Question about bios update and current settings and preferences.

[Paul92688]

I built a ROG Strix  Z790-E / I9 13900K / 64GB computer a year and a half ago. Dialed in my settings for the PCIE lanes, boot order, etc. I have been happy with the performance and have had no failures as reported by those with CPU issues lately. My intention is to update the BIOS, but when I looked at the ASUS website, I saw it was in beta.  

I am concerned about installing beta software on a machine that is 100% reliable and needed for book keeping, record keeping, etc. I have backups of the data but don't want to rock the boat.  Should I wait for the software to come out of beta?

The other question I have is when the bios get's updated, does the process trash all the settings? I understand it is likely to alter performance profiles for the CPU and memory, but how about all the other settings like the lanes and misc. preferences?

Thanks in advance, Paul

[JohnAb]

Re: the beta BIOS, my advice is to wait if everything is working well for you. That's what I'm doing, as I've seen a few issues reported with the latest microcode and beta BIOS versions. Since some of these changes are to do with adjusting how hard CPUs can be pushed safely without overheating and being damaged (the issues are essentially caused by the allowed voltages and max CPU amperage), I would dial down any CPU overclocks that you might be using for now, just to be on the safe side. If your temperatures are under control when the CPU is heavily loaded, then I would suggest that you're OK to wait for the full BIOS release. 

BIOS settings can be saved as a CMO file from within the BIOS, but those files don't always play nice with new BIOS versions. It's better to make a note of your settings now, and then enter them manually again when you do update the BIOS.   

[Paul92688]

Thanks.  I don't game, compile or edit video so the CPU has seen little action. I used to play Cities Skylines 2, when the computer was new, but have given that up for the past 9 months or so. Since the computer is very stable, I am hesitant to make changes. I will look into de-rating the CPU and memory speeds and doubt it will actually impact my real-world performance.

Paul

[JohnAb]

Then I think you're good to leave things as they for now. Always a good idea to keep the BIOS up to date as general advice, but until things settle down, I'd hold fire for now. 

[csimon]

If you are rock solid now then wait. I updated and I see no difference except for fixing my VIN4 reading, but your mileage my vary.