ASUS Z97 Motherboards - Overview and Official Support Thread

[Clintlgm]

Hi, I have ASUS Maximus Hero Seven. I am currently running Windows 8.1 with BIOS: 2702 and My System is Super Stable.

I have some questions to ask:

1. Do you think my System is still good to move to Windows 10 (Activated/Original)?

2. Do you think I should update my BIOS before I install Windows 10? And, If yes then Which Version BIOS?

3. Do you think I can find some stability issues with Windows 10 and New BIOS (If you recommend for the above question)?

4. What sort of BIOS Settings I should make or change before I do all these steps?

System Specs:

Processor: Intel i7-4790K
Motherboard: Asus Maximus Hero Seven
RAM: 16 GB
SSD: 250 GB
GPU: GTX 970 4 GB.
HDD: 1 TB

Thanks.

Well since this thread is for Z97 board, if your is similar, I have 2 different Z97 running the latest BIOS both upgraded from 8.1 to 10 and are fully updated they both run just fine on 10. If you look Asus Support Download
All the Drivers should be there for windows 10? if not then your board is not supported for windows 10 by ASUS. That dosen't mean it won't run 10 it just means Asus is not going to help you find drivers that will work for you.

[MrFriendism]

Well since this thread is for Z97 board, if your is similar, I have 2 different Z97 running the latest BIOS both upgraded from 8.1 to 10 and are fully updated they both run just fine on 10. If you look Asus Support Download
All the Drivers should be there for windows 10? if not then your board is not supported for windows 10 by ASUS. That dosen't mean it won't run 10 it just means Asus is not going to help you find drivers that will work for you.

Hi, Thanks for the reply. Maximus Hero 7 is Z97 Chipset.

The question is the BIOS Issues. I have seen multiple threads where all the recent BIOS has issues. Could you do some research and let me know about it?

Because, If I see.. They all are complaining mostly for the random shut-downs and all that.

[chevell65]

The random shut down issue with Z97 was mostly due to using the wrong Intel MEI drivers.

[Clintlgm]

Hi, Thanks for the reply. Maximus Hero 7 is Z97 Chipset.

The question is the BIOS Issues. I have seen multiple threads where all the recent BIOS has issues. Could you do some research and let me know about it?

Because, If I see.. They all are complaining mostly for the random shut-downs and all that.

Also, the AI III Suite has had an issue with lockups and shutdowns. I'm running two different version and they both work fine for me Personally, I have had one Z97 Pro board I had to replace due to these lockups the replacement board hasn't lockup or shut down in the last few months. So I assume my issue was resolved Had nothing to do with windows 10 as I had the shutdowns on both 8.1 and 10 the particular board was defective.

[MrFriendism]

The random shut down issue with Z97 was mostly due to using the wrong Intel MEI drivers.

Also, the AI III Suite has had an issue with lockups and shutdowns. I'm running two different version and they both work fine for me Personally, I have had one Z97 Pro board I had to replace due to these lockups the replacement board hasn't lockup or shut down in the last few months. So I assume my issue was resolved Had nothing to do with windows 10 as I had the shutdowns on both 8.1 and 10 the particular board was defective.

Okay. Thanks for the reply.

This is my motherboard: https://www.asus.com/in/Motherboards...Desk_Download/ and Processor: https://ark.intel.com/products/80807...up-to-4_40-GHz

Currently, I have 2702 BIOS installed.

1. Please recommend me, Which version BIOS I should update to for the most. stable system with the Windows 10?

2. Do I need to reset the settings manually before updating the BIOS?

3. What sort of stuff, I should do with AI III Suite as @clintlgm said.

4. What MEI Drivers I should install for my System for the Windows 10?

Please suggest. If you have any other additional tips because I am newbie in all this. Please suggest.

Thanks.

[gboybama]

I don't see this information out there about our old Z97 boards, but I can report that I am successfully booting Windows 10 off a Samsung M.2 970 EVO, connected via adapter into the second graphics card slot on the board.

I know that populating that second slot drops the first GPU down to 3.0 8X specs, but framerate loss was negligible. I went from 182 to 177 in the Heaven benchmark tool, so I'm calling that acceptable losses.

Using the adapter, my boot drive is now registering a max read of over 3000 MB/s, when I could previously only achieve about 800 in the M.2 slot. That's pretty near what the SSD is rated for and I think that's pretty sweet on a board this old.

Asus Z97-A USB 3.1
Intel i5 4690k @ 4.6 Ghz w/ Corsair liquid cooling
G.Skill 16GB DDR3 2400
EVGA GeForce RTX 2070 XC Ultra
Samsung 970 EVO - 500 GB

[Scion Drakhar]

Greetings,
I'm not sure if I'm posting in the right place or not but I'm looking for some help.
I would like to install a SATA expansion card onto my ASUS z97-a.
So far I haven't been successful. It seems that slot is disabled by default.
How do I enable it? Is it simply a toggle in the BIOS?
Also is there a recommended card for this purpose and motherboard?

Thanks so much for your attention.
Cheers.

[Clintlgm]

Greetings,
I'm not sure if I'm posting in the right place or not but I'm looking for some help.
I would like to install a SATA expansion card onto my ASUS z97-a.
So far I haven't been successful. It seems that slot is disabled by default.
How do I enable it? Is it simply a toggle in the BIOS?
Also is there a recommended card for this purpose and motherboard?

Thanks so much for your attention.
Cheers.

I don't remember any settings that turn on or off PCIe slots a SATA expansion card should only need 4 x slot Shouldn't be an issue you may need to install software driver for it however?
the ones I use are Marvel drivers

[Scion Drakhar]

Copy that.
Upon doing some research the card I purchased may be trash.
I bought another and it goes into one of the little PCIEX slots (is that right?) as opposed to the larger PCIE slots.
I was reading the MOBO manual and it mentioned that the PCIEX slots were disabled by default... which prompted the questions seeing as this is new territory.
In any case, thanks for your time and attention.
Cheers

[Clintlgm]

Copy that.
Upon doing some research the card I purchased may be trash.
I bought another and it goes into one of the little PCIEX slots (is that right?) as opposed to the larger PCIE slots.
I was reading the MOBO manual and it mentioned that the PCIEX slots were disabled by default... which prompted the questions seeing as this is new territory.
In any case, thanks for your time and attention.
Cheers

Not sure what you mean by PCIex, but it goes into on my MB 2nd from the bottom 4X Slot The 2 upper 16x slots are for Video cards and any of the slots below those tow will work including the one in between the two 16X slots that are for Video cards that on my board it also an 8x slot I think you only need to use the slot that fits your card 4x but you can also use the 6x or 8x or even a 16x if you have one open. Only 16x wide cards need to use the latch on the back end of the slot smaller card don't need anything but the slot and back frame screw to hold them in place.