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HP BIOS

The Setup program and BIOS are summarized in the two sections of this chapter. The POST routines are described in the next chapter.

The BIOS is based on an AMIBIOS® core, which includes support for

4 M/bits flash parts, PCI 2.2 Specification, and RIMM or DIMM memory modules. Added to this, a New BIOS Architecture (NBA) has been implemented. The main principle of the NBA is that HP features are independent modules and run at defined moments in the boot process. They are installed as hooks, either in:

•Source code form, for small tasks, or before memory is available.•Binary. As .COM files, for larger tasks once memory is available.

They both communicate with the BIOS through CMOS and memory tables providing information to the operating system through SMBIOS tables.

So, what are hooks? Hooks are architected points in the BIOS where specific code can be run. HP code is integrated, as mentioned above, in either source/object files, or as separate binaries.

HP/NBA BIOS Summary

The System ROM contains the POST (Power-On-Self-Test) routines and the BIOS: the System BIOS, video BIOS, and low option ROM. This chapter, together with the following one, give an overview of the following aspects:

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•

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Menu-driven Setup with context-sensitive help, described next in this chapter.

The address space, with details of the interrupts used, described at the end of this chapter.

The Power-On-Self-Test or POST, which is the sequence of tests the computer performs to ensure that the system is functioning correctly, described in the next chapter.

The system BIOS is identified by the version number qXX.YM.mm, where:•q is an optional letter indicating non-production status (removed at release).•XX is a two-letter code indicating the system (IA).•Y is a one-digit code indicating the HP entity.•M is the major BIOS version.•mm is the minor BIOS version.

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