Bios Beep code

Beep Code Manual, Better Than Gold Techies, American Megatrends Int. & Phoenix
(I'm IT, I use these codes to trouble shoot hardware issues at my job. Enjoy) cold.gif
BIOS Beep Codes
When a computer is first turned on, or rebooted, its BIOS performs a power-on self test (POST) to test the system's hardware, checking to make sure that all of the system's hardware components are working properly. Under normal circumstances, the POST will display an error message; however, if the BIOS detects an error before it can access the video card, or if there is a problem with the video card, it will produce a series of beeps, and the pattern of the beeps indicates what kind of problem the BIOS has detected. Because there are many brands of BIOS, there are no standard beep codes for every BIOS.
The two most-used brands are AMI (American Megatrends International) and Phoenix.
Below are listed the beep codes for AMI systems, and here are the beep codes for Phoenix systems.

AMI Beep Codes
Beep Code Meaning 1 beep DRAM refresh failure. There is a problem in the system memory or the motherboard. 2 beeps Memory parity error. The parity circuit is not working properly. 3 beeps Base 64K RAM failure. There is a problem with the first 64K of system memory. 4 beeps System timer not operational. There is problem with the timer(s) that control functions on the motherboard. 5 beeps Processor failure. The system CPU has failed. 6 beeps Gate A20/keyboard controller failure. The keyboard IC controller has failed, preventing gate A20 from switching the processor to protect mode. 7 beeps Virtual mode exception error. 8 beeps Video memory error. The BIOS cannot write to the frame buffer memory on the video card. 9 beeps ROM checksum error. The BIOS ROM chip on the motherboard is likely faulty. 10 beeps CMOS checksum error. Something on the motherboard is causing an error when trying to interact with the CMOS. 11 beeps Bad cache memory. An error in the level 2 cache memory. 1 long beep, 2 short Failure in the video system. 1 long beep, 3 short A failure has been detected in memory above 64K. 1 long beep, 8 short Display test failure. Continuous beeping A problem with the memory or video. BIOS Beep Codes

Phoenix Beep Codes
Phoenix uses sequences of beeps to indicate problems. The "-" between each number below indicates a pause between each beep sequence. For example, 1-2-3 indicates one beep, followed by a pause and two beeps, followed by a pause and three beeps. Phoenix version before 4.x use 3-beep codes, while Phoenix versions starting with 4.x use 4-beep codes. Click here for AMI BIOS beep codes. 4-Beep Codes Beep Code Meaning 1-1-1-3 Faulty CPU/motherboard. Verify real mode. 1-1-2-1 Faulty CPU/motherboard. 1-1-2-3 Faulty motherboard or one of its components. 1-1-3-1 Faulty motherboard or one of its components. Initialize chipset registers with initial POST values. 1-1-3-2 Faulty motherboard or one of its components. 1-1-3-3 Faulty motherboard or one of its components. Initialize CPU registers. 1-1-3-2 1-1-3-3 1-1-3-4 Failure in the first 64K of memory. 1-1-4-1 Level 2 cache error. 1-1-4-3 I/O port error. 1-2-1-1 Power management error. 1-2-1-2 1-2-1-3 Faulty motherboard or one of its components. 1-2-2-1 Keyboard controller failure. 1-2-2-3 BIOS ROM error. 1-2-3-1 System timer error. 1-2-3-3 DMA error. 1-2-4-1 IRQ controller error. 1-3-1-1 DRAM refresh error. 1-3-1-3 A20 gate failure. 1-3-2-1 Faulty motherboard or one of its components. 1-3-3-1 Extended memory error. 1-3-3-3 1-3-4-1 1-3-4-3 Error in first 1MB of system memory. 1-4-1-3 1-4-2-4 CPU error. 1-4-3-1 2-1-4-1 BIOS ROM shadow error. 1-4-3-2 1-4-3-3 Level 2 cache error. 1-4-4-1 1-4-4-2 2-1-1-1 Faulty motherboard or one of its components. 2-1-1-3 2-1-2-1 IRQ failure. 2-1-2-3 BIOS ROM error. 2-1-2-4 2-1-3-2 I/O port failure. 2-1-3-1 2-1-3-3 Video system failure. 2-1-1-3 2-1-2-1 IRQ failure. 2-1-2-3 BIOS ROM error. 2-1-2-4 I/O port failure. 2-1-4-3 2-2-1-1 Video card failure. 2-2-1-3 2-2-2-1 2-2-2-3 Keyboard controller failure. 2-2-3-1 IRQ error. 2-2-4-1 Error in first 1MB of system memory. 2-3-1-1 2-3-3-3 Extended memory failure. 2-3-2-1 Faulty motherboard or one of its components. 2-3-2-3 2-3-3-1 Level 2 cache error. 2-3-4-1 2-3-4-3 Motherboard or video card failure. 2-3-4-1 2-3-4-3 2-4-1-1 Motherboard or video card failure. 2-4-1-3 Faulty motherboard or one of its components. 2-4-2-1 RTC error. 2-4-2-3 Keyboard controller error. 2-4-4-1 IRQ error. 3-1-1-1 3-1-1-3 3-1-2-1 3-1-2-3 I/O port error. 3-1-3-1 3-1-3-3 Faulty motherboard or one of its components. 3-1-4-1 3-2-1-1 3-2-1-2 Floppy drive or hard drive failure. 3-2-1-3 Faulty motherboard or one of its components. 3-2-2-1 Keyboard controller error. 3-2-2-3 3-2-3-1 3-2-4-1 Faulty motherboard or one of its components. 3-2-4-3 IRQ error. 3-3-1-1 RTC error. 3-3-1-3 Key lock error. 3-3-3-3 Faulty motherboard or one of its components. 3-3-3-3 3-3-4-1 3-3-4-3 3-4-1-1 3-4-1-3 3-4-2-1 3-4-2-3 3-4-3-1 3-4-4-1 3-4-4-4 Faulty motherboard or one of its components. 4-1-1-1 Floppy drive or hard drive failure. 4-2-1-1 4-2-1-3 4-2-2-1 IRQ failure. 4-2-2-3 4-2-3-1 4-2-3-3 4-2-4-1 Faulty motherboard or one of its components. 4-2-4-3 Keyboard controller error. 4-3-1-3 4-3-1-4 4-3-2-1 4-3-2-2 4-3-3-1 4-3-4-1 4-3-4-3 Faulty motherboard or one of its components. 4-3-3-2 4-3-3-4 IRQ failure. 4-3-3-3 4-3-4-2 Floppy drive or hard drive failure. 3-Beep Codes Beep Code Meaning 1-1-2 Faulty CPU/motherboard. 1-1-3 Faulty motherboard/CMOS read-write failure. 1-1-4 Faulty BIOS/BIOS ROM checksum error. 1-2-1 System timer not operational. There is a problem with the timer(s) that control functions on the motherboard. 1-2-2 1-2-3 Faulty motherboard/DMA failure. 1-3-1 Memory refresh failure. 1-3-2 1-3-3 1-3-4 Failure in the first 64K of memory. 1-4-1 Address line failure. 1-4-2 Parity RAM failure. 1-4-3 Timer failure. 1-4-4 NMI port failure. 2-_-_ Any combination of beeps after 2 indicates a failure in the first 64K of memory. 3-1-1 Master DMA failure. 3-1-2 Slave DMA failure. 3-1-3 3-1-4 Interrupt controller failure. 3-2-4 Keyboard controller failure. 3-3-1 3-3-2 CMOS error. 3-3-4 Video card failure. 3-4-1 Video card failure. 4-2-1 Timer failure. 4-2-2 CMOS shutdown failure. 4-2-3 Gate A20 failure. 4-2-4 Unexpected interrupt in protected mode. 4-3-1 RAM test failure. 4-3-3 Timer failure. 4-3-4 Time of day clock failure. 4-4-1 Serial port failure. 4-4-2 Parallel port failure. 4-4-3 Math coprocessor.

Four series of beeps indicate a fatal error, a problem exists which prevents the computer from starting. For example, there might be two beeps, a short pause, one beep, a short pause, one beep, a short pause, and then three beeps; this is represented as 2-1-1-3 in the chart below

Beeps PostCode Description Recommended Hardware Action
1-1-1-3 02h Verify real mode Troubleshoot the processor.Troubleshoot the motherboard.
1-1-2-1 04h Get CPU type Troubleshoot the processor. Troubleshoot the motherboard.
1-1-2-3 06h Initialize system hardware Troubleshoot the motherboard.
1-1-3-1 08h Initialize chipset registers with initial POST values Troubleshoot the motherboard.
1-1-3-2 09h Set in POST flag Troubleshoot the motherboard.
1-1-3-3 0Ah Initialize CPU registers Troubleshoot the processor.Troubleshoot the motherboard.
1-1-4-1 0Ch Initialize cache to initial POST values Troubleshoot the secondary cache. Troubleshoot the processor. Troubleshoot the motherboard.
1-1-4-3 0Eh Initialize I/O Make sure all the cards are securely inserted into the system Make sure that there are no physical problems with the motherboard or internal connections. Disable all shadowing of expansion adapter ROMs and see if that fixes the problem.Remove all unnecessary expansion cards (basically, everything but the video card) and see if the problem goes away. If it does, the problem is probably one of the expansion cards you removed. If not, your problem lies elsewhere. Try to isolate the problem by inserting one expansion card at a time back into the system and seeing which one triggers the problem.Since the most likely cause of the problem is a resource conflict, click here for ideas on resolving resource conflicts in Device Manager.
1-2-1-1 10h Initialize Power Management Troubleshoot the motherboard.
1-2-1-2 11h Load alternate registers with initial POST values Troubleshoot the motherboard.
1-2-1-3 12h Jump to UserPatch0 Troubleshoot the motherboard.
1-2-2-1 14h Initialize keyboard controller Troubleshoot the keyboard.Troubleshoot the keyboard controller. Troubleshoot the motherboard.
1-2-2-3 16h BIOS ROM checksum Try replacing the CMOS battery, reflashing the BIOS, troubleshooting the motherboard.
1-2-3-1 18h 8254 timer initialization Troubleshoot the motherboard.
1-2-3-3 1Ah 8237 DMA controller initialization Treat as an expansion card problem. Troubleshoot the motherboard.
1-2-4-1 1Ch Reset Programmable Interrupt Controller Treat as an expansion card problem. Troubleshoot the motherboard.
1-3-1-1 20h Test DRAM refresh Troubleshoot the system memory. Troubleshoot the motherboard.
1-3-1-3 22h Test 8742 Keyboard Controller Troubleshoot the keyboard. Troubleshoot the keyboard controller. Troubleshoot the motherboard.
1-3-2-1 24h Set ES segment register to 4 GB Troubleshoot the motherboard. Beeps PostCode Description Recommended Action
1-3-3-1 28h Autosize DRAM Troubleshoot the system memory. Troubleshoot the motherboard. 1-3-3-3 2Ah Clear 512K base RAM Troubleshoot the system memory. Troubleshoot the motherboard.
1-3-4-1 2Ch Test 512 base address lines Troubleshoot the system memory. Troubleshoot the motherboard.
1-3-4-3 2Eh Test 512K base memory Troubleshoot the system memory. Troubleshoot the motherboard.
1-4-1-3 32h Test CPU bus-clock frequency Troubleshoot the processor.Troubleshoot the motherboard.
1-4-2-1 34h CMOS RAM read/write failure Troubleshoot the motherboard.
1-4-2-4 37h Reinitialize the chipset Troubleshoot the motherboard.
1-4-3-1 38h Shadow system BIOS ROM Troubleshoot expansion cards. Troubleshoot the system memory. Troubleshoot the motherboard.
1-4-3-2 39h Reinitialize the cache Troubleshoot the secondary cache. Troubleshoot the processor. Troubleshoot the motherboard.
1-4-3-3 3Ah Autosize cache Troubleshoot the secondary cache. Troubleshoot the processor.Troubleshoot the motherboard.
1-4-4-1 3Ch Configure advanced chipset registers Troubleshoot the motherboard.
1-4-4-2 3Dh Load alternate registers with CMOS values Troubleshoot the motherboard.
2-1-1-1 40h Set Initial CPU speed Troubleshoot the motherboard.
2-1-1-3 42hs Initialize interrupt vector Treat as an expansion card problem. Troubleshoot the motherboard.
2-1-2-1 44h Initialize BIOS interrupts Treat as an expansion card problem. Troubleshoot the motherboard.
2-1-2-3 46h Check ROM copyright notice Troubleshoot the motherboard.
2-1-2-4 47h Initialize manager for PCI Options ROMs Treat as an expansion card problem.Troubleshoot the serial port(s).Troubleshoot the parallel port(s). Troubleshoot the motherboard.
2-1-3-1 48h Check video configuration against CMOS Troubleshoot the video card.Make sure the system memory is working correctly. Troubleshoot the motherboard.
2-1-3-2 49h Initialize PCI bus and devices Treat as an expansion card problem. Troubleshoot the serial port(s). Troubleshoot the parallel port(s). Troubleshoot the motherboard.
2-1-3-3 4Ah Initialize all video adapters in system Troubleshoot the video card.Make sure the system memory is working correctly.Troubleshoot the motherboard.
2-1-4-1 4Ch Shadow video BIOS ROM Troubleshoot expansion cards.Troubleshoot the system memory. Troubleshoot the motherboard.
2-1-4-3 4Eh Display copyright notice Troubleshoot the video card.Troubleshoot the motherboard.
2-2-1-1 50h Display CPU type and speed Troubleshoot the video card.
2-2-1-3 52h Test keyboard Troubleshoot the keyboard. Troubleshoot the keyboard controller. Troubleshoot the motherboard.
2-2-2-1 54h Set key click if enabled Troubleshoot the keyboard.Troubleshoot the keyboard controller.Troubleshoot the motherboard.
2-2-2-3 56h Enable keyboard Troubleshoot the keyboard.Troubleshoot the keyboard controller. Troubleshoot the motherboard.
2-2-3-1 58h Test for unexpected interrupts Treat as an expansion card problem. Troubleshoot the motherboard.
2-2-3-3 5Ah Display prompt "Press F2 to enter SETUP" Troubleshoot the video card.Troubleshoot the motherboard.
2-2-4-1 5Ch Test RAM between 512 and 640k Troubleshoot the system memory. Troubleshoot the motherboard.
2-3-1-1 60h Test expanded memory Troubleshoot the system memory. Troubleshoot the motherboard.
2-3-1-3 62h Test extended memory address lines Troubleshoot the system memory. Troubleshoot the motherboard.
2-3-2-1 64h Jump to UserPatch1 Troubleshoot the motherboard.
2-3-2-3 66h Configure advanced cache registers Troubleshoot the secondary cache. Troubleshoot the processor.Troubleshoot the motherboard.
2-3-3-1 68h Enable external and CPU caches Troubleshoot the secondary cache. Troubleshoot the processor. Troubleshoot the motherboard.
2-3-3-2 69h Initialize SMI handler Troubleshoot the motherboard.
2-3-3-3 6Ah Display external cache size Troubleshoot the video card. Troubleshoot the motherboard.
2-3-4-1 6Ch Display shadow message Troubleshoot the video card.Troubleshoot the motherboard.
2-3-4-3 6Eh Display non-disposable segments Troubleshoot the video card. Troubleshoot the motherboard. Beeps PostCode Description Recommended Action
2-4-1-1 70h Display error messages Troubleshoot the video card. Troubleshoot the motherboard.
2-4-1-3 72h Check for configuration errors Troubleshoot the motherboard.
2-4-2-1 74h Test real-time clock Troubleshoot the motherboard.
2-4-2-3 76h Check for keyboard errors Troubleshoot the keyboard. Troubleshoot the keyboard controller. Troubleshoot the motherboard.
2-4-4-1 7Ch Set up hardware interrupts vectors Treat as an expansion card problem. Troubleshoot the motherboard.
2-4-4-3 7Eh Test coprocessor if present Troubleshoot the processor. Troubleshoot the motherboard.