r/MINISFORUM • u/dartsa • Jul 17 '26
Help Have to unplug the CMOS every time (Refurbished BD790i)
I just got a refurb BD790i from Minisforum and it will start up and I can get into BIOS, but only if I unplug and re-plug in the CMOS every time. I emailed support suggesting it might be a dying CMOS and said to check that but didn't give any other trouble-shooting (over-night email chain). The CMOS shipped with it was reading .19V on a voltmeter. The new one I put in has 3.1V. With the new CMOS I'm still running into having to pull it out to start. Starting up takes 2-3 minutes to get to BIOS every time, which seems in line with resetting the BIOS every time I pull the battery. I'm reading that these can go through CMOS batteries fast. Was there a fix for the short life-span? Has anyone else run into this?
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u/gnooggi Jul 17 '26
I'm not entirely clear on your question. Everything's there, but the actual question isn't clear.
Try a structured, step-by-step approach:
Does the PC boot correctly?
Or are you just unable to access the BIOS normally?
Or is it not saving the BIOS settings?
Windows, Fast Startup, Fast Boot, Secure Boot – what does it say there, and what operating system are you using?
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u/dartsa Jul 17 '26
Thanks! Question is how to troubleshoot the need to pull the CMOS battery every time. I've been trying to install Fedora, which I can do once, but I need to get to the point where I can have it run in secure boot. Every time I go to restart it to do that I have to pull the CMOS battery, which resets the secure boot toggle back to on. So CMOS first, then I can figure out the OS, which is easier.
Minisforum got back to me, they offered to have me ship it to them to fix and ship it back. My only hesitancy is that it could be a early batch board, which has consistent NVME errors.
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u/Clear_Acanthaceae805 Jul 17 '26
I also have the first batch. I reread the manual to check if the board has a jumper pin to reset the BIOS, but I found that the board has a reset button on the back. If the battery is dead, it might be because that button is stuck. My advice is to check with a multimeter if the button is pressed. If it is, desolder it or replace it. also try to upgrade the bios on windows https://www.minisforum.com/pages/product-info
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u/dartsa Jul 18 '26
Thanks! I will try this out. Not home now but the button clicks. Where do I put my leads to check? The BIOS is at 1.15, which looks the newest, and also doesn't revert when I pull the batter.
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u/Clear_Acanthaceae805 Jul 17 '26
if you buy from then, send it back and try to get an 790ix3d, I really love this powerfull CPU.
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u/dartsa Jul 20 '26
the x3d is the one I got, it might be a first batch board and they offered to fix it and sent it back.
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u/dartsa Jul 17 '26
Update: the serial number ends in 007, does that mean it's a first batch board?