hdd bios password - Techwatch Support Forums: Digital & Satellite TV, FTA, Cable, Computers, Mobile Phones, Apple and General Tech Forums

justin_uk1 · 14-10-11, 07:54 PM

Hi folkes
a close relative recently passed away and i have been left her packard bell notebook

it currently has a hdd password within the bios have had a look around and seem to be going round in circles

can anyone point me in the right direction to get past this problem
much appeciated

BL4K3Y · 14-10-11, 08:03 PM

You may need to remove the jumper for a few seconds (with the laptop powered off of course - it is usually located near the CMOS battery), have a look here for more information.

justin_uk1 · 14-10-11, 08:10 PM

hi blakey ,, thanks for the response are you sure that will work with a hdd password as ive read this is also stored on the drive its protecting

BL4K3Y · 14-10-11, 08:12 PM

If you want access to the information on that HDD, you could connect it to another desktop/laptop as an external drive. That may work but I am not sure if it would allow you to override the password.

justin_uk1 · 14-10-11, 08:18 PM

ideally id like to over ride the password ,,, i thought maybe upgrading the bios but the bios i have managed to obtain is an exe file which can only run from windows ,, using a hirens disk i can load to dos without access to the hard drive so im still stuck

BL4K3Y · 14-10-11, 08:22 PM

Try pulling the jumper/resetting the CMOS, that should override the password and allow you access to the hard drive.

justin_uk1 · 15-10-11, 07:03 PM

ok that didnt work (cmos reset) also removing the hard drive and hooking it up as a usb doesnt work ,, it doesnt show as a drive letter however using easus partition manager you can see a mass of unallocated space that cant be accessed
the laptop is usable with a replacement hard drive ,, updated the bios and returned the original hard drive this didnt work any other ideas folkes
thanks

G77 · 15-10-11, 10:03 PM

i've had a hdd like this is the past and i think the drive is still in the same state now.

have you got any discs with the lappy?

if the backup method is a recovery partition on the hdd then not knowing the password means installation of an OS of your own.

lambo · 16-10-11, 12:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by justin_uk1

Hi folkes
a close relative recently passed away and i have been left her packard bell notebook

it currently has a hdd password within the bios have had a look around and seem to be going round in circles

can anyone point me in the right direction to get past this problem
much appeciated

Is it a BIOS password or a HDD password ? can you get to the login screen.

G77 · 16-10-11, 12:43 PM

if it were bios, it would be cleared by pulling the battery.

is it like a white screen which comes up and asks for a pass?

think its like set and controlled by the bios but its the actual boot sector whatzit which is protected by the pass

14-10-11, 07:54 PM	#1 (permalink)
justin_uk1 Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Birmingham Posts: 190 Thanks: 29 Thanked 30 Times in 25 Posts	hdd bios password Hi folkes a close relative recently passed away and i have been left her packard bell notebook it currently has a hdd password within the bios have had a look around and seem to be going round in circles can anyone point me in the right direction to get past this problem much appeciated

14-10-11, 08:03 PM	#2 (permalink)
BL4K3Y Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Colne, Lancashire Posts: 7,004 Thanks: 247 Thanked 1,319 Times in 1,211 Posts	Re: hdd bios password You may need to remove the jumper for a few seconds (with the laptop powered off of course - it is usually located near the CMOS battery), have a look here for more information.

14-10-11, 08:10 PM	#3 (permalink)
justin_uk1 Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Birmingham Posts: 190 Thanks: 29 Thanked 30 Times in 25 Posts	Re: hdd bios password hi blakey ,, thanks for the response are you sure that will work with a hdd password as ive read this is also stored on the drive its protecting

14-10-11, 08:12 PM	#4 (permalink)
BL4K3Y Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Colne, Lancashire Posts: 7,004 Thanks: 247 Thanked 1,319 Times in 1,211 Posts	Re: hdd bios password If you want access to the information on that HDD, you could connect it to another desktop/laptop as an external drive. That may work but I am not sure if it would allow you to override the password.

14-10-11, 08:18 PM	#5 (permalink)
justin_uk1 Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Birmingham Posts: 190 Thanks: 29 Thanked 30 Times in 25 Posts	Re: hdd bios password ideally id like to over ride the password ,,, i thought maybe upgrading the bios but the bios i have managed to obtain is an exe file which can only run from windows ,, using a hirens disk i can load to dos without access to the hard drive so im still stuck

14-10-11, 08:22 PM	#6 (permalink)
BL4K3Y Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Colne, Lancashire Posts: 7,004 Thanks: 247 Thanked 1,319 Times in 1,211 Posts	Re: hdd bios password Try pulling the jumper/resetting the CMOS, that should override the password and allow you access to the hard drive.

15-10-11, 07:03 PM	#7 (permalink)
justin_uk1 Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Birmingham Posts: 190 Thanks: 29 Thanked 30 Times in 25 Posts	Re: hdd bios password ok that didnt work (cmos reset) also removing the hard drive and hooking it up as a usb doesnt work ,, it doesnt show as a drive letter however using easus partition manager you can see a mass of unallocated space that cant be accessed the laptop is usable with a replacement hard drive ,, updated the bios and returned the original hard drive this didnt work any other ideas folkes thanks

15-10-11, 10:03 PM	#8 (permalink)
G77 Super Moderator Join Date: May 2008 Posts: 6,118 Thanks: 695 Thanked 1,250 Times in 1,044 Posts	Re: hdd bios password i've had a hdd like this is the past and i think the drive is still in the same state now. have you got any discs with the lappy? if the backup method is a recovery partition on the hdd then not knowing the password means installation of an OS of your own. __________________ 1M Motorised Dish, 45W-36E, DM800HD. Quad LNB Mesh Mini Dish, 28.2E, DM500, TM500. Samsung Galaxy S GT-I9000 XXJVU & CF-Root.

16-10-11, 12:43 PM	#10 (permalink)
G77 Super Moderator Join Date: May 2008 Posts: 6,118 Thanks: 695 Thanked 1,250 Times in 1,044 Posts	Re: hdd bios password if it were bios, it would be cleared by pulling the battery. is it like a white screen which comes up and asks for a pass? think its like set and controlled by the bios but its the actual boot sector whatzit which is protected by the pass __________________ 1M Motorised Dish, 45W-36E, DM800HD. Quad LNB Mesh Mini Dish, 28.2E, DM500, TM500. Samsung Galaxy S GT-I9000 XXJVU & CF-Root.