Toshiba BIOS Password

   So my co-worker and I have been working on a laptop that he got from one of his friends a while back ago. The computer suddenly began asking for a password at start-up. Now I thought that this would be a simple fix where I could just short out the CMOS battery like I did with my Wife's and that would be it. Turns out there was more to it.

BIOS Password Jumper

   We scoured the internet to find solutions, some insisted that there was a capacitor labeled C628 that needed to be shorted. I tried finding a factory BIOS password, but couldn't. I even tried just clearing CMOS to reset the BIOS back to factory setting by shorting the CMOS battery. Even then, the password seemed to remain, then after restarting it seemed that the newer BIOS came back somehow.
   Finally I found information online the indicated that there were to contacts under the RAM that were used to clear the BIOS password. I tried it and after working on this thing for nearly two weeks, it worked. With the RAM in place and power connected, I placed a jumper over the connectors labeled PAD503 and powered the system. Amazingly, it worked. Finally, my co-worker re-assembled his notebook and was thrilled that it worked.

Make:Toshiba
Model: Satellite M115-S1061
P/N:PSMB6U-00G005
O/S: N/A


Update: I continue to get questions on different models of computers. When requesting help, I will try to respond within 48 hours, just please be patient and wait for a response. Also, don't give up, because I wont. Please provide both the model and part numbers. This will allow me to help you better. Here is where you can find the model and part number.

! These pages were posted over two years ago, but I am still alerted when a comment is made and I WILL respond within 48 hours. So hang in there.

Recovery Partition

   Just the other day, I was working on a model similar to my wife's notebook. The user took it to Best Buy who told him that the recovery partition was damaged and that he would need to purchase a recovery disk for $60.
   He brought  it to me, and to double check BB's work, I attempted to recover the OS from the recovery partition. I found that it was in fact damaged, so I copied a folder named "SWsetup" from the C drive (it contains all of the drivers and software that came with the computer from the factory) and tried to copy the users profile, but BB erased it when attempting to re-image the OS. I burnt my copy of Vista 64 and re-imaged his system, copied over SWsetup and installed only the necessary software to get everything to work. I also left him the copy of Vista that I burnt, in the event that he would need to re-image his system in the future.

Make: HP
Model: Pavillion DV7
P/N: Unavailable
O/S: Windows Vista (64-bit)