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BIOS-Approved PCI Cards For Laptops

Posted by timothy on from the to-benefit-the-consumer dept.

derek_farn writes "First there were printers that would would only work with vendor annointed ink cartridges; now we have laptops that will only boot with vendor annointed PCI cards. Keeping a list of approved PCI cards in the bios is one way of ensuring that customers renew their maintenance contracts. How else are they going to be able to plug in a PCI card released after the last BIOS update?" My HP laptop is several years old; can anyone confirm this?

12 of 482 comments (clear)

  1. IBM Thinkpads are the same way by explorer · · Score: 5, Interesting

    My older Thinkpad T40p has a whitelist, too. Luckily the Cisco 350 mini-PCI card I needed to connect to the corporate wireless LAN is on the whitelist. IBM actually sells the Cisco card with an IBM part number.

    But forget trying to buy a random 802.11 a/b/g card and plug it in.

    1. Re:IBM Thinkpads are the same way by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Interesting

      From what I've read this is because the FCC approval for the wireless is the combination of the card and the antenna (which is built into the screen). Obviously it's not really in IBM's (or any other manufacturer) interest to test every possible wireless card with their kit. They probably lock them to keep the FCC happy.

    2. Re:IBM Thinkpads are the same way by VargrX · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Hate to argue this, but, no. I've got a T40p, and an R40, and have plugged in all sort's of card/mini-pci based device's into them, and have not had any issue's beyond finding proper driver's for the OS that I'm using at the moment

      --
      Sometimes people just have to learn and adapt to change, it is one of the requirements of being a living thing.
    3. Re:IBM Thinkpads are the same way by Zone-MR · · Score: 3, Interesting

      Yes - this has pissed me off. I bought a 802.11b/g combo card to replace the 802.11b card in my Thinkpad T41. Little did I know that the laptop BIOS is deliberatly crippled, and refuses to boot with minipci network cards which aren't approved by IBM (often exactly the same cards, made by exactly the same manufacturers, but have a different hardware ID - a privelage you are supposed to pay 2x the price for).

      After a bit of research I managed to patch my BIOS to get around the problem - at least till I apply a BIOS update in the future.

      If I had know of this beforehand, I would have seriously considered a different laptop. The problem is there are no warnings, and the specs claim the laptop has a miniPCI slot - which would make one assume it is compatible with any card which follows the miniPCI standard.

  2. HP is (in)famous for this sort of thing by n6mod · · Score: 5, Interesting

    I have an old NetServer LPr that I use as a Debian server. It's built like a tank, and has been fairly reliable, save for one issue:

    Since I got it (used), it always printed a warning that non-HP DIMMs were detected, and HP's on-site warranty didn't cover problems caused by non-HP memory.

    Then two of the DIMMs failed, so I popped the lid.

    You guessed it. HP memory.

    At least the motherboard was kind enough to turn on a flashing light next to the bad DIMMS. (Seriously)

    --
    You have violated Robot's Rules of Order and will be asked to leave the future immediately.
  3. IBM has been doing it for years! by radiojock · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Many people who run corp laptops have found out that aleast since the T30, IBM laptops will not boot with a non IBM card, Well, if you have the utility you can put any mini-PCI card in there.... They make alot of money with there cards, so you can understand why they would do this.. What I don't hear about is apple and there slots not taking anything but "AIRPORT" cards? why is nobody bitching about that?

    1. Re:IBM has been doing it for years! by Politburo · · Score: 4, Interesting

      What I don't hear about is apple and there slots not taking anything but "AIRPORT" cards? why is nobody bitching about that?

      I think this is simply because we don't expect openness with Apple. Their hardware is generally proprietary, while PC hardware is not.

  4. Incompatibility List? by DavidNWelton · · Score: 5, Interesting

    There is a list of hardware that is not very Linux friendly here: http://www.leenooks.com/ - perhaps this stuff would make a good addition to the list.

    --
    http://www.welton.it/davidw/
  5. Mini PCI was never intended for end users by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Interesting
    Intel Technology Journal:
    The PCI Express Mini Card specifically targets addressing system manufacturers' needs for build-to-order (BTO) and configure-to-order (CTO) applications rather than providing a general end-user-replaceable module. This form factor has characteristics more typical of an "embedded" application including the platform integration of the media interfaces such as communications connectors or wireless antennas.
    Cisco MPI350 FAQ:
    The Cisco MPI350 cannot be sold as an aftermarket adapter because ... Regulatory certification is based on the MPI350 being coupled with a particular antenna. Although modular regulatory approvals are available, they only apply to the original equipment manufacturer (OEM), who is responsible for embedding similar antennas in different devices. Modular regulatory approval does not eliminate the restriction on aftermarket sales since the end user might embed the adapter in devices with unapproved antennas.
    Basically, these companies are using FCC regulations as an excuse for limiting Mini-PCI cards (not just on these particular laptop models, but all Mini-PCI cards in general) to OEM installation only.
  6. Can they call it mini-PCI? by SupremeChalupa · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Like the CD-ROM protection schemes that made the discs nonstandard, are these laptops far enough from the device standard that they could be forbidden from using the mini-PCI brand/logo/classification?

  7. Re:Workaround by Fluffy+the+Cat · · Score: 5, Interesting

    There's an easier way. See this page for a utility that disables the check without requiring BIOS modification.

  8. x1000 by exnuke · · Score: 4, Interesting

    It happened to me when I upgraded from an intel 2100 wireless card to an intel 2200 wireless pci card in an eight month old Compaq X1000 laptop. Rolling back to an older bios "fixed" the problem.

    More info here: http://www.x1000forums.com/index.php?showtopic=573 9

    Today's lesson: Don't buy Compaq.