Sony Vaio Z2 (2011) Advanced Menu BIOS Hack

Updated first post. It is a patched BIOS update that keeps the serial number, so the described steps from previous version of the hack are not necessary anymore.

As always, flash on your own risk and take care of the BIOS options that might be dangerous to change.

 

Has this always been true of the Z1 BIOS hack? (Hey pal; how goes?)

 

Thanks pyr0!

 

Is there anychance that this bios hack might work on Vaio c series
mine is VPCCB35FD

n Good Work Pyro

 

Will start working on VPC C series BIOS version R2100V2 after work later. I will release in a seperate thread.

 

Hi,
I cannot install your version because my bios was upgraded via "vaio update", so when I try to install your version, I have a popup with:
"This bios is already up to date. ..."
I can't find the previous version of the bios so can you help me ?

Thanks.

 

To do the install I had to execute:

Code:

InsydeFlash.exe BIOS_VERSION.rom

 

all - i'm not sure where to go - not even sure if I have a s or z series, but i have my dad's vaio VPCEE3WFX and it is bricked (green light, nothing on screen, doesn't appear to boot).

Is there any bios trick I can do to bring it back to life?

 

Sorry for missing this, and sorry again for not reading through the thread.

Do I owe you money? Please tell me I owe you money.

 

Any news on this BIOS for VPCCB series?

I am hoping to flash and play around with it as a last resort for the issue desribed here before sending it to Sony.

 

Hi I have installed the hacked Bios from “camiloml” and I am wondering if there is a way to revert back to the original Sony bios? Because I need to send my vaio in to Sony due finger print reader problems. My laptop was running R2085H4 and how would I flash it back? I have posted this into the SA hacked bios but maybe you guys would help? I have just used the flash by pyr0 but need a copy of the original R2085H4 from Sony. and when I download it from them it just say my bios is current

 

@ Encephalartos

have a look here.

 

Hello i have a Z21 with a Core i5 2410M

On the Intel Page
Intel® Core? i5-2410M Processor (3M Cache, up to 2.90 GHz)

is written that AES-NI ist not available, but at the bottem of the page is written

"Some products can support AES New Instructions with a Processor Configuration update, in particular, i7-2630QM/i7-2635QM, i7-2670QM/i7-2675QM, i5-2430M/i5-2435M, i5-2410M/i5-2415M. Please contact OEM for the BIOS that includes the latest Processor configuration update."

so it should be possible to function with a modification in the bios right?
I've flashed the new hacked BIOS but i didn't find a option to enable it.

Are there any ideas or plans to enable this feature?

 

AFAIK, AES-NI are enabled by default. I can confirm this is the case even for the Z2 predecessor, the Z1.

 

Hi!

Just had the time to flash the new BIOS (BTW: every time I update the BIOS, the fan goes to the maximum speed before switching off, and this makes me a heart attack!! )

Anyway: I would like to know which ACPI setting is recommended. I see ACPI1.0B, ACPI3.0 and ACPI4.0. I would set 4.0, but does this implie some new setting in the operating system?

 

pyr0, A few questions, what model is your Z2?
Another question, are there any options for disabling AHCI? And which things exactly in the hacked bios should I change to disable it? I'm just asking these before I try my luck with the hacked bios.

I need to dual boot 7 and XP for work purposes. I slipstreamed the SATA driver from the website into the installation but received a BSOD in setup. After googling the error code it appears to be AHCI settings in bios

Is AHCI crucial for the SATA/Raid/etc to work?

I'm just wondering if Sony has support for Windows XP on Z2 and even has downloadable drivers how come it can't install XP.

 

Larz9220, are you asking to me?

 

Sorry, I should have clarified, I was asking pyr0 the author of this thread and how their bios hack worked.

 

I'm having the same problem, is there anyone who knows how can I solve that?

 

This could be your answer :

 

yes, this works.

BUT be careful. There is no progress indicator and in the command prompt window it seems as if nothing has happend. After executing it skips right back to the command prompt.

Check your CPU use with task manager or something like that. There is one thread with 100% cpu load. Do not restart until this is finished!

 

What about dangerous settings? I listened about problems with SA - then after laptop is brick.

 

Cannot flash it on my Z2.
It says it's not for my device.


Device:
BIOS: R1012H5
CPU: i7-2640M
HDD: 3RD Gen SSD 128Gx2 (Raid 0)
Memory: 2Gx2
Screen: 1600x900
No PMD

 

I've the same problem. R1012H5 is the BIOS available for the VPCZ22{6,7,8}G* APAC models, according to BIOS Update version R1012H5 : Download : Sony Asia Pacific

Is there any chance of getting the same modification applied to this version? Or maybe a more-detailed description of the one-byte change (ie. with hex and/or asm so it can be done with confidence and/or relocated if it's elsewhere in this vesrion)

 

Hacked R1012H5 rom with flash utility in attached link. Only for use with Z2 models compatible to R1012H5 BIOS.

** Follow flashing instructions in post 1. Read carefully. Flashing and especially changing revealed setup values on own risk. Be aware that you can brick your system if you don't know what you are doing. **

 

Has maybe anyone of you also hacked a Vaio TT(36GD) BIOS? If you have I would like to know how it is done. I have found the VSS-Offset, but would like to know the VSS-Size. Hope also more options can be made visible then!
The BIOS id of my Vaio TT36GD is R2022M4.

 

When I execute wbflash.exe I always get the message "The System BIOS is current, and does not need an update."

What can I do to flash anyway?

 

pyr0 - question for you my man...

Sorry to bring this up in this thread, I'm really missing the BIOS on/off WIFI switching possibility in Z1 that exists on this Z2 Bios. Any chance this can me done? This looks excellent, but unfortunately I own the Z1... and in great need for that...

Many thanks in advance...

 

Ever tried FLASHXX. EXE ? Replace XX with IT for obvious reasons. Must be executed from a bootable disk (e.g. FREEDOS or so)

 

I just grabbed this, and the filename of the zip and text file still says R0172H5. The file inside the zip is named R1012H5.rom but when I run WBFlash, it still claims that the new version is R0172H5 and refuses to flash it.

 

Exact same problem. Currently have the OEM R1012H5, won't flash to this new package - suspect the new package isn't quite right?

 

Never mind - the basic command line route of "InsydeFlash.exe R1012H5.rom" worked perfectly
.

 

So what exactly is the way to flash back to stock bios?

Insydeflash.exe old.rom ?

I´ve tried this but after reboot the options are the same in bios...

 

Hi, try to read here.

 

How do i get a dump from the video bios? Is it in integrated in the normal bios?
I tried it with GPU-Z. But it don't work: "BIOS reading not supported on this device"
The reason is that I want to get the pmd working in linux.

 

Wondering if pyr0 or anyone else has had any success or has any tips / instructions on how to update the Intel RST option ROM in our Sony VAIO Z21 BIOS? I've done this with the AMI EFI BIOS on my two other home machines, and in combo with the new RST 11.5 driver we now get TRIM enabled for SSDs in RAID 0 and RAID 1, which would be super useful for anyone who has a Z21 with the Samsung 2 SSD RAID 1 setup.

So far I've been totally unsuccessful in finding where the Intel OROM exists in the Insyde BIOS or what tools could be used to update it, so any help would be much appreciated.

 

I have a VPCEB26GM, any way I can flash my Bios?

 

Is it possible to desactivate Intel's Hyper-Threading & turbo mode ?
I couldn't anything about CPU management except thermal management...

 

Hi pyr0, have you managed to modify the latest (July 23, 2012) BIOS update (v. R0173H5) for some Z2 models? The link to the original BIOS file is here:
Sony eSupport - Electronics - Drivers & Software
From the Sony website:
What Does This Do?

This utility updates the BIOS to version R0173H5 to resolve the following issues:
■A critical battery dialog box appears after restarting the computer that forces the computer to enter hibernation mode
■The computer intermittently does not charge the battery
■The computer may randomly shutdown

Thank you.

 

i didn't find any official information, if the VPC-Z21 has UEFI BIOS. Can someone point me to a link?

 

There's a new BIOS for APAC machines too: R1013H5, presumably matching bobet96's post.

BIOS Update version R1013H5 : Download : Sony Asia Pacific

I was able to flash the previous version okay, thanks to BrindleBozo.

 

bobet96, TBBle:

Will upload updated packages soon, working on it.

 

Thanks, pyr0!

Sent from my Galaxy Note

 

Hi..just curious if this has been upped somewhere yet? Anxioiusly waiting on this one myself for my VPCZ2 and see this was posted about 5 days ago so not sure if there's another area I need to download this from - or is it just the 1st post? Sry new here..thx!

 

I'm hoping pyr0 or someone else can help me with a recent problem; I had to have the motherboard replaced in my VPCZ21SHX and the Sony folks did not properly program the DM on the new board, so now the model number, serial number, and service tag all read as "Reserved". I remember that originally pyr0 escribed a method of updating the BIOS which would overwrite these values but I can't find those instructions anymore, and nothing I've tried (updating BIOS with pyr0's original tweaked R01705 version but with my serial number info edited via hex editor, trying DMI update tols, etc.) will work. If anyone could describe the right update steps to overwrite / update the model nuber, serial number, and service tag I would very much appreciate it.

 

^ What Z2 model do you have? Have you made a backup of your old BIOS w/ the correct numbers? IIRC, the numbers are stored twice in the 4M ROM hex. Other than that I think filling in these numbers is not important or necessary.

 

Mine is the VPCZ21SHX. I do have a backup of my old BIOS with the numbers in there, but flashing that BIOS does not seem to restore the numbers I'm not quite sure why. Perhaps there's some option in the flashing tool I need to select?

 

^ Flash in DOS. Use the flasher tool from the Z1 Insyde Hacking thread.

 

I have tried flashing in DOS with the Fla utility. When I try it with the /ALL switch it gives me an error saying the BIOS file is not the right size. When I try it with the /BIOS switch it works and flashes the BIOS but does not re-write the numbers. I can't seem to figure out the right set of command line switches (and I think I tried all other combinations) to get it to flash the BIOS and the DMI info. Any help you could provide on which command line switches to use would be much appreciated.

 

I ended up flashing the previous modded BIOS as the latest mod hasn't been upped yet. I'm a big time BIOS tweaker on desktop X58, P67, Z68, Z77, X79 motherboards so I went in there and played around with everything - MOST of the settings even though you change them, don't actually work and do not cause any change whatsoever. I was keen on getting the RAM up to 1600-1866, as 1333 @ 9-9-9 is pathetic, and the RAM should easily do 1600 which is what the Z3 is clocked at. I was hoping to be able to tune the timings or increase the frequency, but even though I do in the BIOS and it shows it running at 1600, etc, nothing actually gets changed which can be easily verified with CPU-Z, etc. etc.

Furthermore, you can't overclock the BCLK past 100 which really sucks.

Worst of all, I cannot UNDERVOLT this chip with ANY software that's currently out there - 1.14v load is WAY WAY more than this chip needs @ 3.2GHz Turbo / dual-core. I could dramatically decrease heat, noise, and battery drain if I could adjust it. My 1.6GHz / 1.8GHz Turbo TT was Prime stable at 1800MHz @ only .937v, and it was a 45nm dual-core chip.

So bottom line is that any changes that actually MATTER performance-wise, CANNOT be adjusted and any changes you make are purely cosmetic and don't acutally get implemented...


EDIT: For those looking to o/c the PMD, you can't do it with MSI Afterburner, but it works like a charm with Sapphire Trixx. The ATI card has a lot of headroom - especially the RAM, and it makes a sizable and noticable difference in FPS in-game. "Gaming" and "Laptop" don't belong in the same sentence as far as I'm concerned, but the dock will play UT99 like butter @ 2304x1440 w/ 8x AA 16x AF at around 140-180fps...at 2048x1280 it jumps to about 180-220fps. I consider anything UNDER 100fps to be 'unplayable', so depending on your level of standards, forget about any modern games unless you drop to n00b resolutions with no eye-candy...