I hate Dell

[Britster]

I work for a reseller and we recently purchased 324 Dell Latitude xpi-cd s. 19 of them have boot passwords (not BIOS passwords).

Removing the CMOS battery has no effect on the password. It just resets configuration data. The password seams to be programed into EEPROM.

After 35 minutes on hold to Dell technical support finnally got me through only to be told that they couldn't release info on removing the password as I wasn't the registered owner.

My company bought it via a brokerage deal from a company that also bought it that way and no doubt countless other parties are involved also as the machines were originally purchased from Dell in 1997.

Technical support told me I would have to speak to 'Customer Support'. Customer support told me I would have to register online!. Online registering is only for machines with warranties. AAAARGH!

Any ideas please. I really don't think I can spend another half day on the phone to Dell all for nothing.

We have $6000 worth of un-usable laptops and "I have to sort it" my boss tells me. <IMG SRC="smilies/confused.gif" border="0">

[MacGyver]

This page has a few clues that might help you: http://www.computing.net/windows95/w...orum/1413.html

One person said in this thread that it is not a problem to re-register your laptop in your name:

Hey guys, calm down. Dell will happily give you the password if you re-register the machine in your name. There is a form available through either their Website or Faxback service to accomplish a change in ownership. A copy of the Sales receipt will be required at minimum as will other additional documentation in some cases. Notebooks are stolen frequently and Dell is merely attempting to protect the interests of the "owners of record". If you've purchased the notebook legitimately, have records to back your claim and the notebook wasn't reported as stolen by the original owner, Dell is willing to work with you.
If you had purchased a notebook directly from Dell and a thief called Dell for the password, would YOU want Dell to give it to just anyone?

A BIOS level password is the final defense against notebook theft because it makes the machine unusable. All you have to do is provide documentation that your purchase was demonstrably legitimate and Dell will help you

This one seemed most hopeful:

I have a CPi D266XT and I found out how to bypass the password.. at least to boot to DOS. This may help us with password extracting utilities..
Put in the floppy drive and insert a DOS bootdisk. Then HOLD down the ESC key. Press the power button. Continue to hold the ESC key.. as the little progress bar goes across, near the end it will beep a few times.. then the screen should flash and skip the password screen. Depending how yours is configured, it will attempt to boot from the HDD or the Floppy. Mine, happens to also have a HDD password on it, so I just simply removed the HDD. Then it lets me get to a DOS prompt.

Alternatively, you can search www.google.com for "BIOS PASSWORD CRACK" for a list of some master BIOS passwords and try those. However it sounds like Dell has customized the BIOS to curb laptop theft. And any master password would be based on the serial number of the laptop (meaning, code generator required, which Dell certainly has at their disposal)

[Wayward Clam]

There are quite a few "generic" and "backdoor" passwords available here:
http://www.theclarkhome.co.uk/tactical/bios.htm

I can make no guarantee whether or not they will work for your particular laptops, although it seems likely that if you find one that works on one of them, it will probably work on the rest as well.

In our store out of five times trying this list we have been successful three times. Not bad for a free list and a few minutes typing.

Good luck, and let us know whether it helped or not.

[Britster]

Thanks MacGyver and Clam,

Unfortunately the ESC key procedure didn't work. Thease machines all have Dell licensed phoenix BIOSes (I have tried just about every concevable spelling of 'phoenix' amogst others)

And brokerage deals like my boss handles do not provide paperwork that Dell would accept I suspect i.e.

324 166 MHz laptops w/CDROM --------- $30,000
xxx yaadas -------------------------- $xx,xxx

etc....

[L15ard]

Goto http:\\www.ask.co.uk and search for bios password removal, your looking for killbios.com, it does exactly what it say on the tin, it resets all info out of the bios passwords and all. the down side is it may show up as being detect as a virus but don't worry it isn't. <IMG SRC="smilies/biggrin.gif" border="0">

[ricco]

I suggest that the machines are sent back to Dell's repair agent for them to remove the password. I had to do this with some Gateway machines in the past.
I know it will be at cost, but I'm sure your company will make enough profit to recover this charge.

[MacGyver]

Nice suggestion, except could you explain how he supposed to use this program, when HE CAN'T BOOT THE COMPUTER?

Originally posted by L15ard:
<STRONG>Goto http:\\www.ask.co.uk and search for bios password removal, your looking for killbios.com, it does exactly what it say on the tin, it resets all info out of the bios passwords and all. the down side is it may show up as being detect as a virus but don't worry it isn't. <IMG SRC="smilies/biggrin.gif" border="0"></STRONG>