M17xR2 Bios A10 ('Plugged in, not charging' Fix) Discussion Thread

Well, even the power discharge trick did not work to clear the error message this time. But, what is really odd is that even though the "plugged in, not charging" message did not go away, my system is charging properly.

After several cycles of running on AC and battery power, the error message has persisted. After plugging in to AC power at 50% battery about 20 minutes ago, my system just reached 100% and now the tooltip message says "Fully charged (100%).

I had been running without OSD installed for about a week and reinstalling OSD is what seems to have triggered this problem coming back. Now I find myself wondering if this message is a false alarm entirely and OSD is merely lying to us.

 

I've posted in this thread before (although it was MANY months ago)... I continue to have this problem but it hasn't been a MAJOR inconvenience for me... I have always been able to "unclip" the battery from the bottom of the computer and it has cleared the error. My question is this: I paid well over $2000 for this computer and it is only about 8 months old, I even have the extended warranty... will this ever get resolved? Is this just "normal" to have to do this (keep in mind I personally own 3 Dell laptops and don't have this on any other system) is this a hardware or software problem. I called Alienware tech support this afternoon, and they had me do a "Bios Drain" unplug the system from the wall, removed the battery, and held the power button for over a minute... this obviously cleared the error and on reboot the system started to charge. I have the correct power brick, A10 Bios, is this pretty much what everyone else is seeing? Should I just deal with it? ...

 

blemert - if this is the only issue you're having and it doesn't bug you to drop the battery down and snap it back into place now and then, it may only be a minor annoyance. That is pretty much all I have found it to be until not long ago.

This problem affects customers in varying degrees of severity. Alienware says they have a fix in the works, but no ETA for release. It is believed by most to be a BIOS issue. It may be that, or a hardware issue, or a combination of both. The fact that a fix has not been released may be an indication that the exact cause is still uncertain.

My AC adapter recently failed and it was replaced under warranty. Now this issue is more frequent and persistent than it was in the past. Disconnecting and reconnecting the battery only corrects it about 60-70% of the time, whereas it used to 100% of the time.

 

I have updated to the moded BIOS A10, so I had some friends coming and I had to move the laptop downstairs from my room, I just checked the battery is full, put it in place and went ahead. Worked and gave me 55 minutes on the battery with X-F on, I didn't play games just was watching youtube. When done I went back to my room put the charge cable in then booted up the lappy. Then noticed the battery is not charging!

I came here looking for this thread again as I remember it, but now I see that it is charging.... ?!!

My question is, if I leave the bettery in there the whole time is it gonna get damaged or not? I'm used to leave the battery out like with the older laptops, what about my R2, can I trust my self and leave the battery in there all the time?

 

Huniken - you can and should use FN+F2 to avoid putting juice to your fully charged battery at all times, or remove it if you are only using AC power. It is probably a good idea to keep a charge on it while it is out. It's good that the status changed from "plugged in, not charging" to "plugged in, charging" on its own for you. That's something a lot of us do not see. I almost always have to unlatch and re-latch the battery to clear the error message and begin charging the battery. Some have to do the forced power discharge frequently.

 

Oh now I saw it, I'm using an external keyboard the whole time lol Thank you man, I just pressed fn+F2 and it said battery disabled. Just awesome.

Now I'm happy with my purchase for this system, it is one tight laptop all around. I can't believe this machine it is almost like that nano suit from Crysis 2! When they say all powerfull they didn't lie about it, the R2 out of all is made from Aluminum case, this is the only laptop that I had with this quality of a build, lights using LEDs system, many high end configurations, after market parts and mostly this community, thank god for the NBR community existence.

God bless you all fellas

 

Yes, the M17x R2 and M18x are awesome machines. There's nothing out there with equivalent build quality in my opinion.

Glad you found that tip useful. I gave you a +1 rep for the comments about the R2 and NBR. Have a good day, and God bless you too, buddy.

 

Yes, there is the M17x

 

Sorry... did not mean to forget the R1. It's an oldie but goodie for certain. Chassis design and quality is equivalent... unlike R3.

 

So I've been back and forth with a Dell tech in regards to my issue - much like everyone else here. We've reloaded the BIOS, "cleared the BIOS", and finally at the end of last week I was sent a brand new battery, power supply, and cord. Saturday morning I turned on the laptop let it run down, plugged it in and am getting the same 'ol message again, but what was funny this time, in addition I got a yellow triangle with an exclamation point in the tray indicating my Bluetooth was not discoverable, that went away and I got a BSOD within minutes. I have been exchanging emails with the tech this evening and he wants me to send my computer back to "The Depot" I am still within my original warranty which is NBD, and I even extended my original within months of purchasing and added an additional year of NBD... Depot repair? Of course all of this is pointless from what I have gathered in this thread?! What a waste of my time!!!

 

blemert - I just send you a PM about your experience.

 

I'm just learning about this as a semi new owner from the dell outlet, but correct me if I'm wrong, there is still no fix for this? This laptop is long since discontinued, it's obviously not a simple hardware problem b/c swapping out power chargers doesn't correct it, so we are expected to mod the bios ourselves? This is ridiculous.

 

jim8 - You have fairly summarized the issue. I'll add the following: this problem comes in a few "flavors". There are those of us that see the problem some percentage of the time & that can simply pop out the battery & plug it back in & it'll start charging (I'm in this group). This group tends to live with the problem, at least for a while because the pain of dealing with the hotline, going though MOBO et al replacements etc. etc. can be very difficult.

Others, where the problem is constant & cannot be solved with the simple battery R/R procedure & are forced to do the reset process, reflash their bios, etc.etc. on a regular basis - usuallchosese to go through the aforementioned pain & ultimately fight for a replacement system - which is often an R3.

Good luck in whichever category you fall into!

 

Jim - here is a new discovery that is less than 24 hours old... this may be the cure, but it needs to be tested by more people than just me to confirm it is a fix. Long story short, CCC/PowerPlay may be the cause of multiple issues. Here's what I did that seems to have fixed two known issues...

 

I just took the battery out and plugged it back in and it works now. Hopefully, I won't have to do this every time. Will post back and see, but it's too bad, such a beautiful computer especially with the 1200p.

 

I know I'm kinda digging this back up from a few months ago, but figured I wouldnt start a new thread for it.

I just recieved my M17x R3 today, and the first time I plugged it in I got the "Plugged in, Not charging". Has anyone else had this on the R3's? I tried shutting the laptop off, removing the battery and holding the power button down for one minute... didn't solve the problem.

Help anyone?

 

Hello, friend. I can appreciate how frustrating this is. I would recommend starting a new thread with a title like "M17x R3 Plugged In, Not Charging Problem" and you'll probably get more assistance than you will on this thread. Most R3 owners are not reading this thread.

 

I'm on the slowest internet known to man kind right now, day shift used it all up! Didn't see this thread was 30+ pages long.

Thanks for the reply, I'll start a new thread tomorrow morning when I get back to a decent internet connection.

 

The exclamation error in the device manager(code 43) is caused by the plugged in not charging issue. The code 43 error limits your ability to use usb devices & bluetooth. There is no way to fix both of these issues permanetly. Most of the R2 owners in this thread were upgraded to M18x's courtesy of Dell/AW. Out of 4 M17x R2's that I've owned, all of them have had this issue out of the box. I have replaced the motherboard 5 times and the AC Adapter & Battery 4 times through 4 systems.

 

Here is the root cause:
Inside the DELL AC Power Adapter - A mystery revealed | The Laptop Junction

I am hoping the guys on the mod thread ( http://forum.notebookreview.com/7611912-post329.html) come up with a BIOS fix soon.

Or if not, maybe someone with some good assembly skills could do this http://forum.notebookreview.com/7586860-post321.html. In summary, find the if-then statement and make it take the happy path no matter what. Maybe then take a vanilla A10 BIOS, then change a couple of bytes, reflash then powercheck begone (wishfull thinking)

 

Hey skygunner,

Do you or anybody on this forum know what route to take to get an Alienware m18x? I am a m17x-R2 owner and have been for about 8 months. Since day one I've been having the "plugged in, not charging" issue and I grew to live with it, having to power cycle the machine EVERY time I used the laptop on battery. Sometimes I could just pull out the battery and pop it back in. Eventually the laptop presented other issues... random shutdowns with no log of the incident, the USB ports would stop responding and required a reboot to get them working, and random BSOD when shutting down.

The laptop already had the mother board replaced and the battery, and after several troubleshooting sessions with alienware tech agents, they could not find the problem. Right now my system is in Texas and has been for a whole week, apparently the issue was related to my hard drive. At this point I don't buy it and I think they're just replacing random parts hoping to fix the issue. But the issues keep coming back.

If I can't get me a working system, then I want to push for an upgrade, even if I have to pay for it, as long as it's a just price.

What do you guys think? Any info is greatly appreciated.

 

I just found out that my system is being shipped tomorrow. I've read through this whole thread (something I should of done before posting my previous post ). As soon as I get it back I'm going to see if the battery and screen brightness problems are still there. I'll check if the code 43 error is present as well.

After reading through this thread it has confirmed to me that the response I received from the tech agents is a bunch of BS. I'm a computer engineer/software developer, so I knew that a defective hard drive had nothing to do with the battery issue, nor could it be related to random shutdowns. When I followed up with more questions to the agent (two seperate emails) I never received a response back. For a system that cost me $3500+, I am not happy with the service I am receiving (their communication is horrible, can never get them to respond to my emails). I am really hoping the system is fixed, but I have lost faith after reading everybodies responses. Oh well, time to sit still and wait for the laptop to come in....

 

Update: Received my system today and out of the box I got a blue screen. On top of that, the system wasn't configured as RAID0, which means I had to convert it and delete the OS the agents had recovered. After setting up RAID0, I installed Windows 7 professional along with all updated drivers. Upon reboot of the final driver, I restarted the machine and it went into a constant bluescreen loop. Called a dell tech right now and he thinks it's the RAM.... great. Link of the proof is here:

‪Alienware M17x-R2 BSOD Loop‬‏ - YouTube

I'm deleting everything and starting from scratch again. The issue seems software related to me. In any case, I also noted a few scratches on the laptop, one of which is half an inch long and slightly thicker than a hair. I'm not one to be picky and impossible to please, but I sent this system in MINT condition, like new. What do you think I should do about this?

 

Do you remember what driver it was that started the reboot loop? Where you restarting between each driver install? (If you were not rebooting between driver installs, it may not be the last driver installed that is causing the issue.)

You probably do not need to start over with a new OS install. Boot into Safe Mode (F8 before OS begins loading and select Safe Mode from menu) and uncheck the option to automatically reboot in System Properties, Advanced tab, Settings button page.

Uninstall the final driver if that is when the reboot loop started. Reboot. If you no longer get a BSOD, install the final driver again. If you no longer BSOD, you're done.

It could be the RAM like the tech said. If you still have the old R2, swap out the RAM sticks. That would be a very simple solution. If you still get a BSOD, read the BSOD message and write down the stop code so you can Google to find out what the code means. If the BSOD refers to a driver, make note of that file name and Google more. Install the Dell version of that driver to see if the problem goes away.

With regard to the scratches, where are they? Ask for another system exchange or a replacement part to replace the item with the big scratch. Alienware should not have a problem replacing the scratched part(s). There's no reason for you to live with the cosmetic damage. I wouldn't accept it that way.

 

Hey Fox,

I was rebooting between drivers, just to make sure the system is configuring each driver correctly. The last thing I installed was the alien command center, maybe it became corrupt?

Either way, I'm reinstalling the drivers again and so far so good. One thing I noticed is that the usb drive that held ALL of my information (software, games, pics, music... all 64gbs...) died on me and mysteriously is not working on any of my machines at home.

The bluescreen loop went away when I rebooted into safemode, so that means its software related. As far as the error code I was receiving, I didn't get one. It said: A clock interrupt was not received on a secondary processor within the allocated time interval. Very odd, I've never seen this one before.

Hopefully the install goes smoothly. I'll request to get a new bottom panel because I cannot accept the cosmetic damage. Unless it's done by me, I will not accept it .

Thanks for the info!

 

Hiya all,

So found the issue, it was the graphics driver. I failed to realize that since the cards were replaced, the vbios wasn't updated. So graphics driver wasn't compatible. Reinstalling everything since the agent left a huge mess of files and random tools installed. I'll be running it for a while and see if any of the original issues present themselves, including the battery charging issue.

 

cool... glad you got the problem sorted

 

Hi guys,

Some more issues with this m17x R2. Before this post, I typed this very long update I was going to post but before I could hit submit, the laptop decided to crash into a blue screen. Before that the USB ports on the left of the machine (2 standard usb and esata combo port) stopped working completely. I tried to check the device manager and nothing out of the ordinary. I ran a scan to see if there was a change in any of the system components, but it froze.

In addition, when I run in dual monitor configuration (onboard display + Samsung SyncMaster 23in FullHD monitor) I can see some screen tearing on a video if I am browsing IE or have any other application on the other screen. If I have a video playing on each monitor it causes the display adapter to crash. Eventually it recovers and leaves the section of the screen where the video was playing in different colors, usually green.

Oh, and on top of all of this, the battery isn't charging ! This is after using it on battery the first time since I got the laptop back from Dell. I popped it out and put it back in, which charged it for a moment and then it stopped again. Power cycling fixed the issue, but the cycle repeats if I use the battery again. Dell is getting a piece of my mind tomorrow....

 

Hey guys,

Another update for you all. I recently had another dell technician come to my house and replace several parts on the system... motherboard, graphics card, power supply, and the entire laptop chassis. Regardless, he was about to leave the house when I replicated the issue I was having with the graphics card and the battery not charging. He called his manager and they told me to call tech support.... again! The tech realized that his manager wasn't very helpful and advised me to keep calling and to put steady pressure until I saw results.

I called and they reinstalled the drivers and reflashed the bios. It seemed to fix the issues and after 10 minutes the same issues came back. Eventually I gave them a whole speech and vented my frustrations. The dell agent was very understanding and basically told me that my best option is to get a refund and order a new system. The other option was to get an exchange, but he discouraged me to do that since I would most likely get a refurbished system. I really appreciate his honesty and helped me get right on track. So now I am looking to be the proud owner of an m18x with the following specs:

Space Black Aluminum
Intel i7 2920XM Overclocked Turbo Boost to 4.0GHz (8MB Cache)
16GB DDR3 1600MHz
AMD Radeon HD 6990M CrossFireX
1TB (2x 500GB) Solid State Hybrid
Killer Wireless-N
Internal WirelessHD transmitter
Blu-ray

Plus the agent threw in a wireless razer mamba and 4 years of accidental for all my troubles. Overall I think Dell came through, although I had to struggle quite a bit with the support process.

I want to thank you all for your helpful information on this thread. Anybody with similar issues, I hope you are able to get the support you deserve. Rest assured that if you keep asking, eventually you will find somebody understanding that will be able to help you out accordingly.

 

I have been faced with this issue for quite some time, i didn't think it was that serious though. I just remove the battery and plug it back in and all is good. Called Tech Support to see what the solution is, they told me they are going to be sending out the AC adapter, Battery, and the motherboard. I think its my AC adapter as i have made it crap out a few times.

I just noticed, whilst typing this that holding down FN key + tapping F2 more than once, till it says Battery Enabled, makes it work for me, although i did have to cycle through the whole thing once, till i got The Battery enabled, with green lighting instead of the one with blue.

Not sure if this helps...

 

@munozyoshi - congrats on your new system... how is it working for you?

@TheCodeBreaker - hang in there, buddy... it's good that they are sending out parts for you. They will not cure the problem, but the next steps will likely be replacement with the M18x. This problem is one of several that they cannot come up with a fix for.

 

Wish I could say that things were going well for me... after over a month of going back and forth with Dell... two motherboard replacements, two power supply replacements, and three on-site visits... still stuck with the same problem! If someone that follows this thread has an "in" at Dell please PM me!

 

Here are my recommendations:

1. Have your most recent case number handy, call Tech Support @ 1-800-ALIENWARE. Ask to speak with a manager
2. Ask the manager have your case escalated to a Level 2 or Level 3 Tech
3. Work with the Level 2 or Level 3 Tech and allow them to replace all the parts they want to a second or third time
   -and- while you're at it, extend your warranty a year with the Level 2 or Level 3 Tech's assistance
4. Refuse any request for a depot repair and remind them (assuming you do) that you have on-site warranty coverage
5. If they don't offer a replacement, calmly explain your dissatisfaction and need for resolution - ask if they can truly help you
6. If they still don't offer a replacement, ask about it - calmly ask at what point they give up on fixing what they have no solution for
7. If that still does not work, use this link: Dell Unresolved Issues
8. If you cannot get any assistance at this point, send an email to Michael Dell and ask for his assistance.

Dell/Alienware is an awesome company that takes good care of customers. You can make enemies and get on their "list" if you are verbally abusive or grumpy on the phone. Sometimes things go slow and you have to be patient... Like any company, there are some imbeciles working there. Call back and talk to someone else.

 

I got my replacement parts today.

They did not send me a battery, just an adapter and a motherboard, along with a palm rest and a HDD caddy.

The adapter seemed to be different, a Delta adapter (Mine was a FleXtronics), can anyone confirm that they too have the same adapter? TIA!

BTW, seems to be plugged in and charging after the trick i did and reflashing the bios, dont know if that helps anyone else.

 

I had a Delta with my R2 and it did a great job. The BIOS re-flashing does seem to help some systems. I'm glad it seems things are looking up for you on this.

 

I had both the Delta and the Flextronics... both were sent neither made a difference for me

 

If you're having this problem, the brand of AC adapter is totally irrelevant. It's not necessarily caused by the AC adapter. I only mentioned my Delta did a great job because TheCodeBreaker was a little concerned that it was not the correct part.

 

I understand ... I firmly believe that either everyone will or is experiencing this problem. Most just don't run this particular system on battery. What infuriates me is that Dell doesn't seem to have any amount of consistency when dealing with this issue. I am now being told that because I bought my system through the dell outlet that they will NOT replace my system. I'm going to start pushing for a full refund... maybe the BBB should be contacted.

 

When we have 39 pages of posts in this thread & the issues are still not officially resolved, why is it no longer stickied?

 

Because Dell has moved on to R3...

 

A moderator would need to make the thread sticky. It may be due to the fact that there is no longer a high frequency of new postings that it is not a sticky thread.

 

Good point. To help keep this issue on people's mind, I'll post my experiences with our two M17x-R2 systems.

----- ----- ----- ----- -----

Both of our M17x-R2 systems in my signature were experiencing this issue intermittently. My system experienced it 1-2 times per month & my wife's system experienced it at least once per day.

The on-site tech came out yesterday to replace motherboards & AC adapters. One motherboard was DOA & the other motherboard duplicates the issue constantly in combination with the warnings on boot (& in windows) to connect a supported AC adapter... making it worse than the original motherboard.

All 4 AC adapters (2 original 240w Flextronics & 2 replacement 240w Delta) seem to work fine on mine (original motherboard), but duplicate the issues constantly on my wife's system (replacement motherboard mentioned above).

The only differences between the two systems (excluding graphics card & hard drive differences mentioned in my signature) is the ATI system has Intel wireless vs. the nVidia system has Dell wireless.

With all of the motherboard issues we experienced yesterday, plus this officially being an unresolved issue, I'm deeply concerned about what may happen. The service contract on my wife's system expires in less than 40 days, so she needs it fixed, no matter what. The service contract on my system does not expire until February 2012 & has the issue so seldom at this time that I'm tempted to cancel service on it. None of the currently shipping models have a 1920x1200 RGB LCD screen, so any system exchange would be a step down for us.

The tech ordered another set of motherboards & will be back on Monday.

 

Taz - that's very sad. The only advice I would have is to extend the warranty on both system and keep having new parts dispatched. Once several dispatches fail to fix your problems, you will be in a good position to request a replacement with an M18x. You should have the issue escalated to Alienware Level 2 Support if you have not already done so.

 

I wholeheartedly agree. I would even be willing to pay for additional extended warranty, but it is not possible. Both of the M17x-R2 systems were exchanges from loaded Inspiron E1705 laptops that had some major issues, so I already extended them in the past. Even though the M17x-R2 systems are only 10-16 months old, those expiration dates are at the "5 year from original purchase" limit.

Neither of us want any of the currently shipping models anyway (can't stand the lower resolution). We just want our current systems to work as intended. If the motherboard replacements today do not resolve the issue, I'll be contacting the unresolved issues team, but I'm starting to feel like I'm going to be fighting a losing battle.


rock <-----> me <-----> hard place

 

ok so i just got off the phone with alienware support and they know theres a problem.what the tech told me was there working on another bios version with a (plugged in,not charging fix) he said they have bin working on it for about a month now so lets hope what he says is correct and will get that bios update and charging fix

 

I hope you're right. They have been trying to fix this problem on the R2 with BIOS updates for a very long time. So far, none of their attempts have been successful. I'm convinced they cannot fix this problem unless and until they do something to disable their proprietary AC adapter technology that "communicates" with the motherboard.

 

yea i hope so to the tech said they were testing the release and stuff but i asked him where he got this info and he said he got it from there internal something or other dept i cant remember

 

I'll add my voice to the list of people who still experience this issue. It's a reasonably rare event for me because of the way my machine's used, but a problem nonetheless. I think most of us remain silent because of our lack of faith that anything is ever likely to be done about it. Why waste the energy complaining when so many have tried before but to no avail? I'll just bear this in mind whenever I give purchasing advice to my clients and for my own future purchases.

 

ThaJesta - Well said. I'm on the same square. I'm usually on AC, but when I (rarely) use the battery it's a 50-50 chance I'll have the problem. When it finally gets to 100% of the time, or it takes more than popping the battery in & out to fix, that's when the next fight begins with Dell.

In the meantime, the last two high-end laptops we added here at the office so far this year have been Toshiba Qosmios

 

Just wanted to give everyone a quick update on my situation... same problems as everyone else. However, I bought mine from the Dell Outlet therefore I was told that I wasn't eligible for a replacement (let alone an upgrade) ... only a refurbished system. Keep in mind this went on for almost a month and a half. Three motherboard replacements, two power supply replacements, and three BIOS flashes. Anyways... Dell agreed to refund my money 100% plus the cost of my extended warranty (which hadn't even started) SO... I guess it turned out for the best - in the end