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BIOS (Basic Input/Output System) is low-level firmware embedded on a computer’s motherboard that initializes hardware components and prepares the system to load the operating system during the boot process. It performs POST (Power-On Self-Test) to verify hardware integrity, manages system settings, and provides a user interface for configuring system-level parameters like boot order and CPU settings. BIOS has largely been succeeded by UEFI in modern systems, but remains fundamental in legacy computing environments.
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