Invalid configuration error

Alright, I have a laptop here.

I power the machine up, it shows the DELL splash screen with the BIOS version. Then you come to a black screen with "Invalid configuration information - Please run SETUP program."

The thing is , you can't run it. You can't go to the boot menu and you can't go to setup.

You end up at a white screen, with gray highlighted words,
"This computer system, #BR1D9C1-5958, is protected by a password authentication system. You cannot access the data on this computer without the correct password. Please type the system or administrator password and press "

After a while it goes blank.

Anyway, I already tried taking out the CMOS battery, and putting it back in. You still end up at the same screen.

The guy I got it from says they did not set a password.

Troy

That sounds like the Hard Drive passwords we have on all the computers at my company. Unfortunately, it's not something that just appears - it's something that is set in the BIOS (which you would not be able to access without the password).

You say you got it from someone - were they the original owner? Did they get it from someone else? Most personal computers don't use a hard drive password - it's a little too obscure for the average person to think about.

Bottom line - without knowing what that password is, there is little probability of getting on the machine. Try using a BART disk, or some other pre-boot recovery - but I think it's still going to need the password.

Somewhere on the motherboard, there is a jumper you can set to clear this password. After the jumper is set, next time you power-on the machine it'll clear the password. Then you'll power-off the machine and remove the jumper. Then you should again have control over the machine next time you power it on. Maybe you can ask Dell, where and which of the jumpers you have to set.

Yeah, I spent a lot of time last night on this thing. I don't think it's going to boot any type of software. You can't even read the hard drive on another computer (attached through USB, no even on Linux) unless for some reason the hard drive is not good, but I'm thinking this may be a security feature.

I didn't find any jumpers, maybe I need to look more, but I did leave the CMOS battery out all night without power.

I think the fact that the hard drive is locked is stored on the hard drive itself. You can't just wipe it, because you can't read it. I read you may be able to unlock it by putting a fresh hard drive in there, but that doesn't help the guy with retrieving his files.

You need a master password to get in. DELL can give it to you (for maybe $50), and some people online say they can get you a master password from $54-$80. To get it from DELL, you need to prove that you are the owner of the machine.

What if the machine was passed down? I guess you are sitting there with a "doorstop" unless you fork up $54-$80 from someone online, or can prove to DELL it really is rightfully your machine. That is,unless the person you got it from remembers the password.

In this case they didn't set a password, and there maybe was some static charge or something odd that brought this on.

Troy