Motherboard battery and clock

my girlfriend just built her new PC on her own. Everything is fine except that the motherboard (890GX Pro3) doesn't remember settings, boot preferences and datetime every time she turn the power supply.

Before it had problems when turning on, the debugger said 00 and didn't even began to boot. An update to the Bios solved it but it didn't worked for the clock and preferences.

I'm pretty sure the problem is the battery of the motherboard, but i would like to ask you what could be the problem, and maybe a tutorial to replace the battery.

Thank you in advance

Chobeat

Posted 2012-01-12T14:23:48.233

Reputation: 123

I would RMA the motherboard. – Ramhound – 2012-01-12T14:42:06.933

my father in law lost the receipt and i can't return it. – Chobeat – 2012-01-12T14:45:10.720

@Ramhound, don't you think RMA'ing the motherboard is a little excessive, considering that the OP hasn't even attempted replacing the battery. – tombull89 – 2012-01-12T14:49:34.380

Answers

I'm going to say the battery is most likely the culprit with BIOS settings not being remembered.

You'll need to push the metal panels sideways and then the battery should just pop out (seen at 12 and 6'0 Clock position in the circle below.). Take necessary measures to protect against electrostatic discharge and avoid killing the motherboard.

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tombull89

Posted 2012-01-12T14:23:48.233

Reputation: 6 533

well technically just pushing the 12 o clock position should do – Journeyman Geek – 2012-01-12T15:01:08.517

My first thought would be bad battery, yes, or a bad battery receptacle. It is possible the board is faulty and not getting power like it should from the battery to hold the settings properly. If a new battery does not fix the problem, and you have already flashed the BIOS, the next step may be to RMA the board.

RTC (CMOS) Batteries are very easy to replace. And are very inexpensive. Typically it is a CR2032 button (or "watch") battery and is usually held in with a clip on the motherboard. To replace, pop the small metal clip holding it in on one side with a flat head screwdriver and press the new on in place of the old. It is easy to spot, a metal disc roughly the size of a quarter on the board.

Paperlantern

Posted 2012-01-12T14:23:48.233

Reputation: 3 592