Lenovo Thinkpad Edge E540 Bios password removal

[Andreasbest]

Hello!
i got in my hands a E540 with locked BIOS but i'm a bit confuse.
Some say that in this laptop the BIOS PW is not stored in EEPROM, others that it does store in EEPROM and some that if i reprogramm both BIOS chip with dump it will clear.
Can anyone enlight me?
Thank yoU!

[Andreasbest]

Re: Lenovo Thinkpad Edge E540 Bios password removal

Ok managed to remove the password without flashing or reprogramming or buying anything at all.
The solution was easy, i located EEPROM (attachment #1), i solder 2 cables in pins 5 and 6 and then i followed this guide -> https://www.facts-are-stubborn.com/r...novo-thinkpad/
My eeprom was 24LC08 marked as L08-1, all eepron in this model are the same so if you have another one just follow the same procedure with same pins.
Attachment #2 the datasheet of L08-1
The eeprom is located next to CPU and right next of 2 BIOS eeproms.
IMPORTANT: if the blank field in password keeps password active after reset then set a new password that you remember obviously, save changes, reboot as usual without shortcircuit and then remove it.

[matyka]

Hi, I have the same problem here same laptop with bios password , could you please point out the pin 5 and 6 and needs to be shorted ? The guide is not working for some reason . Thank you

[Ronski]

I finally got around to unlocking a Lenovo Thinkpad Edge E540 I was given a couple of years ago, must have been why I joined the forum back then.

I thought I'd add some further information, as its not completely clear, and the link above is now broken.

I didn't need to disassemble the laptop, just remove the rear cover, the chip is partially hidden, so with a little Googling and trial and error I worked out which pins I needed to connect.

The chip is located as per below.



Through the rectangular hole in the eclipse above, if you get the angle right, you can see a small indent on the chip, this allowed me to then look up the pin out arrangement, from Googling you want pins 5 and 6, which is the SCL+SDA pins, whatever that means.



So that allowed me to work out exactly which pins I needed to short together, now I don't have great eyesight, even with glasses, and I'm not much good with delicate stuff!
What I came up with in the end is some good old BluTak and a paperclip, which just fits nicely between the two pins.



Now to attempt the password reset, when I powered on the laptop I got a lot of beeping, so thought I had the wrong pins, but I didn't.

This is where I'm a bit sketchy on the detail, pretty sure you have to power on the laptop without the short, then insert the pin. I somehow managed to get access to the diagnostic app (no HDD fitted), and would insert the pin whilst in there, then enter the BIOS. F1 is the BIOS entry key if you need it.

It took a lot of goes, but eventually I managed to change the password, I thought it hadn't taken but it had. The video below suggests you need to enter the new password, then pull the pin, then enter the same password in the second box and enter, then save and reboot.

Like I say it took a lot of goes, but eventually it worked, I entered my new password 1234 and it let me in, happy days. Password noted inside the battery compartment, in case I forget.

There is also some useful info in this video https://youtu.be/FW-RLkzjAS8?si=eqhBI5C0Kq-Pl_Xl and it comments.

Hope that helps others.