CMOS/GPNV Checksum bad

I recieved the message CMOS/GPNV Checksum bad upon startup this morning. I have been having problems with Win 98. It has been very unstable and many screen freezes. I also found that the date and time was wrong now.
Any ideas?

 

Is your machine by any chance a Dell?

 

No, the computer in question is not a Dell. It is an assembled unit by a local store.

 

I've been running into the same problem with my box. It's been happening about once a week - Bad CMOS Checksum - upon booting. A clear CMOS always got me back in action but never cured the problem.

My first thought was that it was a flukey thing due to insufficient humidity because once the problem seemed to be caused by someone simply touching the machine. In New Mexico during the winter we all wear anti-static straps so that we can hug family members .

But after a while I gave up on the static idea and went out to get a new CMOS battery. That didn't help at all.

Alright, time to pull out the big guns. I ended up flashing the bios and the problem has been cured.

Last step would have been to replace the bios chip - luckily it didn't come to that.