Quote: Please turn off Bitlocker before flash BIOS install instruction.

If you're running the flash from inside Windows, you probably have to disable your antiviral/antimalware software too.

Hi Ron, thank you for your reply but unfortunately it is not the solution.

I am using Win7 Pro, which does not have Bitlocker.

The link you posted points to a BIOS download page for a 9010 All-in-One.  I have a 9010 Small Form Factor desktop.  Sorry I wasn't more specific in my original post.

I have never had to disable the antivirus software on any Dell that I have ever flashed the BIOS on before.  I have also copied the BIOS updaters to a DOS bootable USB jump drive and run them from there and they still won't flash the BIOS.  They act like they do, then the PC reboots like it's supposed to but the BIOS is never updated.  The BIOS flashers never give any error messages.

I've googled for this problem and can't find anything.  Am I really the only one who's experienced this?

Thanks,

--Mike

I assumed it was the all-in-one. Why does Dell continually give models similar names???

In recent months, we've seen other Dell systems where antiviral/antimalware software has to be disabled in order to run a BIOS update from inside the Windows environment. So I'd give that a try. And that way you won't need USB sticks etc.

If turning AV/AM off doesn't help, I'll ping my Dell tech contacts for advice.

I turned off my Symantec and tried again.  No luck.  Even if Symantec was the problem, I should still be able to flash the BIOS when I boot with a DOS USB stick.  This doesn't make sense... Any chance you could bounce this off a Dell tech?  Thank you!

Any chance you could bounce this off a Dell tech?  Thank you!

Done!

Sorry, no responses from anybody, yet...

The question has been asked if you have the Intel Management Engine installed on your system.  If not, the flash update probably won't work.

Hi Ron,

Yes I have the Intel Management Engine installed under Windows.  But again, this should not matter when I boot with a DOS USB stick, right?  The BIOS flasher when run from within DOS, regardless of what OS is on the hard drive, should always work.  This is too weird.

Any other ideas?

Thanks,

--Mike

Is an update to Intel ME available from Dell?

I don't know that it actually should flash from DOS.  Most of Dell's BIOS updates say they can be run from a floppy disk, even for this brand-spanking new Win8 laptop.  It's just boilerplate text on their support site.   I've been nagging them to get the site into the 21st century, seemingly forever.

Not sure where I'd shove a floppy disk into this lappy, but the site insists the flash can be run from a DOS disk.  Reality is this system can't be booted from the internal DVD drive or from USB, but I digress...

Is there any specific reason you need to update BIOS?  Does the update fix a problem you actually have?  If not, ignore the update.

If it's still under warranty, maybe you should contact Dell tech support. The only response to my behind the scenes query came from an experienced forum regular and not directly from anyone at Dell, even though I asked the question twice.  But I like to nag them so I'll ask a third time... :emotion-2:

Thanks for all your efforts, Ron.

This all started because on 2 occasions my PC just shut off.  There was no power outage or even a power blip.  The first time I was working then all of a sudden my screen gracefully faded to black, and the power indicator light (on the power button) on the PC began to blink.  I couldn't wake it up with the keyboard or mouse so I held in the button to shut it off.  I waited a few seconds, pushed the button again and it booted normally.

The second time the screen again faded to black, but the power light on the PC remained on.  Again the system was unresponsive so I held in the button to shut it off, and it again booted normally after that.

Windows is configured for the "high performance" power plan, and sleep/hibernate is disabled.

My first thought was that it was a hardware failure, perhaps a fan failed causing a thermal event and shutdown, but I opened the case and the fans are operating normally.  That's when I got the idea to check the BIOS.  This still appeared to be a hardware (not Windows) issue to me so I thought updating to the lastest BIOS would be a good place to start.

After the 2nd crash I was concerned about the filesystem so I ran chkdsk c: /v /f /r.  It found and repaired errors.

I guess at this point I'll just keep my eyes on it, forget about the BIOS update, and look for some other cause if it should crash again.

Thank you for all your help and suggestions,

--Mike

Random crashes are hard to pinpoint, but I would think BIOS is less likely cause, unless there's something specific in the release notes for the versions between the one that's running and the latest update. Were you doing the same thing (eg playing video), when both crashes happened?

I'd start by reseating RAM modules in their slots and then running the memory tests, either from the Utilities partition on the hard drive (reboot and press F12) or by creating a bootable CD with (free) memtest86+.  I'd also reseat the video card in its slot and then look for an updated video driver.

If none of that helps, the next thing might be a power supply issue, or perhaps a bum power strip or bum surge protector...

If the problem recurs, post back and I'll see if I can wake Dell up from their siesta down in Round Rock

I am researching issues with my batch of 9010s and came across this post. While not the same I did have your issue regarding the inability to upgrade from the initial released BIOS. In my case it was an Optiplex 980 and the solution was replacing the RAM modules with a different manufacture during the upgrade.