How to Reset the Motherboard? Guide [2024]

The motherboard is the main circuit board of your computer system. It holds and allows communication between all the components of your PC. Resetting it is not something you can do in your daily routine. Still, it is necessary when there is a serious problem related to your hardware. Resting your motherboard is required when any hardware component is damaged or not working accurately. Or when your newly connected hardware component, such as a graphic card or RAM, fails to communicate with the board. It’s a good idea to reset your motherboard when you notice a problem in your motherboard.

To reset your motherboard, you need to reset your BIOS. BIOS is the main operating system that is used to run computer hardware. It is better to reset your BIOS when you notice any issue in your motherboard. For the original condition of your motherboard, resetting is the best idea. There are different methods to reset a motherboard, with certain conditions to apply and their pros and cons. In this article, we will learn how to reset motherboard with different methods—read this post until the end to grab the whole idea.

Some important terminologies to understand before resetting the motherboard’s BIOS

Before heading into the actual methods, there are a few motherboard-related terminologies that you must understand to better absorb the given knowledge. Those include BIOS, POST, CMOS, and a few more. Let’s look at the important ones!

BIOS

BIOS stands for the Basic Input or Output and is a pre-installed set of instructions in all the motherboards. It’s responsible for booting your computer and managing the data flow between your computer’s operating system and other attached devices. BIOS acts as a bridge between the hardware and software. Your hardware cannot work accurately without software, so BIOS works as software for your motherboard. In the BIOS setting, you will find a lot of functionalities that let you do several modifications to the system.

POST

POST is basically a test that is used to check the hardware component of a computer. The post stands for Power-On-Self-Test. If any hardware component fails to startup, you can use this test to troubleshoot by forming a beep or led flash with the help of the POST method. For example, the five beep codes indicate a CPU problem. The POST checks all computer hardware components, such as RAM, CD-ROM drive, keyboard, etc. All the POST errors are related to your hardware components. 

CMOS

CMOS, or Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor, is a small chip that stores the BIOS code. Most motherboard data is stored in CMOS, like overclocking profiles, storage info, memory XMP, etc. CMOS is involved in resting the motherboard, and clearing the CMOS means resetting the BIOS. It is also used in different chips like microprocessors, static RAM, etc. CMOS terminology is essential for us not only because it is involved in resting the motherboard, but also due to several other reasons. 

How to reset the Motherboard?

Method 1: Resetting with BIOS menu

There are several methods to reset the BIOS menu but resetting with the BIOS is a straightforward and non-invasive method. All you have to do is to follow all the steps given below.

Step 1: First of all, you have to restart your computer. For this, click the Windows icon > power icon > restart in the left-bottom corner of the Windows system.

Step 2: Next, you have to access the BIOS settings. To do so, keep pressing the F1, F2, F10, F12, or Del keys, depending on your system.

Step 3: You would have access to the BIOS up to this point. Now, change or reset the BIOS settings by clicking the Setup Default from the setting. After doing so, restart the system again.

After resetting the BIOS settings, it’s time to test whether the board or other components are working fine or not. If yes, then congratulations! You have solved your issues. If not, go to the next method. 

Method 2: Resetting by removing the CMOS battery

As you know, the CMOS is a small chip on the motherboard that stores the BIOS memory. Sometimes the CMOS setting is corrupted, so it needs to be reset. Removing the CMOS battery is a straightforward method to reset your motherboard. For your information, the CMOS battery is a small cell that is used to power the chip. This battery allows the CMOS chip to keep storing the BIOS memory, time, and date when your computer is turned off. For more information, you can read why CMOS battery is used in the motherboard. 

Step 1: Switch off the computer and remove the power cable from the wall. 

Step 2: Next, you have to find the CMOS battery, which is given on the motherboard—the cell is small and looks like a coin. 

Step 3: If you found it, all you have to do is simply remove it. You can use a screwdriver to push the pin of the battery and then leave the battery from the motherboard. 

Note: You must remember the battery’s positive and negative terminals. For your ease, you can even write down some hints of the connections.  

Step 4: Plug the battery back in after 5-6 minutes of delay. Ensure the positive and negative terminals are connected fine. Now, turn the PC back on.

I’m sure that the issue would have been resolved up to this point. If not, you can try applying the next method. 

Method 3: Manually Clear CMOS Using Motherboard Jumper

The manual method of resetting the motherboard using a jumper is also easy and simple. A jumper is a small terminal placed on the motherboard, and it is used to serve an electric purpose to break the actual circuit. 

Step 1: First, power off your computer and remove the power cable from the wall circuit. 

Step 2: Locate the CMOS jumper on the motherboard. It usually has a JBAT1 or CLR_CMOS label around it. But different motherboards have different jumpers, so the label could be different in your case.

Step 3: Find out and remove the CMOS battery using a screwdriver. After plugging out the chip’s battery, place the screwdriver or jumper blocks between the pins of the jumper. In this way, we can establish simultaneous contact between the pins.

Note: It’s better to use jumper blocks, but if you don’t have one, you can go for the screwdriver. 

Step 4: Hold the connection for twenty seconds, then wait for two to three minutes. After that, plug the CMOS battery in and power on your PC. 

I’m sure that this method will clear or reset your CMOS chip. Now, when the issue with your motherboard is gone, you are ready to enjoy playing games, creating content, or doing anything you want. 

Conclusion

Resetting your motherboard is often needed when your hardware components are damaged or do not work accurately. This post taught us different methods to reset your mother’s circuit. The first method is quite simple. All you have to do is simply restart your PC and use a specific key to open the BIOS when the BIOS opens, then edit the setting of BIOS, then again restart your computer. If this method doesn’t work for any reason, go to the second one. In this method, you can just remove the CMOS chip’s battery for five minutes, plug it in again, and start your PC. 

I’m sure you would have solved your issue up to this point. If not, try using the third method. Simply reset your motherboard by using the CMOS Manually jumper method. For your information, it’s a good idea to reset your motherboard when you notice any problem in your hardware components of the motherboard. Many users often don’t want to reset BIOS since they think it may reset the hard drive. Remember, resetting your motherboard neither affects the hard drive data nor the hard drive. Resetting the motherboard means resetting the BIOS setting, not the stored data.

Abdullah Sarfraz

Motherboards & Graphics Cards Writer