Frustrated! BIOS

[AdamJarvis359]

Case
FRACTAL MESHIFY 2 LIGHT TEMPERED GLASS
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™ i7 12-Core Processor i7-12700K (3.6GHz) 25MB Cache
Motherboard
GIGABYTE Z690 AORUS ELITE DDR4 (LGA1700, USB 3.2, PCIe 5.0) - ARGB Ready
Memory (RAM)
32GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3600MHz (2 x 16GB)
Graphics Card
8GB NVIDIA GEFORCE RTX 3070 Ti - HDMI, DP, LHR
1st M.2 SSD Drive
2TB PCS PCIe M.2 SSD (3300 MB/R, 2900 MB/W)
Power Supply
CORSAIR 850W RMx SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1.5 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
PCS FrostFlow 120 Series ARGB High Performance Liquid Cooler
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Card
10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Windows 11 Professional 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10/11 Multi-Language Recovery Image - Unlimited Downloads from Online Account
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft 365® (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Browser
Microsoft® Edge
Monitor
IIYAMA G-MASTER GB2760QSU-B1 27"
Warranty
3 Year Standard Warranty (1 Month Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
FAST TRACK 5 WORKING DAY DISPATCH
Welcome Book
PCSpecialist Welcome Book - United Kingdom & Republic of Ireland
Logo Branding
PCSpecialist Logo
Price: £0.00 including VAT and Delivery

Hi
This is my PC, It has a very slight niggle that has me confused, I built my own PC's for 30 years and cannot work out what else to try without replacing hardware.
PC is great, no issues (not caused by my, I'm studying Computer science and cause my own problems.
Anyway.
I have F7 BIOS which is what the PC shipped with. basically any other BIOS can't find a bootable drive. I actually have all of them on different flashes.

This is what happened:
PC is unchanged, the M.2 is now in the PCI lane as it's got a full heat sink (I have tried it in all slots) I also have a Samsung EVO860 2 TB SATA connected.
I had to (my own fault) do a clean install in November, Windows 11 Pro latest by thumb drive. I checked Gigabyte BIOS updates (I don't have any updaters) and there was one for security (there's 2 now )
The problem I have is after updating the BIOS to any other than F7 the bootable device is lost.
Without changing any setting other than defaults any other version of BIOS only see the SATA drive, The M.2 shows as a 2 megabyte unknown. Flash F7 and it just boots as normal again.
I have tried everything, I even installed Windows to the Sata drive and went into Disk manager and it shows as an formatted drive and trying anything fails, DISKPART just says too small.
I have tried everything in BIOS enabling CSM, Resetting keys, moving the drive to other sockets, many clear CMOS.
I didn't try the pre install driver, part of me thinks the firmware on the drive maybe corrupted, however the drive benches perfectly on F7?

Any thoughts?

I reset BIOS to defaults before flashing (using ezflash on a UPS)

Normal running settings I change are disable app download and install, enable XMP and resizable bar.

I spent a day trying almost everything, in the end, I had everything except the M.2 disconnected and tried in all ports, nothing.

But you can clear CMOS, reconnect everything, re-flash F7 and it's like nothing every happened (after you clean up secure boot from Windows.

Not a problem, I just cannot find any similar cases like this and it keeps me awake thinking...

Thanks for reading

 

[SpyderTracks]

the M.2 is now in the PCI lane

What do you mean by this? Modern motherboards don't have PCI anymore? Which M2 slot do you have it in?

Do you mean it's not recognised in the windows installer rather than in windows itself?

Processor Cooling
PCS FrostFlow 120 Series ARGB High Performance Liquid Cooler

This is nowhere near enough for your CPU by the way, it will be overheating and the pump is bound to fail anyway.

 

[AdamJarvis359]

The only one with a full heat sync like I said. On the motherboard manual it says PCI Express 4.0 Bus > 1 M.2.
It's the lane that is connected to the CPU directly not the chipset.
I don't have a problem with my cooling thanks anyway.

 

[SpyderTracks]

I don't have a problem with my cooling thanks anyway.

You will do, it will fail sooner rather than later

So is the drive being seen in the BIOS on the later revisions?

 

[ubuysa]

I have F7 BIOS which is what the PC shipped with. basically any other BIOS can't find a bootable drive.

Why do you want to update your BIOS? You say there are two security updates available in newer versions, have you researched whether those updates are necessary for your build? The easiest way to do that is to ask PCS.

BIOS updates should never be done lightly, the BIOS is not like other software (it's not actually software at all, it's firmware) and you don't necessarily need to keep updating it every time there is a new version available.

BTW. By admitting on here that you have already updated the BIOS - several times it seems - you may already have voided your warranty with PCS.

The problem I have is after updating the BIOS to any other than F7 the bootable device is lost.

See the Terms & Conditions...

7.9 We reserve the right to suspend the warranty or refuse service if your Case, Motherboard, CPU or BIOS have been replaced without authorisation.

What you should do now is talk to PCS, they can tell you whether that build requires any BIOS version other than F7 and, if so, how to go about updating it.

 

[AdamJarvis359]

Thanks for the reply guys. I bought a mesh 2 to assist with air-cooling, I have a Noctua now. I wouldn't bother with any warranty claims, I like to troubleshoot myself, it's a hobby. I only bought from PCS because I work and am doing a degree in the evenings.
My last PC (which still runs dual-booting Ubuntu and Win 10) was a 4790k with a GTX680 (ended up 6 GHZ with a 1080ti)
I'm not going to start carrying PC boxes down to the post office at my age, I'll replace things when they need it.
I just wondered if anyone had come across this before.
I have ordered a new drive to see if that's the problem as a guy I'm studying with thinks the firmware on the drive is borked (it's only the drive supplied that does this) or it's not even compatible.

Thanks for you time.

 

[ubuysa]

Why do you not seem happy leaving the BIOS version at F7?

 

[SpyderTracks]

Thanks for the reply guys. I bought a mesh 2 to assist with air-cooling, I have a Noctua now. I wouldn't bother with any warranty claims, I like to troubleshoot myself, it's a hobby. I only bought from PCS because I work and am doing a degree in the evenings.
My last PC (which still runs dual-booting Ubuntu and Win 10) was a 4790k with a GTX680 (ended up 6 GHZ with a 1080ti)
I'm not going to start carrying PC boxes down to the post office at my age, I'll replace things when they need it.
I just wondered if anyone had come across this before.
I have ordered a new drive to see if that's the problem as a guy I'm studying with thinks the firmware on the drive is borked (it's only the drive supplied that does this) or it's not even compatible.

Thanks for you time.

Without answering the questions I'm afraid we're not going to be able to give any advice.

 

[AdamJarvis359]

Why do you not seem happy leaving the BIOS version at F7?

Because it's a Gigabyte board? Even with App download and install blocked. System 32 still receives the MITM files, as unlikely as it is, I wondered what the 'critical' fix changed in light of Eclypsium's recent findings which I'm sure you're aware of? If not Google Gigabyte backdoor!
I said thanks for your time, I assumed there might have been a warmer reception on PCS's own forum. Forget I asked /delete my details I won't be returning.
Have a great day.