In reality, frequent BIOS updates are issued for a reason. Here are some of the main reasons why you should let go of your fears and finally pull the trigger on that BIOS update that you’ve been putting off for so long.

1. Additional Hardware Support

One of the main reasons people update their BIOS is simple—with a BIOS update, you can use hardware you previously weren’t able to use.

The most common example of this is CPUs. While new CPUs launch every one or two years, CPU sockets tend to last more than that. And while the socket might be the same, you can’t take an old motherboard and put a newer CPU on it and expect it to work out of the box. Instead, motherboards are made compatible with those chips after the fact by issuing a BIOS update for them.

Thanks to BIOS updates, AMD Ryzen AM4 motherboards purchased in 2017 were able to enjoy several generations of new AMD CPUs, making it possible to upgrade from a first-gen Ryzen CPU to a potent, 5000-series Ryzen without changing the motherboard or most hardware. Intel is a little more prone to switching sockets, as it normally does so every two years, but if you have a 12th gen Intel CPU and you want to upgrade your PC to a 13th gen one, you can still do so with a BIOS update. Of course, there are features these chips support that these motherboards don’t have, like PCI Express Gen 4 support, but the chip will work with your PC, which is what you want.

BIOS updates can also add support for other hardware upgrades, like RAM. Basically, if a newer component, whatever it might be, fits and can be installed on your computer but doesn’t work properly, there’s a very real chance (depending on the motherboard maker, of course) that there’s a BIOS update that can fix it.

2. Security Updates

Then, we have security updates. The mention of the words “security” and “patch” in a software update makes some people immediately snooze, and we can understand why. But the importance of keeping your PC secure in this day and age cannot be understated.

Sure, we don’t interact with our BIOS a lot other than when it’s strictly necessary. And the operating system your PC is running, whether it’s Windows 11 or something else, does get updated frequently. But just like it’s important to keep your operating system secure, you also need to keep what’s underneath secure. A secure operating system should keep away any possible threats, and it often does, but if something malicious does find its way into your motherboard, things can go haywire pretty quickly. BIOS tampering, as well as boot sector viruses, exist, and they can cause a lot of damage to your PC.

If a BIOS security update is issued, it’s often for a reason. A vulnerability is found, and the update fixes that vulnerability. An example of this was a BIOS update issued to hundreds of Lenovo laptops, fixing a handful of security vulnerabilities that an attacker could exploit to read SMM memory or execute arbitrary code. Of course, most security updates are minor, and they’re not likely to affect you. But it’s never a bad idea to double down on your PC’s security.

3. Stability Improvements

Finally, this is more of a minor reason, but it’s still important, as it can occasionally be a nuisance depending on the system.

Bugs and other issues are often found and fixed on the BIOS level on motherboards. Sure, we don’t interact with our BIOS a lot, but it’s not really like you’re going to notice it there if you do. Instead, BIOS issues can manifest themselves in other ways.

For one, they can surface as system/app bugs, slow-downs, non-functioning peripherals/hardware components, or even blue screens of death/kernel panics on your operating system. If you’ve noticed an annoying issue with your PC that has persisted over several updates (even though you’ve reported it hundreds of times) and it’s still somehow not fixed, you might need to check and see if it’s an issue at the BIOS level, and whether there’s an update that fixes that problem.

Should You Update Your BIOS?

If there’s an update available for your BIOS, and it’s something you can reliably do right now, then, by all means, go ahead. We strongly recommend it—it’ll help you reinforce your system and make it work better all around. Most people think their experience is unaffected by BIOS updates, but somewhere down the road, things may go haywire, and you’ll need to do it anyway. Something may break, or maybe you’ll run into a nasty issue. So why not just do it now? You might even find that your PC has a handy BIOS quick flash button.

Keep in mind the “something you can reliably do right now” part. BIOS updates are time-consuming and nerve-wracking, with tense minutes where you can’t touch your PC. If your PC gets shut down, it could well be game over. If your motherboard doesn’t have a BIOS flashback option, there’s no way to bring it back from the dead.

So whenever you do update your BIOS, make sure to take some time and keep an eye constantly.

BIOS Updates Are More Important Than You Think

The BIOS often goes untouched for years in most people’s PCs, but it really shouldn’t. Keep in mind that while our arguments above are true, it’s still good practice to update it if there’s an update available, even if nothing is affecting you right now.

Don’t wait until it becomes a nuisance!