BIOS

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Short for Basic Input/Output System, the BIOS, ROM BIOS, or System BIOS is a chip located on all motherboards that contain instructions and setup for how your system should boot and how it operates. In the picture below, is an example of what a BIOS chip may look like on your computer motherboard. In this example, this is a picture of an early AMIBIOS, a type of BIOS manufactured by the AMI. Another good example of a BIOS manufacturer is Phoenix.

The BIOS includes instructions on how to load basic computer hardware and includes a test referred to as a POST (Power On Self Test) that helps verify the computer meets requirements to boot up properly. If the computer does not pass the POST, you will receive a combination of beeps indicating what is malfunctioning within the computer.

When referring to a person BIO's is short for biography and is a term used to describe a brief description of a person. A short biography or description of people who have affected the computer industry can be found on our Computer People Section.

Also see: ACPI, BBS, BIO, BIOS shadow, BPB, CMOS, EFI, Firmware, Flash BIOS, FWH, Libreboot, Motherboard terms, NVRAM, PROM, UEFI