- Advanced BIOS Features

BIOS Flash Protection - This, if enabled, stops the BIOS from being flashed by unauthorized users. This option is best left as "auto" for most of us.

First Boot Device - This option allows you to select the first bootable device that the BIOS will search for an operating system on. This should be set to wherever you have your operating system installed, which is usually "HDD-0".

Second Boot Device - If the first boot device fails, the BIOS will search for a second boot device. For faster boot times, set this to disabled.

Third Boot Device - If the first and second boot devices fail, the BIOS will search for a third boot device. For faster boot, set this to disabled.

Boot Up Floppy Seek - If this option is enabled, upon bootup the BIOS will look for a floppy disk drive in your system. If there is no floppy drive in your system, it will display an error message. This is best set to disabled as it will improve your boot time.

BootUp NumLock - When set to "On", the NumLock key will be enabled on boot up. I like to leave it Off, but it is a matter of personal preference.

Password Check - If a password has been set (from a option in the main BIOS menu), when set to "System" you will be asked for a password every time you turn on your PC. If "Setup" is selected, it will ask for the password every time you want to enter the BIOS. This is useful if you are a computer retailer and don't want people fooling around with the BIOS.

Interrupt Mode - Interrupt mode is for advanced IRQ allocations. There are two options, APIC and PIC mode. In APIC mode, the system detects as an ACPI Uniprocessor system. This is an advanced ACPI interface allowing IRQ allocations up to 23. PIC is standard ACPI and allows for a Max IRQ of 15.

Boot to OS2 or DR-DOS - Enable this if you have more than 64MB memory and want to boot to other OS like OS/2 or DR-DOS.

HDD S.M.A.R.T. Capability - S.M.A.R.T or Self Monitoring Alert and Retrieval Technology, monitors your hard drive's RPM, temperatures and IDE transfer data to make sure no data corruption occurs. Not all HDDs support this but if yours does, I recommend enabling this option.