IBM Thinkpad BIOS password locked

[sys-eng]

I now own an IBM Thinkpad R61 with a password locked BIOS. I wasn't paying good attention and missed the part of the description that said it is locked up.

An ebay seller named passworddoctor sells replacement password chips for about $30; however, the work of replacing this chip is much. Anyone with better ideas than replacing this chip?

 

[Cornerstone Technologies]

Anyone with better ideas than replacing this chip?

Relist it on ebay or Craigslist and get as much of your money back as possible. Not worth the time or effort, nor another dollar.

 

[sys-eng]

I am certainly no fan of removing and resoldering chips on laptop motherboards. Fortunately, I have less than $90 in it. I was hoping ot make some $$ off of reselling it.

 

[YeOldeStonecat]

2 options....
*You can pickup a password reset tool for cheap and do some fiddling. It's a little serial port adapter and some hacks that you use from another computer

*That particular model you have may have a particular valuable screen upgrade/option on it called a "Flex Screen"...if so, you can sell that for parts for more than you paid for that laptop. Models with flex screens from back in those days are a particularly hot item for used parts, sought after by Thinkpad enthusiasts.

 

[markcuk11]

search for dogbert's blog in google would post link but cant not enough post really annoying when forums have restrictions.

 

[ArtemusComputerTechnology]

Oh no

A BIOS password lock on a laptop you bought online. Big problem and alot of headaches. I dont think you can resell it in the same condition it is in now. If you can, there may be a backdoor password set in the BIOS. Google the term and see what you can find.

 

[RobertH]

Some thinkpads have password reset points on motherboard.

Check the service manual for password reset points on the motherboard.

These are usuakly listed in the factory service manuals.

They may require that you disassembke the system to get to them.

 

[Benchtech]

Might be worth a peek;

http://dogber1.blogspot.com/2009/05/table-of-reverse-engineered-bios.html

 

[sys-eng]

Might be worth a peek;

http://dogber1.blogspot.com/2009/05/table-of-reverse-engineered-bios.html

You will notice that IBM and Lenovo are missing from his list. They are "special".

 

[sys-eng]

2 options....
*You can pickup a password reset tool for cheap and do some fiddling. It's a little serial port adapter and some hacks that you use from another computer

*That particular model you have may have a particular valuable screen upgrade/option on it called a "Flex Screen"...if so, you can sell that for parts for more than you paid for that laptop. Models with flex screens from back in those days are a particularly hot item for used parts, sought after by Thinkpad enthusiasts.

Are you sure about a serial port adapter to reset an IBM Thinkpad BIOS password chip? I have not found anything on that.

I will check out the screen when it arrives.

 

[KompuKare]

Yes,
for some / most older Thinkpads, the serial cable trick for reading the AMTEL flash chip and then running a program to decrypt it works (I did this for an X41). A lot of work though for a one-off. Have a look here

http://www.thinkwiki.org/wiki/Maintenance#Recovering_BIOS_passwords.

(R61 is not listed though.)

 

[citizensmith]

Theres a walkthrough here http://sodoityourself.com/hacking-ibm-thinkpad-bios-password/ A comment by Mike (june 14) reports success with x61.

 

[sys-eng]

Here is a site that sells a tool to "fix" this problem.

http://www.ja.axxs.net/

The tools' price range is $100 - $220 depending on features. The user still must make some necessary parts such as probes but there are instructions. It would be nice if he offered the probes already built. This appears to be the best solution for most of us. There is a LOT to read on this site and many excellent pictures and instructions.

As businesses in the USA have closed (usually abrubtly), their computing assets are sold at auction. The closing company makes no effort at all to reset passwords so the Thinkpad laptops are locked from use. Using this tool can make the computers usable again.

Many thanks to Technibble newbie markcuk11 for sending PM to me about this link.

 

[pcmac]

password locked,Thinkpad R40 2722,

dont see a solution

client claims forgot password,Thinkpad R40 2722,must be 9yrs old, I cant even get into BIOS, to boot from a CD

from looking up the manual it must have a supervisor password (SVP) ,which can only be changed by IBM dealer

I now own an IBM Thinkpad R61 with a password locked BIOS. I wasn't paying good attention and missed the part of the description that said it is locked up.

An ebay seller named passworddoctor sells replacement password chips for about $30; however, the work of replacing this chip is much. Anyone with better ideas than replacing this chip?

 

[KompuKare]

dont see a solution

client claims forgot password,Thinkpad R40 2722,must be 9yrs old, I cant even get into BIOS, to boot from a CD

from looking up the manual it must have a supervisor password (SVP) ,which can only be changed by IBM dealer

AFAIK Thinkpads do not have a master 'factory' password. Anyway, for the older ones, you just need to decrypt the ATMEL chip which stores the password. Later ones require the chip's password to be decrypted plus new security chips to be soldered (surface mount) in.

The ThinkWiki has a guide
http://thinkwiki.org/wiki/Embedded_Security_Subsystem
as does
http://sodoityourself.com/hacking-ibm-thinkpad-bios-password/
but it's a tedious process.