Board Software

ASUS has always had a rather expansive set of software they include with their motherboards, and all of it has been included with the Z97-A, low price or not. The same interface as on more expensive ASUS boards is here, including the CFOS-based LAN-control software and a launcher to get to the commonly used bits easily.


AI Suite has long been a staple of OS-based system customization, and it now not only offers hardware-level tweaks since it gives you access to every aspect of your Z97 system, all in one place. There's also a matching version of CPU-Z, so should you decide to overclock a bit, you've got another bit of software to confirm the speeds you got.


There's software for media streaming, a bit to access some free online data storage, and as expected, a control panel to adjust settings for the Crystal Sound 2 audio design, making getting the most out of your system a great experience.


Deamon Tools Pro is also included, although it's not something I ever really used myself, as is EZ Update, a tool for quick software and BIOS updates, or updates on a schedule. There's also software for remote PC access, should that be something you like to do, fully rounding out the capabilities most value-oriented users might ask for in terms of software, top to bottom.