Acer Laptop with Phoenix BIOS: BIOS MOD Request

Your notebook have Phoenix BIOS. So, I can mod it for you. For the meantime, make sure your notebook can recover corrupted BIOS with CRISIS disk.

 

Thanks for the reply, kizwan. The CPU is a Core 2 Duo P7350 2.0Ghz, 1066 FSB Penryn-3M.
I use Win7 x64. I'm afraid the CPU might not support VT even if the menu appears in BIOS, right? But shouldn't all Acer Aspire 5738G come with the same CPU? I'm confused.
Yes I powered it off & on.

Thank you for your time!

 

Thank you. This is good news to me to. Now I can compare v1.16 with v1.27. I hope I can detect where they put CPU Microcode update.

i7 dual-core processor usually get underestimated. People tend to get confused it with i7 quad-core processor by saying all i7 processor run very hot. i7 quad-core processor have higher Max TDP which is 10W more than i7 dual-core processor, that is why it will run a little bit hotter. However, i7 dual-core processor have similar Max TDP with i5 processor, so it doesn't make sense it will run hotter. Also for people who upgrading from i3 or i5 to i7 dual-core processor, they still get the same battery life. So, there is nothing to loose & it worth to pay for.

Basically, I think you made a good choice. i7-640m have higher frequency than i7-620m. The performance increase does noticable.

 

Intel Core 2 Duo Processor P7350 doesn't support Virtualization. This is the list of processor use by Aspire 5738 series notebooks:-

Model	Processors
Aspire 5738G	Intel® Core™2 Duo Mobile Processor P7450 (2.13GHz), T6400 and T6600 (2.2GHz)
Aspire 5738ZG	Intel® Core™2 Duo Mobile Processor T4200 (2.0 GHz)
Aspire 5738Z	Intel® Core™2 Duo Mobile Processor T4200 (2.0 GHz)
Aspire 5738	Intel® Core™2 Duo Mobile Processor T6400

However, this list was taken from outdated service manual. So, the list is not up to date. I believe there is another batch of Aspire 5738G which is not listed in the service manual, have Virtualization capable processor. This show you that not all Aspire 5738G have the same processor. The availability of Virtualization option in BIOS also show that Acer does recognized people who like to upgrade their processor & try to give their best support.

 

I found CPU Microcode update in Aspire 7740/7740G's BIOS v1.27.

Two of them:-
I7-620M - CPUID 020652h


I7-720QM - CPUID 0106E5h


First 28 bytes Microcode Update Field Definitions
( Source: Intel® 64 and IA-32 Architectures Software Developer's Manual Vol 3a)

Field Name	Offset (bytes)	Length (bytes)	Description
Header Version	0	4	Version number of the update header.
Update Revision	4	4	Unique version number for the update, the basis for the update signature provided by the processor to indicate the current update functioning within the processor. Used by the BIOS to authenticate the update and verify that the processor loads successfully. The value in this field cannot be used for processor stepping identification alone. This is a signed 32-bit number.
Date	8	4	Date of the update creation in binary format: mmddyyyy (e.g. 07/18/98 is 07181998H).
Processor Signature	12	4	Extended family, extended model, type, family, model, and stepping of processor that requires this particular update revision (e.g., 00000650H). Each microcode update is designed specifically for a given extended family, extended model, type, family, model, and stepping of the processor. The BIOS uses the processor signature field in conjunction with the CPUID instruction to determine whether or not an update is appropriate to load on a processor. The information encoded within this field exactly corresponds to the bit representations returned by the CPUID instruction.
Checksum	16	4	Checksum of Update Data and Header. Used to verify the integrity of the update header and data. Checksum is correct when the summation of all the DWORDs (including the extended Processor Signature Table) that comprise the microcode update result in 00000000H.
Loader Revision	20	4	Version number of the loader program needed to correctly load this update. The initial version is 00000001H.
Processor Flags	24	4	Platform type information is encoded in the lower 8 bits of this 4-byte field. Each bit represents a particular platform type for a given CPUID. The BIOS uses the processor flags field in conjunction with the platform Id bits in MSR (17H) to determine whether or not an update is appropriate to load on a processor. Multiple bits may be set representing support for multiple platform IDs.

 

Good news! Now I know how to add CPU Microcode update. If you're interested to try, please let me know. Keep in mind, this is experimental. So, make sure your notebook can recover corrupted BIOS with CRISIS disk.

 

Just a reminder. I didn't forget your request. Will working on it.

 

Thanks for your interest.

 

kizwan, que bios dos soport D2D, and i have the crisik disck for this laptop. from the firmware 1.06
Or do i need to try it out ? i am bit afraid that i accidently flash my bios xD
Is there a way to control the fan speed ? LOL please send me a picture of what you have unlock xD
In a way i am a bit scar of flashing my bios, but there are some stuff that i wanted to turn off LOL

 

Yes, flashed! No problems and it's newer...

I only don't know some parameters... can you help?

Here are:
T States
HARD/DEEP C4
PROCHOT
& in PENRYN menù.... what means TBD (to be done?)... is an incomplete option?

Is there somewhere a descriptio of all possible bios options??

Thanks again!

 

Yes, you need to try it out. This way you can confirm whether it does work or not.

You have right to scare. No problem about that. I haven't working on your BIOS yet, so I can't send you any screenshots. FAN in notebooks is not controllable, at least it is not easy. What do you want to turn OFF?

 

These are related to processor power management. Look in the wiki for more information.

You mean T.B.D at the item help section? Maybe "to be decided". Under Penryn CPU Control Sub-Menu, you will find TXT Feature & VTD Feature. TXT stand for Trusted Execution Technology, while VTD stand for Virtualization Technology for Directed I/O.

You can search it online. Focus at wiki website.

What is the processor model your notebook have? You can try enable dual-IDA mode using ThrottleStop if you want. If the processor support it. I unlocked EIST (Enhanced Intel SpeedStep Technology - MSR 0x1A0 bit 20) since your notebook have Mobile Intel® GM45/PM45 Express Chipset which is very nice chipset because it support processors from Intel Core 2 Duo to Intel Core 2 Extreme processor.

 

I have just upgraded to an Extreme QX9300 (the best pm45 cpu ).

The only strange thing is that... the REAL bios screen are different from the ones showed by PBE in emulation mode.... why?

So i can't find EIST..... EDIT: Excuse me! Missed... Activated!! Works like a charm! ;D

 

hi again xD i want to unlock the EIST, and turn it off, because my pc has the Throttle problem, or so i think !
I don´t kown if wit the unlock/ hiden menus on the bios, i can make my pc better on games... i use only for that and also porno xD
My pc also has, i think so, downclock on the GPU. and the fan sometimes is not on max, when the temperature is high.
I was also thinking of upgrading my ram from 3 gb DDR2 to 8 gb, or less ram.
I want to put windows 7 64bit... should i do that ? the CPU soports 64 bit.

I not a expert at bios, so, some stuff i don´t understand LOL

 

Nice!

Of course, what you saw in PBE just emulation screen. In real BIOS it will be just a little different. Intel SpeedStep option is visible in real BIOS menu, right?

EDIT: Saw you edit your post "EDIT: Excuse me! Missed... Activated!! Works like a charm! ;D"

It is not an option in BIOS. Original BIOS always locked EIST every time you turned ON your notebook. I just prevent it from doing it thus unlocking the processor potentials.

Summary:-
1) Intel SpeedStep option in BIOS setup menu - option available is "enable or disable"
- This will enable/disable Intel SpeedStep. It involved setting MSR register 0x1A0 bit 16 to 1 (enabled) or 0 (disabled).
2) EIST Lock - Enhanced Intel SpeedStep Technology lock
- This is lock bit, not enabled/disabled. It involved setting MSR register 0x1A0 bit 20 to 1 (locked) or 0 (unlocked).

 

I'll look into it. Please give me your notebook specification - CPU, chipset, etc.

 

thanks man xD if you want on the end... i could donate money to you LOL since no one has ever done a bios unlock to this laptop xD
I need to go to a friends house and clean a pc. so later i will give evry information that you need, so you could play with xD

 

Hello and thanx for the effort. No hurry really.. by the way anyone interested in external HD avoid WD Passport Express or including "Smartware" and drivers. (you can spot by the symbol to password protect/lock on the box): They will seriously screw your machine (getting even into BIOS): I won a motherboard change on desktop and the 500Mb software they automatically install. Google smartware and you will see.

Back to the main issue of 9810: I investigated a bit by browsing the 2920 Bios with PBE and it has IDE/AHCI mode (SATA) choice on one window (ICH8 3 port and there is only one hard disk if you enable SATA it will get connected to that SCSI 1 port as Intel Matrix Storage driver reports.3.0Gb NCQ etc. Yet the DVD will stay connected to a IDE controller (device manager).

But the main interesting relevant thing I get can give a clue is the "workaround" that maybe can give way to same behaviour to 9810: If you change in Bios from IDE to AHCI (SATA) the boot options change to read: IDE0:<name of Hard Disk1> and "S1" (which i guess stands for Sata Mode.
The 2920 has only one HD so probably the bios stays "Ide" (0,1,etc) but turns into Sata Mode with S1 etc registers. Then it will be windows drivers Iastor/Ahci to properly install. By documentation as far as I could get ICH7M kicks in and is full SATA AHCI when not operatting in RAID mode (in that case the PNP reports ICH7GMBH that is only SATA1 mode but no AHCI). I read your history on how you experimented and gathered a lot of expertise since last year so I do not pretend you to become crazy.

I delved (thanks yo you getting several headaches) into uncovering Bios issues in general:

Since I am mainly working on 2920 at the moment I discovered that (965Express Mobile) the last Intel Graphic drivers include a Vbios.zip package and that is a Bios update for Video but it cannot be flashed direct:It must be combined with the Main Bios update and then flashed.
I checked and the vbios.zip contains a TSR (useless for flashing) a bsf script and a dat file (the actual bios). And also 2920 support VT according to Everest Corp. I wonder if you could combine such vbios etc... I won't ask you 2920 but if you want to put it in your long list... This is a log from the 2920 Bios developer at wistron maybe useful for 9810 (maybe from the non raid 1.21 XP bios:


---- IJBI0112 ------------------------------------------------------------------
1. change SATA = "IDE Mode" as default
---- IJBI0004
....
------------------------------------------------------------------
1. Update Intel VBIOS to 14711
2. Enable SATA mode IDE/AHCI in BIOS setup menu
3. Fix T2310, T2330 CPU hang up issue in Vista.
4. Intel 960/965 maximum memory DMI table information issue

---- IJBI0003 ------------------------------------------------------------------
1. Don't set SALP bit to avoid AHCI causing bluescreen issue

In seems in my 2920 several ATI drivers got installed and I do not know why: probably some variants do have a television incorporated since there are traces in the bios....

Ok... sorry to have been long But (to recap) probably the workaround is (and if I recall well it fits with 9810 disassembled Bios where you can see primary master, slave and secondary master/slave IDE settings (and more) but also various operating modes from 1 to 6 .. Probably there is "just" a switch to turn IDE to Virtual IDE but in "S" mode (SATA/AHCI).

I can cope with the 2.14 bios (and await to see possible effects of faxes to Acer/put further pressure ) but it is really buggy seen you can achieve SATA 1.5 with a 7200rpm 3Gb capable chipset and HD...

Ok.. sorry for the long msg but maybe you can find some hints that make sense. I am no good at endian but I think I could gather the logic of swicthes,modes and Intel "workarounds". You do wonders and it's a bribe to sell products crippled and not properly supported. I would wish to have more control on Chipset/memory Speed etc which I discovered is crippled too... Have a good one.. must go back to work

 

have fun xD
done xD http://www.megaupload.com/?d=L4SORS2S
fun report of the hardware of the acer 6920g ! made by aida64
The report is on TXT format...
enjoy ! i need to test the D2D ...
Sorry my first report was on portuguese, now its in english XD

have fun ! !!

 

I forgot to ask. What is D2D?

 

sorry xD
the D2D is the Acer disk-to-disk recovery, isn´t the same has the crisis disk?
there is a link in this forum about it, more or less LOL
http://forum.notebookreview.com/acer/355058-aspire-6920g-bios-update-miracle.html

i am sorry, did you see the report of my harware ? now its in english LOL

 

This is the modified BIOS image for Packard Bell TJ75. It is based on BIOS v1.26.
Packard Bell TJ75 BIOS_1.26 MOD.rar

Please make sure your notebook can recover corrupted BIOS with CRISIS disk before flashing BIOS with this modified BIOS image. I will not responsible for any problem. Good luck.

 

Hello,
Is it possible to unlock hidden features in "Acer Travelmate 8572TG"-BIOS?
I need the following features:
- "Integrated"-option for Graphicsmode
- an option to disable Hyper-Threading and Turboboost.

I hope, that you can help me with this.
Greets, M1cha

 

Acer disk-to-disk recovery is not crisis disk. It is for restoring operating system from recovery partition. I'll look into this.

Yes, I did. I already tired modding Packard Bell TJ75's BIOS just now, so I need to relax for now. There is another one BIOS mod request (he PMed me before you made your request) I need to do before I can mod yours. So, maybe tomorrow or day after tomorrow, your modified BIOS will be ready.

 

kizwan take all the time of the world to to this mod, i am ok with that xD
I am a bit afraid, because there isn´t any crisis disk ! i have donwload the last´s bios and there is nothing... only information on how to instal via windows or Dos.
I also forget to tell you that my laptop battery is dead xD i am a bit bad about all of this stuuf xD i am more afraid ...

they said that they have the crisis disk: http://forum.notebookreview.com/acer/355058-aspire-6920g-bios-update-miracle.html

i am so afraid.

 

I'll look into this. For the meantime, make sure your notebook can recover corrupted BIOS with CRISIS disk.

 

Yes, it can
Thank you for your help. Hopefully it's possible.

 

This is modified BIOS image for Sony Vaio VGN-AR760U. It is based on BIOS R2080J8F you gave me earlier (SLIC 2.1).
Sony Vaio VGN-AR760U R2080J8F MOD.rar
##############################################################

UPDATE (14 January 2011): Sony Vaio VGN-AR760U R2080J8F Q9000 MOD.rar (EXPERIMENTAL - trying to add support for Intel Core 2 Quad Q9000. Result: BIOS flashed successfully but notebook still unbootable with Q9000 installed.)
- Update CPU Microcode Update for CPUID 010676h; release date 19 January 2008.

Original CPU Microcode Update for CPUID 010676h; release date 28 September 2007:-	Update CPU Microcode Update for CPUID 010676h; release date 19 January 2008:-

##############################################################

UPDATE (16 January 2011): Sony Vaio VGN-AR760U R2080J8F MOD R2.rar
- Based on 14 January BIOS image
- " Moved" options under " Merom CPU Control Sub-Menu" to directly under " CPU Control Sub-Menu". When you enter " CPU Control Sub-Menu", you should see the options (VT, etc).
- Enhanced Intel SpeedStep Technology (EIST) is unlocked - for enabling dual-IDA using ThrottleStop.
##############################################################




<STRIKE>I also have checked CPU Microcode update for Intel Core 2 Quad Q9000 - CPUID 010676h. I found out CPU Microcode update for Intel Core 2 Quad Q9000 already exist in the BIOS image you gave me.</STRIKE>
Sorry, I'm wrong here. This CPU Microcode update is for Intel Core 2 Duo T8100. This is because Platform ID is 7 (please refer Processor Flags description at post #1256).
Release date: 28 September 2007
CPUID: 76 06 01 00 = 0x00010676 = 010676h
Platform ID: 80h = 1000 0000 (8 bits in binary representation) = 7

Please make sure your notebook can recover corrupted BIOS with CRISIS disk before flashing BIOS with this modified BIOS image. I will not responsible for any problem. Good luck.

 

Your right, P7350 doesn't support VT, the next one in the series P7370 does support it. I guess I'm out of luck. Oh well, no OSX for me. I might try the TME MOD to try to overclock the CPU and get an extra punch for games. Problem is, I'm not too sure how to TME MOD this feature. PLL is ICS9LPRS365BGLF but when I move the slider in SetFSB the system hangs.
Any Ideas? Thanks again!

 

Sorry, I don't know. TME locked maybe. Try ask in PLL PinMod thread.

 

Thanks, opened unlock settings.

 

Yes now it rebooted so it should work now.
Is there a guide howto flash the modded bios from DOS?

 

is there any chance to see if there are hidden ACC settings in the bios of the acer 7552g?

 

Have you flashed BIOS with the modified BIOS image?

 

All needed information is available at first post.

Which one did make the BIOS recovery with CRISIS successful? Was it the press the touchpad's right button:-

OR the new instruction & this CRISIS package I gave you earlier:-

This information is important so that other people with same notebook can do BIOS recovery too.

 

What ACC means?

Aspire 7552g's BIOS is partially modded (based on BIOS v1.04). I have it in my collection. I guess somebody ask for it while ago but decided not to continue. I can see latest BIOS is v1.12. Here is the sneak-peak of the AMD section (BIOS v1.04) (assuming it is not visible in real BIOS setup menu).
AMD:-

AMD \ Advanced Chipset Control:-

AMD \ Advanced Chipset Control \ Advanced NB Options:-

AMD \ Advanced Chipset Control \ Advanced NB Options \ Integrated Graphics Configuration:-

AMD \ Advanced Chipset Control \ Advanced NB Options \ Hyper Transport Configuration:-

AMD \ Advanced Chipset Control \ Advanced SB Options:-

AMD \ PBS Options:-

 

hi kizwan if you have time enough can you Unlock EIST feature on acer 5738zg 1.28 bios? Is it Possible? i'd like to use dual ida...
Thanks in Advance
Pete

 

Sure. I'll look into it. It will be available soon.

 

This is modified BIOS image for Aspire 6920G. It is based on BIOS v1.16.
Aspire 6920G BIOS_1.16 MOD.rar
- Enhanced Intel SpeedStep Technology (EIST) Unlocked - for enabling dual-IDA using ThrottleStop
- Intel SpeedStep option is not available in BIOS menu but you will be able to control it from windows using ThrottleStop.

Please make sure your notebook can recover corrupted BIOS with CRISIS disk before flashing BIOS with this modified BIOS image. I will not responsible for any problem. Good luck.

 

This is modified BIOS image for Travelmate 8572TG.

####################################################
(Update 1 December 2011) - Use at your own risk!
This modified BIOS is based on BIOS v1.27.
Travelmate 8572TG BIOS 1.27 MOD.rar
( MD5: A8ED11EE5F8F40640156540F0711EEB3)

Changes:-
- Unlocked Intel section
####################################################

This modified BIOS is based on BIOS v1.20.
Travelmate 8572TG BIOS_1.20 MOD.rar

Please make sure your notebook can recover corrupted BIOS with CRISIS disk before flashing BIOS with this modified BIOS image. I will not responsible for any problem. Good luck.

 

Thank you very much for your work!
"Integrated"-value in "Graphics mode"-option is still not avaible
On the left in the description there is written, that I can change between "Switchable", "Integrated" and "Dedicated" but "Integrated" isn't there.
No way to activate this?

Greets, M1cha

 

I have got a 3820TG.

Try to use the Intel Menu and set the default graphic card to IGD.

 

Which Intel-menu? There is only the CPU-Control-menu and within it there are some graphic options but nothing where I can choose "IGD".

 

Sorry, I don't think so, at least I don't know yet. I thought there is a "switch" to toggle between integrated & dedicated. I like Travelmate 8572TG by the way. It use multiplexer to handle both graphic card. Nvidia Optimus is boring though.

 

Okay, I thout that the option to choose the default graphic card is in the graphic options. (By the 3820TG all the CPU und IGD options under the mainpoint Intel.)

Sorry.

 

hey man found this site trying desperatly to find a way to overclock my acer.

I have a Acer 5536-5142 and the bios is a Phoenix 1.11. It is so plain and basic and allows for no overclocking at all. This is driving me nuts. Is there anything that can be done to modify it because the AMD Overdrive program doesnt even work.

Here is a link, please help im desperate, this thing is a year old and already sluggish. I cant even upgrade my ram, it says i have the MAX of 4GIG

http://global-download.acer.com/GDF...tep3=Aspire 5536&OS=V10&LC=en&BC=Acer&SC=PA_6

^Link to my bios. PLEASE HELP I NEED MORE POWER!!!!!!!!!!

 

Are you able to to get a solution or is it completely impossible?
Maybe there is another option which is already hidden.

The only Thing I have is an "IDG - Boot Type"-option. The values I can set:
- VBT Default
- CRT
- LFP
- CRT+LFP
- TV
- TV-SDVO
- CRT+LFP-SDVO
- CRT+EFP

I don't know what these values are for. Maybe you know more.
I need the integrated feature to get a longer battery-life.
Linux isn't able to switch the GPU. There are a few Tools but that doesn't reduces the power consumption.

 

This options are only for the "display output". This are missing on my model, I want to define the internal LCD as default device.

Have you a point MCH?

 

Yes, "MCH Control Center". But I don't know what it means.
There is "PCH Control Center", too if this matters.

 

UPDATE (9 January 2011): Modified BIOS image (R3) for Acer Aspire 5738G/5738ZG (based on BIOS v1.28) with EIST Unlocked is available at post #593 - for enabling dual-IDA using ThrottleStop.

Compatible models:-