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    system vs administrator password in BIOS settings

    Discussion in 'Dell' started by techman41973, Jun 29, 2015.

  1. techman41973

    techman41973 Notebook Consultant

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    Recently bought a new Dell 3147.
    In the BIOS menus, I'm able to set a "system password" but unable to set an "administrator password"
    Does anyone know the difference?
    I'd like to password protect my BIOS settings.
    Thanks
     
    techman41973, Jun 29, 2015
    #1
  2. SiggyBoo

    SiggyBoo Newbie

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    DIsclaimer : IMHO
    A system password is required to boot up the OS installed on your hard drive ( a second layer of authentication ) to access your files & OS before OS takes over

    An Administrator password is needed to make changes to the BIOS - like say if you don't want someone else to mess up with the BIOS settings on your laptop.
     
    SiggyBoo, Apr 15, 2016
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  3. Troy_Carnahan

    Troy_Carnahan Notebook Consultant

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    This.

    *Beware* Most new dell systems have a backup cmos battery that cannot be reset by pulling the battery. If you set a password and forget it later on down the road, you're locked out of your BIOS and will most likely have to use a 3rd party tool that involves a BIOS flash or sending it to Dell. In some newer EFI systems, the BIOS password is required prior to restoring a device via the recovery partition.
     
    Troy_Carnahan, Apr 24, 2016
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