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    How to reset the password on a TPM-protected EilteBook

    Discussion in 'HP Business Class Notebooks' started by jke, Oct 9, 2012.

  1. jke

    jke Notebook Enthusiast

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    Hi,
    I don't know if this has ever been talked about before - I think I've read an answer to the BIOS password reset some time ago on this forum.

    In short: if the BIOS on your (TPM-enabled) EliteBook can't be deleted and if you are the legal owner of the laptop (= receipt available), the only way (I know of) to erase the password on a protected BIOS is to contact HP Support.

    It happened on a used 6930p I had bought three weeks ago which came with a locked BIOS. Warranty was still valid up to October 8th 2012, so I contacted HP Support (even via Twitter) and opened a case.

    Here's what happens in such a case:
    1. contact HP Support
    2. they will reply, ask for your proof of purchase, which you'll send them as PDF & Co
    3. they will send you an .exe in a ZIP which needs to be copied to a bootable USB memory key
    4. execute that .exe after booting from the USB key, which will then generate a text file with the unique ID of the laptop
    5. send them this txt file
    6. they will send you another .exe which was compiled specifically for the ID of your laptop
    7. start this .exe after booting from the same USB key
    8. all BIOS passwords will be erased

    The whole process takes some time because between step 5. and 6., your case will be forwarded to Level2 support and also because HP's mail server is a bit picky (and Gmail deletes executable files, even in ZIP attachments), but in the end this just works out fine, albeit taking a few days.

    Hope this helps anyone who is searching for an answer to the unlock-BIOS problem.

    (~ removing the battery etc. of course does not work)
     
    jke, Oct 9, 2012
    #1