED12X/HelpDesk_BIOS/



The official release includes outdated microcode from January 2018.


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## Mrunderwonder (Aug 5, 2018)

Trafalgar said:


> i7 920 D0 + Gigabyte X58A-UD3R rev 2.0
> 
> View attachment 104861


Did you do anything special to get this working?

I've been having issues with the update working on a D0 i7-930 and an EVGA X58 SLI. It loads the bios fine but, InSpectre is stating no spectre protection even with the latest microcode installed and all windows updates, trying to figure out what is going on or what I'm doing wrong.


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## tbob22 (Aug 5, 2018)

Regeneration said:


> The official release includes outdated microcode from January 2018.


Typical ASUS...



Mrunderwonder said:


> Did you do anything special to get this working?
> 
> I've been having issues with the update working on a D0 i7-930 and an EVGA X58 SLI. It loads the bios fine but, InSpectre is stating no spectre protection even with the latest microcode installed and all windows updates, trying to figure out what is going on or what I'm doing wrong.



I had the same issue where after updating the bios InSpectre still showed vulnerable to Spectre.

To fix it I clicked the "Disable Meltdown Protection" button and restarted. After restart I clicked it again, and restarted again, then everything showed protected.

Sounds strange but it worked for me, this is after I had already flashed the bios a few times.


----------



## R-T-B (Aug 5, 2018)

Mrunderwonder said:


> Did you do anything special to get this working?
> 
> I've been having issues with the update working on a D0 i7-930 and an EVGA X58 SLI. It loads the bios fine but, InSpectre is stating no spectre protection even with the latest microcode installed and all windows updates, trying to figure out what is going on or what I'm doing wrong.



i7 930 is bloomfield.  Updates only go so far back as Gulftown/Westmere (6-cores).  You are basically out of luck, sorry.


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## tbob22 (Aug 5, 2018)

R-T-B said:


> i7 930 is bloomfield.  Updates only go so far back as Gulftown/Westmere (6-cores).  You are basically out of luck, sorry.



Yeah, that is a little strange that the 930 is showing protected. Maybe InSpectre isn't detecting things correctly.


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## Regeneration (Aug 5, 2018)

i7 9xx series stepping D0 (Bloomfield, 106A5) is fully supported and protected.


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## tbob22 (Aug 5, 2018)

Regeneration said:


> Bloomfield series D0 should be supported.



Hmm, I thought they dropped 106A4/106A5?
https://newsroom.intel.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/11/2018/04/microcode-update-guidance.pdf

Missing from the latest document:
https://www.intel.com/content/dam/www/public/us/en/documents/sa00115-microcode-update-guidance.pdf


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## Regeneration (Aug 5, 2018)

Guess they had a change of heart.

106A4 = i7 9xx series and Xeons steppings C0/C1/B0 are VULNERABLE
106A5 = i7 9xx series and Xeons steppings D0/B1 should be PROTECTED
206C2 = Hexacore i7 series and Xeons should be PROTECTED
206E6/206F2  = Socket 1567 Xeons should be PROTECTED

If you get any other result, try to power cycle the system, re-flash, play around with the OS, check for updates, etc.


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## Trafalgar (Aug 5, 2018)




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## tbob22 (Aug 5, 2018)

Regeneration said:


> Guess they had a change of heart.
> 
> 106A4 = i7 9xx series and Xeons steppings C0/C1/B0 are VULNERABLE
> 106A5 = i7 9xx series and Xeons steppings D0/B1 should be PROTECTED
> ...



Interesting..

Yeah, in my case it's possible that InSpectre was reading some kind of cached result or something, not really sure.

----

P6T Deluxe V2 successfully patched without issue. Also, I ran into the same issue with InSpectre caching the analysis. I also didn't lose my bios settings after flashing.

Quick Cinebench R15 comparison:
x5670 @ 4.4ghz (200x22, 1.325v) DDR3 @ 2000mhz

Best result of ten runs:
Before: 1000cb
After: 1000cb

Cinebench doesn't seem to be affected by the updates.


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## Regeneration (Aug 5, 2018)

I'm updating all ROMs with a more recent microcode for 106A4. It is still vulnerable to Spectre, but newer (2015) than the one used by the vendor (2009).


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## R-T-B (Aug 5, 2018)

Regeneration said:


> i7 9xx series stepping D0 (Bloomfield, 106A5) is fully supported and protected.



Oh I see.  Ignore me lol...


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## Solaris17 (Aug 5, 2018)

Cool project, keep up the good work @Regeneration  like @R-T-B  said earlier, some community service is pretty thankless but your doing great so far (and secretly its kind of fun isnt it  )


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## Regeneration (Aug 6, 2018)

I've updated all ROMs today.

Nothing drastic... extended CPU support for the less known brands.

Updated microcode of 106A4 to a more recent one.

Now all X58 users can benefit from this release.


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## Kbird (Aug 7, 2018)

Editted: wrong MB model....

Thanks  Regeneration , been watching the Thread and am wondering if your Gigabyte GA-X58A-UDR3 V2 has the updated Intel Rom similar to Tweaktown's FH Mod2 of several years ago?

I have been using it for sometime, with no issues, FH Mod 2 with the updated Intel ROM (with trim) and other modules so perhaps that would be a better one? not sure if you are doing other Mods or just the MC update but I am using a Raid0 Array and I am not sure if a different Intel RAID rom would be a good idea so thought I'd better ask 1st.

https://forums.tweaktown.com/gigabyte/48085-gigabyte-modified-bios.html                  about 1/2 way down the page , bottom of the 4th section....

Direct file link : http://www.mediafire.com/download/hn5g8jyvhvj1san/x58aud3r_mod2_fh.zip

thanks for looking into it....

KB


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## Regeneration (Aug 7, 2018)

I skipped updating the Intel RAID module as it can corrupt the array and I don't want to be blamed for it.


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## Kbird (Aug 7, 2018)

Regeneration said:


> I skipped updating the Intel RAID module as it can corrupt the array and I don't want to be blamed for it.



Okay thanks for an answer I guess I had better not use your Modded Bios's then as I an not sure what Raid Bios FH had but I think it was a 10 series without Trim enabled.

KB.


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## Regeneration (Aug 7, 2018)

Or even better, don't use RAID0, it doesn't worth the risk.

I've had enough RAID0 array failures in my lifetime to learn not to use it ever again.

Last time occurred 8 years ago on DX58SO, I remember whining about it to anyone I know of, including @W1zzard.


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## Kbird (Aug 7, 2018)

Regeneration said:


> Or even better, don't use RAID0, it doesn't worth the risk.
> 
> I've had enough RAID0 array failures in my lifetime to learn not to use it ever again.
> 
> Last time occurred 8 years ago on DX58SO, I remember whining about it to anyone I know of, including @W1zzard.




You are right of course ....I have been very lucky but these WD Black drives just keep on ticking.... RAID was only ever for the performance but these days it doesn't really matter having gone to SSD for the OS etc. I should break the Raid and just run them as separate HDDs nowadays since they are used for storage only anyway.

KB.


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## Coldblackice (Aug 7, 2018)

I have an EVGA e767 x58 board with a Xeon x5675 -- besides the vulnerability protection, are there other benefits to using updated microcode? Any downsides?


----------



## josephnunn (Aug 7, 2018)

Raid 1 or Raid 10 are the only raid levels worth it.  Raid 0 is fine for ssd but not drives, Raid 5 or 6 are hellish nightmares.

Raid 10 is by far the best, being resilient to 2 drive losses and giving the increased speed of Raid 0, its the only one I would use anymore.


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## FlawleZ (Aug 8, 2018)

Thanks a lot for updating and uploading these Regeneration. I would like to update my wifes MSI Big Bang as she has the latest bios from MSI but it seems compatibility for X5687 is wonky as it doesnt read SPD on a lot of memory with that chip installed. Also doesnt allos uncore adjustment but with i7 975 installed it does. 
Is X5687 supported with latest microcode update in this BIOS?


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## Regeneration (Aug 8, 2018)

FlawleZ said:


> Thanks a lot for updating and uploading these Regeneration. I would like to update my wifes MSI Big Bang as she has the latest bios from MSI but it seems compatibility for X5687 is wonky as it doesnt read SPD on a lot of memory with that chip installed. Also doesnt allos uncore adjustment but with i7 975 installed it does.
> Is X5687 supported with latest microcode update in this BIOS?



Yes, but not sure if the uncore adjustment is fixed.


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## Sasqui (Aug 8, 2018)

Question... I have an Asus P6X58-E and EVGA x58 SLI, both running Ubuntu desktop for WCG crunching.  No critical data on either system, they are just workhorses for WCG.  An X5670 in each.

What do I have to worry about if I don't patch?


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## dorsetknob (Aug 8, 2018)

Sasqui said:


> What do I have to worry about if I don't patch?


You get pwnd your wife and 6 daughters get kidnapped and sold to a Nigerian 419 Prince apart from that not alot for the average user ( and seeing as they get used for)


Sasqui said:


> both running Ubuntu desktop for WCG crunching.


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## Sasqui (Aug 8, 2018)

dorsetknob said:


> You get pwnd your wife and 6 daughters get kidnapped and sold to a Nigerian 419 Prince apart from that not alot for the average user ( and seeing as they get used for)



Other than the Nigerian prince I've been sharing account details with, nothing to be concerned with? *

* I don't have any daughters (that I know of)


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## Regeneration (Aug 8, 2018)

I heard the Chinese are looking to steal Steam accounts to cheat in PUBG and to prove to the world that China is number 1.


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## Regeneration (Aug 11, 2018)

Updated all ROMs with TRIM support for SSDs in RAID0.

I can't test 85 motherboards, so if something goes wrong during POST, just reset the CMOS, disable RAID from the BIOS, and let me know.


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## Kbird (Aug 11, 2018)

Thanks R.

Does this mean you think I could now try this modded Bios for my Gigabyte GA-X58A-UDR3 V2 ?  did you happen to look at the TT Mod 2 bios to see what they did ?  

I have found with mine that 12.9.4.1000 work well too in Win10


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## Regeneration (Aug 11, 2018)

Kbird said:


> Thanks R.
> 
> Does this mean you think I could now try this modded Bios for my Gigabyte GA-X58A-UDR3 V2 ?  did you happen to look at the TT Mod 2 bios to see what they did ?
> 
> I have found with mine that 12.9.4.1000 work well too in Win10



Yes. They just updated the option ROMs for the on-board controllers (LAN, SATA, RAID), which isn't a wise thing to do since some versions are designed for specific chip stepping (e.g. Jmicron).


----------



## Kbird (Aug 11, 2018)

Oh ok , I thought you may have updated the RAID ORoms too and this would be safe for my Array but I guess I had better not , at least not till I break the Raid Array.

Thanks.


----------



## Regeneration (Aug 11, 2018)

I have updated the Intel RAID O-ROM, but left other O-ROMs untouched. Should be safe for your array.


----------



## Kbird (Aug 11, 2018)

Oh great , which OROM is now used then ?

thanks again for the time put in...


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## Regeneration (Aug 11, 2018)

Depends on the vendor/model.

IIRC, v11.6 for yours, the latest official version for ICH10R.


----------



## Kbird (Aug 11, 2018)

Regeneration said:


> Depends on the vendor/model.
> 
> IIRC, v11.6 for yours, the latest official version for ICH10R.



Ok thanks for the info it is on 11.6.0.1702 now so , I think your are correct the Array should be okay.....

Gotta go look up my Notes , been a while since I Flashed a Board this Old   I think it has EZFlash 2 (or 3) though....

Will Report back when I do it ...... , Cheers


----------



## tbob22 (Aug 12, 2018)

P6T6 updated without issue.


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## Melana (Aug 13, 2018)

Came across this on google and had to create an account to upvote. 

First of all, thank you very much @Regeneration for the effort you put in, very much appreciated!

If you don't mind I'd like to know more about how you go about patching the ROMs. From what I understand from an earlier post is that you simply use a hex-editor and the Intel-provided microcode and drop that into the old vendor ROMs. But how do you know where you have to plop which microcode for which ROM? I'd assume that say an MSI BIOS is different from an Asus BIOS, even if both come from AMI. Do you search for the old microcode that the specific ROM uses and try to find that within the ROM?

I'm planning to try your image for the Asus P6T Deluxe V2 on my board, together with a C0 i7 920. Also because I'm thinking about upgrading the CPU to a Xeon X56xx I looked at the latest microcode file for Westmere-EP (06-2c-02) from Intel's latest Linux microcode package (20180807) and found the matching blob in your image for the Asus P6T Deluxe V2, but not in the original vendor ROM, so I assume that's just dropped in. However also the surrounding area of the ROM was different, compared to the stock version, so I assume those are probably option ROMS/checksums/..?

Did you have to do some reverse-engineering of the BIOS or do you just happen to know how they are structured? In the latter case, can you point me to any resources regarding that topic?

I'm just asking out of curiosity btw. With projects like coreboot/libreboot/heads, etc. that replace the entire mess that is the outdated vendor firmware (on a few select platforms), being able to drop in fresh microcode into proprietary vendor images seems like a great first step to save old hardware from becoming obsolete from a security standpoint.

Cheers!


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## Regeneration (Aug 13, 2018)

All of AMI and Award BIOSes from 2010 share a similar structure and leave the microcode uncompressed.

ucodes normally start with the following hex 01 00 00 00 XX.

However, there are a few rules, the ROM itself must remain in same size, some have checksum checks, AMI require ucodes to be in a specific size, and some motherboards are more sensitive to checksum errors.

There are a few 3rd party apps for BIOS modification and microcode extraction/injection (MCExtractor, CBROM, MMTool), but from my experience, can corrupt the ROM's structure and lead to POST issues.

My advice is to use those apps to learn about the procedure, but to do it manually.


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## Bokito38 (Aug 13, 2018)

Well thx for the hard work !

I updated my Bios (Asus P6XD58-Premium / Core i7 970) yesterday.
Was easy to update, I have just used the built in Asus flashing utlility trough the bios..
I suppose this will also be the case for other Asus X58 owners...

I ran SpectreMeltdownCheck and InSpectre before and after applying this modded bios.
And they see no difference, and it looks like i'm still vulnerable for spectre ?? 

See screenshots bellow, before and after.

I don't understand what I'm doing wrong here.
(also running latest Windows 10 Pro build with updates)

Thanks again for all the hard work, great to see some love for x58 systems !


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## Regeneration (Aug 13, 2018)

InSpectre seems to cache the results. Try to disable protection, reboot, re-enable, and reboot again. Also make sure the microcode revision is 1F, and try to power cycle the system.


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## Zyll Goliat (Aug 13, 2018)

Bokito38 said:


> Well thx for the hard work !
> 
> I updated my Bios (Asus P6XD58-Premium / Core i7 970) yesterday.
> Was easy to update, I have just used the built in Asus flashing utlility trough the bios..
> ...


I have the same mobo and I can confirm that this bios working flawlessly.....


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## Bokito38 (Aug 13, 2018)

@Regeneration ,

Thanks this fix my issue, disabling and renabling meltdown protecion..
I'm all good now 

Keep it going !


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## Regeneration (Aug 13, 2018)

Glad to hear it solved the problem. Seems like a bug in Windows.

I've added the registry entries to disable/enable both protections to the 1st post, along with the latest official chipset and AHCI drivers for X58.


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## Probotector (Aug 14, 2018)

Hi, this is the last BIOS for Asus P6X58D-E BIOS V8.03 with marvell 1.0.0.1038 :

https://www.bios-mods.com/forum/Thread-P6X58D-E-Marvell-Update?pid=102799#pid102799

Direct link: https://goo.gl/4VOonr

Can you add the last patches for meltdown and spectre?

Thanks for you effort and greetings from Spain


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## Regeneration (Aug 14, 2018)

@Probotector

Its better not to inject random upper versions of option ROMs. Doesn't always work as intended.

Besides, sometimes Intel's ICH10R performs better than all those Marvell/Jmicron PCIe x1 onboard controllers.


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## Regeneration (Aug 20, 2018)

Added ROMs for Elitegroup (ECS), Shuttle, XFX and Zotac.

If you have old X58 motherboard somewhere in the closet, feel free to put a Xeon in it now.


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## PurSpyk!! (Aug 20, 2018)

Is it better to use the built in Windows 10 chipset drivers, or the official Intel version?


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## Regeneration (Aug 20, 2018)

Intel chipset driver isn't significant and the latest version is for Windows 7. It's probably will work just fine on Windows 10. RST driver is more important (AHCI/RAID) and it's compatible with Windows 10.


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## PurSpyk!! (Aug 21, 2018)

Thanks, is the RST driver still required if you don't use RAID?


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## Regeneration (Aug 21, 2018)

RST delivers better performance for SATA AHCI mode.


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## PurSpyk!! (Aug 21, 2018)

Thanks, in all these years since I have had the motherboard I have never installed the RST drivers. Suppose time to install.


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## PurSpyk!! (Aug 25, 2018)

Installed only the RST drivers, and now Windows 10 refuses to boot, gets top logo and then pc restarts continues in this loop, and eventually the repair options appear. Even trying Safe Mode does not work. Had to do System Restore. Hard drivers are set to AHCI mode in the bios. So I am back to the default drivers which have always worked. Ant idea why this would be happening? I have not updated my BIOS still using the last official version, could this be the problem?


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## Regeneration (Aug 25, 2018)

PurSpyk!! said:


> Installed only the RST drivers, and now Windows 10 refuses to boot, gets top logo and then pc restarts continues in this loop, and eventually the repair options appear. Even trying Safe Mode does not work. Had to do System Restore. Hard drivers are set to AHCI mode in the bios. So I am back to the default drivers which have always worked. Ant idea why this would be happening? I have not updated my BIOS still using the last official version, could this be the problem?



Did you install Windows with SATA IDE or SATA AHCI? Try to install the RST driver manually via device manager.


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## Caring1 (Aug 26, 2018)

PurSpyk!! said:


> Thanks, in all these years since I have had the motherboard I have never installed the RST drivers. Suppose time to install.


Rapid Storage Technology IS NOT REQUIRED.
The best Chipset drivers are those supplied by the Motherboard manufacturer.


----------



## PurSpyk!! (Aug 26, 2018)

Regeneration said:


> Did you install Windows with SATA IDE or SATA AHCI? Try to install the RST driver manually via device manager.



Windows was installed with SATA AHCI, and the driver was installed via Device Manager, I didn't want any unnecessary Intel apps installed.


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## Regeneration (Aug 26, 2018)

PurSpyk!! said:


> Windows was installed with SATA AHCI, and the driver was installed via Device Manager, I didn't want any unnecessary Intel apps installed.



Perhaps some 3rd party software (like DVD burning or SPTD) is interfering with the change of SATA drivers.

In the device manager, open one of your disk drives, navigate to details, and look for class upper/lower filters.

If some 3rd party driver/filter is assigned to a controller, changing the driver would result in BSOD at Windows' startup.


----------



## PurSpyk!! (Aug 26, 2018)

I dont' get a BSOD, Windows just boots to the Logo and restarts and this loop continues until Windows does an automatic repair, even trying to go into Safe Mode results in the same problem, went back to the default Windows drivers and all works again. Very strange. Wonder in the Samsung Magician software is causing issues with the Intel drivers.


----------



## Regeneration (Aug 26, 2018)

3rd party drivers that assigned to the SATA controller as class filters can prevent Windows from starting after changing SATA drivers.

I already wrote how to check if there are any filters. Its possible Samsung Magician v5.x uses a class filter (for its Rapid mode).

Just disable the class filter before updating the driver, and re-enable it afterwards.


----------



## Kbird (Aug 26, 2018)

PurSpyk!! said:


> Windows was installed with SATA AHCI, and the driver was installed via Device Manager, I didn't want any unnecessary Intel apps installed.



Which Intel RST Driver Version ? 11.7.4.1001  or 12.9.4.1000?    12.9.4.1000 working here on my X58A board.

anything lower than 11.6 on Win10 can cause a BSOD/boot issues due to the Driver Changing to include a scsi filter that 11.2 etc did not have.


----------



## PurSpyk!! (Aug 26, 2018)

I used the one posted on this thread, will try 12.9.4.1000


----------



## Kbird (Aug 26, 2018)

PurSpyk!! said:


> I used the one posted on this thread, will try 12.9.4.1000



Try switching the Driver to the Default Microsoft one 1st ( standard AHCI SATA Controller) if not already done , then reboot and try a full 12.9.4.1000 install
you can always uninstall the RST Software after . (I Use RAID so I keep it installed for the acceleration usually since I've never had issues with it installed)

You can get them at WinRaid if needed , open the V12 Spolier to find them :

https://www.win-raid.com/t2f23-Intel-RST-RSTe-Drivers-newest-v-WHQL-v-WHQL.html


----------



## PurSpyk!! (Aug 27, 2018)

Installed the 12.9.4.1000 drivers, no issues, also nice how these drivers don't list all my hard drives as removable as the default drivers did. Thanks for the help, will see if the drives seem more responsive.


----------



## Regeneration (Aug 29, 2018)

PurSpyk!! said:


> Installed the 12.9.4.1000 drivers, no issues, also nice how these drivers don't list all my hard drives as removable as the default drivers did. Thanks for the help, will see if the drives seem more responsive.



RST 12.9.4.1000 doesn't support X58/ICH10R unless the controller is set to RAID mode, or the driver was modded.


----------



## Kbird (Aug 29, 2018)

Regeneration said:


> RST 12.9.4.1000 doesn't support X58/ICH10R unless the controller is set to RAID mode, or the driver was modded.



Ooops..... I am always using RAID so never noticed that, but WinRaid (Fernando) also Mods all versions for this reason and has them available here under the Ver.12 Spoiler :

https://www.win-raid.com/t11f23-Modded-Intel-AHCI-and-RAID-Drivers-digitally-signed.html

11.7.4.1001 also work for me though.


----------



## PurSpyk!! (Aug 29, 2018)

Regeneration said:


> RST 12.9.4.1000 doesn't support X58/ICH10R unless the controller is set to RAID mode, or the driver was modded.



Don't use RAID but at least these drivers install and Windows boots without any issues.


----------



## aaronsta1 (Sep 4, 2018)

can confirm the asrock x58 extreme bios works and passes the test with a x5660 B1 stepping


----------



## Zyll Goliat (Sep 4, 2018)

So far I noticed that the biggest impact on CPU performance after I tried various benchmarks is on 3Dmark FireStrike(Physics-Test)....before the patch I have 14,122 after the patch 12,679 in all other tests-benchmarks the difference is mostly minimal and negligible.......


----------



## R-T-B (Sep 5, 2018)

Zyll Goliath said:


> So far I noticed that the biggest impact on CPU performance after I tried various benchmarks is on 3Dmark FireStrike(Physics-Test)....before the patch I have 14,122 after the patch 12,679 in all other tests-benchmarks the difference is mostly minimal and negligible.......



Physics is all CPU so makes sense.


----------



## Fangio1951 (Sep 6, 2018)

hi all,

Does anyone know if this is suitable for = Gigabyte GA-EX58 Extreme (Socket 1366) mobo ??

regards


----------



## Kbird (Sep 6, 2018)

Fangio1951 said:


> hi all,
> 
> Does anyone know if this is suitable for = Gigabyte GA-EX58 Extreme (Socket 1366) mobo ??
> 
> regards



Gigabyte GA-EX58 Extreme is listed in the OP but you could wait for @Regeneration ( the bios's Updater ) to Confirm


----------



## Fangio1951 (Sep 7, 2018)

Kbird said:


> Gigabyte GA-EX58 Extreme is listed in the OP but you could wait for @Regeneration ( the bios's Updater ) to Confirm



hi m8,

Oops (forgot to have a look at OP) and thanks very much.

cheers


----------



## Ranmamez (Sep 21, 2018)

Hi.
Do you think you can add on the X58 motherboard bioses the vt-d fix like in the Asus Sabertooth X58 BIOS 1402?
I ask it because Windows 10 1803 x64 has a problem with vt-d enabled (it won't boot, it will only if it's disabled), and it seems that only that motherboard had already a fix.
You can read it here, the last message of the first page of this thread: https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us...4720-a05d-7084ecc7c0ab?rtAction=1526165636528
Thank you in advance.


----------



## Regeneration (Sep 23, 2018)

Ranmamez said:


> Hi.
> Do you think you can add on the X58 motherboard bioses the vt-d fix like in the Asus Sabertooth X58 BIOS 1402?
> I ask it because Windows 10 1803 x64 has a problem with vt-d enabled (it won't boot, it will only if it's disabled), and it seems that only that motherboard had already a fix.
> You can read it here, the last message of the first page of this thread: https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us...4720-a05d-7084ecc7c0ab?rtAction=1526165636528
> Thank you in advance.



The VT-d bug on Windows 10 appears on just some X58 motherboards. I couldn't find any specific code in the fixed Sabertooth BIOS.


----------



## Ranmamez (Sep 23, 2018)

Regeneration said:


> The VT-d bug on Windows 10 appears on just some X58 motherboards. I couldn't find any specific code in the fixed Sabertooth BIOS.


Ah, bummer! 
I thought it was general for every X58 motherboard.
Well, thank you anyway.


----------



## Regeneration (Oct 8, 2018)

Try to check if the VT-d issue appears on build 1809. Maybe Microsoft fixed it.

And by the way, I've renamed all ROMs to compatible MS-DOS 8.3 filenames. Thanks to jsfitz54 for the headsup.


----------



## Ranmamez (Oct 8, 2018)

Windows 10 1809 has the same vt-d bug/issue (and newer bugs also as you can check around the web).


----------



## PurSpyk!! (Oct 8, 2018)

Even the 19h1 builds still have this issue, doubt Microsoft will do anything to fix this, they seem to ignore most insider feedback anyway.


----------



## PurSpyk!! (Oct 22, 2018)

I see the latest insider builds of Windows 10 is suppose to limit the impact of these microcode fixes, has anyone tried this to see if the impact is indeed less with the latest 19H1 build?


----------



## Regeneration (Oct 22, 2018)

PurSpyk!! said:


> I see the latest insider builds of Windows 10 is suppose to limit the impact of these microcode fixes, has anyone tried this to see if the impact is indeed less with the latest 19H1 build?



It should restore some performance since the microcode in the ROMs support IBRS.


----------



## PurSpyk!! (Oct 22, 2018)

Regeneration said:


> It should restore some performance since the microcode in the ROMs support IBRS.



Great news, pity we have to wait for the next update for this.


----------



## Regeneration (Oct 24, 2018)

Anyone with an unlisted X58 motherboard, or those who prefer to avoid flashing modified ROMs, can now use this alternative method to load a patched microcode.


----------



## NPina (Nov 3, 2018)

Hello , now i feel much more protect.
I have a x58 system:
Asus P658XD-E
Xeon X5690
24GB RAM Corsair
Thanks for your great help!
Now i have a question, why you use this drivers:
"Intel Chipset Device Software 9.4.0.1017"
and not this
"Intel Chipset Device Software v9.4.2.1020"
*Sorry for my bad English
Best regards


----------



## Eian (Nov 3, 2018)

Hello,

I'm using a Xeon X5650 (Microcode 206C2) on a P6T Deluxe (2209 Bios) motherboard.
I'm getting SLOWER performance when using the InSpectre tool even after I updated to the modded version of the bios.
(http://www.mediafire.com/file/wjp627dgmv1uzn5/P6TD-DELUXE-ASUS-0608-MOD.ZIP/file)

Excuse me if there is something I'm missing,
I though that by updating the microcode through the bios would improve the performance since it wouldn't require higher level software to patch the security hole.

So is the reading I'm getting from InSpectre tool normal? Is there something else I can do to improve this performance hit?


 

Thank you,

Best regards!


----------



## Regeneration (Nov 3, 2018)

NPina said:


> Hello , now i feel much more protect.
> I have a x58 system:
> Asus P658XD-E
> Xeon X5690
> ...



Intel Chipset Device Software 9.4.0.1017 is the last version that is verified to install all of X58 chipset components.



Eian said:


> Hello,
> 
> I'm using a Xeon X5650 (Microcode 206C2) on a P6T Deluxe (2209 Bios) motherboard.
> I'm getting SLOWER performance when using the InSpectre tool even after I updated to the modded version of the bios.
> ...



The SLOWER performance indicator in InSpectre is just relative vs. new CPUs. It is perfectly normal.

Modern CPUs take a smaller hit from Spectre mitigation due to the INVPCID feature.

Spectre cannot be patched by software. It requires a microcode update.

Next update of Windows 10 will improve Spectre mitigation performance even further.


----------



## Eian (Nov 3, 2018)

Regeneration said:


> Intel Chipset Device Software 9.4.0.1017 is the last version that is verified to install all of X58 chipset components.
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Thank you for your fast reply and info!!
So since I was getting the same indications in InSpectre with the official Bios, are there any other benefits so to consider the modded Bios?


----------



## Regeneration (Nov 4, 2018)

Eian said:


> Thank you for your fast reply and info!!
> So since I was getting the same indications in InSpectre with the official Bios, are there any other benefits so to consider the modded Bios?



The microcode in the modded BIOS is newer, more stable, and a bit faster than the one embedded in Windows 10.

TRIM support for SSDs in RAID and the luxury to switch from Windows 10 to another OS.


----------



## savvy007 (Nov 18, 2018)

Hi,
anyone around, who can confirm, that a P6T is working in RAID-Mode using the updated BIOS with the new OROM?

I’m running the P6T (plain vanilla) with an i7-980X and 2 x SSD in RAID0. After upgrading the BIOS (11/08/2018) the OROM doesn’t show up at all, even after a CMOS reset (jumper & battery).
Currently I’m running a 1408 BIOS with updated OROM V10.1.0.1008 since 2011 without issues, but would be very interested in the newer version because of the included TRIM feature, besides the Spectre patch.
Thanks for your help & keep up the great work!


----------



## Regeneration (Nov 18, 2018)

savvy007 said:


> Hi,
> anyone around, who can confirm, that a P6T is working in RAID-Mode using the updated BIOS with the new OROM?
> 
> I’m running the P6T (plain vanilla) with an i7-980X and 2 x SSD in RAID0. After upgrading the BIOS (11/08/2018) the OROM doesn’t show up, even after a CMOS reset (jumper & battery).
> ...



The BIOS of ASUS P6T was tested thoroughly and found to be 100 pecent stable.

Something is wrong on your end. Maybe, you have a non-standard P6T (crossflashed P6T SE?).


----------



## Vlada011 (Nov 18, 2018)

Can someone to explain me one thing... This mean I'm protected???
And I'm fully protected or partially?





Because I flash 1902 BETA BIOS on ASUS Rampage V E10 and Windows is updated 1809 version.
I didn't done anything else to protect self, didn't change BIOS codes, nothing.

If I'm fully protected, why then people dramatized and search for so many fixes and invest so much time to find solution, to update, upgrade, re-flash, reinstall and why we read about so many problems. I'm very sad because I didn't check In Spectre Checker before I done ASUS Flashback from 1801 to 1902 version, just to confirm if maybe new Beta BIOS launched before few months changed something.

If someone could explain, thanks.


----------



## savvy007 (Nov 18, 2018)

Hi Regeneration,
thanks for your super-fast reply!
From what I know, it's not crossflashed, it's still showing as "P6T", just the OROM had been updated. What can I do to verify?
All setting had been verified, System boots from alternative disk, all looking fine. All disks are shown in "AHCI", as  soon I select "RAID" they disappear as normal. The boot process continues, showing JMicron-OROM, but no Intel?


----------



## Regeneration (Nov 18, 2018)

Vlada011 said:


> Can someone to explain me one thing... This mean I'm protected???
> And I'm fully protected or partially?
> 
> View attachment 110843
> ...



Haswell (306F2) is still fully supported by both ASUS and Microsoft. Previous CPUs are less fortunate.



savvy007 said:


> Hi Regeneration,
> thanks for your super-fast reply!
> From what I know, it's not crossflashed, it's still showing as "P6T", just the OROM had been updated. What can I do to verify?
> All setting had been verified, System boots from alternative disk, all looking fine. All disks are shown in "AHCI", as  soon I select "RAID" they disappear as normal. The boot process continues, showing JMicron-OROM, but no Intel?



You don't get the Intel RAID prompt with CTRL-I? Try to disable the full screen logo.


----------



## savvy007 (Nov 18, 2018)

full screen logo is always off!  like to see details, no advertisements…  

Yes, no Intel RAID info at all! No table, Nothing! So no chance for a CTRL-I. Tried "AddOn ROM Display Mode" in "Force BIOS" and "Keep Current" -> no change


----------



## Regeneration (Nov 18, 2018)

savvy007 said:


> full screen logo is always off!  like to see details, no advertisements…



The only logical explanation I can think of is: the RAID array is bugged because it was created by another O-ROM. I'm quite sure you'll get the RAID screen if you unplug the drives. So, the solution is to extract the O-ROM from your previous BIOS and to inject it to the new one with a 3rd party tool such as MMTool.


----------



## savvy007 (Nov 18, 2018)

ok, I'll try that tomorrow, keeping just one empty drive connected...
No need to extract the old OROM-Code, cause I'm interested in the new version including the Trim function as well!

Will keep you posted, thanks a lot for all your suggestions!


----------



## Regeneration (Nov 18, 2018)

savvy007 said:


> ok, I'll try that tomorrow, keeping just one empty drive connected...
> No need to extract the old OROM-Code, cause I'm interested in the new version including the Trim function as well!
> 
> Will keep you posted, thanks a lot for all your suggestions!



Best thing to do is to inject this O-ROM to your BIOS.


----------



## savvy007 (Nov 19, 2018)

ok, whatever I tried, no disk, single empty disk, 2 empty disks, all different ports -> no success! No OROM displayed. As soon as RAID is selected, no disk is shown in boot-list either.
Funny enought, I booted from a USB-Stick with WinPE while the original SSD's where connected: the RAID0-Vol was shown in WinPE, could be accessed without Problems and the devmgr showed the correct "Intel(R) Desktop/Workstation/Server Express Chipset SATA RAID Controller". So it seems, the basic RAID funktions work, but the disks are not seen by the BIOS.

Guess I have to bite the bullet and try to implement the above 10.1.0.1008 OROM into your new BIOS. Never done that before, so need some deep reading about it...
What was the OROM Version, you implemented into the modified Spectre-Bios on Aug-11 for the P6T?


----------



## Xrhstos (Dec 5, 2018)

Hello and thanks for your work Regeneration,
Im using an ASUS Rampage 2 Extreme and im getting an error message "boot block in file is not valid"  whenever i try to flash your bios
downloaded multiple times, can you please look into it?


----------



## Regeneration (Dec 5, 2018)

Xrhstos said:


> Hello and thanks for your work Regeneration,
> Im using an ASUS Rampage 2 Extreme and im getting an error message "boot block in file is not valid"  whenever i try to flash your bios
> downloaded multiple times, can you please look into it?



Try flashing from with the included AFUDOS utility from a flash drive formatted in FAT32 filesystem.


----------



## Xrhstos (Dec 5, 2018)

just tried with the "afudos i/[R2XTREME].rom" command but it says "unable to open ROM file"


----------



## Xrhstos (Dec 5, 2018)

Sorry , never used this utility before as i was always flashing through the motherboard built in utility.
tried it also but this is what i get
im sure im missing some steps though


----------



## Regeneration (Dec 5, 2018)

Try: afudos /iR2XTREME.ROM /nr /pbnc


----------



## Xrhstos (Dec 5, 2018)

Thank you very much for your effort and support
Just booted after a successful flash!
The one that worked for me was 
"afudos /iR2EXTREME.rom" with no extra switces


----------



## meetajhu (Dec 8, 2018)

I have Rampage II Extreme motherboard and updating bios with your modded one allows me to install Windows 1803 or still requires VT-D fixing. I just don't want to disable VT-D as its useful for emulation and vm's. I tired installing 1803 and 1809 with VT-D off system was totally unstable. Steam was constantly crashing.


----------



## Sman76 (Dec 9, 2018)

Any chance of "intel dx58so" modded bios ?

Thanks


----------



## Regeneration (Dec 10, 2018)

Sman76 said:


> Any chance of "intel dx58so" modded bios ?
> 
> Thanks



Intel X58 motherboards prevent BIOS modification with checksum protection. Use the microcode boot loader instead.


----------



## Thumper68 (Dec 23, 2018)

Regeneration said:


> Linked below is a database of modified BIOSes for X58 motherboards patched with the latest microcode (0x1F for Westmere, 0x1D for Bloomfield) against Meltdown and all variants of Spectre. Make sure the operating system is also updated to be fully protected from speculative execution side-channel vulnerabilities (CVE-2017-5715, CVE-2017-5753, CVE-2017-5754).
> 
> While most of Nehalem CPUs received a new microcode from Intel, there is an early stepping (C0) that hasn't and therefore still vulnerable at the moment. However, these very few CPUs will also benefit from increased security and stability due to more recent microcode. In addition, the ROMs feature TRIM support for SSDs in RAID0 and extended CPU compatibility table for all motherboards.
> 
> ...



Thanks for putting in the work and posting all these bios updates when you really didn’t have to and so many people are asses about it if they don’t like it then they should kick rocks!

I’m about to put together a Gigabyte EX58-UD4P x5680 just wanted to ask if this bios update would work best knowing it’s technically not supported cpu. Have seen others post if using this combo with no issues but have been unable to find out what bios etc they have been using. Thanks


----------



## Regeneration (Dec 23, 2018)

Thumper68 said:


> Thanks for putting in the work and posting all these bios updates when you really didn’t have to and so many people are asses about it if they don’t like it then they should kick rocks!
> 
> I’m about to put together a Gigabyte EX58-UD4P x5680 just wanted to ask if this bios update would work best knowing it’s technically not supported cpu. Have seen others post if using this combo with no issues but have been unable to find out what bios etc they have been using. Thanks



GA-EX58-UD4P should support X5600 series as long as the BIOS is updated to version F11 or newer.

First generation i7 hexacore CPUs share the same CPUID with Xeon X5600 and W3600 series.


----------



## Thumper68 (Dec 24, 2018)

Regeneration said:


> GA-EX58-UD4P should support X5600 series as long as the BIOS is updated to version F11 or newer.
> 
> First generation i7 hexacore CPUs share the same CPUID with Xeon X5600 and W3600 series.




Thank you for the quick straightforward response. I took as much from reading the thread but the only stupid question is the one not asked.


----------



## Regeneration (Jan 25, 2019)

Done additional testing on Gigabyte X58 motherboards today. Everything works perfectly.




On another note, it is possible to upgrade to real SATA 3 and even M.2 / NVMe on X58.

On some X58 motherboards, there is a built-in Marvell 9128 SATA 3 controller, but is limited to PCIe x1.

Cheap add-on cards like OWC Accelsior S and SilverStone ECS03 (both powered by ASMedia ASM1062) will give near SATA 3 speeds when installed in a PCIe 2.0 slot (usually PEG slots)



Same goes with SilverStone ECM2x series add-on cards. Clover EFI bootloader can be used to boot from such devices.


----------



## meetajhu (Jan 25, 2019)

@Regeneration Is it possible to install Windows 10 1803 with VT-D enabled on Rampage II Extreme with your patched bios? Thanks


----------



## Regeneration (Jan 26, 2019)

meetajhu said:


> Is it possible to install Windows 10 1803 with VT-D enabled on Rampage II Extreme with your patched bios? Thanks



I never experienced the VT-d bug on any of my X58 systems.

There was an errata in some revisions of 5500/5520/X58 related to virtualization. The workaround is to disable interrupt remapping.


----------



## meetajhu (Jan 27, 2019)

Regeneration said:


> I never experienced the VT-d bug on any of my X58 systems.
> 
> There was an errata in some revisions of 5500/5520/X58 related to virtualization. The workaround is to disable interrupt remapping.



I'm using Windows. How do i disable that?


----------



## PurSpyk!! (Feb 8, 2019)

Would be nice to know if this is possible. Anyone with an X58 motherboard managed to get Application Guard to work, mine gets to 30% and fails. Not sure if its because we have to disable vt-d.


----------



## Dhiru (Feb 19, 2019)

Just registered in the forums to thank to you for work.

Successfully updated MSI Big Bang X Power to the patched BIOS. Thank you!


```
[    0.000000] DMI: MSI MS-7666/Big Bang-XPower (MS-7666), BIOS V1.8B1 10/12/2012
[    1.201013] microcode: sig=0x206c2, pf=0x1, revision=0x1f
[    1.201409] microcode: Microcode Update Driver: v2.2.
```


----------



## 1337. (Feb 25, 2019)

Hi. Have a DFI lanparty DK te3h6 x58 motherboard, asked on bios-mods if it would support Intel xenon x5687 with your bios. I got a answer that it would. Tried today with the xenon cpu. Just black-screen :/. Tried to reset cmos etc. Any advice? I replaced the xenon with another CPU i7 920 that workd like a charm like it did before.


----------



## Regeneration (Feb 25, 2019)

1337. said:


> Hi. Have a DFI lanparty DK te3h6 x58 motherboard, asked on bios-mods if it would support Intel xenon x5687 with your bios. I got a answer that it would. Tried today with the xenon cpu. Just black-screen :/. Tried to reset cmos etc. Any advice? I replaced the xenon with another CPU i7 920 that workd like a charm like it did before.



Try to reduce uncore ratio to 1.5 of DDR clock before installing the CPU.

Some X58 motherboards will not POST with X5600 series and uncore above 1.5.


----------



## 1337. (Feb 25, 2019)

Ok. Can try later. But have you added support for that cpu in this bios update? It is not supported by orginal Dfi bios updates for some reason.
And what is the the difference between the two different bios updates for the same board t3eh6?


----------



## Regeneration (Feb 25, 2019)

1337. said:


> Ok. Can try later. But have you added support for that cpu in this bios update? It is not supported by orginal Dfi bios updates for some reason.
> And what is the the difference between the two different bios updates for the same board t3eh6?



T3eH6 and T3eH6-A are different models. The ROMs available in the 1st post support all socket 1366 CPUs.


----------



## 1337. (Feb 25, 2019)

Is it possible to add this as a modded standard function : uncore ratio to 1.5 of DDR clock. As a " xenon editon" kind of for my motherboard? Because if the cmos reset itself, maby i get a blackscreen again?


----------



## 1337. (Feb 25, 2019)

Btw this is the newest bios from DFI for Lanparty DK T3eh6 x58. Tried to find out if there are any real differences between T3eh6 and T3eh6-A but could not find any info on that. It is newer than the date in your bios file if that date is from DFI. It is the latest release anyways. I used it before i updated to yours.


----------



## Regeneration (Feb 26, 2019)

1337. said:


> Btw this is the newest bios from DFI for Lanparty DK T3eh6 x58. Tried to find out if there are any real differences between T3eh6 and T3eh6-A but could not find any info on that. It is newer than the date in your bios file if that date is from DFI. It is the latest release anyways. I used it before i updated to yours.



This ROM has invalid checksums and therefore isn't genuine.


----------



## 1337. (Feb 26, 2019)

It's a beta or something. I found it on another forum. I don't know.


----------



## Cry9 (Mar 5, 2019)

Would love a Rampage 3 Black Edition bios orz.


----------



## Regeneration (Mar 5, 2019)

Cry9 said:


> Would love a Rampage 3 Black Edition bios orz.



Never heard of black edition. Added it to the database.


----------



## NPina (Mar 8, 2019)

Hello, I'm using this BIOS patch since the beginning you made that. And thanks for that.
But now we have a new patch from Microsoft KB4482887 developed from Google.
https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/ne...erformance-with-retpoline-spectre-mitigation/
Now i have Retpoline Spectre Mitigation activated and working.
My question its: We need to re-flash the official BIOS back to restore the performance?
Sorry for bad English
*I have a Asus P6X58D-E with 0803 BIOS modded by you.
Thanks for your big work.


----------



## Regeneration (Mar 8, 2019)

You don't need to reflash the BIOS for retpoline. Spectre mitigation method is controlled by the OS.


----------



## NPina (Mar 8, 2019)

You are right!
And I already done the tests, without your modded BIOS and with it.
I only made the test with Cinebench r20 3 times each with modded BIOS and 3 times without modded one,
with full shutdown of system and background apps cleaned every time, and i run this cmd "winsat.exe formal -restart"
for each BIOS flash "only 2 times need for this all experiment"
With your modded BIOS I get about around 10pts more, its pointless i know but still better.
And I checked InSpectre.exe in both BIOS they say the same "Meltdown, Spectre protected: YES, Microcode Update Available: YES and Performance: SLOWER,
because microcode it is already there in all test i made with your BIOS patch or not, because I already have retpoline patch applied.
Better with your BIOS my system still protect for all OS's even with old ones.
Thanks for your time to reply me, with so bad question.


----------



## portugese pirate (Mar 11, 2019)

sorry for stupid questions....I have a DFI LANParty JR X58-T3H6 ......is this the latest and greatest bios with 6 core support? and why are the bioses being modded? and last how do I go forward in putting this bios on my board?


----------



## Regeneration (Mar 11, 2019)

portugese pirate said:


> sorry for stupid questions....I have a DFI LANParty JR X58-T3H6 ......is this the latest and greatest bios with 6 core support? and why are the bioses being modded? and last how do I go forward in putting this bios on my board?



DFI stopped producing motherboards in 2010. The company also shut down its LanParty website. The DFI BIOS ROMs available here came from 3rd party sources. While the DFI ROMs support Gulftown, it is not guaranteed to work for 100 percent.


----------



## portugese pirate (Mar 11, 2019)

thank you for answering one of my questions.......where would I find the last bios for that board?


----------



## Regeneration (Mar 11, 2019)

portugese pirate said:


> thank you for answering one of my questions.......where would I find the last bios for that board?



No where. You're better off with the BIOS from the 1st post.


----------



## portugese pirate (Mar 11, 2019)

thank you.....I currently have a i7 950 in it now, but have an i7 970 laying around that I would like to try out. Is there any instructions on how to flash the new bios?......once again thank you for all your help.


----------



## Regeneration (Mar 12, 2019)

portugese pirate said:


> thank you.....I currently have a i7 950 in it now, but have an i7 970 laying around that I would like to try out. Is there any instructions on how to flash the new bios?......once again thank you for all your help.



Download Rufus and create a bootable USB flash drive with MS-DOS. Unzip the BIOS archive to the USB flash drive, boot from it, and type the following in DOS prompt: AWDFLASH JX58D908.BIN /cks/sn/py/cc/cd/cp/ld/qi/WB/ch

You should reduce the uncore ratio to 1.5x before installing the new hexacore CPU (if DDR clock is 1600, set uncore to 2400).


----------



## portugese pirate (Mar 17, 2019)

well I flashed the bios.....but I cant find uncore ratio in the bios.......I must be missing something......fans just spin with hexacore installed it doesn't boot......it stays at 88 error


----------



## Regeneration (Mar 17, 2019)

portugese pirate said:


> well I flashed the bios.....but I cant find uncore ratio in the bios.......I must be missing something......fans just spin with hexacore installed it doesn't boot......it stays at 88 error



"UnCore Frequency" is in the bottom of "Genie BIOS Setting" sub-menu. Needs to be adjusted to DDR frequency x 1.5 BEFORE installing the hexacore.


----------



## R-T-B (Mar 17, 2019)

Regeneration said:


> "UnCore Frequency" is in the bottom of "Genie BIOS Setting" sub-menu. Needs to be adjusted to DDR frequency x 1.5 BEFORE installing the hexacore.



Heh, not just on DFI.  I had an intel board (DX58SO2) I did similar with that was not very happy.  Fortunately it had a CMOS clear button and autodetected properly on reboot, but really, just setting it at first will make your life easier.


----------



## Regeneration (Mar 17, 2019)

R-T-B said:


> Heh, not just on DFI.  I had an intel board (DX58SO2) I did similar with that was not very happy.  Fortunately it had a CMOS clear button and autodetected properly on reboot, but really, just setting it at first will make your life easier.



Intel and DFI made the worst X58 motherboards. On Intel, the LLC option is reversed, power saving is in fact high performance. Also, the boards will not POST with Westmere and uncore ratio 1.8x and above. Memory tRFC is very limited. And you can't increase the non-turbo multiplier even for unlocked CPUs. Half of the BIOS options were broken. Better to get a used ASUS or Gigabyte motherboard from eBay.


----------



## R-T-B (Mar 17, 2019)

Regeneration said:


> Intel and DFI made the worst X58 motherboards. On Intel, the LLC option is reversed, power saving is in fact high performance. Also, the boards will not POST with Westmere and uncore ratio 1.8x and above. Memory tRFC is very limited. And you can't increase the non-turbo multiplier even for unlocked CPUs. Half of the BIOS options were broken. Better to get a used ASUS or Gigabyte motherboard from eBay.



I know from experience.  About the only saving grace of that board was it was cheap and had UEFI support (barely, but enough to boot from GPT).


----------



## portugese pirate (Mar 17, 2019)

is it possible this board only supports 980x....ok found uncore frequency......but options are BCLK*02....BCLK*04......up to *14


----------



## Regeneration (Mar 18, 2019)

portugese pirate said:


> is it possible this board only supports 980x....ok found uncore frequency......but options are BCLK*02....BCLK*04......up to *14



If it will not POST even with reduced uncore, then yes. This can be a physical design limitiation exclusive to DFI. On eBay, you can find cheap used X58 motherboards from Chinese sellers. GA-X58A-UD3R for example, is cheap and features USB3 and SATA3. There are cheap Samsung DDR3 modules too, capable of running at 2000 MHz and above.


----------



## portugese pirate (Mar 18, 2019)

ok......but what setting do I try......BCLK*02....BCLK*04 or one of the other ones? not going to buy a board, it runs fine with the i7 950.....just wanted to try the 6 core


----------



## Regeneration (Mar 20, 2019)

portugese pirate said:


> ok......but what setting do I try......BCLK*02....BCLK*04 or one of the other ones? not going to buy a board, it runs fine with the i7 950.....just wanted to try the 6 core



Uncore freqeuncy needs to be 1.5x of DDR speed.

DDR3 1066 = Uncore 1600 (BCLK * 12)
DDR3 1333 = Uncore 2000 (BCLK * 15)
DDR3 1600 = Uncore 2400 (BCLK * 18)


----------



## Kurnn (Apr 5, 2019)

Regeneration said:


> Uncore freqeuncy needs to be 1.5x of DDR speed.
> 
> DDR3 1066 = Uncore 1600 (BCLK * 12)
> DDR3 1333 = Uncore 2000 (BCLK * 15)
> DDR3 1600 = Uncore 2400 (BCLK * 18)



Hey Mr Master BIOS Coder Regeneration.

I only signed up here to tell you THANK YOU, for your awesome BIOS update for ASUS Sabertooth X58 with the Spectre/Meltdown protection.
I dont understand why, but my system got 30% FASTER with your BIOS. I had the normal latest BIOS from ASUS (2012).

When I disabled Meltdown, the CPU increased 10%ish in performance on 3 areas.

I never overclocked my Intel I7 ever since I got then 2011 (!!). But gave it a try now and they going strong at 3.4ghz.
My RAM speed was automaticly set to the correct settings, but I am 99% sure thats ASUS own GOOD BIOS tool.

Thank you Regeneration! I play Civ 6 a lot, on huge maps with millions of civs (Calculations and 26+ features my GPU does NOT support.
I tested on everything on max settings with max features and AI players.

No....Lag. Before the flash of your BIOS, my settings where Medium, and started to leak ram/lag, after 1000 turns or so.

Do you create any other BIOS/drivers for Sabertooth/Intel chipset/I7 CPU, with that magic mind of yours?
The Latest Intel Chipset does NOT do very much, AND the driverbooster, and similar "tools", are becoming an increasing malware magnet.

If you ever do anything more for us with older, GOOD solid systems, please let me know!
I can't pay much, but I got dominion over a hot blond swedish curvy chick, who would love to meet ye!

Cheers!


----------



## Cry9 (Apr 9, 2019)

Regeneration said:


> Never heard of black edition. Added it to the database.


Thank you, swan song board.


----------



## Dhiru (Apr 9, 2019)

Regeneration said:


> The VT-d bug on Windows 10 appears on just some X58 motherboards. I couldn't find any specific code in the fixed Sabertooth BIOS.



Asus x58 boards have broken DMAR table. This is the reason why maybe the latest build of Windows 10 doesn't boot with VT-d enabled. Can you patch the DMAR table in the BIOS?


----------



## meetajhu (Apr 20, 2019)

Dhiru said:


> Asus x58 boards have broken DMAR table. This is the reason why maybe the latest build of Windows 10 doesn't boot with VT-d enabled. Can you patch the DMAR table in the BIOS?



This!


----------



## AgenttiX (May 5, 2019)

First of all, thank you very much for all the hard work you've done, @Regeneration!

So far I've been using another modified BIOS from here (this file to be precise) for my GA-X58A-UD7 (rev. 1.0) and was wondering whether your patches could be combined with the existing ROM updates included in those modified BIOSes. If so, could we perhaps see a download link or a link to instructions on how to perform such modifications?


----------



## Bittornado (May 14, 2019)

Hello!

Thank you @Regeneration for being virtually the only one, offering microcode updated BIOSes to all of us poor unlucky individuals, whom both M$ and the motherboard manufacturers chose to leave behind their "microcode-updating-crusade"... I just found my Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD7 (Rev1.0) latest official BIOS version, here, updated with the needed microcodes! Many thanks 



AgenttiX said:


> First of all, thank you very much for all the hard work you've done, @Regeneration!
> 
> So far I've been using another modified BIOS from here (this file to be precise) for my GA-X58A-UD7 (rev. 1.0) and was wondering whether your patches could be combined with the existing ROM updates included in those modified BIOSes. If so, could we perhaps see a download link or a link to instructions on how to perform such modifications?


+1 for the above 

I can happily offer an already pretty much recent updated modded GA-X58A-UD7 (rev. 1.0) BIOS, called "F9D", which has some of the latest firmware updates for both Marvell, JMicron, Realtek and the best modded Intel RST RAID ROM version for allowing TRIM in RAID0, for you to please add the needed microcodes into it 

I have also another microcode updated BIOS version which even has microcodes for some of the additional CPUIDs which your microcode updated F9A BIOS is actually lacking (106A2 & 206C0) [using MC Extractor v1.32.1]

Please let me know! It would be greatly appreciated.


----------



## Regeneration (May 17, 2019)

Intl8ldr said:


> Thank you @Regeneration for all your hard work on this! It is truly appreciated!
> 
> I have read every page in this thread, but I am still at a loss if my CPU's are covered (Spectre patched) with the latest CPU micro codes in your patched BIOS-s. I have several X58 based boards:
> 2x Rampage II Extreme
> ...



Yes.


----------



## josip3211 (May 19, 2019)

p6t supports x5650 ?









						P6T   | Motherboards | ASUS Global
					






					www.asus.com


----------



## Regeneration (May 19, 2019)

josip3211 said:


> p6t supports x5650 ?
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Yes


----------



## josip3211 (May 19, 2019)

Regeneration said:


> Yes


What a bios version ?


----------



## Regeneration (May 19, 2019)

josip3211 said:


> What a bios version ?



Latest (v1408).


----------



## josip3211 (May 19, 2019)

Regeneration said:


> Latest (v1408).


download link ?


----------



## Regeneration (May 22, 2019)

Regarding the recent MDS vulnerabilities, Intel said it will not release microcode for anything older than Sandy Bridge (2nd gen).

For now, the solution is to disable HT. You'll lose performance, but gain lower temperatures, lower vcore, lower latency and more room for overclocking.

Of course, you can nag Intel security team (email is: secure-at-intel.com).


----------



## fullinfusion (May 23, 2019)

Regeneration said:


> Regarding the recent MDS vulnerabilities, Intel said it will not release microcode for anything older than Sandy Bridge (2nd gen).
> 
> For now, the solution is to disable HT. You'll lose performance, but gain lower temperatures, lower vcore, lower latency and more room for overclocking.
> 
> Of course, you can nag Intel security team (email is: secure-at-intel.com).


PPL and their tinfoil hats hey! God bless America!! But seriously 

M$ gives me a microcode update and I just nuke it, problem solved.. One thing I need to add.. I own Intel cpu sadly and I'm an AMD fan Boi and I refuse to disable HT.. Why? Because honestly im not afraid nor do I care, I have no reason to concern myself with this over hyped bull shit.. I have a gaming rig and nothing more, it isn't a server hosting Google, Amazon, ect... so why should us petty users be concerned?

But thanks for the list on page one


----------



## Caesar007 (May 24, 2019)

Intl8ldr said:


> This latest round of MS security patches is really bringing down the performance. I mean the Spectre Meltdown patching was ok especially with the microcode updates posted here on this forum. Thank you @Regeneration ! But these latest MS patches are BS!
> Stuff that worked smoothly before (using Spectre patched BIOS and W10 1809 MS parches) have now all of a sudden become painfully slow even at the GUI level - it's crazy!
> The MS s/w patches that have been rolled out cannot be the answer! They have to fix at another level than nuking the whole machine. My understanding is that, for the attacks to be effective, the attacker need local access and the logical entry point is through the browser e.g. inject the attack in javascript or other internet connected s/w. Seams like the browsers and s/w that use network should be the focus for patching. If not patchable they need to fundamentally rearchitect the s/w so networked S/W runs in a complete sandbox walled off from the rest of the OS stuff.
> I agree with @fullinfusion, this is BS. The MS patching is killing legit s/w like games just because of a potential attack through the browser. They should fix the browser and networked s/w, not nuke the machine.
> ...



Can you do the same for Asus P6T7 WS Supercomputer? 

Please!


----------



## Lev00 (May 25, 2019)

This is my first post, I registered just to say thank you @Regeneration , your work on this is much appreciated. I've updated a two GA-X58A-UDR3 motherboards (rev2.0 and rev1.0) and a GA-X58-UD4P.

In regards to the GA-X58-UD4P, I noticed you have tested this board extensively. I've tried a x5650 and x5660. The BIOS detects the CPUs correctly. No matter what BIOS version I try, the motherboard will not reboot or shutdown when using a Xeon.

Except for this reboot/shutdown problems, everything else works great with the Xeon. Windows 10 boots normal and is completely stable. If I switch back to a i7-920 then reboot and shutdown work normally. I'm not sure what the difference is.

Have you experienced this? If you haven't, would you have and idea what the potential cause may be and how to troubleshoot?


----------



## Regeneration (May 25, 2019)

Lev00 said:


> In regards to the GA-X58-UD4P, I noticed you have tested this board extensively. I've tried a x5650 and x5660. The BIOS detects the CPUs correctly. No matter what BIOS version I try, the motherboard will not reboot or shutdown when using a Xeon.



Nope. The only known issue with Gigabyte X58 motherboards and Xeons is with memory multiplier.


----------



## icy (May 27, 2019)

Just registered to share a bit more info on the issues I was(/am) having with the GA-X58-UD4P board and a Xeon X5675.

First of all thank you @Regeneration for keeping the X58 alive. Excellent work.

Basically there are 2 main problems with my setup:

1. Overclocking the BCLK in the BIOS to a value above 150 does not work. It doesn't really matter how other settings are set, the moment I raise the BCLK above 150 and hit save-and-exit, the system reboots and immediately shuts down. Then it starts again by itself but all the overclock related settings were reset to some safe defaults and an error message is displayed regarding an instability.

I remember reading somewhere that it is possible to go beyond 150 BLCK by using the EasyTune program. I tried it a few times but it only froze my system (or was it BSOD?).

2. As @Lev00 said- restart doesn't work. If I try to restart the system by using the reset button for example, or selecting restart from a running OS, or even simply hitting alt-ctrl-del while in DOS or in the BIOS menus, the screen will indeed go black and all the LEDs on the motherboard will light up, but the system will not boot. It will remain "frozen" like that until I forcefully power it down. The annoying part is that when I power it up again, the BIOS will detect that the previous boot was unsuccessful, so of course it will reset-to-default all the overclock related settings forcing me to reload them again.

I tried flushing probably most of the known BIOS versions available for this board, but these two issues always remained. I even tried cross-flashing with several BIOS versions for the GA-X58-Extreme board (which is very similar btw). Exact same results.

Using one of those cheap PC Analyzer Diagnostic Cards I noticed that when performing a restart the BIOS was actually stuck in an endless loop going through the same series of boot codes over and over again. 

Other than that the system is perfectly stable and it is running 24/7 for quite some time now.


----------



## R-T-B (May 27, 2019)

fullinfusion said:


> PPL and their tinfoil hats hey! God bless America!! But seriously
> 
> M$ gives me a microcode update and I just nuke it, problem solved.. One thing I need to add.. I own Intel cpu sadly and I'm an AMD fan Boi and I refuse to disable HT.. Why? Because honestly im not afraid nor do I care, I have no reason to concern myself with this over hyped bull shit.. I have a gaming rig and nothing more, it isn't a server hosting Google, Amazon, ect... so why should us petty users be concerned?
> 
> But thanks for the list on page one



Wrong thread dude.  Actual security concerned types at work here...



Intl8ldr said:


> If not patchable they need to fundamentally rearchitect the s/w so networked S/W runs in a complete sandbox walled off from the rest of the OS stuff.



Javascript and networked code IS typically sandboxed.  MDS is a sandbox breaking exploit.



Intl8ldr said:


> They should fix the browser and networked s/w, not nuke the machine.



I hate to tell you this but the MDS patches aren't your issue.  They won't run if unsupported and Sandy Bridge is the earliest supported chip.


----------



## Regeneration (May 27, 2019)

icy said:


> Just registered to share a bit more info on the issues I was(/am) having with the GA-X58-UD4P board and a Xeon X5675.
> 
> First of all thank you @Regeneration for keeping the X58 alive. Excellent work.
> 
> ...



Maximum BCLK on X58 motherboards is a matter of luck.

You can try to boost IOH core voltage, QPI PLL to 1.2v, and raise PCIe clock by 1-3 MHz. Try to play with the memory multiplier, and reduce QPI strap to x2.2.

If nothing works, you can always find a cheap Xeon W3680 with unlocked multiplier on eBay.


----------



## icy (May 27, 2019)

Regeneration said:


> Maximum BCLK on X58 motherboards is a matter of luck.
> 
> You can try to boost IOH core voltage, QPI PLL to 1.2v, and raise PCIe clock by 1-3 MHz. Try to play with the memory multiplier, and reduce QPI strap to x2.2.
> 
> If nothing works, you can always find a cheap Xeon W3680 with unlocked multiplier on eBay.



Regarding the 150 BCLK barrier, I tend to believe that this is a bug in the BIOS. Back when I just purchased the X5675 I did numerous tests, but unfortunately no matter what the other overclock related settings were set to it always failed to post the moment i raised the BCLK above that 150 magic wall.

Also the restarting problem seems like a bug in the BIOS that gets stuck in an endless loop.

I remember reading about others having the exact same problems with a GA-EX58-UD4P and a X56xx Xeon.

In general as far as I understand it Gigabyte EX58 boards like GA-EX58-UD4P, GA-EX58-EXTREME, GA-EX58-DS4, GA-EX58-UD3R were not very good with regards to compatibility with the X56xx Xeons. The X58A series of boards were much better.


----------



## Lev00 (Jun 15, 2019)

Regeneration said:


> Nope. The only known issue with Gigabyte X58 motherboards and Xeons is with memory multiplier.



Thank you sir.



icy said:


> In general as far as I understand it Gigabyte EX58 boards like GA-EX58-UD4P, GA-EX58-EXTREME, GA-EX58-DS4, GA-EX58-UD3R were not very good with regards to compatibility with the X56xx Xeons. The X58A series of boards were much better.



Thank you for the details.

Just to follow up on the answer I confirmed to my own question, I tested my x5650 and x5660 that I had and both worked great in GA-X58A-UD3R and P6X58-E WS motherboards. My troubles were isolated to the GA-EX58-UD4P motherboard only.


----------



## darz82 (Jun 17, 2019)

Hi, and thank you for the mods 

Any chance you can mod the last beta bios for the GA-X58-USB3? I've always had a strange boot loop issue using Bios F5C running a Xeon X5680 when performing a warm reboot, although I don't seem to have this issue using the F5f bios.

F5f bios can be found here: https://forums.tweaktown.com/gigabyte/28441-gigabyte-beta-bios.html or http://www.mediafire.com/file/9v71b4hamzdnuo5/X58USB3.5f.zip

Cheers,


----------



## numanair (Jul 22, 2019)

darz82 said:


> Hi, and thank you for the mods
> 
> Any chance you can mod the last beta bios for the GA-X58-USB3? I've always had a strange boot loop issue using Bios F5C running a Xeon X5680 when performing a warm reboot, although I don't seem to have this issue using the F5f bios.
> 
> ...


I just registered to say thank you so much for posting this. I have a GA-X58-USB3 that I have been using with my e5540 on BIOS F3 since I got it. I had the same boot loop and other issues when trying newer BIOS versions, but the only discussion about such things I found had people RMAing boards. I recently got a x5660, but I couldn't use it without a newer BIOS. The one you linked to allowed me to finally use this CPU!
Anyway, I too would like that version modded.


----------



## Delicates (Aug 17, 2019)

I have GA-EX58-UD4P with Xeon W3690 (CPUID 206C2), and can confirm the annoying reboot not working issue with the original Gigabyte 14P BIOS mentioned by @Lev00 and @icy.
Haven't tried this BIOS mod yet.

@Regeneration: Looks like for GA-EX58-UD4P you updated the Intel ICHARAID OROM in this mod from v8.9.1.1002 to v10.1.0.1008 (makes sense to update it since ICH10R is part of the X58 chipset).

Question 1: Can you please confirm whether this ICHARAID OROM is Intel's original, or modded to enable TRIM?
Did you get it from Win-Raid Forum by any chance?








						AHCI & RAID ROM Modules
					

@ experienced and courageous users, who are searching for a suitable AHCI/RAID ROM module for their mainboard BIOS:  Preliminary notes  This thread is designed for users, who want to update the AHCI/RAID ROM module of their mainboard BIOS according to any of my guides, which can be found within...




					www.win-raid.com
				




Question 2: Why not a newer version such as v11.2.0.1527?
As I understand, the latest version that supports ICH10R is v11.7.4.1001, though I don't know if this OROM version can be found:








						Intel Rapid Storage Technology - Wikipedia
					






					en.wikipedia.org
				




I wonder if there are mods out there for this board with all OROMs updated to their latest versions.

What led me here - I'm trying to figure out if it is possible to get this BIOS to boot into NVMe drive such as Samsung 970 EVO Plus (with a PCIe-M.2 adapter card) without EFI bootloader workarounds.
The 14P BIOS seems to detect it as a "Bootable Add-in Card", and rumour has it some EVOs can present themselves in AHCI mode (which may explain why BIOS is able to see it), but it doesn't boot.

Also does anyone by any chance know if this board has ECC traces to be able to use more than 48 GiB of RAM? Xeon W3690 memory controller does support ECC and has a 40-bit PAE addressing.


----------



## agent_x007 (Aug 17, 2019)

You can't (NVMe "module" for usual BIOS doesn't exists).
Board can see it, because device needs IRQ and other stuff to work.
This forces it to be visible under devices (it also means device works at boot and should work from BIOS point of view).
Not sure why it's such a problem, use small partition on one of the data drives for chainload software of Your choise, and you are good to go.


----------



## Reeta242 (Aug 22, 2019)

To what degree do the BIOS patches alone affect performance? Has anyone done a benchmark with the BIOS patch applied but the Windows Spectre/Meltdown patches disabled?

I am contemplating disabling Windows-side patches but keeping the BIOS patch, however I may flash a non-patched BIOS if benchamrks prove a significantly inferior performance.


----------



## Regeneration (Aug 23, 2019)

Zetren said:


> To what degree do the BIOS patches alone affect performance? Has anyone done a benchmark with the BIOS patch applied but the Windows Spectre/Meltdown patches disabled?
> 
> I am contemplating disabling Windows-side patches but keeping the BIOS patch, however I may flash a non-patched BIOS if benchamrks prove a significantly inferior performance.



None without OS interaction. If you wish to enable/disable protections, you can do it from the OS (registry).


----------



## Reeta242 (Aug 24, 2019)

A few things remain unclear to me. Why are these BIOS patches needed if my Westmere (GA-EX58-UD5) shows itself to be protected with InSpectre.exe without the modified bios? That is to say, I get a ''yes'' beside both ''System is Meltdown/Spectre protected:'' without the BIOS patch.

Secondly, why despite flashing the new BIOS - which you said protects against all forms of Spectre - does the program say I'm unprotected from Spectre even if it's protections are disabled on the OS level?

Finally, what do you know of "mcupdate_GenuineIntel.dll" located within C:\Windows\System32? Ought it be disabled along with the tool provided by InSpectre.exe if I want to maximize performance?


----------



## realcapone (Sep 14, 2019)

Can anyone confirm the issues with the Gigabyte X58 boards? I have an X58a-UD3R and would like to try the modded bios but would not generally want to have the restart/shutdown issue as well as the limited BLCK. I can try it right now but just need confirmation that we can revert it back if we flash it using the official bios.


----------



## Regeneration (Sep 14, 2019)

realcapone said:


> Can anyone confirm the issues with the Gigabyte X58 boards? I have an X58a-UD3R and would like to try the modded bios but would not generally want to have the restart/shutdown issue as well as the limited BLCK. I can try it right now but just need confirmation that we can revert it back if we flash it using the official bios.



There no issues with Gigabyte X58 motherboards. One or two old models have a few bugs with Gulftown in the official BIOS.


----------



## realcapone (Sep 14, 2019)

Regeneration said:


> There no issues with Gigabyte X58 motherboards. One or two old models have a few bugs with Gulftown in the official BIOS.


Thanks for confirming. I'll update if once I get the chance to update my Bios. Currently running the F8b beta on X58a-UD3R board with a Xeon Westmere-EP Proc. Thanks once again.


----------



## adam (Nov 1, 2019)

hi all,
dose this bios add support for the 6 core xeons on the msi x58?


----------



## Zyll Goliat (Nov 1, 2019)

adam said:


> hi all,
> dose this bios add support for the 6 core xeons on the msi x58?


Well I don't have any problems with 6 core Xeon and this moded bios but my mobo is Asus P6X58D _Premium_


----------



## adam (Nov 1, 2019)

hi,
 for me on the msi x58pro E and xeon x5650 the multiplier cant go over 20 can this bios update fix that problem or is there a potential to fix that problem 
thx for answering


----------



## Ranmamez (Nov 1, 2019)

adam said:


> hi,
> for me on the msi x58pro E and xeon x5650 the multiplier cant go over 20 can this bios update fix that problem or is there a potential to fix that problem
> thx for answering


You can't go over 20 because on x5650 is its own/max multiplier: http://www.cpu-world.com/CPUs/Xeon/Intel-Xeon X5650 - AT80614004320AD (BX80614X5650).html


----------



## adam (Nov 1, 2019)

actually no u can go up to 22 or 23 as in this yt vid 







 at this time or this one 







 and i mean overclocking in general, like for me to hold 3,97ghz i have to raise the qpi volt to 1.5 and that isn't that stable when i raise the multiplier to 21 but it shows up as yellow idk why  but its like that for other msi x58 pro E users too


----------



## Paraffine (Nov 13, 2019)

Any chance of seeing an unofficial bios update for the Intel DX58SO2 before it reaches the End of Life and its BIOS gets removed from the intel website by the end of the current month?


----------



## R-T-B (Nov 14, 2019)

Zetren said:


> A few things remain unclear to me. Why are these BIOS patches needed if my Westmere (GA-EX58-UD5) shows itself to be protected with InSpectre.exe without the modified bios? That is to say, I get a ''yes'' beside both ''System is Meltdown/Spectre protected:'' without the BIOS patch.
> 
> Secondly, why despite flashing the new BIOS - which you said protects against all forms of Spectre - does the program say I'm unprotected from Spectre even if it's protections are disabled on the OS level?
> 
> Finally, what do you know of "mcupdate_GenuineIntel.dll" located within C:\Windows\System32? Ought it be disabled along with the tool provided by InSpectre.exe if I want to maximize performance?



You need both the os mitigations and the microcode patch.  Do not disable the windows mitigations or this bios update will do nothing.



adam said:


> actually no u can go up to 22 or 23 as in this yt



I used to own a Xeon W5690.  It wasn't unlocked either.  It certainly strikes me as odd what this youtuber is claiming



Paraffine said:


> Any chance of seeing an unofficial bios update for the Intel DX58SO2 before it reaches the End of Life and its BIOS gets removed from the intel website by the end of the current month?



I asked this like a year ago.  He told me that the Intel checksums are too tricky to bypass.


----------



## agent_x007 (Nov 16, 2019)

@Dron254 You can't. "NvmExpressDxe_4.ffs" file is for UEFI only, and your board doesn't have EFI mode.
For BIOS you would need a NVME OpRom with ".bin" format (and proper device ID for your drive, so that board can recognise it).
@R-T-B @Ranmamez Some X58 boards enable use of max single/dual turbo multipliers as CPU's locked multipler (ie. in case of X5650, you could set "x20" or "x22" or "x23" on them).
It's basicly what was made into a BIOS option [MCE/Multi Core Enhancement] on Coffee/Kaby Lake CPUs few years ago (and which sparked ALL the fuss about "what is the actual stock clocks" for Intel).


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## Regeneration (Nov 16, 2019)

Paraffine said:


> Any chance of seeing an unofficial bios update for the Intel DX58SO2 before it reaches the End of Life and its BIOS gets removed from the intel website by the end of the current month?



Intel X58 motherboards prevent BIOS modification with checksum protection. Use the microcode boot loader instead.


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## agent_x007 (Nov 16, 2019)

Going above "x4" is easier than you think on X58 (it has 36 PCI-e lanes by default, since it's HEDT platform, which means most boards do have 2x 16x slots and/or third x8 slot).


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## Bokito38 (May 2, 2020)

i am trying to flash my GA-X58A-UD7 Rev.2.0 today.
But I am stuck, and cannot update/flash my bios.

Gigabyte SPI Flash bios update utility gives me an error telling me : Not able to read BIOS File Successfully !!
Also tried the built in Gigabyte flash utility from within the bios, but gives me an error as well something like size is wrong.

also looks like the original bios releases for this board where about 1MB in size, the latest bios about 2MB in size.
So its quit a big bigger..

Anywone can help me out perhaps.. ? 

Thanks,


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## Regeneration (May 2, 2020)

Bokito38 said:


> i am trying to flash my GA-X58A-UD7 Rev.2.0 today.
> But I am stuck, and cannot update/flash my bios.
> 
> Gigabyte SPI Flash bios update utility gives me an error telling me : Not able to read BIOS File Successfully !!
> ...



The included FLASHSPI.exe should be able to flash it. Try to rename the file.

There is no problem with the filesize. Some are 1MB and some are 2MB. BIOS chip is 16MB.

You can also try to use @BIOS from Windows.


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## Kbird (May 2, 2020)

Regeneration said:


> The included FLASHSPI.exe should be able to flash it. Try to rename the file.
> 
> There is no problem with the filesize. Some are 1MB and some are 2MB. BIOS chip is 16MB.
> 
> You can also try to use @BIOS from Windows.



It's been a while since I had to do my Gigabyte X58 board but I do remember having to using @bios, as it was the only way to go from a 1mb Bios to the newer 2mb Files, or I got the same Errors, after that I could use the SPI Flash or the built in Tool.

KB.


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## Bokito38 (May 2, 2020)

Kbird said:


> It's been a while since I had to do my Gigabyte X58 board but I do remember having to using @bios, as it was the only way to go from a 1mb Bios to the newer 2mb Files, or I got the same Errors, after that I could use the SPI Flash or the built in Tool.
> 
> KB.



thx for your message !
I will try with @bios flashing under Windows.
let's hope it works, and wont brick my bios..



Regeneration said:


> The included FLASHSPI.exe should be able to flash it. Try to rename the file.
> 
> There is no problem with the filesize. Some are 1MB and some are 2MB. BIOS chip is 16MB.
> 
> You can also try to use @BIOS from Windows.



thx, I am not able to update/flash it with FLASHSPI.exe using DOS.
I will try @bios under Windows now..

thanks for your help !

Ok,

Succesfully flashed the bios now on my GA-X58A-UD7 Rev. 2.0 !! 
very happy.

Thanks all !


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## Galmok (May 28, 2020)

Regeneration said:


> Linked below is a database of modified BIOSes for X58 motherboards patched with the latest microcode (0x1F for Westmere, 0x1D for Bloomfield) against Meltdown and all variants of Spectre. Make sure the operating system is also updated to be fully protected from speculative execution side-channel vulnerabilities (CVE-2017-5715, CVE-2017-5753, CVE-2017-5754).
> 
> While most of Nehalem CPUs received a new microcode from Intel, there is an early stepping (C0) that hasn't and therefore still vulnerable at the moment. However, these very few CPUs will also benefit from increased security and stability due to more recent microcode. In addition, the ROMs feature TRIM support for SSDs in RAID0 and extended CPU compatibility table for all motherboards.
> 
> ...



Also, in the listed firmware (GA-EX58-UD3R), will it now support a Xeon X5690?

You wouldn't happen to know anything about memory support? Is it like in the original firmware or did you changes increase support for memory as well? I read "extended CPU compatibility" as more/better memory support as well (as memory controller is part of the cpu) but I could be stretching it here.

Specifically, I'd like to use Registered ECC memory (mostly due to it being much cheaper)...


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## Regeneration (May 28, 2020)

Galmok said:


> Also, in the listed firmware (GA-EX58-UD3R), will it now support a Xeon X5690?
> 
> You wouldn't happen to know anything about memory support? Is it like in the original firmware or did you changes increase support for memory as well? I read "extended CPU compatibility" as more/better memory support as well (as memory controller is part of the cpu) but I could be stretching it here.
> 
> Specifically, I'd like to use Registered ECC memory (mostly due to it being much cheaper)...



Xeon 5600 series are supported but memory multiplier is capped unlike the 3600 and 900 series. BCLK must be raised to reach high DDR frequencies.

There is no support for ECC in the Gigabyte BIOS. ECC memory modules may or may not work (50/50).

It's better to buy 3x regular brand-new Samsung DDR 1600 memories from eBay. These sticks usually overclock very nicely to the 2000+ range.


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## Galmok (May 28, 2020)

Regeneration said:


> Xeon 5600 series are supported but memory multiplier is capped unlike the 3600 and 900 series. BCLK must be raised to reach high DDR frequencies.
> 
> There is no support for ECC in the Gigabyte BIOS. ECC memory modules may or may not work (50/50).
> 
> It's better to buy 3x regular brand-new Samsung DDR 1600 memories from eBay. These sticks usually overclock very nicely to the 2000+ range.



Thank you for answering so fast. 

My main concern is if registered memory will work. ECC is less important. If it isn't support, the module may still have without it breaking stuff. But registered memory is the real question. 

Some X58 users have success using registered memory and others haven't. There is no clear pattern yet. 

Do you know what the memory multiplier cap is  for the X5600 cpu? I didn't know it was locked when I ordered it. 

Also, unbuffered memory is better in this case, yes, but also costs 2-3 as much which makes looking at registered memory interesting. It is not like I am going to spend a whole lot of money on a 10 year old motherboard.


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## Regeneration (May 28, 2020)

Registered memory is unlikely to work on Gigabyte X58 motherboards.

Memory multiplier is capped to 10 with X5600 series. W3600 series are better.


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## fagkop (Jul 10, 2020)

biostar tpower x58a xeon x5650 w3680

I want to use it. Is there a modified bios?


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## Regeneration (Jul 10, 2020)

fagkop said:


> biostar tpower x58a xeon x5650 w3680
> 
> I want to use it. Is there a modified bios?



Yes, there is a download link on the 1st post.


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## fagkop (Jul 10, 2020)

I don't recognize x5650 bios even though it's turned on. Please help. Biostar Tpower x58a


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## Regeneration (Jul 10, 2020)

fagkop said:


> I don't recognize x5650 bios even though it's turned on. Please help. Biostar Tpower x58a



Update BIOS first and then reset CMOS. Set memory multiplier to 10 for Xeon 5600.

If its a first revision motherboard it may lack physical support for Gulftown.


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## fagkop (Jul 11, 2020)

I can't..


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## futures (Jul 21, 2020)

Regeneration,

1. Thank you for keeping the legendary X58, LGA1366, first gen I7 platform ticking.  Your post and all the responses show there are still many enjoying their X58 systems!

2. Greatly appreciate if you would mod and include the more current Gigabyte X58A UD5 Revision 2.0 FF3 BETA BIOS attached with this post.  The FF3 BETA BIOS was originally posted on TweakTown's Gigabyte Beta BIOS page - their FF3 link is currently dead.   I found one discussion where someone said FF1 included virtualization and FF3 did not.  From what I can tell, they both include virtualization, with the only thing easily noticeable is the different build dates during boot up.

Gigabyte X58A UD5 Revision 2.0 BETA BIOS FF3 vs FF1

FF3 date on boot screen 09-06-2011
FF1 date on boot screen 05-15-2011

With an LSI RAID card, during the boot sequence the FF3 BIOS clears the screen before displaying the LSI expansion card, whereas the FF1 BIOS does not clear the screen.   There's probably other differences that I simply haven't noticed or looked for.

Have a few Gigabyte X58A UD5 Revision 2.0, and also picked up a UD7 Revision 2.0 and a UD9 when folks where unloading them.    Much thanks in advance!


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## futures (Jul 22, 2020)

Filled my own request and sharing it for others.  Applied CPU microcode updates on the the last Gigabyte X58A UD5 Revision 2.0 FF3 Beta BIOS.  No other mod, just the microcodes.  Tested it on my own computer.  Was able to apply it with the @bios Windows GUI.   Mind you, my CPU is a, non Xeon, I7 970 which does not benefit from the update.   According to the Intel PDF also attached, the BIOS update is only helpful for X58/LGA1366 Nehalem and Westmere Xeon CPUs.  

The risk should be minimal with Gigabytes dual BIOS recovery feature, that said.. if your computer does blow up.. consider it a sign to buy something new.


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## futures (Jul 25, 2020)

Updated / corrected Gigabyte X58A UD5 Revision 2.0 FF3 Beta BIOS modded with latest CPU microcodes (no other mods - to stay on topic).   This one more closely follows Regeneration's changes.   There are other useful mods much simpler to apply than CPU Microcodes.

Some tips..
1. Use Regeneration's BIOS as a starting point.
2. Lookup CBROM, a command line tool for customizing AWARD BIOSes common on many. The version may matter.  CBROM v1.55.
3. Only tinker with BIOSes if you're extremely comfortable with the matter or have boards that can recover from a bad BIOS flash.


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## b3bis (Sep 30, 2020)

Hello,  new here.
I am a P6T WS Pro owner and a programmer with some (minor) knowledge on low level stuff. I would like to see if there is a way for us to mod the original or modded bios of P6T WS Pro to fix the VT-d problem (BIOS implementation problem). Though, as always I would be keen to someone giving me direction for the first steps on it. WHAT I need to learn and what I will have to do to achieve it.

I would obviously prefer not to brick my mobo as it the one I am using right now but, I have another pc and I also have an offline bios programmer and have achieved to de-brick a bios once in the past. So I am willing to take some chances if there is a bet to be made at all and something good coming out of it. Anyone willing to help me to start this?

Maybe even the OP @Regeneration could give a hand.


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## Little Steven (Nov 4, 2020)

icy said:


> Just registered to share a bit more info on the issues I was(/am) having with the GA-X58-UD4P board and a Xeon X5675.
> 
> First of all thank you @Regeneration for keeping the X58 alive. Excellent work.
> 
> ...



I also have a ga-ex58-udp but with a i7 920. I would like to upgrade it to a 6-cores Xeon but all the people I have read in a lot of forums have the same issue with not being able to pass 150BLK. Do you think is there anything we could change in bios to solve this bug? @Regeneration  Thank you so much for your help.
If is we could't find a solution, I could consider buy a W3680 with unlock multiplier.
Thanks again, sorry for my bad english.


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## SkyHigh (Mar 1, 2021)

Regeneration said:


> Linked below is a database of modified BIOSes for X58 motherboards patched with the latest microcode (0x1F for Westmere, 0x1D for Bloomfield) against Meltdown and all variants of Spectre. Make sure the operating system is also uter
> *ASUS *updated on 11/8/2018**
> 
> ASUS P6T Deluxe O/C Palm....


Thanks for this @Regeneration , I just pulled my old P6T out of a cupboard to teach my nephew to build, running 3 original Vertex1 120's in a RAID0 under Win10 along with some other classic goodies.
Was shocked to see windows did not feel like trimming the array, followed the white rabbit again, shaved years off my life and hours off my sleep 
A super find, thank you for your time and effort, got off the wall and register to say thanks ... I'll be flashing after dinner I'll post back on success. Mucho ❤
J



SkyHigh said:


> A super find, thank you for your time and effort, got off the wall and register to say thanks ... I'll be flashing after dinner I'll post back on success. Mucho ❤
> J


before...                                                             after....






Seems my Vertex were actually doing their built-in garbage collection thing, good to know if not actually a worry any more 

All good thanks again @Regeneration 



Little Steven said:


> I also have a ga-ex58-udp but with a i7 920. I would like to upgrade it to a 6-cores Xeon but all the people I have read in a lot of forums have the same issue with not being able to pass 150BLK. Do you think is there anything we could change in bios to solve this bug? @Regeneration  Thank you so much for your help.
> If is we could't find a solution, I could consider buy a W3680 with unlock multiplier.
> Thanks again, sorry for my bad english.


If you're buying an unlocked cpu why care about pushing BCLK? At most, you're gonna add a tiny bit on top of the multiplier overclock. You'll do most of the work upping the multi and voltage to max you're comfortable with and stable, then add fractions with BCLK until you lose stability. 
Plus BCLK will change your DRAM frequency too and make it fiddly, so unless you plan to overclock that by more than 50% also, then you're fine.. if the mobo supports W3680 then go for it and forget BCLK. My 2ç coming out of retirement...


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## Regeneration (Mar 2, 2021)

There is some performance that can be gained by pushing all clocks together. Better memory and bus bandwidth.

Fine-tuning just takes more time to achieve since all components must be stresst tested separately first.


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## SkyHigh (Mar 4, 2021)

Regeneration said:


> There is some performance that can be gained by pushing all clocks together. Better memory and bus bandwidth.
> 
> Fine-tuning just takes more time to achieve since all components must be stresst tested separately first.


Agree 100% - you'll find no discussion on that from me, I run an old Nehalem C0 i7-940 @ 21*191 aircooled on a P6T, I'm locked on that so no other way to get my results, and the days it took to get there and tune it all in were no doubt very satisfying, and you can find my rig at the top of the stack...
My point in the case of @Little Steven , with his unlocked CPU he can get most of the way to max by multiplier, and then the BCLK 150 wall he's hitting is going to be a non-factor in squeezing out the very last drop of blood for that system - with the gains he can still make in the 100-150 range and judicious use of memory multiplier, he'll be leaving almost nothing on the table, nothing he'd ever notice in use, and definitely not enough IMHO to justify investing in a different mobo to get around the 150 limit... Unless he's competing for something on the pure CPU side, any investment he might make in a quality board would be better spent on a better GPU in terms of overall use results.
But who can resist torturing _all_ the silicon?


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## Regeneration (Apr 6, 2021)

Added ROM for Jetway BI-600 Kuroshio X58 motherboard. Thanks to @MaDoG for testing.


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## LDeacon (May 2, 2021)

Hey @Regeneration .
Would it be possible if you can mod the Gigabyte G1 Sniper F2 (final) bios please?
The one you have on here is the F4E which is beta, and after doing numerous tests the F2 bios has much better performance.
The official link is here:


			https://download.gigabyte.com/FileList/BIOS/mb_bios_g1.sniper_f2.exe
		

Thank you it would be much appreciated.


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## Regeneration (Jul 23, 2021)

Some ASUS motherboards have a buggy implementation of Intel VT-d (Virtualization Technology for Directed I/O) in the BIOS. If enabled, some operating systems like Windows 10 will not boot. The workaround is to disable the "USB 2.0 Controller" from "USB Configuration" in the BIOS. On the P6T series, it just disables some ACPI tables and there is no negative impact in USB 2.0 bandwidth or performance whatsoever. If you can't wake up from sleep afterwards, set "Suspend Mode" to "S1 (POS) only" in the power menu.


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## Dhiru (Jul 23, 2021)

Regeneration said:


> Some ASUS motherboards have a buggy implementation of Intel VT-d (Virtualization Technology for Directed I/O) in the BIOS. If enabled, some operating systems like Windows 10 will not boot. The workaround is to disable the "USB 2.0 Controller" from "USB Configuration" in the BIOS. On the P6T series, it just disables some ACPI tables and there is no negative impact in USB 2.0 bandwidth or performance whatsoever.


This works on my Asus P6X58D-E. I am able to boot to Windows 10 with VT-d enabled. Thanks for the workaround!

Is there any way the BIOS can be patched to fix the ACPI tables?


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## Regeneration (Jul 23, 2021)

Dhiru said:


> This works on my Asus P6X58D-E. I am able to boot to Windows 10 with VT-d enabled. Thanks for the workaround!
> 
> Is there any way the BIOS can be patched to fix the ACPI tables?


Might break other things and corrupt profiles.


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## b3bis (Jul 23, 2021)

Regeneration said:


> Some ASUS motherboards have a buggy implementation of Intel VT-d (Virtualization Technology for Directed I/O) in the BIOS. If enabled, some operating systems like Windows 10 will not boot. The workaround is to disable the "USB 2.0 Controller" from "USB Configuration" in the BIOS. On the P6T series, it just disables some ACPI tables and there is no negative impact in USB 2.0 bandwidth or performance whatsoever.


Gonna try this on my P6T WS Pro and see if it works. It would be really interesting. One hell of a platform if it wasn't for these small problems.


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## PurSpyk!! (Jul 23, 2021)

I have a Asus P6T Deluxe, with VT-D enabled and USB 2.0 disabled, Windows 10 does not wake up from sleep. Computer switches on, but keyboard and monitor remain off.


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## Regeneration (Jul 23, 2021)

PurSpyk!! said:


> I have a Asus P6T Deluxe, with VT-D enabled and USB 2.0 disabled, Windows 10 does not wake up from sleep. Computer switches on, but keyboard and monitor remain off.



It's better to use S1 sleep mode on ASUS X58 motherboads since memory timings may change when waking from S3.


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## PurSpyk!! (Jul 23, 2021)

Regeneration said:


> It's better to use S1 sleep mode on ASUS X58 motherboads since memory timings may change when waking from S3.


Hi

How do I enable this?


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## Regeneration (Jul 23, 2021)

PurSpyk!! said:


> Hi
> 
> How do I enable this?



Power > Suspend mode > S1


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## Edwired (Aug 17, 2021)

Regeneration said:


> Some ASUS motherboards have a buggy implementation of Intel VT-d (Virtualization Technology for Directed I/O) in the BIOS. If enabled, some operating systems like Windows 10 will not boot. The workaround is to disable the "USB 2.0 Controller" from "USB Configuration" in the BIOS. On the P6T series, it just disables some ACPI tables and there is no negative impact in USB 2.0 bandwidth or performance whatsoever. If you can't wake up from sleep afterwards, set "Suspend Mode" to "S1 (POS) only" in the power menu.


Sorry to bump the thread. Got a question about this method does it disable the usb 2.0 controller altogether after the vt-d is enabled. Or is there any benefit using vt-d?


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## Regeneration (Aug 17, 2021)

Edwired said:


> Sorry to bump the thread. Got a question about this method does it disable the usb 2.0 controller altogether after the vt-d is enabled. Or is there any benefit using vt-d?


Just on some ports and devices. VT-d is useful for virtualization (VMware, VirtualBox and such).

If you don't use these apps it won't be a big deal to turn it off.


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## Edwired (Aug 17, 2021)

Regeneration said:


> Just on some ports and devices. VT-d is useful for virtualization (VMware, VirtualBox and such).
> 
> If you don't use these apps it won't be a big deal to turn it off.


Is it the i/o usb ports on the back of the motherboard that get disabled or the ones on the bottom of the board as it hard to know which one as I almost use all of the back usb ports for connecting devices except the bottom ports of the board which isn't connected to anything. I don't use vmware or virtualbox. If I wanted to use other operating systems I just use the boot selection via f8 on the asus p6x58d-e to boot standalone operating system like example I use windows xp for getting videos of my old handheld camcorder which runs on it own hard drive and so on


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## Regeneration (Aug 17, 2021)

Edwired said:


> Is it the i/o usb ports on the back of the motherboard that get disabled or the ones on the bottom of the board as it hard to know which one as I almost use all of the back usb ports for connecting devices except the bottom ports of the board which isn't connected to anything. I don't use vmware or virtualbox. If I wanted to use other operating systems I just use the boot selection via f8 on the asus p6x58d-e to boot standalone operating system like example I use windows xp for getting videos of my old handheld camcorder which runs on it own hard drive and so on


All ports should work fine but few USB2/3 devices may work slowly or not at all. Keyboards, mice, flash drives should work fine.


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## X0r (Nov 29, 2021)

Hi, @Regeneration

I'm new to the forum and came across this thread after painful searching for Foxconn bios files.

It seems that Foxconn ended channel support for consumer products sometime in 2019 and shutdown two websites  containing official drivers, bios, manuals for all Foxconn motherboards. 



			http://www.foxconnchannel.com
		



			http://www.foxconnsupport.com
		


Most of these files were not archived.

I was curious if you have the original bios for the Foxconn boards you have listed in your main post.

Additional questions:

* *Checksum*
(crc32, md5, sha256, etc) or similar gpg signatures are not included in the main post, on your website, or on the google drive backup link.  Do you have these available for verification?  (would be good to offer)

* *CPUID*
do you have a list of processors supported by the mod? There was a comment on page 4 mentioning "extended CPU support for less known brands." This was a few days before your last update for all ROM (2018-08-11). I'm trying to confirm that the Xeon X5675 is supported by Foxconn bios. It's part of the Westmere-EP family (206c2), but X5675 was released in 2011 after Foxconn had stopped releasing updates for Bloodrage and Renaissance products in April 2010. I suspect that X5670 (Mar 2010) is supported but X5675 (Feb 2011) is not.

* *ECC support*
do the original bios or modded bios offer ECC support ?  (Registered, or Unbuffered)

* *Verification*
lastly, as someone who is hesitant to install firmware by strangers due to potential ring0 security vulnerabilities is there any chance you might consider sharing information on what tools you used to mod the firmware, what was modded, and how someone might retrace your steps.  This is a big ask I know, but it also enables people to learn and provides transparency.  I don't have experience in this area.  I tried looking for linux bios tools for AMI bios and didn't have much luck at all.  A hex editor probably won't cut it.

To close, thank you for creating this thread.  I read all twelve pages.


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## Regeneration (Nov 30, 2021)

X0r said:


> Hi, @Regeneration
> 
> I'm new to the forum and came across this thread after painful searching for Foxconn bios files.
> 
> ...



Yes. The Foxconn files came from the official site before it went down.

Most BIOSes have internal checksum verification to prevent flashing of a corrupted file.

All X58 six core CPUs have CPUID of 206C2 and are supported by the BIOSes here. However, some motherboards require DDR ratio of 1:10 with FSB to work with Xeons. Some motherboards have CPUID lock in the circuitry so even modded BIOS won't unlock support.

ECC support is enabled on ECC supported motherboards.

This project is more than 3 years ago and I don't remember what and how at this time. I have done many other projects ever since. X58 uses primitive non-UEFI BIOS that is almost invulnerable to ring0 attacks. Let alone that most chips and files are just 1MB and 90%+ already in-use.


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## X0r (Nov 30, 2021)

Regeneration said:


> Yes. The Foxconn files came from the official site before it went down.
> 
> Most BIOSes have internal checksum verification to prevent flashing of a corrupted file.
> 
> ...



Hi @Regeneration

There is a misunderstanding with my first comment. I apologize.

I was asking

*  Do you still have the original untouched Foxconn Bios for the motherboards you listed and would you be willing to share those zip files.

*  Is the Xeon X5670 and X5675 supported by Foxconn motherboards you listed and can this be verified from the microcode?  if so how?

*  Is ecc supported on the Foxconn motherboards you listed?

*  Would you be willing to outline how you modded the files and what tools you used?


Since my first comment I've discovered the windows AMI tool suite (not for linux =/), but am not sure which utilities to use and how to use them.  It does appear though that AMIBCP.EXE v3.x.x series applies to these Foxconn bios.

I was trying to learn while being able to verify the steps you went through to mod.

It's mostly moot if you can't share the original bios.

** checksum*

I was not referring to checksum verification during a bios flash procedure.

I was suggesting checksum (crc32, md5, sha256sum) or gpg verification being made available for files you have hosted by Mediafire and Google Drive.  These are bios files and you don't control the host.  It's good security practice to include checksum on a separate host enabling users to verify integrity of the files.  This safeguards in the event that if Google or Mediafire were compromised, someone who downloads might notice that your bios files had been tampered with by a third party.


----------

