How to find the BIOS Type, version, and date
Question
How to find the BIOS Type, version, and date.
Answer
Below, are all the different methods of determining your BIOS Type and version.
View BIOS information at POST
Through Windows System Information
In the
Windows Registry
Finding BIOS date through debug routine
The first way is by restarting your computer. When the initial load (also called POST) screen is displayed, the BIOS Type and version is also displayed. If the load screen is displayed for only a few seconds, you may be able to press the Pause/Break key on your keyboard to stop the computer at that screen, long enough for you to find the BIOS information.
The BIOS information is typically found at or near the top of the POST screen.
You will also see information on what hard drive(s) and CD/DVD drives may be installed in your computer.
Tip: It is also at this screen where you could access the BIOS Setup itself for more information on the hardware on your computer and the various BIOS and hardware settings currently available.
To help with load times or to display a company logo this screen may not be viewable. If this is the case try the below alternate resolutions.
Through Windows System Information
The BIOS information is also shown through the Windows System Information. To open this tool click START, Programs, Accessories, System Tools, and then System Information. If you're running Windows Vista or Windows 7, type System Information in the Start search box.
This will open the System Information window, displaying information about your computer, including the type of BIOS you have and the version, under the System Summary section. As can be seen in the below picture, this computer has a DELL BIOS version 1.0.0 with a Date of 11/5/2008.
You can also find BIOS information in the Windows System Registry. This area is a bit more dangerous to navigate around, as you can change values that could affect how Windows operates. So be careful if you choose to use this option to view your BIOS information.
To access the System Registry, click START and in the Run or Search box type regedit in the text field and press enter. In the Windows Registry navigate to the below registry directory.
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\HARDWARE\DESCRIPTION\System
Find the subkeys SystemBiosDate and SystemBiosVersion to see the BIOS and version for your motherboard. As can be seen in the below picture, the BIOS date and version are shown in these two keys.
Finding BIOS date through debug routine
Earlier computers that do not have access to the above tools can also use the MS-DOS and Windows command line debug command to view the BIOS date, as shown below.
At the C:\> Type the below commands.
debug
- d FFFF:5 L 8
After typing the above command, you should receive a string similar to the below example.
FFFF:0000 30 34 2F-33 30 2F 39 38 4/30/98
The 4/30/98 would be the date of your computer BIOS.
Additional information
- See our BIOS definition for additional information and related links.
- Listing of BIOS manufacturers.