The latest BIOS updates for Gigabyte motherboards are reportedly causing users’ systems to freeze up when they enter the EFI, meaning they can’t adjust any of their settings. It’s an issue that’s prompted many users to complain on the Gigabyte Reddit channel, and it means there’s no way to properly set up the latest Intel CPU on these boards.
These latest updates are intended for users wanting to flash the BIOS on their Gigabyte motherboard, giving it support for the new Intel Core i9 14900KS CPU, as well as the latest framework for Intel’s Application Optimization (APO) technology. However, once the update is installed, even on Gigabyte’s best gaming motherboards, it looks as though the BIOS freezes a few seconds after you enter it.
These latest BIOS versions are only beta editions, denoted by a lower case letter after the version number, such as ‘F6d’ for the Gigabyte Z790 Aorus Master X, and this problem appears to affect a large number of the company’s Aorus motherboards based on Intel’s Z790 chipset.
“Since the update, either 30 seconds booting into BIOS or immediately when clicking onto advanced mode, the mouse and keyboard stop working and being recognised,” said Reddit user RossaleonEats on Reddit. Another user, Jamestq, said “I have bricked my motherboard because no one at Gigabyte tests their software. On the latest F6d BIOS it freezes after 3 seconds no matter what I do.”
Likewise, Reddit user waynebike says “if I boot into the BIOS, I’m unable to change anything. No matter what I do or click, the first 10 seconds or so, the BIOS freezes and my mouse and keyboard both stop working. I have to power the machine off and power it back on and boot into Windows. I’m unable to change anything in BIOS; cannot even set XMP because it freezes before I’m able.”
There are many other examples on the Gigabyte Reddit channel, which have been collected on Uniko’s hardware. They span an array of different motherboards, with various CPUs and memory configurations – all appear to have worked fine until the new BIOS update was applied.
Gigabyte has been lagging behind other motherboard makers when it comes to providing support for the new Intel Core i9 14900KS. My own Gigabyte B660 Aorus Master, for example, hasn’t had a BIOS update since December 2023, with no support for the new CPU at all, and it looks as though these beta updates are no good if you actually want to change any of your system settings.
If you own a Gigabyte motherboard, we recommend leaving your BIOS alone for the moment, and waiting for the next non-beta update before you update it. If you do want to update your motherboard, make sure you read our full guide on how to flash your BIOS, where we take you through every step of the process.