[LGA4677] Mod Request - ASUS Pro WS W790-ACE + Xeon Silver 4690Y (SPR-SP) Microcode Injection

[amsterdamlover]

That is a great strategic move. The enthusiast community on forums like ServeTheHome (STH) and Win-Raid is the only place where someone with the expertise to create and share a BIOS mod is likely to be found.

Here is a draft post tailored for the "DIY" or "Server Hardware" section of a forum like ServeTheHome, designed to clearly state your components, the problem, and what you are looking for.



Draft Forum Post: ASUS W790-ACE + Xeon Silver 4690Y Microcode Request


Title: [LGA 4677 Mod Request] ASUS Pro WS W790-ACE + Retail Xeon Silver 4690Y (SPR-SP) Microcode Injection

Body:

Hello everyone,

I'm attempting a "rogue" setup on the W790 platform and have hit the expected microcode wall. I am hoping someone in the community has successfully modded a BIOS for this combination or has the expertise to guide me.

My Goal: Get a retail Xeon Silver 4690Y (Sapphire Rapids-SP/Scalable, 4-channel/MCC) to POST and run on the ASUS Pro WS W790-ACE board.

My Current Hardware & Status:

• Motherboard: ASUS Pro WS W790-ACE
• CPU: Retail Intel Xeon Silver 4690Y (SR3P9/SR3PC stepping - please confirm your stepping if known)
• Carrier: Correctly installed using the E1B Carrier.
• Status: System powers on (no LED of death), but the board fails to POST/initialize the CPU, indicating a lack of the required Scalable microcode.

The Problem: The W790 chipset is only designed for W-series CPUs (W-2400/W-3400, or SPR-WS). My retail 4690Y (SPR-SP) microcode is missing from the stock ASUS BIOS.

My Request:

1. Modified BIOS File: Has anyone successfully created a modded BIOS for the Pro WS W790-ACE that includes the microcode for the Xeon Silver 4xxx series (SPR-SP)? (Preferably based on the latest stable ASUS BIOS).
2. Microcode Injection Guidance: If a file isn't available, I would greatly appreciate guidance on how to safely extract the correct SPR-SP microcode from a C741 server board BIOS and inject it into the ASUS firmware using tools like UEFITool, specifically for this LGA 4677 generation. I am willing to perform the mod myself but need to avoid bricking the board (it has BIOS FlashBack™, thankfully).

Any guidance, resources, or shared files from successful SPR-SP users on W790 boards would be mission-critical for this build. Thank you for any time and help! -Amsterdamlover21@gmail.com

 

[RolloZ170]

Xeon Silver 4690Y

4509Y ?
if yes, this is Emerald rapids(EMR_SP), not sapphire Rapids (SPR-SP)
microcodes for SPR-SP are inclucded in the ASUS W790 BIOS (same are for SPR-WS)
There is no Emerald Rapids CPU for W790 boards, Xeon W? 25xx/35xx is SPR refresh not EMR.
W790 Firmware does not support EMR at all, injection of Microcode does nothing about it.
W790 starts with fixed DMI4 (CPU<->PCH) but can be later downgraded after BIOS is up and running(handshake)
SPR-SP and EMR-SP can only DMI3
SPR-SP ES stepping D0 run because they can do DMI4

 

[amsterdamlover]

Thank you I understand. Returning this incompatible CPU!! Appreciate your help RolloZ170

 

[RolloZ170]

i have some D0/R0(XCC/MCC) ES laying around, PM me if you want to run at least a CPU.

 

[RolloZ170]

the 32 core Q071 runs on the W790-ACE, afaik the best value to start if one don't have any CPU.