Stubborn Intel MEI (LMS) driver warning in event log

Hi all,
Today i discovered that a log entry in "application" tab of event viewer is logged when i boot up my notebook everytime saying:

"LMS Service cannot connect to Intel(R) MEI driver"

I seached the web, that's not notebook-brand specific and not Windows-related. Most of the posts are saying that Intel has buggy MEI driver hence LMS fails to connect.

Most of the users may have not noticed that entry related to Intel, so i would like to ask:


Is there an official MEI driver update from Intel which lets us get rid of this eventlog entry by installing upon existing system (no uninstallation option exists)?

Thanks all!

 

Nice Catch man, I am getting that error also and will try the solution listed here and post back the results shortly
LMS Service cannot connect to Intel(R) MEI driver - HP Support Forum
Just out of curiosity what model do U have + which OS?
I do have an entry for INtel Management Engine comp. (I assume that is the same thing). in programs and features.
I did the update listed above and I went to version 6.0.0.1179 (A) but the issue persists.

 

I just use the MS driver for it, since I don't use the feature.

 

Can you explain this a bit more? Then you didn't have the Intel AHCI driver which comes as pre-installed on brand-new notebooks? You installed Msahci.sys and you have no problems then?

Didn't you also install Intel Chipset Driver?

 

Same issue as OP here, with G73jh-rbbx05 and Win 7 x64.

 

My notebook is Asus G53JW with Windows 7 x64. When i look at device manager, expand "system devices", i see Intel M.E.I. driver whose date is a bit old, 2009. I don't see any specific release which updates this package as well as LMS service to get rid of annoying warning appears at every start up.

No any "Intel" entry in "programs and features" like you, which means no normal way to uninstall that package.

Any working solutions are greatyl appreciated.

 

I know for sure that Chastity has recommended updateing the chipset driver for other issues. I did see a thread where that (chipset driver) was recommended as a solution for the issue.

I also saw another site where is was recommended that a tweak to the BIOS may be needed, but I did not see the option mentioned on that site in the BIOS on my laptop.

 

In Programs and Features, mine is also listed as Intel Management Engine Components version 6.0.0.1179 and shown as a 2009 driver in Device Manager under "system devices".

 

If you want to try the MEI driver it can be found here
ftp://ftp.hp.com/pub/softpaq/sp48501-49000/sp48617.exe

, I know it is HP but it did install on mine with no new issues. This will create the entry in Programs.

 

front360, sorry. Yes you're right, i'm correcting myself. I also have Intel Management Engine Components version 6.0.0.1179 installed on 24.12.2010.

Is there a recent version just for MEI or do we have to install whole Intel Chipset driver? And most important is that, does installing newer chipset driver solve that problem?

So you applied and the annoying event log warning went away? Does it have any side-effects related to Intel processor (turbo boost, EIST, AMT...)?

If you applied, what's the version number that appears on 'programs and features'?

I couldn't find this on Intel's website. All the realted ME downloads are related to Intel boards.

 

Basically, what I did is I uninstalled the MEI device in Device Manager, and had it uninstall whatever drivers were on the system, and then let it autoupdate to some MS supplied driver.

 

The MEI drivers are on the Asus Support page here; ASUSTeK Computer Inc. -Support- Drivers and Download MEI
Looking at the dates, it shows 6.0.0.1179 as the most recent. There are two 7.0xxx versions, but the sizes of those files are so different that I'm not sure, what they are for(besides Win7 x64).

 

Through Windows Update (no driver-related updates i see in Windows Update) or you manually updated? How?

Can you define the exact procedure? I'm not very keen on uninstalling a device driver from device manager as refreshing device manager would bring it again. Can uninstalling it break other CPU functions of my I7 such as turbo boost etc..? Plus, is msahci.sys is the one you're talking about and it's included in current factory-default Win7?

The Asus website is not consistent. It has:

Version V6.0.0.1179
Description Intel Management Engine Interface
File Size
2011.05.10 update

Version V7.0.0.1144
Description Intel Management Engine Interface
2011.01.17 update

Version V7.0.0.1118
Description Intel Management Engine Interface
2010.12.15 update

Version V6.0.0.1179
Description Intel(R)_Management_Engine_Interface
2009.12.30 update

As you see there are TWO "V6.0.0.1179"s, one of them is 2009.12.30 (the last one), the other one is 2011.05.10(the first one) which seems the latest by date. And version 7xxx must mean more recent than version 6 semantically. What's up with that?

 

You really should look up what the MEI actually is.

It's a client end for a remote management system that is typically used in a corporate environment. Home users can pretty much ignore this.

You open up Device Manager, and locate the Intel Management device. Open up the Properties, and you can uninstall it, with an option to uninstall the installed drivers, or even disable it. When it gets re-detected, Windows will install some MS provided driver.

My lappy has version 1.0.0.0 installed, and has none of the bloat Intel applications that the Intel installer puts there.

 

kimiraikkonen, NO when I said no new issues, I still have the original warning after the update. Chastity Thanks so much for clarifying this. I am going to remove it as you schooled us!

 

Thanks. Please let us know if you manage to kick the warning away.

 

So, actually home users can safely ignore that warning?

 

Are you using a Remote Access and Update Client where techs are force-feeding your system automatically installed updates where they can awaken your machine if need be from their Service Servers?

I didn't think so.

The warning is an annoyance. Just get rid of the standard Intel package so that the software stops logging errors about being unable to sync in and such.

 

Thanks, without uninstalling Intel Managment Engine in device manager, is it safe to just "disable" it from device manager to get rid of warning?

Anyway, when you click driver details it says there is no driver installed for that device. So actually there is nothing to update.

 

Just to let you know, when I click the driver details button it shows the file HECIx64.sys

 

sorry, yep, you're right. I was checking another device related to Intel. However i wonder whether uninstalling Intel Management Engine Components is safe or not.

 

In my opinion, if Chastity says it is safe to uninstall it then it is. She is well respected and very knowledgeable.

 

Yes, it's a piece of hardware that doesn't do anything in regards of performance or standard usage. It's for large-scale corporate support teams and allows your computer to have a unique ID on the support system, and to allow secure authorized access to your hardware by authorized personnel. Basically, it's a hardware component for client software.

So yes, go ahead and disable it if you like. Won't affect your performance at all.

 

Hi Chastity,

Instead of disabling Intel Management Engine from device manager, i disabled LMS service from services.msc (LMS.exe) and event log warning seems stopped! I must have thought that before.

Thanks all and Chastity