BIOS Upgrades - eSupport.com

POST Codes

During the POST on AT-compatibles and above, special signals are output to I/O port 80H at the beginning of each test (genuine PCs and XTs don't issue POST codes, although some machines with compatible BIOSes do). Some computers may use a different port, such as 84 for the Compaq, or 378 (LPT1) for Olivettis. IBM PS/2s use 90, whilst some EISA machines send them to 300H as well. Those at 50h are chipset or custom platform specific.

POST Diagnostic cards can read what's sent to whichever port and display the codes on a pair of numerical displays, so you can check the progress of the POST and hopefully diagnose errors when it stops, though a failure at any given location does not necessarily mean that part has the problem; treat it as a guidepost for further troubleshooting (a good card is the POSTmortem™—contact the author for details, or check Useful Numbers. Its manual is at the back of the book). In this chapter, some general procedures are described that may help if you have no POST card. Having obtained a POST code, identify the manufacturer of the chipset on the motherboard, then refer to the Chipsets section to find the chip(s) that control whatever's not working.

The POST checks at three levels, Early, Late and System Initialisation. Early POST failures are generally fatal and will produce a beep code, because the video will not be active; in fact, the last diagnostic during Early POST is usually on the video, so that Late failures can actually be seen. System Initialisation involves loading configuration from the CMOS, and failures will generate a text message. Consistent failures point indicate a bad battery backup system.

Shutdown or Reset Commands

The Reset command stops the current operation and begins fetching instructions from the BIOS, as if the power has just been switched on. The Shutdown command, on the other hand, just forces the CPU to leave protected mode for real mode, so the system behaves differently after each one. Before issuing the shutdown command, the BIOS sets a value into the shutdown byte in the CMOS, which is checked after a reset, so the BIOS can branch to the relevant code and continue where it left off.

One of the problems with shutdown handling is that the POST must do some handling before anything else, immediately after power-on or system reset. The path between the CPU and the BIOS ROM, as well as basic control signals, has to be working before the POST gets to its first diagnostic test (usually the CPU register test), so some of the circuitry that the CPU test is supposed to check will be checked by the shutdown handling instead, and you will get no POST indication if a critical failure occurs.

Manufacturing Loop Jumper

The phrase Check for Manufacturing Jumper in the tables refers to one on the motherboard that makes the POST run in a continuous loop, so you can burn in a system, or use repetitive cycling to monitor a failing area with an oscilloscope or logic analyzer. It usually forces a reset, so the POST has to start from the beginning every time. Compaq used to have the shorted jumper cause the POST to jump to another ROM at E000 just after power-on, which could have diagnostic code in it. IBM and NCR used a germanium or silicon diode to short together the keyboard connector pins 1 (cathode, bar) and 2 (5-pin DIN) or 1 (anode, arrow) and 5 (6-pin mini-DIN), so the POST checks the keyboard controller to see whether the jumper is installed.

The POSTcodes listed here are extracted from The BIOS Companion. This site contains all of these POSTcodes as well as comprehensive technical information.

ACER

Based on Award BIOS 3.03, but not exactly the same.

Code	Meaning
04	Start
08	Shutdown
0C	Test BIOS ROM checksum
10	Test CMOS RAM shutdown byte
14	Test DMA controller
18	Initialise system timer
1C	Test memory refresh
1E	Determine memory type
20	Test 128K memory
24	Test 8042 keyboard controller
28	Test CPU descriptor instruction
2C	Set up and test 8259 interrupt controller
30	Set up memory interrupts
34	Set up BIOS interrupt vectors and routines
38	Test CMOS RAM
3C	Determine memory size
XX	Shut down 8 (system halt C0h + checkpoint)
40	Shutdown 1
44	Initialise Video BIOS ROM
45	Set up and test RAM BIOS
46	Test cache memory and controller
48	Test memory
4C	Shutdown 3
50	Shutdown 2
54	Shutdown 7
55	Shutdown 6
5C	Test keyboard and auxiliarv I/O
60	Set up BIOS interrupt routines
64	Test real time clock
68	Test diskette
6C	Test hard disk
70	Test parallel port
74	Test serial port
78	Set time of day
7C	Scan for and invoke option ROMs
80	Determine presence of math coprocessor
84	initialize keyboard
88	Initialise svstem 1
8C	Initialize system 2
90	Invoke INT 19 to boot operating system
94	Shutdown 5
98	Shutdown A
9C	Shutdown B

ALR

See Phoenix.

Ambra

See Phoenix.

AMI

Not all tests are performed by all AMI BIOSes. Those below refer to the 2 Feb 91 BIOS.

POST Procedures

Procedure	Explanation
NMI Disable	NMI interrupt line to the CPU is disabled by setting bit 7 I/O port 70h (CMOS).
Power On Delay	Once the keyboard controller gets power, it sets the hard and soft reset bits. Check the keyboard controller or clock generator.
Initialise Chipsets	Check the BIOS, CLOCK or chipsets.
Reset Determination	The BIOS reads the bits in the keyboard controller to see if a hard or soft reset is required (a soft reset will not test memory above 64K). Failure could be the BIOS or keyboard controller.
ROM BIOS Checksum	The BIOS performs a checksum on itself and adds a preset factory value that should make it equal 00. Failure is due to the BIOS chips.
Keyboard Test	A command is sent to the 8042 (keyboard controller) which performs a test and sets a buffer space for commands. After the buffer is defined the BIOS sends a command byte, writes data to the buffer, checks the high order bits (Pin 23) of the internal keyboard controller and issues a No Operation (NOP) command.
CMOS	Shutdown byte in CMOS RAM offset 0F is tested, the BIOS checksum calculated and diagnostic byte (0E) updated before the CMOS RAM area is initialised and updated for date and time. Check RTC/CMOS chip or battery.
8237/8259 Disable	The DMA and Interrupt Controller are disabled before the POST proceeds any further. Check the 8237 or 8259 chips.
Video Disable	The video controller is disabled and Port B initialised. Check the video adapter if you get problems here.
Chipset Init/Memory Detect	Memory addressed in 64K blocks; failure would be in the chipset. If all memory is not seen, failure could be in a chip in the block after the last one seen.
PIT test	The timing functions of the 8254 interrupt timer are tested. The PIT or RTC chips normally cause problems here.
Memory Refresh	PIT's ability to refresh memory tested (if an XT, DMA controller #1 handles this). Failure is normally the PIT (8254) in ATs or the 8237 (DMA #1) in XTs.
Address Lines	Test the address lines to the first 64K of RAM. An address line failure.
Base 64K	Data patterns are written to the first 64K, unless there is a bad RAM chip in which case you will get a failure.
Chipset Initialisation	The PIT, PIC and DMA controllers are enabled.
Set Interrupt Table	Interrupt vector table used by PIC is installed in low memory, the first 2K.
8042 check	The BIOS reads the buffer area of the keyboard controller I/O port 60. Failure here is normally the keyboard controller.
Video Tests	The type of video adapter is checked for then a series of tests is performed on the adapter and monitor.
BIOS Data Area	The vector table is checked for proper operation and video memory verified before protected mode tests are entered into. This is done so that any errors found are displayed on the monitor.
Protected Mode Tests	Perform reads and writes to all memory below 1 Mb. Failures at this point indicate a bad RAM chip, the 8042 chip or a data line.
DMA Chips	The DMA registers are tested using a data pattern.
Final Initialisation	These differ with each version. Typically, the floppy and hard drives are tested and initialised, and a check made for serial and parallel devices. The information gathered is then compared against the contents of the CMOS, and you will see the results of any failures on the monitor.
Boot	The BIOS hands over control to the Int 19 bootloader; this is where you would see error messages such as non-system disk.

AMI BIOS 2.2x

Code	Meaning
00	Flag test
03	Register test
06	System hardware initialisation
09	BIOS ROM checksum
0C	Page register test
0F	8254 timer test
12	Memory refresh initialisation
15	8237 DMA controller test
18	8237 DMA initialisation
1B	8259 interrupt controller initialisation
1E	8259 interrupt controller test
21	Memory refresh test
24	Base 64K address test
27	Base 64K memory test
2A	8742 keyboard self test
2D	MC 146818 CMOS test
30	Start first protected mode test
33	Memory sizing test
36	First protected mode test
39	First protected mode test failed
3C	CPU speed calculation
3F	Read 8742 hardware switches
42	Initialise interrupt vector area
45	Verify CMOS configuration
48	Test and initialise video system
4B	Unexpected interrupt test
4E	Start second protected mode test
51	Verify LDT instruction
54	Verify TR instruction
57	Verify LSL instruction
5A	Verify LAR instruction
5D	Verify VERR instruction
60	Address line 20 test
63	Unexpected exception test
66	Start third protected mode test
69	Address line test
6C	System memory test
6F	Shadow memory test
72	Extended memory test
75	Verify memory configuration
78	Display configuration error messages
7B	Copy system BIOS to shadow memory
7E	8254 clock test
81	MC 146818 real time clock test
84	Keyboard test
87	Determine keyboard type
8A	Stuck key test
8D	Initialise hardware interrupt vector
90	Math coprocessor test
93	Determine COM ports available
96	Determine LPT ports available
99	Initialise BIOS data area
9C	Fixed/Floppy controller test
9F	Floppy disk test
A2	Fixed disk test
A5	External ROM scan
A8	System key lock test
AE	F1 error message test
AF	System boot initialisation
B1	Interrupt 19 boot loader

AMI Old BIOS (AMI Plus BIOS); 08/15/88—04/08/90

Code	Meaning
01	NMI disabled & 286 reg. test about to start
02	286 register test over
03	ROM checksum OK
04	8259 initialization OK
05	CMOS pending interrupt disabled
06	Video disabled & system timer counting OK
07	CH-2 of 8253 test OK
08	CH-2 delta count test OK
09	CH-1 delta count test OK
0A	CH-0 delta count test OK
0B	Parity status cleared
0C	Refresh & system timer OK
0D	Refresh link toggling OK
0E	Refresh period ON/OFF 50% OK
10	Confirmed refresh ON & about to start 64K memory
11	Address line test OK
12	64K base memory test OK
13	Interrupt vectors initialized
14	8042 keyboard controller test OK
15	CMOS read/write test OK
16	CMOS checksum/battery check OK
17	Monochrome mode set OK
18	Colour mode set OK
19	About to look for optional video ROM
1A	Optional video ROM control OK
1B	Display memory read/write test OK
1C	Display memory read/write test for alt display OK
1D	Video retrace check OK
1E	Global equipment byte set for video OK
1F	Mode set call for Mono/Colour OK
20	Video test OK
21	Video display OK
22	Power on message display OK
30	Virtual mode memory test about to begin
31	Virtual mode memory test started
32	Processor in virtual mode
33	Memory address line test in progress
34	Memory address line test in progress
35	Memory below 1MB calculated
36	Memory size computation OK
37	Memory test in progress
38	Memory initialization over below 1MB
39	Memory initialization over above 1MB
3A	Display memory size
3B	About to start below 1MB memory test
3C	Memory test below 1MB OK
3D	Memory test above 1MB OK
3E	About to go to real mode (shutdown)
3F	Shutdown successful and entered in real mode
40	About to disable gate A-20 address line
41	Gate A-20 line disabled successfully
42	About to start DMA controller test
4E	Address line test OK
4F	Processor in real mode after shutdown
50	DMA page register test OK
51	DMA unit-1 base register test about to start
52	DMA unit-1 channel OK; about to begin CH-2
53	DMA CH-2 base register test OK
54	About to test f/f latch for unit-1
55	f/f latch test both unit OK
56	DMA unit 1 & 2 programmed OK
57	8259 initialization over
58	8259 mask register check OK
59	Master 8259 mask register OK; about to start slave
5A	About to check timer and keyboard interrupt level
5B	Timer interrupt OK
5C	About to test keyboard interrupt
5D	ERROR! timer/keyboard interrupt not in proper level
5E	8259 interrupt controller error
5F	8259 interrupt controller test OK
70	Start of keyboard test
71	Keyboard BAT test OK
72	Keyboard test OK
73	Keyboard global data initialization OK
74	Floppy setup about to start
75	Floppy setup OK
76	Hard disk setup about to start
77	Hard disk setup OK
79	About to initialize timer data area
7A	Verify CMOS battery power
7B	CMOS battery verification done
7D	About to analyze diagnostic test results for memory
7E	CMOS memory size update OK
7F	About to check optional ROM C000:0
80	Keyboard sensed to enable setup
81	Optional ROM control OK
82	Printer global data initialization OK
83	RS-232 global data initialization OK
84	80287 check/test OK
85	About to display soft error message
86	About to give control to system ROM E000:0
87	System ROM E000:0 check over
00	Control given to Int-19; boot loader

AMI BIOS 04/09/90-02/01/91

Code	Meaning
01	NMI disabled and 286 register test about to start.
02	286 register test passed.
03	ROM BIOS checksum (32K at F800:0) passed.
04	Keyboard controller test with and without mouse passed.
05	Chipset initialization over; DMA and Interrupt controller disabled.
06	Video disabled and system timer test begin.
07	CH-2 of 8254 initialization half way.
08	CH-2 of timer initialization over.
09	CH-1 of timer initialization over.
0A	CH-0 of timer initialization over.
0B	Refresh started.
0C	System timer started.
0D	Refresh link toggling passed.
10	Refresh on and about to start 64K base memory test.
11	Address line test passed.
12	64K base memory test passed.
15	Interrupt vectors initialized.
17	Monochrome mode set.
18	Colour mode set.
19	About to look for optional video ROM at C000 and give control to ROM if present.
1A	Return from optional video ROM.
1B	Shadow RAM enable/disable completed.
1C	Display memory read/write test for main display type as set in the CMOS setup program over.
1D	Display memory read/write test for alternate display type complete if main display memory read/write test returns error.
1E	Global equipment byte set for proper display type.
1F	Video mode set call for mono/colour begins.
20	Video mode set completed.
21	ROM type 27256 verified.
23	Power on message displayed.
30	Virtual mode memory test about to begin.
31	Virtual mode memory test started.
32	Processor executing in virtual mode.
33	Memory address line test in progress.
34	Memory address line test in progress.
35	Memory below 1MB calculated.
36	Memory above 1MB calculated.
37	Memory test about to start.
38	Memory below 1MB initialized.
39	Memory above 1MB initialized.
3A	Memory size display initiated. Will be updated when BIOS goes through memory test.
3B	About to start below 1MB memory test.
3C	Memory test below 1MB completed; about to start above 1MB test.
3D	Memory test above 1MB completed.
3E	About to go to real mode (shutdown).
3F	Shutdown successful and processor in real mode.
40	Cache memory on and about to disable A20 address line.
41	A20 address line disable successful.
42	486 internal cache turned on.
43	About to start DMA controller test.
50	DMA page register test complete.
51	DMA unit-1 base register test about to start.
52	DMA unit-1 base register test complete.
53	DMA unit-2 base register test complete.
54	About to check F/F latch for unit-1 and unit-2.
55	F/F latch for both units checked.
56	DMA unit 1 and 2 programming over; about to initialize 8259 interrupt controller.
57	8259 initialization over.
70	About to start keyboard test.
71	Keyboard controller BAT test over.
72	Keyboard interface test over; mouse interface test started.
73	Global data initialization for keyboard/mouse over.
74	Display 'SETUP' prompt and about to start floppy setup.
75	Floppy setup over.
76	Hard disk setup about to start.
77	Hard disk setup over.
79	About to initialize timer data area.
7A	Timer data initialized and about to verify CMOS battery power.
7B	CMOS battery verification over.
7D	About to analyze POST results.
7E	CMOS memory size updated.
7F	Look for <DEL> key and get into CMOS setup if found.
80	About to give control to optional ROM in segment C800 to DE00.
81	Optional ROM control over.
82	Check for printer ports and put the addresses in global data area.
83	Check for RS232 ports and put the addresses in global data area.
84	Coprocessor detection over.
85	About to display soft error messages.
86	About to give control to system ROM at segment E000.
00	System ROM control at E000 over now give control to Int 19h boot loader.

AMI New BIOS; 02/02/91—12/12/91

Code	Meaning
01	Processor register test about to start and NMI to be disabled.
02	NMI is Disabled. Power on delay starting.
03	Power on delay complete. Any initialization before keyboard BAT is in progress.
04	Init before keyboard BAT complete. Reading keyboard SYS bit to check soft reset/ power-on.
05	Soft reset/ power-on determined. Going to enable ROM. i. e. disable shadow RAM/Cache.
06	ROM enabled. Calculating ROM BIOS checksum, waiting for KB controller input buffer to be free.
07	ROM BIOS Checksum passed. KB controller I/B free. Going to issue BAT comd to kboard controller.
08	BAT command to keyboard controller issued. Going to verify BAT command.
09	Keyboard controller BAT result verified. Keyboard command byte to be written next.
0A	Keyboard command byte code issued. Going to write command byte data.
0B	Keyboard controller command byte written. Going to issue Pin-23 & 24 blocking/unblocking command
0C	Pin 23 & 24 of keyboard controller is blocked/unblocked. NOP command of keyboard controller to be issued next.
0D	NOP command processing done. CMOS shutdown register test to be done next.
0E	CMOS shutdown register R/W test passed. Going to calculate CMOS checksum, update DIAG byte.
0F	CMOS checksum calculation is done DIAG byte written. CMOS init. to begin (If INIT CMOS IN EVERY BOOT is set).
10	CMOS initialization done (if any). CMOS status register about to init for Date and Time.
11	CMOS Status register initialised. Going to disable DMA and Interrupt controllers.
12	DMA Controller #1 & #2, interrupt controller #1 & #2 disabled. About to disable Video display and init port-B.
13	Video display disabled and port-B initialized. Chipset init/auto mem detection about to begin.
14	Chipset initialization/auto memory detection over. 8254 timer test about to start.
15	CH-2 timer test halfway. 8254 CH-2 timer test to be complete.
16	Ch-2 timer test over. 8254 CH-1 timer test to be complete.
17	CH-1 timer test over. 8254 CH-0 timer test to be complete.
18	CH-0 timer test over. About to start memory refresh.
19	Memory Refresh started. Memory Refresh test to be done next.
1A	Memory Refresh line is toggling. Going to check 15 microsecond ON/OFF time.
1B	Memory Refresh period 30 microsec test complete. Base 64K memory test about to start.
20	Base 64k memory test started. Address line test to be done next.
21	Address line test passed. Going to do toggle parity.
22	Toggle parity over. Going for sequential data R/W test.
23	Base 64k sequential data R/W test passed. Setup before Interrupt vector init about to start.
24	Setup before vector initialization complete. Interrupt vector initialization about to begin.
25	Interrupt vector initialization done. Going to read I/O port of 8042 for turbo switch (if any).
26	I/O port of 8042 is read. Going to initialize global data for turbo switch.
27	Global data initialization is over. Any initialization after interrupt vector to be done next.
28	Initialization after interrupt vector is complete. Going for monochrome mode setting.
29	Monochrome mode setting is done. Going for Colour mode setting.
2A	Colour mode setting is done. About to go for toggle parity before optional ROM test.
2B	Toggle parity over. About to give control for any setup before optional video ROM check.
2C	Processing before video ROM control is done. About to look for optional video ROM and give control.
2D	Optional video ROM control done. About to give control to do any processing after video ROM returns control.
2E	Return from processing after the video ROM control. If EGA/VGA not found then do display memory R/W test.
2F	EGA/VGA not found. Display memory R/W test about to begin.
30	Display mem R/W test passed. About to look for retrace checking.
31	Display mem R/W test/ retrace check failed. About to do alternate Display memory R/W test.
32	Alternate Display memory R/W test passed. About to look for alternate display retrace checking.
33	Video display checking over. Verification of display with switch setting and card to begin.
34	Verification of display adapter done. Display mode to be set next.
35	Display mode set complete. BIOS ROM data area about to be checked.
36	BIOS ROM data area check over. Going to set cursor for power on message.
37	Cursor setting for power on message id complete. Going to display the power on message.
38	Power on message display complete. Going to read new cursor position.
39	New cursor position read and saved. Going to display the reference string.
3A	Reference string display is over. Going to display the Hit <Esc> message.
3B	Hit <Esc> message displayed. Virtual mode memory test about to start.
40	Preparation for virtual mode test started. Going to verify from video memory.
41	Returned after verifying from display memory. Going to prepare the descriptor tables.
42	Descriptor tables prepared. Going to enter in virtual mode for memory test.
43	Entered in the virtual mode. Going to enable interrupts for diagnostics mode.
44	Interrupts enabled (if diagnostics switch is on). Going to initialize data to check memory wrap around at 0:0.
45	Data initialized. Going to check for memory wrap around at 0:0and finding the total system memory size.
46	Memory wrap around test done. Memory size calculation over. About to go for writing patterns to test memory.
47	Pattern to be tested written in extended memory. Going to write patterns in base 640k.
48	Patterns written in base memory. Going to find out amount of memory below 1Mb.
49	Amount of memory below 1Mb found and verified. Going to find out amount of memory above 1M memory.
4A	Amount of memory above 1Mb found and verified. Going for BIOS ROM data area check.
4B	BIOS ROM data area check over. Going to check <Esc> and clear mem below 1Mb for soft reset.
4C	Memory below 1M cleared. (SOFT RESET). Going to clear memory above 1M.
4D	Memory above 1M cleared.(SOFT RESET). Going to save the memory size.
4E	Memory test started. (NO SOFT RESET). About to display the first 64k memory test.
4F	Memory size display started. This will be updated during memory test. Going for sequential and random memory test.
50	Memory test below 1Mb complete. Going to adjust memory size for relocation/ shadow.
51	Memory size adjusted due to relocation/shadow. Memory test above 1Mb to follow.
52	Memory test above 1Mb complete. Going to prepare to go back to real mode.
53	CPU registers are saved including memory size. Going to enter in real mode.
54	Shutdown successful. CPU in real mode. Going to restore registers saved during preparation for shutdown.
55	Registers restored. Going to disable gate A20 address line.
56	A20 address line disable successful. BIOS ROM data area about to be checked.
57	BIOS ROM data area check halfway. BIOS ROM data area check to be complete.
58	BIOS ROM data area check over. Going to clear Hit <Esc>message.
59	Hit <Esc> message cleared. WAIT. . . message displayed. About to start DMA and interrupt controller test.
60	DMA page register test passed. About to verify from display memory.
61	Display memory verification over. About to go for DMA #1 base register test.
62	DMA #1 base register test passed. About to go for DMA #2 base register test.
63	DMA #2 base register test passed. About to go for BIOS ROM data area check.
64	BIOS ROM data area check halfway. BIOS ROM data area check to be complete.
65	BIOS ROM data area check over. About to program DMA unit 1 and 2.
66	DMA unit 1 and 2 programming over. About to initialize 8259 interrupt controller
67	8259 initialization over. About to start keyboard test.
80	Keyboard test started. Clearing output buffer, checking for stuck key. About to issue keyboard reset
81	Keyboard reset error/stuck key found. About to issue keyboard controller i/f test command.
82	Keyboard controller interface test over. About to write command byte and init circular buffer.
83	Command byte written Global data init done. About to check for lock-key.
84	Lock-key checking over. About to check for memory size mismatch with CMOS.
85	Memory size check done. About to display soft error; check for password or bypass setup.
86	Password checked. About to do programming before setup.
87	Programming before setup complete. Going to CMOS setup program.
88	Returned from CMOS setup and screen cleared. About to do programming after setup.
89	Programming after setup complete. Going to display power on screen message.
8A	First screen message displayed. About to display WAIT. . . message.
8B	WAIT. . . message displayed. About to do Main and Video BIOS shadow.
8C	Main/Video BIOS shadow successful. Setup options programming after CMOS setup about to start.
8D	Setup options are programmed, mouse check and init to be done next
8E	Mouse check and initialisation complete. Going for hard disk floppy reset.
8F	Floppy check returns that floppy is to be initialized. Floppy setup to follow.
90	Floppy setup is over. Test for hard disk presence to be done.
91	Hard disk presence test over. Hard disk setup to follow.
92	Hard disk setup complete. About to go for BIOS ROM data area check.
93	BIOS ROM data area check halfway. BIOS ROM data area check to be complete.
94	BIOS ROM data area check over. Going to set base and extended memory size.
95	Memory size adjusted due to mouse support hdisk type 47. Going to verify from display memory.
96	Returned after verifying from display memory. Going to do any init before C800 optional ROM control.
97	Any init before C800 optional ROM control is over. Optional ROM check and control next.
98	Optional ROM control is done. About to give control to do any required processing after optional ROM returns control.
99	Any initialization required after optional ROM test over. Going to setup timer data area and printer base address.
9A	Return after setting timer and printer base address. Going to set the RS-232 base address.
9B	Returned after RS-232 base address. Going to do any initialization before Copro test.
9C	Required initialization before coprocessor is over. Going to initialize the coprocessor next.
9D	Coprocessor initialized. Going to do any initialization after Coprocessor test.
9E	Initialization after co-pro test complete. Going to check extd keyboard; ID and num-lock.
9F	Extd keyboard check done ID flag set. num-lock on/off. Keyboard ID command to be issued.
A0	Keyboard ID command issued. Keyboard ID flag to be reset.
A1	Keyboard ID flag reset. Cache memory test to follow.
A2	Cache memory test over. Going to display any soft errors.
A3	Soft error display complete. Going to set the keyboard typematic rate.
A4	Keyboard typematic rate set. Going to program memory wait states.
A5	Memory wait states programming over. Screen to be cleared next.
A6	Screen cleared. Going to enable parity and NMI.
A7	NMI and parity enabled. Going to do any initialization required before giving control to optional ROM at E000.
A8	Initialization before E000 ROM control over. E000 ROM to get control next.
A9	Returned from E000 ROM control. Going to do any initialization required after E000 optional ROM control.
AA	Initialization after E000 optional ROM control is over. Going to display system configuration.
00	System configuration is displayed. Going to give control to INT 19h boot loader.

AMI New BIOS; 06/06/92-08/08/93

Code	Meaning
01	Processor register test about to start and NMI to be disabled.
02	NMI is Disabled. Power on delay starting.
03	Power on delay complete. Any initialization before keyboard BAT is in progress next.
04	Any init before keyboard BAT is complete. Reading keyboard SYS bit, to check soft reset/power on.
05	Soft reset/ power-on determined. Going to enable ROM; i.e. disable shadow RAM/Cache if any.
06	ROM is enabled. Calculating ROM BIOS checksum and waiting for 8042 keyboard controller input buffer to be free.
07	ROM BIOS checksum passed; KB controller input buffer free. Going to issue BAT command to the keyboard controller.
08	BAT command to keyboard controller is issued. Going to verify the BAT command.
09	Keyboard controller BAT result verified. Keyboard command byte to be written next.
0A	Keyboard command byte code is issued. Going to write command byte data.
0B	Keyboard controller command byte is written. Going to issue Pin-23 & 24 blocking/unblocking command.
0C	Pin-23 & 24 of keyboard controller is blocked/ unblocked. NOP command of keyboard controller to be issued next.
0D	NOP command processing is done. CMOS shutdown register test to be done next.
0E	CMOS shutdown register R/W test passed. Going to calculate CMOS checksum and update DIAG byte.
0F	CMOS checksum calculation is done; DIAG byte written. CMOS init to begin (If "INIT CMOS IN EVERY BOOT" is set).
10	CMOS initialization done (if any). CMOS status register about to init for Date and Time.
11	CMOS Status register initialised. Going to disable DMA and Interrupt controllers.
12	DMA controller #1 & #2, interrupt controller #1 & #2 disabled. About to disable Video display and init port-B.
13	Disable Video display and initialise port B. Chipset init/auto memory detection about to begin.
14	Chipset initialization/auto memory detection over. 8254 timer test about to start.
15	CH-2 timer test halfway. 8254 CH-2 timer test to be complete.
16	Ch-2 timer test over. 8254 CH-1 timer test to be complete.
17	CH-1 timer test over. 8254 CH-0 timer test to be complete.
18	CH-0 timer test over. About to start memory refresh.
19	Memory Refresh started. Memory Refresh test to be done next.
1A	Memory Refresh line is toggling. Going to check 15 microsecond ON/OFF time.
1B	Memory Refresh period 30 microsecond test complete. Base 64K memory test about to start.
20	Base 64k memory test started. Address line test to be done next.
21	Address line test passed. Going to do toggle parity.
22	Toggle parity over. Going for sequential data R/W test.
23	Base 64k sequential data R/W test passed. Any setup before Interrupt vector init about to start.
24	Setup required before vector initialization complete. Interrupt vector initialization about to begin.
25	Interrupt vector initialization done. Going to read I/O port of 8042 for turbo switch (if any).
26	I/O port of 8042 is read. Going to initialize global data for turbo switch.
27	Global data initialization is over. Any initialization after interrupt vector to be done next.
28	Initialization after interrupt vector is complete. Going for monochrome mode setting.
29	Monochrome mode setting is done. Going for Colour mode setting.
2A	Colour mode setting is done. About to go for toggle parity before optional ROM test.
2B	Toggle parity over. About to give control for any setup required before optional video ROM check.
2C	Processing before video ROM control is done. About to look for optional video ROM and give control.
2D	Optional video ROM control done. About to give control for processing after video ROM returns control.
2E	Return from processing after video ROM control. If EGA/VGA not found do display memory R/W test.
2F	EGA/VGA not found. Display memory R/W test about to begin.
30	Display memory R/W test passed. About to look for the retrace checking.
31	Display memory R/W test or retrace checking failed. About to do alternate Display memory R/W test.
32	Alternate Display memory R/W test passed. About to look for the alternate display retrace checking.
33	Video display checking over. Verification of display type with switch setting and actual card to begin.
34	Verification of display adapter done. Display mode to be set next.
35	Display mode set complete. BIOS ROM data area about to be checked.
36	BIOS ROM data area check over. Going to set cursor for power on message.
37	Cursor setting for power on message complete. Going to display power on message.
38	Power on message display complete. Going to read new cursor position.
39	New cursor position read and saved. Going to display the reference string.
3A	Reference string display over. Going to display the Hit <ESC> message.
3B	Hit <ESC> message displayed. Virtual mode memory test about to start.
40	Preparation for virtual mode test started. Going to verify from video memory.
41	Returned after verifying from display memory. Going to prepare descriptor tables.
42	Descriptor tables prepared. Going to enter in virtual mode for memory test.
43	Entered in virtual mode. Going to enable interrupts for diagnostics mode.
44	Interrupts enabled (if diags switch on). Going to initialize data to check mem wrap around at 0:0.
45	Data initialized. Going to check for memory wrap around at 0:0 and finding total memory size.
46	Mem wrap around test done. Size calculation over. About to go for writing patterns to test memory.
47	Pattern to be tested written in extended memory. Going to write patterns in base 640k memory.
48	Patterns written in base memory. Going to find out amount of memory below 1M b.
49	Amount of memory below 1Mb found and verified. Going to find amount of memory above 1Mb.
4A	Amount of memory above 1Mb found and verified. Going for BIOS ROM data area check.
4B	BIOS ROM data area check over. Going to check <ESC> and clear mem below 1 Mb for soft reset.
4C	Memory below 1Mb cleared. (SOFT RESET). Going to clear memory above 1 Mb.
4D	Memory above 1Mb cleared. (SOFT RESET). Going to save memory size.
4E	Memory test started. (NO SOFT RESET). About to display first 64K memory test.
4F	Memory size display started. This will be updated during memory test. Going for sequential and random memory test.
50	Memory test below 1Mb complete. Going to adjust memory size for relocation/shadow.
51	Memory size adjusted due to relocation/shadow. Memory test above 1Mb to follow.
52	Memory test above 1Mb complete. Preparing to go back to real mode.
53	CPU registers saved including memory size. Going to enter real mode.
54	Shutdown successful; CPU in real mode. Going to restore registers saved during prep for shutdown.
55	Registers restored. Going to disable gate A20 address line.
56	A20 address line disable successful. BIOS ROM data area about to be checked.
57	BIOS ROM data area check halfway. BIOS ROM data area check to be complete.
58	BIOS ROM data area check over. Going to clear Hit <ESC> message.
59	Hit <ESC> message cleared. <WAIT...> message displayed. About to start DMA and PIC test.
60	DMA page register test passed. About to verify from display memory.
61	Display memory verification over. About to go for DMA #1 base register test.
62	DMA #1 base register test passed. About to go for DMA #2 base register test.
63	DMA #2 base register test passed. About to go for BIOS ROM data area check.
64	BIOS ROM data area check halfway. BIOS ROM data area check to be complete.
65	BIOS ROM data area check over. About to program DMA unit 1 and 2.
66	DMA unit 1 and 2 programming over. About to initialize 8259 interrupt controller.
67	8259 initialization over. About to start keyboard test.
80	Keyboard test started. Clearing output buffer, checking for stuck key. About to issue keyboard reset.
81	Keyboard reset error/stuck key found. About to issue keyboard controller interface command.
82	Keyboard controller interface test over. About to write command byte and init circular buffer.
83	Command byte written, Global data init done. About to check for lock-key.
84	Lock-key checking over. About to check for memory size mismatch with CMOS.
85	Memory size check done. About to display soft error and check for password or bypass setup.
86	Password checked. About to do programming before setup.
87	Programming before setup complete. Going to CMOS setup program.
88	Returned from CMOS setup program, screen is cleared. About to do programming after setup.
89	Programming after setup complete. Going to display power on screen message.
8A	First screen message displayed. About to display <WAIT...> message.
8B	<WAIT...> message displayed. About to do Main and Video BIOS shadow.
8C	Main/Video BIOS shadow successful. Setup options programming after CMOS setup about to start.
8D	Setup options programmed; mouse check and initialisation to be done next.
8E	Mouse check and initialisation complete. Going for hard disk and floppy reset.
8F	Floppy check returns that floppy is to be initialized. Floppy setup to follow.
90	Floppy setup is over. Test for hard disk presence to be done.
91	Hard disk presence test over. Hard disk setup to follow.
92	Hard disk setup complete. About to go for BIOS ROM data area check.
93	BIOS ROM data area check halfway. BIOS ROM data area check to be complete.
94	BIOS ROM data area check over. Going to set base and extended memory size.
95	Mem size adjusted due to mouse support, hard disk type 47. Going to verify from display memory.
96	Returned after verifying from display memory. Going to do any init before C800 optional ROM control
97	Any init before C800 optional ROM control is over. Optional ROM check and control will be done next.
98	Optional ROM control is done. About to give control to do any required processing after optional ROM returns control.
99	Any init required after optional ROM test over. Going to setup timer data area and printer base address.
9A	Return after setting timer and printer base address. Going to set the RS-232 base address.
9B	Returned after RS-232 base address. Going to do any initialization before coprocessor test
9C	Required initialization before co-processor over. Going to initialize the coprocessor next.
9D	Coprocessor initialized. Going to do any initialization after coprocessor test.
9E	Initialization after coprocessor test complete. Going to check extd keyboard
	keyboard ID and num lock.
9F	Extd keyboard check is done, ID flag set. num lock on/off. Keyboard ID command to be issued.
A0	Keyboard ID command issued. Keyboard ID flag to be reset.
A1	Keyboard ID flag reset. Cache memory test to follow.
A2	Cache memory test over. Going to display soft errors.
A3	Soft error display complete. Going to set keyboard typematic rate.
A4	Keyboard typematic rate set. Going to program memory wait states.
A5	Memory wait states programming over. Screen to be cleared next.
A6	Screen cleared. Going to enable parity and NMI.
A7	NMI and parity enabled. Going to do any initi before giving control to optional ROM at E000.
A8	Initialization before E000 ROM control over. E000 ROM to get control next.
A9	Returned from E000 ROM control. Going to do any initialisation after E000 optional ROM control.
AA	Initialization after E000 optional ROM control is over. Going to display the system configuration.
00	System configuration is displayed. Going to give control to INT 19h boot loader.

AMI WinBIOS; 12/15/93 Onwards

Code	Meaning
01	Processor register test about to start; disable NMI next.
02	NMI is Disabled. Power on delay starting.
03	Power on delay complete (to check soft reset/power-on).
05	Soft reset/power-on determined, going to enable ROM (i.e. disable shadow RAM cache, if any).
06	ROM is enabled. Calculating ROM BIOS checksum.
07	ROM BIOS checksum passed. CMOS shutdown register test to be done next.
08	CMOS shutdown register test done. CMOS checksum calculation next.
09	CMOS checksum calculation done; CMOS diag byte written; CMOS initialisation to begin.
0A	CMOS initialization done (if any). CMOS status register about to init for Date and Time.
0B	CMOS status register init done. Any initialization before keyboard BAT to be done next.
0C	KB controller I/B free. Going to issue the BAT command to keyboard controller.
0D	BAT command to keyboard controller is issued. Going to verify the BAT command.
0E	Keyboard controller BAT result verified. Any initialization after KB controller BAT next.
0F	Initialisation after KB controller BAT done. Keyboard command byte to be written next.
10	Keyboard controller command byte is written. Going to issue Pin-23 & 24 blocking/unblocking command.
11	Keyboard controller Pin-23 & 24 blocked/unblocked; check press of <INS> key during power-on .
12	Checking for pressing of <INS> key during power-on done. Going to disable DMA/Interrupt controllers.
13	DMA controller #1 and #2 and Interrupt controller #1 and #2 disabled; video display disabled and port B initialised; chipset init/auto memory detection next.
14	Chipset init/auto memory detection over. To uncompress the POST code if compressed BIOS.
15	POST code is uncompressed. 8254 timer test about to start.
19	8254 timer test over. About to start memory refresh test.
1A	Memory Refresh line is toggling. Going to check 15 micro second ON/OFF time.
20	Memory Refresh 30 microsecond test complete. Base 64K memory/address line test about to start.
21	Address line test passed. Going to do toggle parity.
22	Toggle parity over. Going for sequential data R/W test on base 64k memory.
23	Base 64k sequential data R/W test passed. Going to set BIOS stack and do any setup before Interrupt
24	Setup required before vector initialization complete. Interrupt vector initialization about to begin.
25	Interrupt vector initialization done. Going to read Input port of 9042 for turbo switch (if any) and clear password if POST diag switch is ON next.
26	Input port of 8042 is read. Going to initialize global data for turbo switch.
27	Global data initialization for turbo switch is over. Any initialization before setting video mode to be done next.
28	Initialization before setting video mode is complete. Going for mono mode and colour mode setting.
2A	Monochrome and colour mode setting is done. About to go for toggle parity before optional ROM test.
2B	Toggle parity over. About to give control for any setup required before optional video ROM check next.
2C	Processing before video ROM control is done. About to look for optional video ROM and give control.
2D	Optional video ROM control is done. About to give control to do any processing after video RON returns control.
2E	Return from processing after video ROM control. If EGA/VGA not found do display memory R/W test.
2F	EGA/VGA not found. Display memory R/W test about to begin.
30	Display memory R/W test passed. About to look for the retrace checking.
31	Display mem R/W test or retrace checking failed. About to do alternate Display memory R/W test.
32	Alternate Display memory R/W test passed. About to look for the alternate display retrace checking.
34	Video display checking over. Display mode to be set next.
37	Display mode set. Going to display the power on message.
39	New cursor position read and saved. Going to display the Hit <DEL> message.
3B	Hit <DEL> message displayed. Virtual mode memory test about to start.
40	Going to prepare the descriptor tables.
42	Descriptor tables prepared. Going to enter in virtual mode for memory test.
43	Entered in virtual mode. Going to enable interrupts for diagnostics mode.
44	Interrupts enabled (if diags switch is on). Going to initialize data to check memory wrap around at 0:0.
45	Data initialized. Going to check for memory wrap around at 0:0 and find total system memory size.
46	Memory wrap around test done. Memory size calculation over. About to go for writing patterns to test memory.
47	Pattern to be tested written in extended memory. Going to write patterns in base 640k memory.
48	Patterns written in base memory. Going to find amount of memory below 1Mb.
49	Amount of memory below 1Mb found and verified. Going to find out amount of memory above 1Mb memory.
4B	Amount of memory above 1Mb found and verified. Check for soft reset and going to clear memory below 1Mb for soft reset next (if power on go to POST # 4Eh).
4C	Memory below 1Mb cleared.(SOFT RESET)
4D	Memory above 1Mb cleared.(SOFT RESET); save memory size next (go to POST # 52h).
4E	Memory test started. (NOT SOFT RESET); display first 64K memory size next.
4F	Memory size display started. This will be updated during memory test; sequential and random memory test next.
50	Memory testing/initialisation below 1Mb complete. Going to adjust displayed memory size for relocation/ shadow.
51	Memory size display adjusted due to relocation/ shadow. Memory test above 1Mb to follow.
52	Memory testing/initialisation above 1Mb complete. Going to save memory size information.
53	Memory size information is saved. CPU registers are saved. Going to enter real mode.
54	Shutdown successful, CPU in real mode, disable gate A20 line next.
57	A20 address line disable successful. Going to adjust memory size depending on relocation/shadow.
58	Memory size adjusted for relocation/shadow. Going to clear Hit <DEL> message.
59	Hit <DEL> message cleared. <WAIT...> message displayed. About to start DMA and interrupt controller test.
60	DMA page register test passed. About to go for DMA #1 base register test.
62	DMA #1 base register test passed. About to go for DMA #2 base register test.
65	DMA #2 base register test passed. About to program DMA unit 1 and 2.
66	DMA unit 1 and 2 programming over. About to initialize 8259 interrupt controller.
67	8259 initialization over. About to start keyboard test.
F4	Extended NMI sources enabling is in progress (EISA).
80	Keyboard test started. Clear output buffer; check for stuck key; issue reset keyboard command next.
81	Keyboard reset error/stuck key found. About to issue keyboard controller interface test command.
82	Keyboard controller interface test over. About to write command byte and init circular buffer.
83	Command byte written; global data init done; check for lock-key next.
84	Lock-key checking over. About to check for memory size mismatch with CMOS.
85	Memory size check done. About to display soft error and check for password or bypass setup.
86	Password checked. About to do programming before setup.
87	Programming before setup complete. Uncompress SETUP code and execute CMOS setup.
88	Returned from CMOS setup and screen is cleared. About to do programming after setup.
89	Programming after setup complete. Going to display power on screen message.
8B	First screen msg displayed. <WAIT...> message displayed. About to do Main/Video BIOS shadow.
8C	Main and Video BIOS shadow successful. Setup options programming after CMOS setup about to start.
8D	Setup options are programmed; mouse check and init next.
8E	Mouse check and initialisation complete. Going for hard disk controller reset.
8F	Hard disk controller reset done. Floppy setup to be done next.
91	Floppy setup complete. Hard disk setup to be done next.
94	Hard disk setup complete. Going to set base and extended memory size.
96	Memory size adjusted due to mouse support, hard disk type 47; any init before C800, optional ROM control next.
97	Init before C800 optional ROM control is over. Optional ROM check and control next.
98	Optional ROM control done. About to give control for any required processing after optional ROM returns control next.
99	Any initialization required after optional ROM test over. Going to setup timer data area and printer base address.
9A	Return after setting timer and printer base address. Going to set the RS-232 base address.
9B	Returned after RS-232 base address. Going to do any initialization before coprocessor test.
9C	Required initialization before co-processor is over. Going to initialize the coprocessor next.
9D	Coprocessor initialized. Going to do any initialization after coprocessor test.
9E	Init after coprocessor test complete. Going to check extd keyboard; keyboard ID and NumLock.
9F	Extd keyboard check is done; ID flag set; NumLock on/off, issue keyboard ID command next.
A0	Keyboard ID command issued. Keyboard ID flag to be reset.
A1	Keyboard ID flag reset. Cache memory test to follow.
A2	Cache memory test over. Going to display any soft errors.
A3	Soft error display complete. Going to set the keyboard typematic rate.
A4	Keyboard typematic rate set. Going to program memory wait states.
A5	Memory wait states programming over. Going to clear the screen and enable parity/NMI.
A7	NMI and parity enabled. Going to do any initialization required before giving control to optional ROM at E000 next.
A8	Initialization before E000 ROM control over. E000 ROM to get control next.
A9	Returned from E000 ROM control. Going to do init required.
AA	Init after E000 optional ROM control is over. Going to display the system configuration.
B0	System configuration is displayed. Going to uncompress SETUP code for hot-key setup.
B1	Uncompressing of SETUP code is complete. Going to copy any code to specific area.
00	Copying of code to specific area done. Going to give control to INT 19h boot loader.

EISA

Code	Meaning
F0	Initialisation of I/O cards in slots is in progress (EISA).
F1	Extended NMI sources enabling is in progress (EISA).
F2	Extended NMI test is in progress (EISA).
F3	Display any slot initialisation messages.
F4	Extended NMI sources enabling in progress.

Arche Technologies
Legacy BIOS

Derives from AMI (9 April 90), using port 80; certain codes come up if a copy is made without AMI's copyright notice. The major differences are at the end.

Code	Explanation
01	Disable NMI and test CPU registers
02	Verify ROM BIOS checksum (32K at F800:0)
03	Initial keyboard controller and CMOS RAM communication
04	Disable DMA and interrupt controllers; test CMOS RAM interrupt
05	Reset Video
06	Test 8254 timer
07	Test delta count for timer channel 2 (speaker)
08	Test delta count for timer channel 1 (memory refresh)
09	Test delta count for timer channel 0 (system timer)
0A	Test parity circuit and turn on refresh
0B	Enable parity check circuit and test system timer
0C	Test refresh trace link toggle
0D	Test refresh timing synchronization of high and low period
10	Disable cache and shadow BIOS; test 64K base memory address lines
11	Test base 64K memory for random addresses and data read/write
12	Initialize interrupt vectors in lower 1K of RAM
14	Test CMOS RAM shutdown register read/write; disable DMA and interrupt controllers
15	Test CMOS RAM battery and checksum, and different options such as diagnostic byte
16	Test floppy information in CMOS RAM; initialize monochrome video
17	Initialise colour video
18	Clear parity status if any
19	Test for EGA/VGA video ROM BIOS at C000:0 and pass control to it if there
1A	Returned from video ROM. Clear parity status if any; update system parameters for any video ROM found; test display memory read/write
1B	Primary video adapter: check vertical and horizontal retrace; write/read test video memory
1C	Secondary video adapter: check vertical and horizontal retrace; write/read test video memory
1D	Compare and verify CMOS RAM video type with switches and actual video adapter; set equipment byte if correct
1E	Call BIOS to set mono/colour video mode according to CMOS RAM
20	Display CMOS RAM write/read errors and halt if any
21	Set cursor to next line and call INT 10 to display
22	Display Power on "386 BIOS" message and check CPU speed is 25 or 33 MHz
23	Read new cursor position and call INT 10 to display
24	Skip 2 rows of text and display (C)AMI at bottom of screen
25	Refresh is off, so call shadow RAM test
F0	Failure inside shadow RAM test
30	Verify (C)AMI... and overwrite with blanks before entering protected mode
31	Enter protected mode and enable timer interrupt (IRQ0). Errors here indicate gate A20