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    Vaio VPCZ13 always switches off after 30 minutes

    Discussion in 'VAIO / Sony' started by paul3000h, Feb 12, 2014.

  1. paul3000h

    paul3000h Notebook Guru

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    My VPCZ13 always switches off after exactly 30 minutes, I bricked it updating the bios. I had a new chip soldered on with my backup of my last good bios (hacked). Since the first start this always happens.

    Temperatures of cpu and gpu mostly 38 to 42 C

    max cpu 60 C gpu 48 C

    The fan runs continuously, although the air coming out is always cool.
    The fan is slow and quiet during the booting but as soon as windows has loaded when it asks for my user password it goes full blast continuously till it switches itself off exactly 30 minutes later.

    System idle process is 99% and cpu 0 to 2%

    If I put to sleep after say 25 minutes the 30 minute cycle restarts after I wake it from sleep.

    W7 ultimate x64

    Computer unusable in this state. I spent very many hours looking for solution. Checked my power settings. Help urgently needed.
     
  2. paul3000h

    paul3000h Notebook Guru

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    I Get this message immediately when first turn on 'ME FW update failed please try again'
    The vaio InsydeH20 bios is ok and on the main bios page it gives Bios version xxxx and EC version xxxx but for ME version it says Unknown.
    My fan and auto switch off after exactly 30 minutes problem could be that no ME firmware in my bios is the cause my fan/switch off problem?
    If no ME firmware in bios is the problem how could I get hold of a copy and how to flash it to my bios now I can access it again?

    If anyone knows anything about how the fan is controlled, maybe registry please let me know.
     
  3. Dufus

    Dufus .

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    This does not seem to be such an uncommon problem. here are some other makes with the same problem.

    Asus

    HP Envy

    Dell

    >This< might be helpful. IIRC one of the users used a SPI programmer to program the ME on the BIOS chip in board.
     
  4. paul3000h

    paul3000h Notebook Guru

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    Thanks for all your help, much appreciated.
     
  5. paul3000h

    paul3000h Notebook Guru

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    Update:

    I eventually sent my old, bricked removed bios chip to bios-repair.com who were very helpful and knew all about the missing ME sector problem. They copied my ME sector from it and put it into my backed up .rom that was missing this sector and sent me it as a .rom. I looked at this using UEFITool_0.17.2_win and it shows the ME version whereas my other .roms do not.

    When I try to flash all goes well and it reads the new rom and says:

    current bios model name VPCZ13C5E
    new bios model name Capella
    current version R3031C3
    new version R3030C3

    THEN...

    Error: IHISI 15h fail.Internal error 20 FFC00300
    FBTS Permission is denied by user

    these 2 lines are repeated twice more ie 3 in all.

    I have flashed older saved roms and they also say capella as above and also different versions from newer to older and older to newer and they all work
    but my roms only contain the bios sectors nor the ME sectors as the new one does, to me that's the only difference???

    Hope someone knows a solution.