I'm reinstalling Windows 11 on a PC with a Ryzen 7 7800X3D and an MSI B650M Gaming Plus WiFi DDR5 motherboard. The Windows installer initially ran from a USB drive, but after restarting, the system began going straight into BIOS. Now it returns to BIOS regardless of whether I select the NVMe drive, the Windows USB, or another boot device.
The bigger issue is that BIOS changes do not persist. I can change the boot order or other settings, press F10 to save and restart, and everything reverts. I replaced and drained the CMOS battery, but that made no difference. I also tried flashing the BIOS from USB, but the flash indicator only lights continuously instead of completing. The USB is FAT32, uses MBR, contains only the firmware file, and is 14GB.
Creating the installer with Rufus produced a black screen with garbled text and a message mentioning Secure Boot, but I cannot disable or change Secure Boot because BIOS settings will not save. I also tried installing Windows to the NVMe drive from another computer, without success. The CPU and BIOS debug LEDs only flash during startup and do not remain lit.
The motherboard is an MSI B650M Gaming Plus WiFi DDR5, the CPU is a Ryzen 7 7800X3D, and the GPU is an RTX 2060 Super, although I removed the GPU while troubleshooting. I later noticed that the BIOS file I downloaded may have been for the B650 rather than the B650M. What should I check next, and could the incorrect BIOS file or a motherboard problem explain why settings will not save?
2 Answers
Test the board with only the essentials connected: CPU and cooler, one RAM module in the recommended slot, power supply, monitor, and a keyboard. Disconnect all SATA drives, the NVMe drive, front USB connectors, and other internal USB headers. Also check that the CMOS battery is installed with the correct polarity and that the clear-CMOS pins are not shorted or connected to a case switch.
If the clock, boot order, and other BIOS settings still reset after a proper CMOS clear and a known-good battery, suspect a motherboard, power, or short-circuit problem rather than Windows. Inspect the 24-pin and CPU power connectors, try another compatible power supply if available, and test the board outside the case if necessary. Don’t repeatedly flash firmware until the exact model and procedure are confirmed.
First, verify the exact motherboard model printed on the board or box. A BIOS file for the full-size B650 is not interchangeable with the B650M Gaming Plus WiFi. Download the firmware specifically for that model and follow MSI’s Flash BIOS procedure exactly: use the required USB port, format the drive as FAT32, rename the file only if MSI’s instructions require it, and leave the system powered on until the flashing process finishes. A solid flash light usually means the file, filename, USB port, or board model was not accepted.
For the Windows issue, disconnect every other drive and boot the installer in UEFI mode. Once the motherboard can reliably save settings, Secure Boot and TPM can be configured normally. The fact that BIOS changes revert is the priority, since changing boot order will not help until that is fixed.
I’ll retry the flash with the exact B650M firmware and double-check the required filename and USB port. I was probably using the wrong model’s ROM.
Removing the NVMe and disconnecting the internal USB headers is worth trying. A faulty front-panel USB connection or another attached device can interfere with startup, so I’ll test with only the keyboard, monitor, and main power connected.