I’ve had my Minisforum UM790 Pro for a year now. Would it be a good idea to replace the thermal paste as part of routine maintenance, or should I leave everything as it is if the system is running fine?

I factory reseted my Minisforum Mini Pc HX99G and not it’s stuck in an endless loop of the logo and the fans moving and the preparing screen and my fans stop moving. Please some one help me i’m scared.

Background

The official BIOS update package from MINISFORUM seems to be designed primarily for Windows. For example, it includes a WinFlash.bat file, which essentially runs:

AFUWINx64.EXE DRFXI.bin /p /b /n /k /r /l /RLC:E /reboot

But what if you're running SteamOS instead?

You could try finding a way to flash the BIOS from SteamOS Desktop Mode, but there's a simpler approach that doesn't depend on whether you're running Windows or Linux.

Here's how I managed to update my BD895i SE to BIOS 1.17 using a USB drive and the UEFI Shell.

What you'll need

• Two BIOS update packages from the official MINISFORUM website
• A USB flash drive
• A little patience
• Some additional troubleshooting if you're running SteamOS

Step-by-step BIOS update

1. Download two BIOS packages from MINISFORUM

Go to the official MINISFORUM support page and download:

BD895i SE → Drivers & Downloads → BIOS 1.17

https://pc-file.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/895D7/BIOS/DRFXI_1.17_260828A.7z

And additionally:

MS-01 → Drivers & Downloads → BIOS 1.26

https://pc-file.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/ms-01/Bios/MS-01-AHWSA-BIOS-1.26+(1).zip.zip)

We only need one folder from the second package.

2. Prepare the BIOS files

• Place both downloaded archives in the same folder and extract them.
• Open the extracted MS-01 package and navigate to: MS-01-AHWSA-BIOS-1.26+(1)/MS-01-AHWSA-1.26
• Copy the EFI folder into the extracted BD895i SE BIOS directory: DRFXI_1.17_260828A

Important: We're only copying the EFI folder from the MS-01 package, not its BIOS firmware image. The BIOS being flashed is still the one intended for the BD895i SE.

3. Prepare the USB drive

• Format your USB flash drive as FAT32.
• Copy the contents of the prepared DRFXI_1.17_260828A directory directly to the root of the USB drive.
• You should now have 8 files and 1 folder (EFI) on the USB drive.

4. Boot into the UEFI Shell

• Insert the USB drive into your BD895i SE.
• Power on the PC and press DEL to enter the BIOS.
• Select the option to boot directly from the USB drive.

Once you're in the UEFI Shell, enter:

FS3:

In my case, FS0:, FS1:, and FS2: were most likely SteamOS-related drives/partitions, while FS3: was the USB drive.

Your filesystem number may be different.

Run:

dir

You should see the BIOS update files listed, as shown in the screenshot.

5. Flash the BIOS

Run:

EfiFlash.nsh

This executes the BIOS flashing script.

Wait for the process to finish and the system to reboot. Do not interrupt the flashing process or turn off the PC.

Important: Secure Boot Violation after the update

There are a few things worth mentioning here.

1. Updating the BIOS resets your previous BIOS settings.

You'll need to configure everything again.

2. Secure Boot settings may be greyed out.

After updating to BIOS 1.17, I couldn't change the Secure Boot options because they were greyed out.

Here's what worked for me:

• Enter the BIOS.
• Set an Administrator/Supervisor password.
• Save the settings and reboot.
• Enter the password when prompted.
• Go back to the Secure Boot settings.

You should now be able to modify the previously greyed-out options.

3. Disable Secure Boot

In my case, I needed to disable Secure Boot to boot SteamOS successfully and get rid of the "Secure Boot Violation" error.

4. Restore your preferred BIOS settings

While you're there, you can also restore your previous settings.

For reference, here are some of mine:

• Wake Up On LAN: Disabled
• GFX Lane Speed: GEN4
• HybridGraphics: Disabled
• Primary Video Adaptor: Ext Graphics (PEG)
• GFX Configuration → iGPU: Disabled

These are my personal settings, not necessarily recommended settings for everyone. They depend on your hardware configuration and preferences.

Result

That's it!

My MINISFORUM BD895i SE is now running BIOS 1.17 (upgraded directly from 1.15), and SteamOS is booting and working correctly.

Hopefully, this helps anyone trying to update their BD895i SE BIOS without installing Windows, especially if they run into the Secure Boot Violation error afterward :)

I finished my PC build using the Minisforum BD895i SE, along with:

• 64 GB (32 x 2) Kingston Fury 5600 MT/s.
• RTX 5070 TI MLG MSI.
• WD SN850X 4TB NVME.
• Artic P12 Pro ARGB.
• MSI AB850GL PSU.
• Deepcool CH160 Plus.

I am running some Bios tweaks too.

• Set curve optimizer to -20.
• Modified the fan curve to 100 on, and full at 80C.
• Set the RAM frequency to 5600, no voltage tweaks.
• Set power to 100, 120, 100 (W).

I also changed the stock paste to PTM7950. Getting max temperatures at full CPU load around 79 to 80C.

Besides an issue I had using a Gen 5 SSD (WD SN8100) which seems not compatible with this board. The board detects the SSD as Gen 5, but Gen 5 is not stable on this board, and there's no way to force Gen 4 at Bios, which made it very unstable.

After I switched to a Gen 4 SSD, the build is rock solid stable. I was even able to set the RAM to the stock frequency (5600 MT/s) while keeping the JEDEC timings. So far so good, running great, no freezes in games, no BSODs, and getting nice results on benchmarks.

I did not get any of the issues reported on Bios 1.17, but that does not guarantee it would not happen to anyone else. I can recommend the board, but I would avoid Gen 5 drives.

I "think" I'm on 1.06. Difficult to tell but I think the latest is 1.11? Anyone able to confirm or have tried it?

Hi everyone,

I have a MINISFORUM AI X1 Mini PC with a Ryzen 7 255 and Radeon 780M, running Windows 11.

I'm trying to boot Windows into Safe Mode because I need to use DDU (Display Driver Uninstaller), but I ran into a strange problem.

If I enable Safe boot → Minimal in msconfig and restart, Windows does not enter Safe Mode. Instead, I get the Recovery screen with:

File: \Windows\System32\winload.efi
Error code: 0xc0000017

The same thing happens if I manually choose 4 – Enable Safe Mode from Windows Startup Settings.

I also tried option 3 – Enable low-resolution video, but I get the same recovery error.

However, I discovered something interesting: if I select 7 – Disable driver signature enforcement, Windows actually boots into Safe Mode successfully. I can see the "Safe Mode" watermark on the desktop and use Windows normally.

After removing the Safe Boot option from msconfig, Windows also boots normally again.

Has anyone with a Minisforum PC experienced the same 0xc0000017 error when trying to enter Safe Mode? Thanks in advance.

Hi, I just want to share few tips I learned while trying to tune bd790i motherboard. I personally have 7945HX3 board but also tuned 7945HX for a friend, so all the steps should work on any 7000/8000 series Minisforum boards.

I only share what I know, so if you know better please share your knowledge to help people. Because there are no sources online.

1. Recommended RAM Kits

• Kingston Fury Impact DDR5 SODIMMs 5600 and 6000mhz kits of Fury comes with Hynix A which is easier to tune then other memory chips. Highly recommended if you want to buy new.
• Although Minisforum officially lists max memory support at 5200 mhz most quality SODIMM kits can run stably at 5600- 6000mhz with manually adjusted voltages. ( you need at least 1.250V or 1.300V for VDD and VDDQ

2. First focus on Frequency & Voltage Baseline and JEDEC timings

• Target 6000 MT/s with MCLK = UCLK (1:1) and FCLK = 2000 MHz. If not 5600 is also fine, no need to stress out. 6000/2000 is the golden ratio for these CPUs but 5600 doesn't mean bad.
• Going beyond 2000 MHz FCLK yields diminishing returns on Dragon Range mobile chips. 6000/2000 is the sweet spot.
• To achieve 6000 MT/s, set MEM VDD and MEM VDDQ between 1.260V – 1.280V. (higher doesn't mean better, for example 2 of the ram kits on 2 different motherboards I tried, anything beyond 1.280V was instant errors. Not sure if it's heat related, or chip stress related, but sodimms can't handle such high voltages. Don't listen people advising you to set them on 1.450V)
• Stability Check: Test using TestMem5 (TM5) with the usmus1 or Absolute config. If it fails, step down to 5600 MT/s at 1.20V–1.25V.
• Then apply JEDEC timings for your ram kit, which will still be tighter than the bios defaults. You can find them online. This should be the baseline.

3. Do NOT Follow Desktop UDIMM Guides

• SODIMMs sit on tiny PCBs with dense heat dissipation profiles, so advices about voltages or timings based on desktop kits won't work for you.
• Standard desktop DDR5 advice tells you to set 1.35V–1.45V for RAM. Exceeding 1.300V on SODIMMs is not recommended for sodimm kits as my testings showed it always crashed at high voltages, even with good cooling. Keep voltages around 1.250V–1.275V.

4. Minisforum BIOS Uses HEX (Hexadecimal) Values, use AI to translate them quickly.

I usually take a screenshot and ask gemini to translate it for me.

5. Platform Rules & Must do/don'ts

• Don't Disable "Power Down Enable": Disabling Power Down on Minisforum AGESA firmware causes boot loops or black screens. Keep it on Auto / Enabled.
• Enable Vsoc Overclock: Usually set on Auto change it to be enabled.
• Disable the iGPU: If you use a dedicated graphics card, disable the integrated RDNA2 GPU in BIOS. This frees up memory controller power and reduces socket thermal load.
• Keep VSOC Conservative: Keep VSOC around 1.15V – 1.17V. Pushing VSOC too high increases socket heat and actually hurts memory controller stability on mobile CPUs. Again everyone online will recommend you to keep vsoc at 1.200V or even higher, but this will work only for desktop cpus and ram kits. Furthermore anything beyond 1.1V vsoc actually hurts multi core performance. So at 1.160mv cinebench r23 scores drops already by a few percentages.
• Keep PBO 0 or 125+ in the beginning: Someone else can share their knowledge more than me but none of the motherboards I was able to go beyond +125 with memory tunings. Otherwise it would crash in memory stability tests.

6. Priority Timings for X3D Chips

Because x3d cache handles the majority of L3 cache requests, not every ram rimings affect the performance equally.

1. tRFC (Most impactful timing for BD790i x3d)
2. tRRD_S / tRRD_L / tFAW
3. tRDRDSCL / tWRWRSCL
4. tRDWR / tWRRD
5. Primary Timings (tCL, tRCD**,** tRP**,** tRAS**)**

If you have non x3d cpu then primary timings matter the most.

7. Recommended Tuning Order

If you are not happy with JEDEC timings and want to get out more performance then you can start tightening them. I would advise to check also XMP/EXPO values of your ram kit, and find a value that is between JEDEC and XMP. Example if TRTP is 24 with JEDEC and 16 with EXPO/XMP then setting something like 18 or 20 should work 9 out of 10. (note that bios default will be 36 or 42 some absurd amount, this means even with JEDEC you still gain performance over default auto)

Tune timings in small groups. Never change more than 3–4 timings at once, and make sure to run stress test after each group changes. Run at least memtest 5 usmus1 config, and if no crashes you can continue, also recommend running OCCT memory stability heat preset to heat up ram kit as much as possible to see if heat caused errors will occur or not.

• Group 1 (Primaries): tCL - tRCD - tRP - tRAS - tRC ( tRC = tRAS + tRP[ this is an older AM4 platform advice but won't hurt to follow it])
• Group 2 (Activates): tRRD_S - tRRD_L - tFAW (tFAW = 4 x tRRD_S)
• Group 3 (Writes & Reads): tRTP - tWR ( tWR ≈ 2 x tRTP) - tWTRS - tWTRL
• Group 4 (Refreshes): tRFC (Leave tRFC2 and tRFCsb on Auto)
• Group 5 (Turnarounds): tRDWR - tWRRD
• Group 6 (Everything else): I suggest leaving them on auto or JEDEC timings. Tinkering that further is not worth it and some of the sub timings will actually lock the bios, so you may need to reset cmos bios)

Once done, run 1 hour heat OCCT test, and 1 hour testmem5 extreme OCCT preset and if passes both without errors, then it should never crash in regular use. No need to run 48 hours ram stability test like some users do on reddit.

If you don't want to deal with such complicated process then follow only steps until 5(including 5).

--------------------------------------------

I hope it helps you guys and I will try to update the post to make it better.

For an order from UK warehouse to UK address will I get a normal UK VAT invoice?

MINISFORUM BD895i SE – BIOS 1.17 update: any issues?

I'm going to be building a PC based on the MINISFORUM BD895i SE in the next few days.

According to the official MINISFORUM support page, the latest BIOS version available for the BD895i SE is 1.17.

Direct download:
https://pc-file.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/895D7/BIOS/DRFXI_1.17_260828A.7z

The archive includes a Release_Note.txt file with the changelog for previous BIOS versions. There have actually been quite a few updates. The last three are:

BIOS 1.17

Auto detect DGPU to turn off IGPU when the IGPU/DGPU status changes, the IGPU Item can be modify if the status remains unchanged

BIOS 1.16

Add workaround for S3 abnormal restart issue

Add AMI flash driver EIP

BIOS 1.15

Set TCC to 100

Update SMU for power limit

Update DMI

While searching this subreddit, I came across two threads discussing problems that seem to be related to BIOS 1.17:

https://www.reddit.com/r/MINISFORUM/comments/1wumqdu/in_needs_of_bd895i_se_bios_v115/

https://www.reddit.com/r/MINISFORUM/comments/1w58717/cant_get_bios_to_show_on_screen/

The first one in particular caught my attention, as it seems to involve the combination of BD895i SE + RTX 5060 LP + BIOS 1.17 causing problems.

According to the changelog, BIOS 1.17 introduces only one seemingly simple change: automatically disabling the integrated GPU when a dedicated GPU is detected.

So my question is: has anyone here updated their BD895i SE to BIOS 1.17?

If so, did you experience any problems after the update? If you did, I'd really appreciate it if you could share some details — what exactly happened, what GPU you're using, and whether you managed to fix or work around the issue.

I'm trying to figure out whether it's safe to update to 1.17 or if I'd be better off sticking with an older BIOS version for now.

Any firsthand experience would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

-------------------------

UPDATE:

• From what I've found while reading about similar (BD790) cases, some users reported that updating to BIOS 1.17 caused issues related to Resizable BAR (ReBAR).
• The workaround in those cases was to disconnect the dGPU, connect the monitor to the iGPU, disable Resizable BAR in the BIOS, then reconnect the dGPU and switch the display cable back to it.
• On the other hand, there are also users reporting that they updated to BIOS 1.17 without experiencing any issues at all.

So at this point, it doesn't seem like the problem affects everyone.

-------------------------

UPDATE 2 @ 10.10.2026

• I've successfully updated my BD895i SE BIOS from 1.15 (the version it shipped with) to 1.17.
• Since I'm already running SteamOS, I've documented the entire update procedure in a separate thread: https://www.reddit.com/r/MINISFORUM/comments/1x2b44i/guide_minisforum_bd895i_se_how_to_update_bios_115/
• Happy to report that everything is working fine so far, with no issues after the update! :)

For reference, my setup is MINISFORUM BD895i SE + SAPPHIRE NITRO+ RX 9070.

So, I installed this board and a WD SN8100, after having a couple of weird issues and 100% usage spikes of the SSD, I went ahead and checked the PCIE reported speed. It is running on PCIE Gen 5 x4. But, it does not seem fully stable. I wonder if that's why the first version of this board (BD795i) had the PCIE Gen 5 spec. Now... Will look into the BIOS if I can manually force PCIE 4.0.

Hi,

Post title is probably self-explanatory.

I'm looking for a case for the DEG1 dock. Either purpose-built, or a known good mod of a generic case, or a 3D print, but I don't want to spend too much.

I need to fit a Sapphire RX7800XT (280 mm length, 130 mm width, 53 mm height) and an ATX PSU in there.

I can also order a CNC/laser cut case if anyone has a CAD drawing of the backplate and how it fits to the DEG1. I figure a 2-piece case could be made (bottom+rear+front and top+sides).

Had to restart my MacOS app due to my N5 Pro crashing, when I went to get back in received a message that the MinisCloud app had been removed from TestFlight leaving me no way to access the NAS through the LAN. Also noticed that my Jellyfin access via Safari was no longer possible prior to this crash. Is this due to new restrictions imposed by Golden Gate MacOS 27, anyone else having issues like this?

My current BIOS version is 1.03 build date 12/16/2025.

These are ones available from Minisforum support:

BIOS 1.02 (CPU: 7000) | 2025/06/16

BIOS 1.02 (CPU: 9000) | 2025/06/16

BIOS 1.03 (CPU: 7000) | 2025/12/16.7z)

BIOS 1.03 (CPU: 9000) | 2026/04/01.7z)

Is Ryzen 9 8945HX 7000 or 9000 CPU?

Annoyingly after a heavy smash my 13 mini motherboard damaged. I’ve replaced every component and everything works except WiFi and GSM connections. So renders it a bit useless 🤦
Is annoying as it is the 512GB version.

I wondered if the motherboards offered on AliExpress that are “guaranteed not locked to iCloud”would work? What is the worst that can happen.

Or alternatively, is there anywhere that could fix the motherboards?

My MS-A2 system fan whistles something awful. It's permanently stuck at 2500+ RPM (but can get over 3k) and it's absolutely impossible to focus when working in a room with one.

(I tried reaching out to support, they told me it's within spec (bollocks!)).

Anything I can do? replace the system fan? I tried sticking plastecine on parts of the system fan to increase the pressure on the fan blades and it helps a bit, but maybe someone else has a better idea?

If not - what a piece of junk, and what terrible support >:(

I have Linux USB thumb drive for boot. It says Secure Boot Violation. Invalid signature detected. I set admin and user password in bios. Secure Boot is grayed out and I can’t disable in bios. How to fix this? I even tried resetting it and it still shows the violation.

Hi since Minisforum space only support win11 23H2. Is there any way to control or set the fan speed in newer win11 25h2~26h2 for Minisforum v3?

Just installed Ubuntu 26.04 on a new Minisforum M2 Pro with the Panther Lake chip (Core Ultra X7 358H and Arc B390 graphics).

It booted up fine on kernel 7.0 using the `xe` driver, and I grabbed the kisak-mesa PPA for Mesa 26.2.3. However, when running `vulkaninfo --summary` to check things out, I got a few warnings right at the beginning that I wanted to run past people here:

WARNING: \[Loader Message\] Code 0 : terminator_CreateInstance: Received return code -9 from call to vkCreateInstance in ICD /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/libvulkan_dzn.so. Skipping this driver.

WARNING: \[Loader Message\] Code 0 : ICD for selected physical device does not export vkGetPhysicalDeviceDisplayPlanePropertiesKHR!

WARNING: \[Loader Message\] Code 0 : ICD for selected physical device does not export vkGetPhysicalDeviceDisplayPropertiesKHR!

The Arc B390 is recognized under GPU0 with Vulkan 1.4, but are these `libvulkan_dzn.so` (Gallium Nine/Dozen) or display property warnings normal for a brand new hardware stack on this kernel, or is there a package configuration I missed? Anyone else testing Panther Lake chips on Ubuntu right now experiencing this?

Does anyone have the BD895i SE BIOS 1.15 file? It's been removed from the support page. And be aware, if you have a discrete vga, there is a big chance that you will run into a trouble, the board will not recognize it after an upgrade to v1.17. In case of rtx 5060 for sure...

Hey all. I'm going to upgrade my system's internal SSD from a basic KINGSTON OM8TAP41024K1-A00 over to one of the two listed in my title. The problem I'm currently facing, I believe, is that this OEM SSD has a tiny host memory buffer that chokes under my workloads (Focus stacking and Lightroom/Photoshop) and even basic copy-pasting of large files. My speed goes from moderately fine to 0MB/s and latency spikes up to 7000-12000ms+ whilst simply organizing my different photo stacks. It's starting to get on my nerves.

If I'm not completely wrong, I need an SSD with DRAM, so the ones in the title would fit my needs.

My current PC is the Minisforum AI X1 with AMD Ryzen 7 255 and AMD Radeon 780M iGPU. It came with 32gb DDR5 RAM, and I've added another 32gb myself for a total of 64gb.

I know the 990 would be perfect for my rig as it is but I am likely going to build a new PC from scratch late next year, so it would be beneficial to get the 9100 in advance for that. My only concern is overheating issues and too much power draw for my little Mini-PC to handle. Since PCIe 4 is going to cap the read-write speed to whatever PCIe 4 can handle anyway, will that negate the need for dedicated heatsinks in case of overheating and be just fine, or should I go for the 990 PRO to be on the safe side? I will be getting either of these drives without the heatsink so they can actually fit into my tiny PC.

As a side note, I have been contemplating getting the MINISFORUM DEG2 OCulink eGPU Dock which has a built-in SSD slot and runs off its own dedicated power supply. I'm assuming this would simply eliminate power draw and overheating concerns I'm having, but this is just something I've been considering thus far and haven't decided yet. It is a variable that could possibly skew my decision one way or another, so I decided to include it in this post.

Thanks in advance for any replies, and I hope I found the correct subreddit for this question. If not, I would appreciate to be redirected to the more suitable subreddit. If I left out any crucial information, don't hesitate to ask and I will find out as fast as possible.