Area-51 R2, BIOS corrupted?

Question

Hi, Specs: BIOS A14 Alienware Area-51 R2 i7 6800K Intel X99 Motherboard My Story: I have a software called Driver Booster 9 by IObit and I have been using it for about a year now with no issues. However, yesterday I saw there was an update for system firmware that was very out of date. Unfortunately, I installed it and cleaned up my PC afterward with Dell Support Assist. After the cleaning was finished, I restarted my computer. As it was rebooting my PC gave about 10 weird beeps and then restarted, then shut down, and it continued this in an endless loop. Every time I attempt to turn on my PC, it does that endless on and off loop. I cannot even get into the BIOS nor do I see any video feedback and my keyboard doesn't light up. I did some research and found out that I may have bricked my motherboard. I don't want to post links here because I don't want to be spammy but the one tutorial on my same PC has the Dell-Area-51-R2-Stock.bin BIOS image. I have no idea how he got that file nor do I know how to create it myself, which I would feel much more comfortable about doing. So I have done the following: Bought the KeeYees SOP8 SOIC8 Test Clip and CH341A USB Programmer Flash (currently on its way from Amazon). Downloaded AsProgrammer. Downloaded CH341SER.EXE – USB to serial driver and CH341PAR.EXE – Multiprotocol interface driver. And downloaded the Dell-Area-51-R2-Stock.bin BIOS image (16MB). My BIOS is A14. All I need now is the motherboard chip name, which I am going to have to use a magnifying glass app to see it. I just need to do some research on that chip. I assume it holds 16MB, which is the file size of the BIN file. I am just trying to make sure that I am on the right track to flashing my BIOS and getting my PC back. I want to be as thorough as possible because this is a scary process as I am completely new to this side of technology. Also, the Intel X99 motherboard is not a cheap motherboard so I would prefer to avoid having to purchase it. My questions: Did I really brick my motherboard? If I follow through with those steps above, would I be on the right track to recovering my PC? How would I get a BIOS image for A14? Or is the Dell-Area-51-R2-Stock.bin BIOS image solid? Are there any pointers or other information I am missing to start the process tomorrow? Thank you for any help I receive or for just taking the time to read it. I appreciate having this opportunity to get help! I hope I didn't leave anything out.

Jos4 · Accepted Answer

I want to give a final update just in case anyone else is checking out this thread.

I ended up fixing my BIOS and now it is up and running just like normal. I reset the BIOS with the jumpers and by removing the CMOS battery. It no longer turned on and off in an endless loop. However, I did not receive any visual feedback at all. My PC was just on and my keyboard and tower were lit up.

I then flashed my BIOS and my PC was up and running again but it could not recognize any boot drive. I changed to UEFI mode and it gave 10 beeps again then turned off and on in that endless loop, so I just replaced the CMOS battery, reset the jumpers on pins 1 and 2 then back to 2 and 3. I then saw the error screen stating "CMOS battery Fail!!" I pressed F1 and it automatically booted from my SSD as normal. It didn't even kick me to the BIOS.

My questions:

Did I really brick my motherboard? (Yes, I did)
If I follow through with those steps above, would I be on the right track to recovering my PC? (Yes, they were the right steps)
How would I get a BIOS image for A14? Or is the Dell-Area-51-R2-Stock.bin BIOS image solid? (That BIOS image was solid)

redxps630 · Answer

I have attempted to do the flashing before but found it very difficult for beginner. getting the clip to good contact with bios chip is very difficult. Dell moderator also does not like these hacking practice and may delete uploaded bios bin. it is probably better to send motherboard to Dell repair depot for out of warranty repair if you can not get it to POST.

one user tried to flash the board recently but still could not get it POST. then there was an anecdote of one original success. if you prepared to spend many frustrating hours on it then give it a try. before you flash it you need to be able to read the bios chip, then delete it. the cheaper usb programmer program can have many bugs.

Jos4 · Answer

Oh, I could imagine it is definitely going to be tough for me. I have been consumed in researching this and asking around in forums.

I will try this out as it beats spending money. I have seen a ton of people do this with my particular desktop with success, but I have heard about how hard it is.

Thank you for your help and information. I appreciate it and I will take it all into account.

Jos4 · Answer

Thanks! It was definitely tough getting that clip on the BIOS chip. That was the toughest part actually.

I downloaded AsProgrammer here - https://github.com/nofeletru/UsbAsp-flash/releases/ - but I used version 1.4.1.

CH341SER.EXE - http://www.wch-ic.com/downloads/CH341SER_EXE.html
CH341PAR.EXE - http://www.wch.cn/downloads/CH341PAR_EXE.html

My BIOS chip: Macronix MX25l12873F

redxps630 · Answer

great job.  where did you download this AsProgrammer and CH341PAR.EXE and CH341SER.EXE – USB to serial driver. iirc the AsProgrammer has many versions and many of them did not work for me.  also what is the maker and model of your Dell board BIOS chip?

redxps630 · Answer

Thanks a lot.  Yes I agree that the clip part is the worst.  I broke the flimsy wires of two clips and I read there are much better (and more expensive) clips out there for people who do professional USB programming.  you definitely have much better skills.  When it comes to micro-electronics I am all thumbs.

Jos4 · Answer

You're welcome. It took about an hour to get on. My brother is better at challenges like that so, in the end, he was the one who got it on. It was all about the angle and feel of the teeth catching and watching how other people did it. Fortunately for them, they had a bunch of real estate. In my case, there are pins right beneath it that get in the way.

MRPPAL · Answer

It’s is much easier if you use the SPI1 port and use the MSI SPI interface cable. You won’t have to worry about the clip anymore.

search eBay for MSI motherboard BIOS free disassembly chip online burning flash line MSI JSPI1

Jos4 · Answer

Thanks, yep, I followed that. That is what got me out of the weeds then I had to restore my NVRAM information since it was a stock BIOS, so I got help with restoring it through Win-Raid

MRPPAL · Answer

This is also a good resource for the Alienware R2 https://www.tachytelic.net/2021/06/repair-dell-alienware-area-51-r2-corrupt-bios/

Alienware Desktops

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