Why doesn the BIOS (Option ROM) for PCI device, such as SCSI card, show during boot?
The root cause is that, in order to be PC Compatible, the Option ROM space is limited to 128k. This is true for any motherboard with a PC Compatible BIOS. Every device that uses an Option ROM or “initialization code” to run during boot will occupy some of this 128k of memory. Some cards can use up to 64k, leaving only 64k remaining for other devices. SCSI, PXE, RAID, etc. can easily use another 40k to 64k of Option ROM space. By design the Option ROM should compact itself to a smaller “run time code” after the “initialization code” has run. For example, some Adaptec cards require 32k to initialize. Then they shrink down to 12k at run time; whereas some AGP cards require 64k to initialize but they never compact at run time. It can sometimes help to change the PCI Scan order in the BIOS. Also, check with the device manufacturer for the latest firmware upgrade or ask if they have a smaller Option ROM available. • Why can’t I enable Hardware 3D acceleration in a Linux environment? The firs
