Is it possible to update the motherboard BIOS without having a processor?

As you well know, there are times when a motherboard can be compatible with the next generation of processors through an update of its BIOS, but in order to update the BIOS, you need to have a compatible CPU. Given this situation, you would not be the first to see that you need to update the BIOS of your motherboard but that it does not have a compatible CPU, so is it possible to do it without a processor?

For a PC to work, the processor is one of the essential and necessary elements, as well as the RAM, for example. There are times when you need to update the motherboard BIOS so that it is compatible with your new processor, but if you do not have a compatible processor (that is, of the previous generation) it is impossible. However, there are specific occasions when it is possible to update the BIOS without a processor, and we will tell you how.

MSI and AORUS motherboards allow BIOS update without CPU

We have the perfect example in the manufacturer MSI (and some others are beginning to follow in their footsteps in this regard) since the manufacturer's new generation boards already allow updating the BIOS without having a processor, and in fact without even RAM. This faculty is called Easy BIOS Recovery with Flash BIOS Button, and it allows you to do precisely what we are talking about.

In this way, you could mount and connect the motherboard without even CPU or RAM, but you will need to connect the power supply. With a USB pen drive with the BIOS update file connected, you will only have to turn on the computer and, even if you don't see anything on the screen, press and hold the Flashback button on the back (or on the motherboard itself depending on the model) and the system will automatically proceed to update the BIOS without you having to do anything other than wait for the process to finish.

With the new generation Gigabyte AORUS motherboards, the same thing happens, and the facility uses Q Flash, which works exactly the same way since you only need the motherboard, the power supply, and a USB drive with the BIOS loaded.

This is an exception that is incorporated into the new generation motherboards of this manufacturer, and although the rest of the manufacturers are working on similar systems, they are still exceptions, that is, normally you will not be able to update the BIOS of your motherboard unless you have An installed processor with which the PC can boot normally.

In fact, for the previous generation (the Ryzen 2000 Series) AMD offered a "bootkit" that included just enough (an A6-9500 APU) to be able to boot the system with the current motherboard and update the BIOS before installing. a new CPU, but has long since stopped.

What if you have an older motherboard?

Unfortunately, the ability to update the motherboard BIOS without processor or RAM is fairly new and only the latest generations incorporate it (in fact, not all motherboard models have it), so if you have a motherboard of the previous generation you will need to be able to have a processor and RAM to be able to update the BIOS.

It is a complicated situation, but we are not updating the motherboard BIOS or changing platforms every day. In addition, when you buy a new motherboard, as a general rule, it will be updated to the latest version of its BIOS, especially when there is intergenerational compatibility between processors from the same manufacturer.