IBM Thinkpad 600E bios mod for processor update

Don't ask how to hack password. (BIOS Passwords)
hjulian
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squink,

if Sharedoc was talking about the same byte as the one for the 127 error, then I know it's the 3rd row, 1st column. Since this was a problem involving both disabling L2 cache and TrackPoint I thought Sharedoc might be talking about another place in the table. But that has to be it because it's the only value set at "0A" (in order to disable L2 cache).

...on something else... I just gave up trying to fix harddrive problems with my TP 600X and a Hitachi 7k. WinXP has to constantly check for inconsistencies in the HDD and I have tried everything: Hitachi Tool to repair bad sectors (repairs once and then finds bad sectors again and I go on with repair a second time, then bad sectors again, etc.), partitioned so many times, reinstalled so many times, and on and on and on...
To top it off, my keyboard has something like a stripe in the middle with dead keys: n,m,h,j,y,u,6,7. The PS2 mouse doesn't work either. Both these things happen simultaneously. They are back to normal when I enable the TrackPoint in the Configuration Tool installed in WinXP, but they are gone again with no apparent reason. I then decided to remove the BIOS battery for some time and start from scratch: no change. This all started happening after I installed the antennae for the WiFi card, one behind the display and the other below the keyboard. I am pretty sure everything is sitting properly in place after that.
squink
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Ahh, apologies, my misunderstanding.

Just a thought regarding the 256k cache;
My pad, before I wiped out the board ( as should be gratingly apparent since I mention it every post ), always booted up with 256k cache enabled. I only noticed this being out of the ordinary once I read this thread. It also has 64Mb of built in ram. This was a 2645-4BU board.

My new board is an 8BU and also has 64MB. I am inclined to think that any of the 64MB boards will have support for the 256k cache without any modifications. This would be a very useful thing to know for anyone who is buying a thinkpad with the intention of modifying it, or has some extra cash to spend on their pad.

Can anyone confirm this?
hjulian
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squink,

I am not sure I understand what you are saying.

L2 cache is enabled by default in any TP 600E. We are disabling L2 cache manually in order to boot with a Pentium III CPU, which the board would not normally accept. After the system is up, running on a Pentium III CPU with L2 cache disabled to not get the BIOS confused, we let the operating system enable L2 cache to have a properly working Pentium III CPU.

And yes, there are TP 600E machines with 64 MB onboard memory, if you wanted to get that confirmed.
Williham
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Hey i know this is realy stupid, but i cant take apart my tp 770z! iv unscrewed all the screws, but the casing still doesnt want to come apart.. iv cracked the battery indicator in my attempts :? . So can anyone tell me what you do after unscrewing everything?
Thanks
Will
hjulian
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Are you sure you unscrewed everything?

There are screws in the bottom casing and there shouold also be a screw on top, where the keyboard is (I think? I don't have a 770Z but I take it a 600X is not that far away in design). The harddrive cover should also be removed, as well as the CD/DVD drive. On my TP 600X there are a total of 11 screws in the bottom and 1 on top, that have to be removed.
ChrisL
BIOS Newbie
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Joined: Mon Dec 19, 2005 1:36 am

Williham,

I used to have a 770ED and they are pains to take apart. Search the IBM website for the hardware maintance manual for the 770 series it will not only help you find thoughs last screws but will aid you in putting it back together.
minix01
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Hello,

I wrote posts about 770Z overclock and upgrade.


http://blog.dreamwiz.com/minix01



Those are written in Korean, but you can get some informations from pictures in those.

I did try almost all advices and tunning technics in this thread.


Thanks.

These are some pictures in my blog.

Image


Image

Image

Image

Image

Image

Image

Image

Image

Image

Image



more pictures in http://blog.dreamwiz.com/minix01
Last edited by minix01 on Sun Feb 05, 2006 8:57 am, edited 12 times in total.
poge
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Ok, I'm still getting the 108 error most of the time, and I think it has to do with the memory overheating. If I take out the cd drive and put a fan it there, blowing on the memory area, it has no issues. Ever. And the memory does get hot. So thats my theory on the 108 error.

Another issue: I've had a 600e for a long time, and I can never get my cd-rw/dvd drive to run on it. It always appears boots the bios just fine, but it hangs for a while on the boot screen then goes to a screen with a jiant floppy disk telling you to push the f1 key. When you do that, it takes you to a blank screen, where a strange error message appears, something like "000163k5" or something. When I put in my normal cd drive, it works fine. Also, if I put the cd-rw/dvd drive in while the machine is starting to load windows, it works fine too. It just cant get past that bios problem when the cd-rw/dvd drive installed. I am on a 600E 2645-4BU with the 108fsb mod, and a p3 500 installed running at 540, and the onboard memory running fine at this speed. I have a stick of 128 and a stick of 256 pc100 installed. Any help is apreciated.
squink
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An update on the USB development;

If you surge the USB port, your thinkpad will immediately turn off. It will take several tries to get it to turn back on again, and when it finally does, you'll notice the battery probably wont charge past a certain amount. It appears that the surge causes the microprocessor on the battery to reset to 0, regardless of it's state.

For example. I was at about 92% charged when I did this. Afterwards I couldn't charge past 7/8% (92+8=100 etc).

You can fix this problem by using the paper trick on the battery (cover the two middle pins on the battery socket to prevent data being transferred), booting up, and just letting the battery drain all the way.

Hope this helps someone - I was getting ready to buy a new battery ;)
beatoem
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i noticed when i hook a any usb device i lose considerable bandwidth from my hdd performance,can the usb irq be moved to another area that doesnt conflict with the host bus?
despite the stated 10% power reserve fore the usb the bandwidth loss is way way higher %wise on hdd performance and even cd rom host bus speeds diminish to nearly mwdma2 from full ultra ata33 speeds.
d saint"
beatoem
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Location: sydney,australia

poge wrote:Ok, I'm still getting the 108 error most of the time, and I think it has to do with the memory overheating. If I take out the cd drive and put a fan it there, blowing on the memory area, it has no issues. Ever. And the memory does get hot. So thats my theory on the 108 error.

Another issue: I've had a 600e for a long time, and I can never get my cd-rw/dvd drive to run on it. It always appears boots the bios just fine, but it hangs for a while on the boot screen then goes to a screen with a jiant floppy disk telling you to push the f1 key. When you do that, it takes you to a blank screen, where a strange error message appears, something like "000163k5" or something. When I put in my normal cd drive, it works fine. Also, if I put the cd-rw/dvd drive in while the machine is starting to load windows, it works fine too. It just cant get past that bios problem when the cd-rw/dvd drive installed. I am on a 600E 2645-4BU with the 108fsb mod, and a p3 500 installed running at 540, and the onboard memory running fine at this speed. I have a stick of 128 and a stick of 256 pc100 installed. Any help is apreciated.


8O i noticed that with no drive theres less 108 errors too
ram cooling?interesting ,600e+x tps are notorious for ram performance
deterioration when you conduct ram benchtests,now its starting to make sense , i only get it when there is a virus or sudden power loss
sometimes drive firmware flashing,(drains the cmos battery tempoarily too) but generally if things run ok it seldomly prompts error 108.

cd/dvd/burner drives compatabilty issues for tp 600/600e/600x?

ok here we go, firstly remove the rear jae50 pin ide adapter and solder pin no 47+49 together to trigger alternative polarity detection within the secondary channel of the host bus conteroller,this will have no effect on any drives that are allready compatable so you got nothing to lose but possibly everything to gain by modding the rear adapter.
conversely if it still hangs let us know exactly what drive,firmware revision
(once hotswaped in the multibay only after boot in windows where exactly is the drive detected ? sm or ss,mutiword dma 2 or ultra dma 2?
with this info i can determine exactly what firmware you need for your drive(if the adapter mod don't suffice).
lets just hope its not a panasonic because i am still working on force flashing firmware
for all 108 fsb tp600e users out there i flashed over 70 drives in dos
and 100% perfect reliabilty thus far so 108 is perfectly safe,maybe more reliable than 100 too :wink:

8) sharedoc, did the bits arrive ok?
can anyone explain the differences between the p3 aa,ab.ac revision
or is this another intel b.s marketing ploy.
d saint"
sluffcard
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I see everyone is upgrading to a higher processor. I dont know what to look for to find a p3. Can someone tell me a place to buy a p3. I have a thinkpad 600e 2645 4bu p2 400mhz running xp home with a 10gig hard drive. I have searched for one but I just cant find one. Or I am using the wrong search words to find one. Thanks. :cry:
beatoem
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P2 (366) @550/ POSTED FINE IN BIOS ,i will updte on evolvments soon
d saint"
pincellone
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Sluffcard, the best place to find this stuff is Ebay.
sluffcard
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that tells me what? I am very apt at taking things apart and putting them together and i know to use static mat and all that but i dont know what exactly it is that i am to look for. Does any p3 fit or do i just get a module or... stuff like that would be helpful. Thanks. :roll:
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