Boot errors - CMOS battery

I have recently been getting an error message on booting up my Octane Series 15 laptop. At boot up I get a message that says:

The CMOS battery is bad or was recently replaced.

I click OK through this and I then see:

A first boot or NVRAM reset condition has been detected,

When I click OK through that, I then see:

The CMOS defaults were loaded.

What does this mean and what should I do about it? Is it a sign of a catastrophic failure is imminent?

It probably means that the CMOS battery needs replacing. If the PC is more than a couple of years old this is not uncommon. The CMOS battery provides power to maintain the BIOS settings when the PC is switched off.

They are standard button type batteries, often a CR2032, and cost pennies from most places that sell button batteries. You'll find it on your motherboard somewhere and it's a simple case of popping the old one out and the new one in. Be sure to note the polarity before taking the old one out and avoid touching the new battery with your bare fingers (it can damage the battery).