My problem just got worse. I had to remove the MB completely, because ASUS engineers attached the armor covering to the mother board with screws that can only be accessed from the backside, and my case is not open on that part of the mother board. Major pain. Finally got the armor covers off and I find the CMOS battery is completely different from anything I've ever seen. The battery is wrapped in a black vinyl with text on the outside that says "79A KTS 2032 3.0V" It has two wires attached to the battery and a micro two pin connector to the motherboard. I can't get the battery out as the vinyl covers the entire circumference of the battery casing. I can't find the typical latch release one would normally find on a CMOS battery to release it from the housing. Why does this battery have a cable attached to the MB? Is it a rechargeable battery? If so, why is it displaying all the symptoms of a dead battery?
Here's a pic (hope it displays): Can't get pic to display--it uploads but will not transfer image to the message.