Resolving Hardware Conflicts (ie. BIOS Conflicts)

When you install a new board in you PC (eg. CallURL telephony board, sound card) you can get conflicts between the board and your existing hardware. These can manifest as the following behaviour of your PC: These are almost never a symptom of a software fault.

There are a number of possible solutions for these issues:

  1. Update the drivers for the new hardware
    Sometimes the drivers are faulty and can create the issues. We always advise this as it can resolve any possible software issues.

  2. Move the card to a different slot in your PC
    The card will be installed into a particular PCI slot in your PC. Just move it to a different slot and see if the problems are resolved. No other changes are needed (ie drivers do not need to be reinstalled).

  3. Remove other cards from your PC
    The issue can be caused by conflicts between two different cards. Try removing other cards and see if this resolves the issue. Sometimes just replacing with a card by a different manufacturer can solve the issue. Also you can try moving the other card to a different slot as 2) above.

  4. Disable On board Devices
    We have had customers resolve issues by disabling the on board sound card in their PC. The sound card is not needed for the running of most of our telephony software. You can also try other on board devices.

  5. Update the BIOS on your motherboard
    The motherboard in your PC has controlling software called BIOS. The software can have faults and create the problems. The web-site for the manufacturer of your motherboard will normally have downloads for the new BIOS and instructions on the update process. Please note this process can damage your PC so be careful and following the instructions carefully.

  6. Try the card in a different PC and check if it works correctly there.
    Please note by different we mean a different motherboard and preferably manufacturer of the other components. Most likely PCs from the same shop will use the same components and have the same issue.

  7. Try a different card
    Exchange the card for a different model/revision or for a totally different card by a different manufacturer.
As you see many of these options require technical expertise so please be careful. Notably when opening your PC be sure to earth yourself to prevent static damage to boards.

Related Software