Phil, Thanks for the reply. The BIN file is the binary file written on the BIOS chip. I'm not sure exactly how to extract the BIN file, but I'll try to find out what software to use and get back with you. DELL issues BIOS updates, but according to the DELL tech I spoke with, they only issue partial BIOS files for some reason.
Be careful installing Ubuntu on the CPxH laptop. That's what I was doing when my old laptop BIOS got corrupted. Even though I had the required 256MB RAM the Ubuntu installation "hung" and somehow overwrote the BIOS. The BIOS still works on my CPxH laptop, but the service TAG and ASSET NUMBER were "blanked out", and I can no longer access the BIOS chip via F2 at bootup to change any BIOS settings. So make sure you, make any changes to your BIOS like setting boot order, etc. before you try to install Ubuntu. I was finally able to install Xubuntu, however, my BIOS is still inaccessible. I'll get back with you this week on how to extract the BIOS BIN file. Thanks again, George ----- Original Message ----- From: "Phil Johnstone" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Sunday, October 19, 2008 8:37 AM Subject: [Bug 259474] Re: Ubuntu 8.04 corrupts Dell CPxH Bios Hey CaptGeorge, You wrote "If anyone has a "virgin" copy of the BIN file from a CPxH Dell Latitude, it would be a great help in restoring my bios.". I'm picking my old Dell Latitude CPx-H up next weekend from home and was planning to put the latest Ubuntu on it (hence coming across your post when I googled it). What is the BIN file and can I help you in any way? Regards, Phil -- Ubuntu 8.04 corrupts Dell CPxH Bios https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/259474 You received this bug notification because you are a direct subscriber of the bug. Status in “linux” source package in Ubuntu: Triaged Bug description: After a successful install of Ubuntu 8.04 on my Dell Dimension 8300 desktop, I decided to install it on my older Dell Latitude CPxH laptop with Pentium III 500 MHz processor, 256 KB ram. I was hoping to bring back a little "zip" for the older machine which was now running Windows XP Pro. However, during the install I got a warning that I only had 255 KB ram (?) and Ubuntu might not install properly. As predicted, it didn't and locked up on install. However, the REAL problem is that now I can no longer access the BIOS. I can get into bios setup with F2 as normal, but cannot make changes or even exit {ESC}. Also the dell service tag and asset numbers are now blank. I've tried re-flashing the BIOS from 1.44 MB disk to no avail. Right now, I'd just like to get the bios working again. Any help would really be appreciated. -- Ubuntu 8.04 corrupts Dell CPxH Bios https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/259474 You received this bug notification because you are a member of Ubuntu Bugs, which is subscribed to Ubuntu. -- ubuntu-bugs mailing list [email protected] https://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/ubuntu-bugs
