Vaio Z - Patched R4043M3 BIOS (with Advanced Options)

Okay,

Archive linked below contains Insyde Flash IT dump of R4043M3 BIOS which was patched by me. DISCLAIMER - if you want to flash your BIOS with this version, you are doing it ON YOUR RISK!

DOWNLOAD: http://www.4shared.com/file/144478147/a45412c3/r4043_adv.html

What's in:

1. Advanced BIOS options are unlocked (do not modify unless you know what are you doing!!!)

2. Boot Manager (F1 Key) - Works, you can change the boot drive

3. EFI Boot Manager (ESC Key) - Unfortunately, it still works only if IDE controller and external drive boot are disabled - then, you can connect USB stick and start EFI Boot Manager by tapping ESC key. At least it can be accessed without disconnection of the drives.

I am still working on getting EFI Boot Manager to work - I guess it is some non-exposed VSS variable that Sony changed in R4040 and onwards - funny thing is that it is possible to get to it, but only if there are no drives to boot by default.

If someone is willing to compare VSS data and help track this one down - it would be great.

 

thumbs up

thanks for your work

edit: omg... unable to read at the moment...
where can i get flash_it ?
Could you write a quick howto to flash the bios please ?

mfg

 

I found Flash IT here:

http://www.sendspace.com/file/dzcv0j

There is an readme file - but you should really REALLY know what you are doing.

 

not yet


ATM i have the "old" one R3054M3

If i can help with this tell me what to do.

 

Which variables did you change to get advanced menu? I'd like to do this to the bios that has been modded with SLIC 2.1

 

0x25A will unlock advanced options - you need to set it to 1

 

Great news, thanks for sharing.

What VSS Variable did enable die Boot menu?

How can we support you in your "research"?

TDO

 

I think it would be easier to change Slic 2.0 to Slic 2.1 than to change the VSS variable.

TDO

 

Thanks. Just upgraded to your Bios.

 

Upgraded too. Thanks alot.!

 

Boot menu "just works" - I don't know if it started working after enabling advanced menu, or if I just accidentally enabled something inside "Advanced Options"

As for the EFI "Boot from File" menu (and file explorer) - I think I understand what is going on - it looks like EFI menu has the lowest priority now, and it gets to be executed ONLY if all other boot methods fail. One thing is sure - EFI boot is not mentioned anywhere in the SetupTool (I extracted it from BIOS image), so if it is configurable, it is definitely "hidden" / undocumented option

So, right now - to get to EFI menu, you need to:

a) Disable the IDE controller (in Advanced menu)
b) Disable the External boot (from Boot menu)

And then you can get to EFI menu, and boot from the efi file on an USB drive. Unfortunately this is not too helpful, as it is impossible to install an OS this way (because IDE controller is disabled)

What could be done is - we need to dump the VSS data from R4043M3 and compare it to the latest BIOS which had EFI menu enabled, to see if the priority/EFI menu is actually something that is enabled/disabled in VSS - I am not sure what was the latest R40xx version, as I was using R3xxx then.

Does anybody know what was the last R4xxx BIOS with EFI boot working?

If someone has an old R4xxx BIOS that had EFI menu/boot enabled, it would he helpful if he could dump the bios with Flash IT and extract the VSS / dump it.

Here is a link that deals with tools to do so: http://marcansoft.com/blog/2009/06/enabling-intel-vt-on-the-aspire-8930g/ although I still have issues with dumping my data.

 

Ok, I found that there is a "BootOrder" VSS variable in the firmware.

According to this: http://homepages.tesco.net/J.deBoynePollard/FGA/efi-boot-process.html this variable is read and used for EFI booting.

Now I guess we need to compare it with the older BIOS versions and see if it is the same or if it changed.

Also, there is "HybridGraphicsGlobalVariable" variable, which might be changed between versions, and maybe that is what made the NVidia driver work.

 

There's link fla tool in the topic, and z46.rom file is R4040M3 BIOS.
I've successfully enabled advanced menu and VT while it was factory installed in my Z750. And AFAIK it also suppports EFI boot.

So you can use it to compare VSS.

 

Thanks!

By the way - I also managed to boot into Tianocore's EFI shell (Shell_full.efi) - it allows dumping of the variables, but I still did not find an easy way to edit boot order.

There seems to be a "bcfg" EFI command which should be used for EFI boot configuartion - but it is not implemented in Tianocore - I guess it only ships with EFI if vendor provided it (which, in case of Sony/Insyde is not the case)

 

Works great! Thanks!

 

Just enabled my hidden advanced menu again. Works like a charm. Thanks!

Anyone knows how to integrate SLIC 2.1?

 

so I'm able to switch between ide/ahci with these bios in my Z?

 

yes, you can

 

whats the correct fla command line options for patching ?

 

check readme file. if you cannot flash or don't know what commabd to flash, better not to do it at all.

 

http://www.sendspace.com/file/kvf3h5

SLIC 2.1 added along side this great mod

 

Confirmed SLIC 2.1 and advanced menu when flashed using Fla and /bios command

 

Hi
can you change raid option can you change sata raid controller ? on or off ?
thnx

 

Yes, you can configure IDE controller to be either RAID or AHCI (or IDE).

Also, you can turn the entire controller ON/OFF

 

and does those rs sony lying that on some vaio z you cannot have raid? and after hacking vaio z advanced menu all sudden owners can enable raid ?
because I have aw series and I asked them I want use RAID .. they said no your laptop doesnt support it -- they lying are they ?
I reaaly want patch mine bios that advanced menu will be open ..

 

There are not really lying - they are just not offering that

Same was true for Virtualisation (VT-x) - first, they said it was not possible... then, after sh*t hit the fan (with Win7 release and the impeding support doom when people fail to deploy XP mode) they just enabled it...

This is why, from now on, I am only buying laptops I can... hack

But, RAID option is different - it is not just the option you need, but you need to plug-in at least two physical HDD/SSD drives. If you have non-RAID Sony Z, that means either:

a) Buying a RAID cable and 1.8" SSDs/HDDs
or

b) Pulling out the DVD / BD drive and sticking the second drive there (messy work which requires help of super-glue from inside to lock the DVD door + extra mini-SATA connector and adapter, requires some messy cabling - I know as I did it)

So, this is not exactly something that many people would do, so I guess Sony won't bother with enabling RAID.

--

Also, you can find Intel Management Engine (Intel AMT) inside Z EFI, which you can also turn ON. This is normally part of Centrino vPro platforms only, so Sony does not enable it on "plain" Centrino notebooks.

Note that for some of those things Sony would have to pay extra royalties to third parties (e.g. Intel) - so, from a purely legal standpoint, with enabling of e.g. Intel AMT, you are actually obtaining something you did not pay for.

 

Yeah Exactly They Are Such A F***ing Ba***rds !!
I Think I Can Sue Them For This
They Have No Right Mess With Bios BECAUSE I Bought It!

So Why Desktop Motherboards Dont Hyding Anything ?
I Done So Big Mess With My Laptop You Know And I Will Take Out Even That Sit Comact Disk Drive And Kick It Out I Will Mess With Laptop Extremely
And I Know I Need Two Drives
Have Ordered Sata Cable Which I Will Connect To First Bay And I Will Buy Second Ssd You Know ...
But First I Need Unhide Advanced Menu In Aw Series So In Mine Laptop And Or Different Way Enable That Bloody Raid
All Aw Series Have Completelly Same Motherboard
And What Do You Mean Raid Cable??
There Are More Types Of Cable ?

 

Wait wait...

For the RAID - you cannot really sue Sony, if you bought the product without RAID in the advertisement - if they didn't say RAID is supported, they didn't offer it - so, legally you have not too much chance there.

As for the Virtualization - this was a hot topic few months ago, and (I am not a Lawyer) there could be some basis for a lawsuit as Sony blocked one of the advertized features of the CPU. But, since Sony decided to do some damage control and enable VT - this is not an issue.

As for all other BIOS options that are hidden - well, unfortunately they have all right to hide them if they want. There is no requirement or a law to force Sony to enable all BIOS options. Desktop boards have all options visible as typically they are used by hardware integrators that do have a need to tweak them, etc... but laptops are not used in that way, and huge majority of users have no need to tweak advanced settings - most of them won't even know what they are for...

What can we do, as customers - is to vote with the wallet - not buy intentionally crippled products, and if we find some crippled products, to write about it, blog about it and raise overall awareness.

And, another option - is to patch/hack the stuff, in order to enable intentionally hidden things - which is what we are doing here

--

As for the RAID cable - Sony Vaio Z has a special RAID cable that connects two 1.8" drives to one SATA connector on the motherboard. That way, they could stuff two drives on the right side, and still keep optical drive.

You can either do exactly the same - buy the special RAID cable (from Sony Service) and two 1.8" drives (you will need some extra hinges and screws if you want to look exactly the same as from "factory")

ALTERNATIVELY, you can pull out the DVD/BD drive and, INSTEAD of DVD drive, connect 2.5" HDD/SSD. For this you neeed Micro SATA -> SATA adapter, because internal cable that connects to DVD drive is Micro SATA. I found only one company selling those in finished form, and since they are not meant for a notebook use, putting everything together is a bit messy... but it works.

 

is everyone flashing from within win or usb boot disk etc?

 

and it will work on my Z720?
I have R4043M3 bios from sony ftp-server now..

 

would it work fine on my Z610 ? sony's site list R4041M3 for it.


also, fla.exe keeps crashing on me when I'm running it from a DOS bootdisk (well, it works without switches and shows the help.. but otherwise it crashes)

 

Yep it'll work.

I never tried from dos within windows, I did it from a bootable USB key.

Flashit.exe

Then use the following string

Code:

flas[size=2]hit[/size] [biosname].fd

 

My experience with Z-s is that all BIOS-es work on all machines.

And you cannot go wrong if you put the R4xxx BIOS even on an older machines. In my Z, over time, I used R2xxx, R3xxx and R4xxx BIOS-es, all without a single issue.

Up to this point, hardware design of Z machines has stayed the same - across the generations, and across the worldwide models. What is different, is the memory and drive configuration, 3G/Data modem configuration and, of course, CPU.

Every Z can support RAID and 8 GB of RAM and all Montevina Core 2 Duo FCPGA CPUs all the way to X9100 - and R4xxx BIOS will allow all that in any case.

So, yes - this BIOS should work on any Z model - from the first generation all the way up to the latest.

 

am gonna buy vaio z after this what i red

 

I have an Vaio VGN-Z with a single SATA HD inside and buy the Raid Adapter http://www.sparepartswarehouse.com/Sony,Laptop,Part,A1553769A.aspx and two SSD's. After flashing the BIOS in this thread i have the advanced menu with IDE and AHCI but no RAID option. If I set to IDE I see both discs in the IDE Configuration - Channel 1 Master and Channel 3 Master (Channel 4 Master is the DVD-Rom). How can i enablde the Raid option? I try to flash with just one disc and then flash again with two discs and and and... but i get never the Raid-Option.
Has someone an idea?

Excuse my terrible english!

 

This is very strange - I have a non-RAID model, and on the avanced menu there are options for SATA controller mode:

* IDE
* AHCI
* RAID

So, you are saying that you have only AHCI and IDE?

The only thing I could think of is that Sony started shipping some of the Z models with ICH-9M (82801IBM) instead of ICH-9ME (82801IIEM) southbridge.

Do you have Intel "Active Management" technology options in the Advanced menu - this is another feature that basic ICH-9M lacks.

I am not sure if it is possible to check with ICH you have in software.

 

Everest Ultimate Edition will recognize the ICH (southbridge) - I didn't check the SiSoft Sandra, but I guess it should be also able to do it

So my southbridge is definitely ICH9M-E - @Alsuecaio, check if your ICH is basic ICH9M - basic one does not support RAID.

Maybe Sony started cutting costs by not putting ICH9M-E on all Z motherboards

 

I have never seen a VGN-Z with a basic ICH9M, as far as I know they all come with a ICH9M-E southbridge and all boards are RAID-capable.

@Alsuecaio:
What Z model do you have?

 

Ah, the Scunthorpe problem. You can get around it and say flashit by adding some invisible tags.

 

@psyq321
i have the Intel "Active Management" technology options, i will test the southbridge in a few minutes with everest.

@falang
i have an european-device vgn-z41wd i think it's the Z790 in usa.

 

I have a Z4 EU series with raid from sonystyle, I think you should have the raid option.

 

i have the ICH9-M southbridge. why i dont have the raid option :-(

@psyq321
you have the raid option? did you built also 2 discs in with the same adapter as i?

 

@Alsuecaio,

Could you confirm your ICH southbridge with some diagnostics software (e.g. Everest Ultimate) ?

If you have ICH9-M, you cannot have RAID - but most of the Sony Z's I saw had ICH9-ME, and if you have "Active Management Technology" in BIOS it must be ICH9-ME, as ICH9-M does not have AMT.

I don't use RAID - I replaced the DVD drive with another 2.5" SSD, so I am using them as two independent devices. But still, I have RAID option in BIOS.

 

yes i used everest and the southbridge output is:
Intel 82801IM ICH9M
Intel Platform Montevina
Revsion 93 / A3
Casetyp 676 Pin mBGA
Casesize 3.1 x 3.1 cm
Voltage 1.05 V

hmm strange, i have the active management technologie but no raid and the newest everest give me the output above.
this link tell that i need ICH9M-E as you say for the raid option. http://www.intel.com/design/chipsets/embedded/GM45/index.htm
is there another software to read out the southbridge?

 

Very interesting...

Here is what my Everest (5.30) says about the South Bridge:
Intel 82801IEM ICH9M-E
Platform Montevina
93/A3
676 Pin mBGA
3.1 x 3.1 cm
1.05 V

So it seems your Z does have a different chip.

 

It's annoying, I would not order the Raid-Adapter then...

I try to activate the Intel Active Management Technology options in the BIOS, if it's enabled i can't save and exit the BIOS. Exit is inactive then!

 

This is very interesting and very strange man !!!
THIS IS what I wanted ask Z owners !!!
You have unhidden advanced menu but you cannot use RAID
You know what I will do ?
Take that laptop and batter SONY mo**ckers who made it !!
Really only this they deserve selfish ba**rds !!

 

yeah ?? they told you sony bast.. you cant use RAID did they ??
and whooo advanced menu unhidden and tadaaaa misteriously u can use RAID
If I have these proves I will sue them really!

So you can definetly use RAID can you ?

 

Well, at least I, for one, will not be buying any more Sony products because of the way they treat customers and the miserable level of care towards customer requests.

Since 2004 I had: Vaio Z1, Vaio TX, Vaio TZ, Vaio Z and also Vaio P... that's thousands and thousands of $$$ ...

And I had enough with the VT disabled and inability to use 30" monitor with Z because some cheap- decided to save few bucks by wiring the DVI output on a docking station to a HDMI port of 9300GM, and not to the dual-link DVI. This way, you also have 1280x800 max. resolution if you use non-HDCP screen like Apple Cinema Display.

Too bad buying a high-powered but still small laptop at the same time is very very hard - I won't go for more than 13", and each choice I have is limited in some way

 

psyq321

Really unbeliveable !!
How they (SONY) thinking up their own back side.. you know they thinking they are best so they have attitude like that .. unfortunatelly
I wanted ask you :
On all vaio z is possible to unhide advanced menu ?
or only new ones ?
thnx