AMD 400 series motherboards to support ‘Zen 3’ processors

After receiving waves of backlash from its users, AMD announced support for its upcoming processors based on the Zen 3 microarchitecture for the X470 and B450 series motherboards, retracting an earlier decision to omit these platforms for these future products.

In a Reddit thread, AMD said that it’s working with motherboard partners to develop basic input-output systems (BIOS) versions that would enable support for Zen 3 processors on X470 and B450 motherboards.

Once flashed onto the motherboard, the new BIOS would disable support for older generation Ryzen processors to free up space for new BIOS codes. The upgrade is one-way, meaning that users cannot revert back to an older BIOS version once the upgrade is complete. To avoid a “no-boot” situation, users would need to provide proof that they’ve purchased a Zen 3 desktop processor and a 400 series motherboard before they can download the BIOS.

Earlier this month, AMD published a blog post announcing that the fourth generation Ryzen processors would not be compatible with 400 series motherboards despite using the same AM4 socket. The company had previously promised to support the AM4 socket “until 2020”, but never specified an exact date for its retirement.

In the initial blog post, AMD cited BIOS size constraints to be the limiting factor. The blogpost explained that at a maximum of 16MB, the read-only memory (ROM) used to store the BIOS is too small to hold the code necessary to support the new processors.

The hardware community immediately criticized the move. Users who had hoped to upgrade in the future were especially vocal. Because AMD delayed its affordable mainstream B550 motherboard chipset, many new entrants to AMD had to purchase 400 series motherboards as it’s the most affordable entry point to the platform. In addition, many blamed AMD for failing to communicate that new processor support would be a feature for 500 motherboards and that it would have affected their purchasing decision.

Furthermore, many dismissed AMD’s reasonings and argued that motherboard manufacturers could simply add more ROM. Others called for the company to trim support for older processors to make room for the new codes.

AMD noted that the availability of the new BIOS will vary and may not coincide with the Zen 3 processor launch.

Would you recommend this article?

Share

Thanks for taking the time to let us know what you think of this article!
We'd love to hear your opinion about this or any other story you read in our publication.


Jim Love, Chief Content Officer, IT World Canada

Featured Download

Tom Li
Tom Li
Telecommunication and consumer hardware are Tom's main beats at IT World Canada. He loves to talk about Canada's network infrastructure, semiconductor products, and of course, anything hot and new in the consumer technology space. You'll also occasionally see his name appended to articles on cloud, security, and SaaS-related news. If you're ever up for a lengthy discussion about the nuances of each of the above sectors or have an upcoming product that people will love, feel free to drop him a line at tli@itwc.ca.

Featured Articles

Cybersecurity in 2024: Priorities and challenges for Canadian organizations 

By Derek Manky As predictions for 2024 point to the continued expansion...

Survey shows generative AI is a top priority for Canadian corporate leaders.

Leaders are devoting significant budget to generative AI for 2024 Canadian corporate...

Related Tech News

Tech Jobs

Our experienced team of journalists and bloggers bring you engaging in-depth interviews, videos and content targeted to IT professionals and line-of-business executives.

Tech Companies Hiring Right Now