As you probably heard or noticed if you are running Vista, or any other 64bit Windows OS, it's almost impossible to update your BIOS since most of the manufacturers include 32bit executables which you can't really run on 64bit OS. So, no BIOS Update for you. Not so fast. Thanks to Robert McLaws from WindowsNow.com, and the MSFN.org (which lead him to the solution), you can do it.
Here are the steps:
So here, for your reading enjoyment, is the Definitive Guide to creating a Windows Vista Bootable USB Key. You'll need a key with a minimum of 256MB to make this happen.
- Download and install the Windows Automated Installation Kit.
- If the key is not already formatted FAT32, then do so.
- Copy everything in the "C:\Program Files\Windows AIK\Tools\PETools\x86" directory (except for the "EFI" folder, ESPECIALLY if you only have a 256MB key) to the root of the key. This is IMPORTANT. "bootmgr" must be in the root, and "boot" muse be a 1st level folder.
- Open an Administrative command prompt, navigate to the USB key, and run "bootsect /nt60 X:", where X is the letter of the USB key. This will initialize the Vista boot loader on the USB key.
- Create a folder on the USB key for the 32-bit Windows-based flash utility, and copy all the BIOS files to it.
- Make sure there is at least 64MB of free space left on the key. If there is not, redo steps 2-5 on a bigger key.
- Reboot your computer to the BIOS settings menu and adjust the settings so you can boot to the USB key.
- Reboot again, and select the USB key as your boot device.
- After several minutes, you'll be presented with the Aurora background and a command prompt. Drive X is the WinPE environment. Your USB key will be the next in line after your hard drives and DVD, respectively. Navigate to the Windows flashing executable, and run it.
Souce: Windows-Now.com Article
