E6410 Owner's Thread

A 16:9 aspect ratio does give a computer a slightly smaller footprint and matches current HD content. Overall, 16:10 has disappeared from the consumer sector, and I suspect that the only reason why it remains in 14" business notebooks is simply because that's where the volume is in the business market.

 

Is it being blocked by UAC. Also try right-clicking on the same and use "Run as Administrator".

Any DDR3 SODIMM should work. You can get either 1333MHz or 1066MHz modules but the former will only run at 1066MHz unless you have a quad core CPU.

I'm not convinced about the smaller footprint. The E4300 put on weight when it changed to the E4310 while Dell's "hinge forward" machines are a fudge marrying a low height display to a bigger chassis.

John

 

Thanks. I did run A06 BIOS EXE as administrator. I d/l the BIOS again and the 3'rd time was a charm. Unfortunately it did not help my slow-to-boot problem. It takes the E6410 (i5 570M, gma, 2gb ram, 160 WD 5400 drive, Win 7 32-bit pro) over 90 seconds to get to the desktop and another 20-30 seconds for the spinning circle to stop completely. My Vostro 3300 i3 boots to the desktop and is online ready in 30 seconds. It has a faster 7200 rpm drive, but that shouldn't account for the E6410 being almost four times slower to boot.

I'm using this as a 'home' laptop, and in the hopes of speeding things up have so far uninstalled the Control Point Software, changed BIOS poast from 'thorough' to 'fast boot'. No modem, so disabled BIOS setting for 'Internal modem', no bluetooth module, no webcam, and don't plan to use the smart card.

I thought I would try a clean install, and keep drivers to a minimum to see if that helps. If it doesn't I'll see if Dell will take it back. I might just have an 'outlet lemon'. The CPU does seem to run a little hot at 62 C at rest.

The only CD Dell sent me with the laptop was their Reinstallation DVD for Windows 7 Prof 32-bit. I've d/l and installed the ABR activation/backup utility and have downloaded the dell drivers.

Using GKDesigns post as a guide,
http://forum.notebookreview.com/dell-latitude-vostro-precision/475324-e6410-owners-thread-91.html

Is the "Dell System Software" in the step 2 necessary to install?

Will I need all three Intel chipset drivers, AMT HECI, turbo boost and software installation?



For the SATA driver, is the 2nd 'pre-os' driver is the one I need, or is the 7/26/2010 the same, but newer driver.


I'm unclear on GKDesigns' instructions for installing the drivers and not the RST application from a USB drive. I extracted the 'pre-OS' driver to a folder on USB drive and see the iaStor.sys

When I get to that installation stage, how do I keep from installing the RST software and its taskbar app?

sorry for all the noob questions...Thanks.

 

>>Is the "Dell System Software" in the step 2 necessary to install?

Yes, tells the OS about unknown devices. Also applies OS hotfixes.

>>Will I need all three Intel chipset drivers, AMT HECI, turbo boost and software installation?

You need the Intel chipset driver. You need the Ricoh driver for the SD card bus. I see no reason not to install the turbo boost driver. I skipped the AMT driver... you can right-click disable the banged Broadcom USH device in Device Manager. Also skip the DCP Security module unless you intend to use related devices. If you install AMT, you must install DCP Security drivers first, as listed.

>>For the SATA driver, is the 2nd 'pre-os' driver is the one I need, or is the 7/26/2010 the same, but newer driver.

One is the full driver plus IRST app that fully installs after the OS. The second is the driver only that must be extracted and installed manually either during the OS install (recommended), or afterward via Device Manager. Assuming you do not intend to use IRRT, set BIOS to AHCI mode and pre-OS install the driver only... or update the default Win7 SATA driver afterward via Device Manager. You do not need the IRST app in AHCI mode.

>>I extracted the 'pre-OS' driver to a folder on USB drive and see the iaStor.sys

That's it. Tell the Win7 installer to load it to enable the exact storage controller device enabled in the BIOS... AHCI. SATA is now done. Finish installing Windows and then remaining drivers in order.

>>When I get to that installation stage, how do I keep from installing the RST software and its taskbar app?

Do not run the full Intel SATA package containing driver and IRST app. Simple... don't use it. Driver only was already install during OS install above. SATA is done already.

>>sorry for all the noob questions.

Good questions. My notes will be more clear after you've been through it once. And no worries... if you make a mis-step or change your mind about an install... just start over... you won't have invested much time yet.

Be sure to disable Win7 auto updates during the OS install. Then when time to run Updates, review each first to be sure you want it. Assume hardware drivers from MS are older and hide them so that you keep the install YOU downloaded. Windows Updates WILL offer you older hardware drivers, perhaps one or two... ignore them unless you are trying to solve a problem.

Tip: Use the permalink on a post in this forum (top right corner) to link to that exact post.

GK

 

First, you should install the turbo boost driver which enables the CPU to temporarily speed up to over 3GHz. The high temperature has me wondering whether the CPU is not running at the nominal full speed even under light load. Run a program such as HWiNFO32 to check the CPU speed.

The long boot time has me a little puzzled. However, I understand that Windows 7 does go through a boot optimisation process and may get a bit faster.

John

 

I wonder if a long boot time implicates a software driver slow to initialize due to some contention or hardware issue.

A reimage may help... usually does.

GK

 

That's what I'm hoping. I have a new Hitachi 7200 being shipped here today, and plan to use Dell's Reinstallation DVD for Win 7 on it. I'm assuming it will work, and also that it just installs one partition and not the two hidden restore partitions. I plan to use Macrium Reflect for backup purposes.

I'll install all chipset drivers, except the AMT HECI.

I have been restarting the existing WD drive for a while but the boot time has not improved. Also have been running HWinfo32. The latest test has the temps moderated a bit to the high 50s at rest. The benchmark tests seem to be in line, so I'm hoping it is some driver/software conflict a reimage will address, rather than a hardware defect. Typically inexplicable with the latest Dell offerings, the fan on the E6410 is fairly quiet and does not run that often, where the Vostro, with much cooler CPU temps, has a fan which starts up often at high rpm and runs much more. But that isn't as bad as the Studio 1558 that I returned for refund, even after it was 'repaired', because the fan would just not stop.

BTW, can the installation process be 'slipstreamed' onto another DVD w/ drivers for a more automated Win 7 reinstall? I notice there is a "Driver Pack for Microsoft Windows Preinstallation Environment - WinPE" under Systems Management on the driver page. I've never created a WINpe before, but will be giving this laptop to my daughter and thought it would be nice to send along an uncomplicated custom re-install DVD, as a backup-backup to the Reflect software.

Thanks a lot for your timely feedback. I'll post back after I put the new drive in.

 

Yes, the Dell OS DVD will install the OS and will not require activation. I prefer to remove all existing partitions and install Win7 into 1 new formatted partition. Perhaps leave any Dell diagnostic partition, if one exists. Win7 will actually create a small second partition for its use.

I do not have experience with automating the install. I suggest you would need volume to justify discovering, implementing, and proving that process, if possible. Simpler to just perform one or two manual installs, and/or use a backup image solution, although those, too, require similar overhead and must be proven to work before you need it.

I use Cobian Backup to backup user files only.

GK

 

For me, specifying 16:10 is the only way of saying "I don't want a cheap scrap, I want a top line, durable and dependable notebook, which will survive as long as I need it".

I work for a government money, and the law (or maybe people executing the law....) force me to buy almost everything via "public tender procedure". It is unlawful to specify "DELL E6410", I must specify "i5-540 or equivalent, 500 MB, 14inch, able to run CUDA..." - and then the cheapest offer wins... So, the above, plus "16:10 ratio" limits the selection to the few models of Dell, HP and Lenovo I would select if I were a free man. Without this condition - try to do search and see what wins.....

Please, please, don't switch to 16:9 with business line.

BTW, 16x10@14" means almost 10% LCD surface less than 16x9. This is why they push it in the consumer market.

 

Do I need intel_ips kernel module in a NVidia-equipped laptop?

From what I know, intel_ips tries to optimize thermal load shoring between built-in GPU and CPU. If my Intel GPU is off, does IPS driver help with anything, or is it just eating resources?