Program BIOS Setup (CMOS Setup), many simply referred to as BIOS, which is not only wrong, both technically and historically, but can not even be used as a reduction ...
Program BIOS Setup (CMOS Setup), many simply referred to as BIOS, which is not only wrong, both technically and historically, but can not even be used as a reduction, as well as BIOS - Basic Input / Output System - is translated from English as the basic input / output system and a different concept. Contrary to popular delusion BIOS and BIOS Setup does not appear in conjunction with the IBM PC. The first was established before the first personal computer, IBM, and the second - at a later date.
As you know, any computer system consists of hardware and software. And BIOS, and BIOS Setup, of course, refer to the software, but to this, which is closest to the «iron». BIOS necessarily includes a standard set of device drivers that allow applications to uniformly apply the resources of computers with different hardware configuration, and the program, aimed to revive the machine after the operation. With the drivers applications do not have to «think» that it has, say, a survey of the keyboard - the central processing unit (eg, computers, ZX Spectrum) or a specialized controller (in particular, the IBM PC), or what type of controller or drive the display. A program «initializing» led to the initial state of a set of constants of the drivers, as well as depending on the configuration of PCs loaded the appropriate operating system (IBM PC XT, IBM PC AT), a programming language interpreter, complete with a set of commands to exchange tape (ZX Spectrum, IBM PC), or Performance Monitor, providing a minimum of user functions.
One of the first operating system for 8-bit personal computers CP/M-80 consisted of three parts: BIOS, providing input from the keyboard, display and read-write sector 8 - or 5-inch floppy disk; BDOS - OS kernel that supports file functions; CCP - console command processor, which allows the user to manage the computer from the command line. The first personal computer with an open architecture was the IBM PC. Moreover, the developers in an effort to increase the popularity, carefully documented as BIOS, and hardware configuration, resulting in the value drivers, BIOS significantly decreased. When the distribution of addresses of the ports has been fixed, the types of controller's display and keypad, and the structure of video has been standardized, the treatment of applications to resources of the computer through the BIOS proved unnecessary. For example, gently introduced by IBM in the BIOS option of drawing point so rarely used that developed later expansion VideoBIOS (VESA) support in general has been declared optional.
Sometimes the BIOS is called the operating system, which is also incorrect. Its main objective is to allow applications to ignore the hardware features of a particular computer, for example of the type of hard disk. The purpose of the same OS - «leave» of low-level allocation of resources such as disk space. BIOS of modern computers is recorded in flash memory - a kind of alterable ROM, but the speed of access to such memory is low, and thus to accelerate the work normally performed overwrite the contents of the flash into RAM.
Download the OS from a real (16-bit) mode, a job which most of the drivers and configured BIOS, it is through the BIOS works, in particular, MS DOS. However, most operating systems, operate in safe mode, so they usually do disable BIOS and drivers use their own protected-mode drivers, which also contributes to the standardization of hardware and IBM PC-compatible computer.
Now Basic interpreter or monitor console commands in the ROM BIOS chip is not placed, but now there are other programs, such as POST and BIOS Setup. Program Testing equipment computer POST (Power On Self Test) begins to operate immediately after power on and before loading the OS. This procedure is highly relevant to the computer with open architecture. In the event of a malfunction of the user in any way the message: the words on the screen, the dynamics of the blasts, the figures at a special board or even a human voice, previously recorded in the flash-memory chips.
BIOS Setup program was not immediate. Actually, a computer with an open architecture can not do without the functions of setting a set of drivers for existing equipment. In the IBM PC and IBM PC XT, strictly speaking, BIOS Setup was also, but ... in hardware form, namely as a set of dip-switches, which set the amount of memory, types of drives and hard drives, the existence of mathematical coprocessor, etc. In the IBM PC AT (286) was introduced a novelty - has a chip made by technology CMOS (CMOS), is powered by batteries. Its function is based on the clock-calendar, so that when your PC is no longer required each time to enter the date and time. In addition, the chip contains several tens of single memory cells, which has been decided to use instead of dip-switches for the storage of information about the features of the hardware configuration.
Read information from these cells, as well as with the dip-switches could, of course, the BIOS, but the recording will need a special tool, and its called BIOS Setup. Initially, these tools were delivered on a floppy disk to each computer in the same way as almost all drivers are on CD-ROM. But since producers have used individual cells for different purposes, the program for a computer to «spoil» installing another. And sometimes it was impossible to download the program from the disk drive if it becomes unavailable due to damage to the contents of the cell with the data on it, say, because the batteries out of order. That's why the models AT386 and AT286 later became available in the BIOS Setup has the same chip as the very BIOS. To run this program, it was necessary to press a certain key combination (usually press <Del>) after passing the POST, but in the era of the rule of undivided text mode - often and at any other time. If installed in a car or a RAID-SCSI-Controller, they usually contain their own configuration of RAID Setup Utility or the SCSI Setup, also called during the boot process the computer that a particular combination of keys.
The number of cells CMOS memory can not exceed 114, because the number has 7 bits, and the first 14 addresses are occupied for hours. So, if the BIOS Setup program is required to store more information, some information may be posted in the flash-memory. But the number of plants you want to save, increased over time, the first BIOS Setup program several times. Now the program should help to solve several tasks: to set up facilities in accordance with the existing hardware configuration, to maximize the productivity and sustainability of the system and obtain information on the status of the latter, as well as provide password protection.
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