System for a primary BIOS ROM recovery in a dual BIOS ROM computer system
US5793943A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventor
Key dates
| Filing date | Jul 29, 1996 |
| Grant date | Aug 11, 1998 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jul 29, 2016 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG06F11/1004
- WIPO fieldComputer technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A computer system includes a dual basic input-output system (BIOS) read-only memory (ROM) system to initialize the computer. When the computer is first powered on or reset, the primary BIOS ROM is initially enabled. The computer analyzes the entire program contents of the primary BIOS memory to detect data errors. If a data error is detected, a chip enable circuit disables the primary BIOS ROM and enables a secondary BIOS ROM containing essentially the same initialization instructions as the primary BIOS ROM. If no errors are detected in the secondary BIOS ROM, the initialization of the computer proceeds using the secondary BIOS ROM. As part of the initialization procedure, the contents of the secondary BIOS ROM are copied to a random access memory. The primary BIOS ROM can then be reprogrammed with the contents of the secondary BIOS ROM using the copy in random access memory, or from the secondary BIOS ROM itself.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.