Alienware M18xR2 New/Updated BIOS Mods - NOW WITH MAXWELL LEGACY SUPPORT - Testers Needed

Still waiting on him to come back so we can work on the M18x R1

 

@woodzstack I can also vouch that the default firmware is fine, it might only affect certain laptops. I'm guessing the black screen is with the laptops that have the 120hz screens here is where I read the posts about the black screen issue. Also J95 starts to state to avoid the black screen issues etc to use prema's vbios, so looks like only certain models are affected.

 

hmmm sounds like MAGIC ! it's not handled by the vbios. The bios determines the connection to the graphics cards and they can load a digital screen. To boot an eDP connection/digital (as opposed to analogue/LVDS as per example) screen, just needs a UEFI boot. Which has always been the case, for 3D displays and the 120hz systems.... it also gets rid of the HD Intel because it has no MUX, or switching at all.

You know, it took me years to figure all that **** out. At least enough to know whats what without having to cite a reference, but because it's so vague and not easily explained, I am still constantly testing what I know to be true, and thus, if someone knows else - I want to test it and verify.

 

Yeah

 

(e)DP has nothing to do with UEFI and UEFI has nothing to with a digital signal.
UEFI is nothing but an interface.
If a system requires to be set to UEFI in order to output to eDP then it's just not done right.

 

Hey Everyone,
I'm so sorry I've been gone for some time. I was on vacation, and that was fun, but was oversea's and got VERY sick. Was in the hospital, and that was NOT fun. Plus the surgery sucked, too... Anyway, I got home just a little bit ago, and then came down with Pneumonia. It's like I've hit the bad luck lottery, lol!
Anyway, it's been amazing seeing that you guys are all so kind and care about where I was. Never been missed like this before, EVER. It goes to show that ya'll are just AMAZING people (for the most part, of course!).
In any case, I plan to start with the m17 system mods, AGAIN, shortly. Just batteling this Pneumonia, Laryngitis, Fever (almost 103), and asthma on top of it. So, I'll be a few more days, but I do plan on getting back on the horse, VERY SOON! (Give me a couple days). I will, of course be back here and you can send me msgs if needed! Otherwise, thanks again and I'm so sorry for the trouble of being gone. This was really amazing. I really can't tell you what this means to me. Just can't believe how kind ya'll are! I'm speechless (Trust me, that's IMPOSSIBLE! - Ask Mr. Fox, LOL)
Talk to ya'll SOON!
Swick

 

He @Raidriar
Wanna continue the m18xR1 testing? How did the previous bios I sent you go?
LMK!
Thanks!
Sorry for beign away. Dont know if you saw, but I think I sent you a PM. Was sick, out of country, etc... long story, but am back, again, FINALLY! Apologies for the trouble!

 

Just wanted to update you guy on my previous Bios /Ram issues on the M18X R2. I successfully got the HyperX 2133 DDR3L ram to behave as plug and play @ 1866mhz (14x multiplier), Although I still can't get the XMP profiles to work at 2133mhz, (for some reason they are stuck at XMP 15x multipliers = 2000mhz = not bios compatible) Running swicks's Bios and windows 7, My 2x 980m will be in this coming up week some time (Unfortunately for me I won't be back in town to install them for a couple weeks though I have to wait, bummer) looking forward to a possible seamless install with a "pre-built" system running dual AMD cards. Can't wait to get my hands dirty

PS. the ram issue happens with every bios I have tried. SO not complaining to swick. Keep up the hard work buddy. This stuff is FUN

 

If your looking for help on the throttle issue on the m18xr2 we've found that switching the gfx to intel and back gets rid of it till a cold boot restart.

 

All good man. The last BIOS you sent was a brick so let's not repeat that one lol

 

Too bad there isn't a way to automate booting to IGFX then auto Switching to PEG and finishing the boot.

That would effectively "fix" the issue would it not?

 

No I dont think thats what will fix it. What I noticed is that if you power it up off a cold boot the screen will nearly come up straitaway. If you switch the gfx however I noticed when switching to PEG that when the laptop comes on it takes 3 or 4 seconds for the screen to powerup. THAT might be where the source of the throttling might be. When booting on cold its possible its booting up on a sort of fast boot which has incorrect parameters causing throttling and changing the gfx triggers some sort of precheck sequence that loads the correct variables.

I dont know SFA about bios programs or such but if swick or prema knows enough about what I'm thinking of they could probably look at the bios code and either fix the borked code or make the computer do a full check when its powered on like it does when the gfx is switched so the computers loading the correct variables.

Edit: On a side note since I reset my laptop back to a backup image and ran DISM using a technet wim file to repair my windows 10 install and sfc /scannow it seems to have fixed all issues regarding corruption on my system for the moment. No integrity violations yay!

 

That's good news Glad you got that fixed. Hey and at least you found something that for sure works every time, even if it is a pain in the butt to do

 

no information about m17x r4?? i desperately need it!!!! plz!!!

 

Why do u need help with m17xr4? Just use windows 8/10

About bios: These m18xr1/2 bioses looks really similar but r1 lacks uefi boot option. If you could force uefi boot in bios hidden options then 980m should work.

 

Impossible, there is no UEFI code at all in the BIOS and we can't copy the M18x R2 code because the flash size is significantly smaller. We may have to try some trickery or even possibly solder a M18x R2 BIOS chip in there to see if that works.

 

Ah then only option is to copy modified video to allow 980M work in legacy mode.

OR

As you say we could flash R2 bios but hmm, the only difference is Sandy vs Ivy, msata and sound card. We could try to insert Sandy CPU microcode and force flash bios using hardware programmer. That sounds promising.

EDIT:: Just realized that R2 supported Sandy CPU didn't it?

 

That doesn't work either since I believe it makes UEFI calls too, which are non existent on the M18x R1. We tried that already and it bricked my laptop

 

Crap. So we need to do some hardware programming I think.

Anyone tried booting R1 with R2 microcode and 3xxx series CPU? Just curious

What about using R2 flasher and bypassing model check with debugger?

 

Now, that would be interesting, indeed. And, very easy to do just for kicks. The chip on both machines is easily accessible, right in the open space near the DMC slot, and can be swapped out removing nothing but the bottom cover. The last time I swapped one I think it took me all of 20 minutes start to finish. If that's all it took, wouldn't that be pretty amazing?

 

Should work but:

• I don't have hardware flasher. The one I got for vBIOS was borrowed
• This is my only laptop, I don't even have access to M18xR2. I doubt there are more than 100 in whole country
• Im in worse and worse condition every month so I don't want to do something risky now.

If you Fox could do this then also try to swap CPU. 3920XM should also run (lol) as they have same sockets.

 

I no longer own anything from Alienware. I have no way to test anything.

You can buy a pre-programmed chip on eBay for around $20 USD. That's what I did last time I needed one. It had the stock BIOS already on it, so all I had to do was solder the chip and upgrade to unlocked BIOS.

There could be a conflict with the ME, but maybe not. It would be really sweet if that worked.

 

He doesn't have any Alienwares anymore.

 

Looking at ur signature @Raidriar right now

 

I'm not that bold lol...not yet at least. maybe after a couple of bottle of vodka

 

Ooh I live in Eastern Europe. Vodka is not a problem mate

But for serious if anyone is interested in helping then all M18xR1 users would be grateful.

 

The option we could also consider...delete the ePSA utility and try to replace it with UEFI

 

Debugging that wil take a dozens of bricks. Better try to solder/hardware flash R2 BIOS first

 

Hey, I'm back again.. Had pneumonia after I got back. Thought I was getting better and then... guess not! LOL
Anyway, I'm finally back. and caught up with everything. Man, i missed sooooo much! How depressing!

So, The soldering of a r2 bios to the R1 is probably the best option. I already bricked @Raidriar m18xr1 trying to add support for the 900 series GPU's, but that didn't work. Total brick - and I figured that might happen. Fortunatly he is skilled enough to fix, THANKFULLY! I'd be lost without his expertise & testing ability, frankly! heh
But, by soldering the bios from an r2 to an r1... that MIGHT do it. However, I do know that ALL the USB ports are USB3 on the R2, and different manufacturer if memory serves. But, it might still work, you never know. I wouldn't be able to test - We'd need @Raidriar to try it or someone REALLY brave (or is it crazy) to try! heh

 

@Raidriar
Okay, so I do have one INSANELY crazy idea...
Shoot me a PM when you are around... I'll be on from now on, finally!! As I'm back, for good! (I know, sucks for all of you)! hahaha

Swick

 

@Mr. Fox
Well, I'm finally able to talk now.... (My family is VERY upset about that, as I'm suer you are, too! LOL)
But, give me a call if you're not too busy later on. Also, It's SOOO sad I took the alienware away from you. I think, if I can get the idea out of my mothers head to not steal this system from me... I might need to lend this to you so you can test things, etc... for us. You are just too valuable of a resource to us! What did I do. I should be SHOT by the alienware community for taking this away from you. I'm surprised that they haven't put a hit out on me already! heh

 

If I thought you talked too much I would never would have called you, LOL. I'm very glad you are better now. You have been in my prayers, bro.

You did not take the machine away from me. I cannot think of anyone that I am happier to have my beloved red beauty than you. The M18xR1 and R2 were going to go bye-bye even if that meant having to dismantle them and sell them one eBay one piece at a time. I was officially done screwing with it. I am glad to finally live in an Alien-Free zone. I'm tired of the nonsense from the past couple of years with Alienware. It started with the factory-engineered crippling of the Alienware 18 and got worse with the stupid Maxwell 8 beep issue and then EVGA 8 beep problems from EDID corruption. I have two awesome machines that make me happy now. I don't have the time or desire to do any more Alienware troubleshooting or testing, but I do care how it turns out and hope the future for the M18xR1 ends as happily as it has for the M18xR2 with your awesome BIOS mods.

Don't forget about your black beauty. It has been boxed up and ready to go home since the day you left for the vacation from hell.

 

@Mr. Fox
Thanks for the kind words, AGAIN! (And prayers). I was surprised you could understand me when we talked the last time... My parents couldn't even understand me when I called them. They just told me to stop talking, lol! (Little good that did, until the laryngitis and pneumonia completely got me and I was unable to speak)! That was lots of fun...

Also, as a side note... I'm STILL kicking myself for not doing the mod 3 years ago when we first talked. I really dont know why I waited. SOOOOO pissed at myself. If only! The bios mod would have been AWESOME and helped sooo many more people! heh

In any case, I'm now going to need to fight my mom on your red beauty, as you put it. Every time she comes to my house, she EYEBALLS the machine and mentions almsot EVERY time how much she LOVES it, and how it would be so good for her. Now, I wold do ANYTHING for my mom, so of course I'll give it to her. However... i need your advice. What machine is better? Your's, or mine? BE HONEST! (But try not to be biased, if possible) heh

Thanks again and I hope to talk to you soon! (Maybe tonight)?

Oh, lastly... IF you see Raidrair, j95, Deadsmiley post... could you let them know I'm back AND officially working on the m17xR4 bios as I type this message. I sent them all a PM to let them know I'm officially back, for a second time, but I should be back for good now. Until I get hit with another big ass virus or bacteria, of course! lol

Thanks!

 

USB 3.0 does not exist in the BIOS because it is not Intel based, it was done by Renesas. I do not have a M17x R4 any more (sold for the M18x R2), but the BIOS structures are very, very similar. As far as R2 BIOS in the R1...could we delete the ePSA and slot in UEFI in it's place? ePSA is fairly chunky.

Glad you're feeling ok man...sounds like medical hell. Pneumonia is not easy to deal with.

 

You sir are a true gentleman, what a nice jester. I hope there is such a thing as good karma because im sure there is plenty coming your way.

Ps he dose talk a lot lol, but hes quite funny and i wouldn't imagine him any other way.

 

Thanks for the kind words, again! Appreciate it, Raid!

RE the USB... I was told that the USB devices are completly different and made by different manufacturers. Plus, the R1 has USB2 and 1xUSB3 slot. The R2 has all USB3 ports, and, like I said, the USB ports were supposedly VERY different. So... I'm not sure if that would matter, necessarily, but was just throwing that in.

As for removing ePSA... You really want to get rid of the Diagnostic program? I mean, that is certainly possible. However, I don't know if that's a mandatory module the system requires. If so, then we are SOL. It would be a trial and brick... err... I mean, trial and error type situation.

Lastly, I think we should really try the R2 bios in the R1... IF youre willing. I do not think there is much that needs to be changed / modded! In any case, let me know what you think...

Swick

 

Like I said flash size is the problem here, can we compress modules?

 

I doubt you will be able to flash it. I think you would need to solder a different chip onto the mobo if it is actually going to work.

 

We can try debugging r2 flasher and remove name check. I can do that but test soldered bios for now.

 

Posting this here because it might be BIOS related.

Well looks like the brand new Sammy 850 Pro 1TB just took a dump. Getting I/O error on win 7 boot now. Started to hang in win 7 while running spybot whitelist generation. Restarted and boom. Either that or it could have been....

@Swick1981 then entered the BIOS and the hard drive mode setting was mysteriously reset to default Raid mode, when the OS was installed on AHCI. Switched back but too late OS toast. All other custom settings are intact.

Update: curious.. All windows installation USB sticks are taking over 10 minutes to boot up to the "intro" screens. Win 7, 8, + 10. Ram? Mobo?

 

very weird. I have no such issue...

 

Sounds like either bad ram or the mobo could be on its last legs if your having issues booting to even windows setup. You try a reset to bios default?

 

Turns out the issue was a one-month-old SSD Samsung Drive controller went bad it was power cycling and bring in the system to its knees. I still don't know why the BIOS reset the hard drive mode it did it again recently it only happens when the system hangs. Which is very rare and most likely due to over clock in the graphics cards

 

System Log:
ACPI -- : The embedded controller (EC) returned data when none was requested. The BIOS might be trying to access the EC without synchronizing with the operating system. This data will be ignored. No further action is necessary; however, you should check with your computer manufacturer for an upgraded BIOS.
-----------------------
Then BSOD"
Bug Check 0xD1: DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL

The DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL bug check has a value of 0x000000D1. This indicates that a kernel-mode driver attempted to access pageable memory at a process IRQL that was too high.
-----------------------
This happend while running a built in system defrag. Attempted to open Firefox, it hung and would not force close. then opened edge it also hard froze. Then BSOD

Any ideas?

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

I am TEMPORARILY running windows 10 (I am out of town, it's all i had on me) I realize this BIOS was intended for windows 7. I am not sure how the 2 OSes differ in their EC access, Wondering if anyone else got a similar error.

Changes since stable:
Also running the beta version of MSI Afterburner. I have been getting some Fallout 4 freezes since then. I though it was just having the clocks too high

 

This DRIVER_IRQL happens when I run too high clock on battery and it can't maintain it.

 

I'm guessing my first error was caused due to not having a Windows 10 driver for the fall sensor. I realized that the aw 18 Windows 10 drivers work on the m18x R2. Killer wireless, audio, free fall, OSD and probably others.

I haven't had the second happen happen again since downgrading back to afterburner 4.2

 

Double post again. Stupid AT&T Internet

 

Hey, let me know if the eject button works!

Homer

 

It indeed does!

 

Nevermind, the EC is still sending data when it's not supposed to. hmm