cmos fault

[JKEYN]

Please could somebody help. Every time I start up, the procedure halts saying cmos failure {press F1 to continue).when this is carried out computer starts up ok,but clock is wrong.I have located battery which is located inside a component (microchip) which is plugged into motherboard.
microchip markings:-
HOUSTON TECH HT12888A REALTIME 9639A1 16869V where can I get one of these PLEASE.

[EastSt]

Need a little more info
Tell us whose mobo you got, cause I think you are looking at the wrong thing.

[bwkaz]

No, Houston Tech (from Dallas Semiconductor) RTC (real-time clock) chips had the battery ON the IC. I don't know if that's actually your problem, though. If you reboot, does it still do it? If so, it's not your CMOS battery. If it doesn't when you just reboot, but does when the power has been off for a while, then it probably is your CMOS battery.

However, from Dallas Semiconductor's support pages :

Can I replace a Houston Tech HT12888 or HT12888A with a Dallas Semiconductor clock?

A few of the Houston Tech HT12888 clocks were built with a Dallas Semiconductor IC. A DS12887 or DS12887A will usually replace those. Most of the HT12888 and HT12888A modules use another, incompatible IC. Dallas Semiconductor does not have a replacement for those.

And from http://www.resource800.com/dalfaq.html :

If your system uses a VIA VT82885N device, you can only replace the battery. According to Dallas Semiconductor, the VT82885N is a close, but not exact, emulation of the DS12885 DIP. Therefore, The only sure repair option requires CAREFUL removal if the battery and soldering.

(Read through what they have at that link (the second FAQ from the bottom), I left out a lot.)

So it might be replaceable, but it doesn't sound too good.

Bryan

[This message has been edited by bwkaz (edited 04-14-2001).]

[David Michaels]

the only time I have ever had this problem I had Norton Utils installed. I think I also saw it happen once with anti virus.. when I uninstalled them the problem disappeared. this might not be the solution to your problem, it's just kinda brainstorming. I honestlly believe that that software installed on a hard disk can affect your bios. funny as it may sound.