Modders have recently unveiled new Nvidia GPU BIOS flash tools that allow users to apply almost any Nvidia GPU BIOS to any Nvidia GPU, potentially allowing users to upgrade their cards, though at significant risk. You might not be able to upgrade from a dud of a card to one worthy of a place on our best graphics card list but you might be able to squeeze out a few extra FPS.
The new tools circumvent measures Nvidia put in place all the way back in 2014 with its GeForce 900 series of graphics cards. A then newly introduced on-die security processor, codenamed Falcon, prevented the GPU from booting with unauthorized firmware, and such security has remained in place since.
However, two new independently developed tools have managed to bypass this security measure, allowing almost any GPU BIOS to be flashed onto almost any Nvidia GeForce graphics card. The two tools are OMGVflash, developed by Veii, and NVflashk, developed by Kefinator (forum member names), which can be downloaded here (TechPowerUp) and here (github), respectively.
The most immediate potential use for such tools is that you can apply more aggressive BIOSes for factory-overclocked, high-end cards to cheaper versions of the same GPU. So, for instance, you might have bought the cheapest RTX 4090 available but have now water-cooled it or generally find it runs nice and cool with plenty of overclocking headroom, but the default BIOS doesn’t let you push the clocks and voltage of the card. Slap a BIOS from a card like the Asus GeForce RTX 4090 ROG Strix OC onto it and you could instantly unlock more performance.
Along similar lines, modified BIOSes could allow for more control over fan curves, thermal limits, and other cooling parameters so you can fine-tune your card to offer the perfect balance of performance and noise. More specifically, regarding voltage, you can also unlock voltage limits such as the 1.07V limit put on more recent RTX 4090 cards, reverting them back to the 1.1V of earlier cards – again, potentially unlocking overclocking performance.
The tools even let you do random GPU and BIOS combinations, like putting an RTX 4090 BIOS on an RTX 3060. The card almost certainly won’t work, but it’s something you can do, and is why you should proceed with caution, as the tool won’t prevent you from messing up. Generally, doing something quite so random shouldn’t completely brick the card, and you should be able to just apply the correct BIOS again (after booting to an integrated GPU to see what you’re doing), but there’s inherently a risk involved.
BIOS flashing in general is always a slightly risky process, as a failed BIOS write can make a product inoperative. That’s why when performing a motherboard BIOS flash you should be particularly careful, as unlike a graphics card where you can still boot to Windows and perform the GPU BIOS flash again, a failed motherboard BIOS flash means your whole PC won’t boot. For more information on how to safely flash your motherboard BIOS, check out our how to flash your BIOS guide.
TechPowerUp has tested and inspected the binary code of both new tools to see if they contain any malware and concluded both seem to be safe to run, though we can’t vouch for these findings.
Will you be experimenting with these new GPU BIOS flash tools? Let us know your thoughts on the Custom PC Facebook page, via Twitter, or join our Custom PC and Gaming Setup Facebook group and tap into the knowledge of our 400,000+ members.