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Possible Duplicate:
Reset or remove the BIOS password on my laptop

I have a Dell D620 laptop. My younger brother set password by mistake on BIOS Setup and forgot it. How do I reset the BIOS Setup program so that password can be reset? Any other alternative is appreciated as well.

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Mr-Right
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2 Answers2

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You'll probably have to remove the CMOS battery on the motherboard. That will reset the BIOS to factory default and remove the password.

Update: (since this does not work on this particular model)
From WikiAnswers regarding Dell D620

There IS a master password unique to your laptop. If you acquired it honestly and are the current owner, you can call Dell and provide them some information (Name, address, phone, serial number, BIOS rev, etc) and they can give you the master password based off of that.

The catch is they'll only do it if it's under warranty. If it's not under warranty, you'll probably have to pay (I think between $75-150 USD).

You can try a BIOS flash utility, such as one that updates your bios, but it usually requires you enter the BIOS password first.

Nifle
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  • Though this can be difficult on some laptops. – Josh K Mar 21 '10 at 18:39
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    Won't work on any laptop with a TPM, though, as the password isn't stored in volatile memory. ThinkPads for example are quite impossible to de-passwordize without replacing the mainboard. – Joey Mar 21 '10 at 19:37
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    removing battery procedure doesn't work at all I have already tried it !! – Mr-Right Mar 24 '10 at 11:37
  • @Johannes - This is possible one of the stupidest design errors I have heard about. – Nifle Mar 25 '10 at 11:15
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    @Nifle: You don't set a password if you're likely to forget it. You set it to prevent others of accessing your computer. It's not particularly effective if removing a screw and a battery disables it. – Joey Mar 25 '10 at 12:56
  • @Johannes - Not remembering the password should protect the data, not disable the device. – Nifle Mar 25 '10 at 13:17
  • @Nifle: that's a personal or corporate preference. If the device is disabled, you may have a better chance of recovering a stolen computer. – rob Apr 09 '10 at 22:08
  • @nifle Your correct insofar as there is encryption for drives, and then there is password protection for BIOSes. Encryption of the drives makes the data inaccessible without the password. BIOS protection disables the altering of the BIOS without a password, and also prevents the installation of new OS, etc. One does not affect the other - if data not encrypted, BIOS password will not prevent someone from accessing data by putting hard drive in another computer, for example... – Avery Freeman Nov 20 '20 at 20:50
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It's a little old but CmosPwd might be of help.

Peter Mortensen
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Journeyman Geek
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