With the Intel Boot Guard ThinkPads (which yours has), you truly need to replace the motherboard. Before Haswell/Boot Guard, if you could find the ATMEL chip and get it re-programmed (yes, there’s a device on the market that does this BUT I’m not going to be super specific), it could be cleared. ***''The other option on older ones was to find the chip and short the ATMEL SCL/SDA lines to “corrupt” it and force the ThinkPad to go to defaults. It was high risk, and prone to killing the ATMEL chip. It could kill the board with the "tamper flag" option, but the board was a goner over this SVP anyway, unless you own the HW ThinkPad unlocker tool. This was sometimes “optional”, but others were always-on. If it was optional, it depended on the first owner if it was done (Ex: Ex gov’t units enabled it, private corporation varies).''***
***Blame Intel for killing our options to fix this issue. NONE of these new laptops can be "bypassed" or defeated with HW tools or SCL/SDA shorts due to Intel Boot Guard, as it acts as a tamper flag like the pre-Haswell tamper detection! If it has no backdoor way in like Dell, the laptop is dead end! The exception is non-enabled Boot Guard laptops (where it's permanently disabled), and error models from companies like MSI who may leave it up to you or screw up.***
-
There is no such fix on these newer ones like we had on the old ones :-(. Because I know someone will ask, yes it was doable on the pre-HSW ThinkPads, but it’s a proper PITA. As a used laptop, an unknown SVP will total the laptop out, very quickly! It also turns a viable unit into a parts machine. If you replace the laptop, stick to Dell*, or check this when you buy/recieve the computer on day one - ***ESPECIALLY WITH HP/LENOVO - there is no backdoor password.***
+
There is no such fix on these newer ones like we had on the old ones :-(. Because I know someone will ask, yes it was doable on the pre-HSW ThinkPads, but it’s a proper PITA. As a used laptop, an unknown SVP will total the laptop out, very quickly! It also turns a viable unit into a parts machine but if you're down to open the laptop up and bypass the password, cheap. If you replace the laptop, stick to Dell*, or check this when you buy/recieve the computer on day one - ***ESPECIALLY WITH HP/LENOVO - there is no backdoor password.***
* ***WARNING: Dell added an option to kill master password unlocking on the EXX50-present Lat series, but it’s opt-in. Be wary of “BIOS locked” units from Dell that have this out of the box!***
With the Intel Boot Guard ThinkPads (which yours has), you truly need to replace the motherboard. Before Haswell/Boot Guard, if you could find the ATMEL chip and get it re-programmed (yes, there’s a device on the market that does this BUT I’m not going to be super specific), it could be cleared. ***''The other option on older ones was to find the chip and short the ATMEL SCL/SDA lines to “corrupt” it and force the ThinkPad to go to defaults. It was high risk, and prone to killing the ATMEL chip. It could kill the board with the "tamper flag" option, but the board was a goner over this SVP anyway, unless you own the HW ThinkPad unlocker tool. This was sometimes “optional”, but others were always-on. If it was optional, it depended on the first owner if it was done (Ex: Ex gov’t units enabled it, private corporation varies).''***
***Blame Intel for killing our options to fix this issue. NONE of these new laptops can be "bypassed" or defeated with HW tools or SCL/SDA shorts due to Intel Boot Guard, as it acts as a tamper flag like the pre-Haswell tamper detection! If it has no backdoor way in like Dell, the laptop is dead end! The exception is non-enabled Boot Guard laptops (where it's permanently disabled), and error models from companies like MSI who may leave it up to you or screw up.***
There is no such fix on these newer ones like we had on the old ones :-(. Because I know someone will ask, yes it was doable on the pre-HSW ThinkPads, but it’s a proper PITA. As a used laptop, an unknown SVP will total the laptop out, very quickly! It also turns a viable unit into a parts machine. If you replace the laptop, stick to Dell*, or check this when you buy/recieve the computer on day one - ***ESPECIALLY WITH HP/LENOVO - there is no backdoor password.***
-
* ***WARNING: Dell added an option to kill master password unlocking on the EXX50-present Lat series, but it’s opt-in. Be weary of “BIOS locked” units from Dell that have this out of the box!***
+
* ***WARNING: Dell added an option to kill master password unlocking on the EXX50-present Lat series, but it’s opt-in. Be wary of “BIOS locked” units from Dell that have this out of the box!***
With the Intel Boot Guard ThinkPads (which yours has), you truly need to replace the motherboard. Before Haswell/Boot Guard, if you could find the ATMEL chip and get it re-programmed (yes, there’s a device on the market that does this BUT I’m not going to be super specific), it could be cleared. ***''The other option on older ones was to find the chip and short the SCL/SDA lines together to “corrupt” it and force the ThinkPad to go to defaults. It was high risk, and prone to killing the ATMEL chip - if it didn’t permanently brick the board by flagging the unit as “tampered”, which requires a new motherboard to reverse…Yep. This was sometimes “optional”, but others were always-on. If it was optional, it depended on the first owner if it was done (Ex: Ex gov’t units enabled it, private corporation varies).''***
+
With the Intel Boot Guard ThinkPads (which yours has), you truly need to replace the motherboard. Before Haswell/Boot Guard, if you could find the ATMEL chip and get it re-programmed (yes, there’s a device on the market that does this BUT I’m not going to be super specific), it could be cleared. ***''The other option on older ones was to find the chip and short the ATMEL SCL/SDA lines to “corrupt” it and force the ThinkPad to go to defaults. It was high risk, and prone to killing the ATMEL chip. It could kill the board with the "tamper flag" option, but the board was a goner over this SVP anyway, unless you own the HW ThinkPad unlocker tool. This was sometimes “optional”, but others were always-on. If it was optional, it depended on the first owner if it was done (Ex: Ex gov’t units enabled it, private corporation varies).''***
-
***Blame Intel for killing our options to fix this issue. NONE of these current laptops can have custom BIOS work done, unless the OEM doesn’t enable Boot Guard - outside of a few enthusiast laptops (or errors from small companies like MSI), it’s always enabled.***
+
***Blame Intel for killing our options to fix this issue. NONE of these new laptops can be "bypassed" or defeated with HW tools or SCL/SDA shorts due to Intel Boot Guard, as it acts as a tamper flag like the pre-Haswell tamper detection! If it has no backdoor way in like Dell, the laptop is dead end! The exception is non-enabled Boot Guard laptops (where it's permanently disabled), and error models from companies like MSI who may leave it up to you or screw up.***
There is no such fix on these newer ones like we had on the old ones :-(. Because I know someone will ask, yes it was doable on the pre-HSW ThinkPads, but it’s a proper PITA. As a used laptop, an unknown SVP will total the laptop out, very quickly! It also turns a viable unit into a parts machine. If you replace the laptop, stick to Dell*, or check this when you buy/recieve the computer on day one - ***ESPECIALLY WITH HP/LENOVO - there is no backdoor password.***
* ***WARNING: Dell added an option to kill master password unlocking on the EXX50-present Lat series, but it’s opt-in. Be weary of “BIOS locked” units from Dell that have this out of the box!***
With the Intel Boot Guard ThinkPads (which yours has), you truly need to replace the motherboard. Before Haswell/Boot Guard, if you could find the ATMEL chip and get it re-programmed (yes, there’s a device on the market that does this BUT I’m not going to be super specific), it could be cleared. ***''The other option on older ones was to find the chip and short the SCL/SDA lines together to “corrupt” it and force the ThinkPad to go to defaults. It was high risk, and prone to killing the ATMEL chip - if it didn’t permanently brick the board by flagging the unit as “tampered”, which requires a new motherboard to reverse… Yep. This was sometimes “optional”, but others were always-on. If it was optional, it depended on the first owner if it was done (Ex: Ex gov’t units enabled it, private corporation varies).''***
***Blame Intel for killing our options to fix this issue. NONE of these current laptops can have custom BIOS work done, unless the OEM doesn’t enable Boot Guard - outside of a few enthusiast laptops (or errors from small companies like MSI), it’s always enabled.***
-
There is no such fix on these newer ones like we had on the old ones :-(. Because I know someone will ask, yes it was doable on the pre-HSW ThinkPads, but it’s a proper PITA. As a used laptop, an unknown SVP will total the laptop out, very quickly! It also turns a viable unit into a parts machine. If you replace the laptop, stick to Dell*, or check this when you buy/recieve the computer on day one - ***ESPECIALLY WITH HP/LENOVO. There is no backdoor password on HP OR Lenovo laptops. Lenovo and HP both require motherboard replacements, but at least with HP if you know how the BIOS can be “unlocked”, but you need to dump the BIOS and find a unlock tool for yours otherwise it fails the Sure Start checks.***
+
There is no such fix on these newer ones like we had on the old ones :-(. Because I know someone will ask, yes it was doable on the pre-HSW ThinkPads, but it’s a proper PITA. As a used laptop, an unknown SVP will total the laptop out, very quickly! It also turns a viable unit into a parts machine. If you replace the laptop, stick to Dell*, or check this when you buy/recieve the computer on day one - ***ESPECIALLY WITH HP/LENOVO - there is no backdoor password.***
* ***WARNING: Dell added an option to kill master password unlocking on the EXX50-present Lat series, but it’s opt-in. Be weary of “BIOS locked” units from Dell that have this out of the box!***
With the Intel Boot Guard ThinkPads (which yours has), you truly need to replace the motherboard. Before Haswell/Boot Guard, if you could find the ATMEL chip and get it re-programmed (yes, there’s a device on the market that does this BUT I’m not going to be super specific), it could be cleared. ***''The other option on older ones was to find the chip and short the SCL/SDA lines together to “corrupt” it and force the ThinkPad to go to defaults. It was high risk, and prone to killing the ATMEL chip - if it didn’t permanently brick the board by flagging the unit as “tampered”, which requires a new motherboard to reverse… Yep. This was sometimes “optional”, but others were always-on. If it was optional, it depended on the first owner if it was done (Ex: Ex gov’t units enabled it, private corporation varies).''***
***Blame Intel for killing our options to fix this issue. NONE of these current laptops can have custom BIOS work done, unless the OEM doesn’t enable Boot Guard - outside of a few enthusiast laptops (or errors from small companies like MSI), it’s always enabled.***
There is no such fix on these newer ones like we had on the old ones :-(. Because I know someone will ask, yes it was doable on the pre-HSW ThinkPads, but it’s a proper PITA. As a used laptop, an unknown SVP will total the laptop out, very quickly! It also turns a viable unit into a parts machine. If you replace the laptop, stick to Dell*, or check this when you buy/recieve the computer on day one - ***ESPECIALLY WITH HP/LENOVO. There is no backdoor password on HP OR Lenovo laptops. Lenovo and HP both require motherboard replacements, but at least with HP if you know how the BIOS can be “unlocked”, but you need to dump the BIOS and find a unlock tool for yours otherwise it fails the Sure Start checks.***
-
****WARNING: Dell added an option to kill master password unlocking on the EXX50-present Lat series, but it’s opt-in. Be weary of “BIOS locked” units from Dell that have this out of the box!***
+
* ***WARNING: Dell added an option to kill master password unlocking on the EXX50-present Lat series, but it’s opt-in. Be weary of “BIOS locked” units from Dell that have this out of the box!***
With the Intel Boot Guard ThinkPads (which yours has), you truly need to replace the motherboard. Before Haswell/Boot Guard, if you could find the ATMEL chip and get it re-programmed (yes, there’s a device on the market that does this BUT I’m not going to be super specific), it could be cleared. ***''The other option on older ones was to find the chip and short the SCL/SDA lines together to “corrupt” it and force the ThinkPad to go to defaults. It was high risk, and prone to killing the ATMEL chip - if it didn’t permanently brick the board by flagging the unit as “tampered”, which requires a new motherboard to reverse… Yep. This was sometimes “optional”, but others were always-on. If it was optional, it depended on the first owner if it was done (Ex: Ex gov’t units enabled it, private corporation varies).''***
***Blame Intel for killing our options to fix this issue. NONE of these current laptops can have custom BIOS work done, unless the OEM doesn’t enable Boot Guard - outside of a few enthusiast laptops (or errors from small companies like MSI), it’s always enabled.***
There is no such fix on these newer ones like we had on the old ones :-(. Because I know someone will ask, yes it was doable on the pre-HSW ThinkPads, but it’s a proper PITA. As a used laptop, an unknown SVP will total the laptop out, very quickly! It also turns a viable unit into a parts machine. If you replace the laptop, stick to Dell*, or check this when you buy/recieve the computer on day one - ***ESPECIALLY WITH HP/LENOVO. There is no backdoor password on HP OR Lenovo laptops. Lenovo and HP both require motherboard replacements, but at least with HP if you know how the BIOS can be “unlocked”, but you need to dump the BIOS and find a unlock tool for yours otherwise it fails the Sure Start checks.***
-
***WARNING: Dell added an option to kill master password unlocking on the EXX50-present Lat series, but it’s opt-in. Be weary of “BIOS locked” units from Dell that have this out of the box!***
+
****WARNING: Dell added an option to kill master password unlocking on the EXX50-present Lat series, but it’s opt-in. Be weary of “BIOS locked” units from Dell that have this out of the box!***
With the Intel Boot Guard ThinkPads (which yours has), you truly need to replace the motherboard. Before Haswell/Boot Guard, if you could find the ATMEL chip and get it re-programmed (yes, there’s a device on the market that does this BUT I’m not going to be super specific), it could be cleared. ***''The other option on older ones was to find the chip and short the SCL/SDA lines together to “corrupt” it and force the ThinkPad to go to defaults. It was high risk, and prone to killing the ATMEL chip - if it didn’t permanently brick the board by flagging the unit as “tampered”, which requires a new motherboard to reverse… Yep. This was sometimes “optional”, but others were always-on. If it was optional, it depended on the first owner if it was done (Ex: Ex gov’t units enabled it, private corporation varies).''***
***Blame Intel for killing our options to fix this issue. NONE of these current laptops can have custom BIOS work done, unless the OEM doesn’t enable Boot Guard - outside of a few enthusiast laptops (or errors from small companies like MSI), it’s always enabled.***
There is no such fix on these newer ones like we had on the old ones :-(. Because I know someone will ask, yes it was doable on the pre-HSW ThinkPads, but it’s a proper PITA. As a used laptop, an unknown SVP will total the laptop out, very quickly! It also turns a viable unit into a parts machine. If you replace the laptop, stick to Dell*, or check this when you buy/recieve the computer on day one - ***ESPECIALLY WITH HP/LENOVO. There is no backdoor password on HP OR Lenovo laptops. Lenovo and HP both require motherboard replacements, but at least with HP if you know how the BIOS can be “unlocked”, but you need to dump the BIOS and find a unlock tool for yours otherwise it fails the Sure Start checks.***
-
****WARNING: Dell added an option to kill master password unlocking on the EXX50-present Lat series, but it’s opt-in. Be weary of “BIOS locked” units from Dell that have this out of the box!***
-
-
for this early on next time, especially used HP/Lenovo as there’s no easy fix.
+
***WARNING: Dell added an option to kill master password unlocking on the EXX50-present Lat series, but it’s opt-in. Be weary of “BIOS locked” units from Dell that have this out of the box!***
With the Intel Boot Guard ThinkPads (which yours has), you truly need to replace the motherboard. Before Haswell/Boot Guard, if you could find the ATMEL chip and get it re-programmed (yes, there’s a device on the market that does this BUT I’m not going to be super specific), it could be cleared. ***''The other option on older ones was to find the chip and short the SCL/SDA lines together to “corrupt” it and force the ThinkPad to go to defaults. It was high risk, and prone to killing the ATMEL chip - if it didn’t permanently brick the board by flagging the unit as “tampered”, which requires a new motherboard to reverse… Yep. This was sometimes “optional”, but others were always-on. If it was optional, it depended on the first owner if it was done (Ex: Ex gov’t units enabled it, private corporation varies).''***
***Blame Intel for killing our options to fix this issue. NONE of these current laptops can have custom BIOS work done, unless the OEM doesn’t enable Boot Guard - outside of a few enthusiast laptops (or errors from small companies like MSI), it’s always enabled.***
-
There is no such fix on these newer ones like we had on the old ones :-(. Because I know someone will ask, yes it was doable on ThinkPads done pre-HSW but it’s a proper PITA to do. An unknown SVP will total the laptop out, very quickly! Check for this early on next time, especially used HP/Lenovo as there’s no easy fix.
+
There is no such fix on these newer ones like we had on the old ones :-(. Because I know someone will ask, yes it was doable on the pre-HSW ThinkPads, but it’s a proper PITA. As a used laptop, an unknown SVP will total the laptop out, very quickly! It also turns a viable unit into a parts machine. If you replace the laptop, stick to Dell*, or check this when you buy/recieve the computer on day one - ***ESPECIALLY WITH HP/LENOVO. There is no backdoor password on HP OR Lenovo laptops. Lenovo and HP both require motherboard replacements, but at least with HP if you know how the BIOS can be “unlocked”, but you need to dump the BIOS and find a unlock tool for yours otherwise it fails the Sure Start checks.***
+
+
****WARNING: Dell added an option to kill master password unlocking on the EXX50-present Lat series, but it’s opt-in. Be weary of “BIOS locked” units from Dell that have this out of the box!***
+
+
for this early on next time, especially used HP/Lenovo as there’s no easy fix.
With the Intel Boot Guard ThinkPads (which yours has), you truly need to replace the motherboard. Before Haswell/Boot Guard, if you could find the ATMEL chip and get it re-programmed (yes, there’s a device on the market that does this BUT I’m not going to be super specific), it could be cleared. ***''The other option on older ones was to find the chip and short the SCL/SDA lines together to “corrupt” it and force the ThinkPad to default it. It was high risk, and prone to killing the ATMEL chip - if it didn’t permanently brick the board by flagging the unit as “tampered”, which requires a new motherboard to reverse… Yep. This was sometimes “optional”, but others were always-on. If it was optional, it depended on the first owner if it was done (Ex: Ex gov’t units enabled it, private corporation varies).''***
+
With the Intel Boot Guard ThinkPads (which yours has), you truly need to replace the motherboard. Before Haswell/Boot Guard, if you could find the ATMEL chip and get it re-programmed (yes, there’s a device on the market that does this BUT I’m not going to be super specific), it could be cleared. ***''The other option on older ones was to find the chip and short the SCL/SDA lines together to “corrupt” it and force the ThinkPad to go to defaults. It was high risk, and prone to killing the ATMEL chip - if it didn’t permanently brick the board by flagging the unit as “tampered”, which requires a new motherboard to reverse… Yep. This was sometimes “optional”, but others were always-on. If it was optional, it depended on the first owner if it was done (Ex: Ex gov’t units enabled it, private corporation varies).''***
***Blame Intel for killing our options to fix this issue. NONE of these current laptops can have custom BIOS work done, unless the OEM doesn’t enable Boot Guard - outside of a few enthusiast laptops (or errors from small companies like MSI), it’s always enabled.***
There is no such fix on these newer ones like we had on the old ones :-(. Because I know someone will ask, yes it was doable on ThinkPads done pre-HSW but it’s a proper PITA to do. An unknown SVP will total the laptop out, very quickly! Check for this early on next time, especially used HP/Lenovo as there’s no easy fix.
With the Intel Boot Guard ThinkPads, you well and truly need to replace the motherboard. Before Haswell/Boot Guard, if you could find it and then reprogram the chip, then it could be cleared. The other option on old ones was to find it and short SCL/SDA together to “corrupt” it and force the ThinkPad to default it, but it was a high risk attack prone to killing the ATMEL chip, or permanently tripping a tamper flag on the board - Lenovo lists the fix for tampering as “replacesystem board”… Yep.***NONE of these current laptops can have custom BIOS work done, unless the OEM doesn’t enable Boot Guard - outside of a few enthusiast laptops (or errors from small companies like MSI), it’s always enabled.***
+
With the Intel Boot Guard ThinkPads (which yours has), you truly need to replace the motherboard. Before Haswell/Boot Guard, if you could find the ATMEL chip and get it re-programmed (yes, there’s a device on the market that does this BUT I’m not going to be super specific), it could be cleared. ***''The other option on older ones was to find the chip and short the SCL/SDA lines together to “corrupt” it and force the ThinkPad to default it. It was high risk, and prone to killing the ATMEL chip - if it didn’t permanently brick the board by flagging the unit as “tampered”, which requires a new motherboard to reverse… Yep. This was sometimes “optional”, but others were always-on. If it was optional, it depended on the first owner if it was done (Ex: Ex gov’t units enabled it, private corporation varies).''***
-
On the old units where it was sometimes “optional” protection, the option usually wasn’t enabled by default - it was an active choice. Now if you have a unit from something like a gov’t agency bet your rear end the tamper flag is enabled! Always-on units are inherently “high risk” no matter what.
+
***Blame Intel for killing our options to fix this issue. NONE of these current laptops can have custom BIOS work done, unless the OEM doesn’t enable Boot Guard - outside of a few enthusiast laptops (or errors from small companies like MSI), it’s always enabled.***
-
There is no such fix on these newer ones like we had on the old ones :-(. An unknown SVP will total the laptop out, very quickly! Check for this early on next time, especially used HP/Lenovo as there’s no easy fix.
+
There is no such fix on these newer ones like we had on the old ones :-(. Because I know someone will ask, yes it was doable on ThinkPads done pre-HSW but it’s a proper PITA to do. An unknown SVP will total the laptop out, very quickly! Check for this early on next time, especially used HP/Lenovo as there’s no easy fix.
With the Intel Boot Guard ThinkPads, you well and truly need to replace the motherboard. Before Haswell/Boot Guard, if you could find it and then reprogram the chip, then it could be cleared. The other option on old ones was to find it and short SCL/SDA together to “corrupt” it and force the ThinkPad to default it, but it was a high risk attack prone to killing the ATMEL chip, or permanently tripping a tamper flag on the board - Lenovo lists the fix for tampering as “replace system board”… Yep.
+
With the Intel Boot Guard ThinkPads, you well and truly need to replace the motherboard. Before Haswell/Boot Guard, if you could find it and then reprogram the chip, then it could be cleared. The other option on old ones was to find it and short SCL/SDA together to “corrupt” it and force the ThinkPad to default it, but it was a high risk attack prone to killing the ATMEL chip, or permanently tripping a tamper flag on the board - Lenovo lists the fix for tampering as “replace system board”… Yep. ***NONE of these current laptops can have custom BIOS work done, unless the OEM doesn’t enable Boot Guard - outside of a few enthusiast laptops (or errors from small companies like MSI), it’s always enabled.***
On the old units where it was sometimes “optional” protection, the option usually wasn’t enabled by default - it was an active choice. Now if you have a unit from something like a gov’t agency bet your rear end the tamper flag is enabled! Always-on units are inherently “high risk” no matter what.
There is no such fix on these newer ones like we had on the old ones :-(. An unknown SVP will total the laptop out, very quickly! Check for this early on next time, especially used HP/Lenovo as there’s no easy fix.
With the Intel Boot Guard ThinkPads, you well and truly need to replace the motherboard. Before Haswell/ Boot Guard, if you could find it and then reprogram the chip, then it could be cleared. The other option on old ones was to find it and short SCL/SDA together to “corrupt” it and force the ThinkPad to default it, but it was a high risk attack prone to killing the ATMEL chip, or permanently tripping a tamper flag on the board - Lenovo lists the fix for tampering as “replace system board”… Yep.
On the old units where it was sometimes “optional” protection, the option usually wasn’t enabled by default - it was an active choice. Now if you have a unit from something like a gov’t agency bet your rear end the tamper flag is enabled! Always-on units are inherently “high risk” no matter what.
-
There is no such fix on these newer ones like we had on the old ones :-(. An unknown SVP will total the laptop out, very quickly!
+
There is no such fix on these newer ones like we had on the old ones :-(. An unknown SVP will total the laptop out, very quickly! Check for this early on next time, especially used HP/Lenovo as there’s no easy fix.
With the Intel Boot Guard ThinkPads, you well and truly need to replace the motherboard. Before Haswell/ Boot Guard, if you could find it and then reprogram the chip, then it could be cleared. The other option on old ones was to find it and short SCL/SDA together to “corrupt” it and force the ThinkPad to default it, but it was a high risk attack prone to killing the ATMEL chip, or perma-killing the board as “tampered” if it was configured as such. If it was “optional” protection, the option usually wasn’t enabled by default - it was an active choice. Now if you have a unit from something like a gov’t agency bet your rear end the tamper flag is enabled! Always-on units are inherently “high risk” no matter what.
+
With the Intel Boot Guard ThinkPads, you well and truly need to replace the motherboard. Before Haswell/ Boot Guard, if you could find it and then reprogram the chip, then it could be cleared. The other option on old ones was to find it and short SCL/SDA together to “corrupt” it and force the ThinkPad to default it, but it was a high risk attack prone to killing the ATMEL chip, or permanently tripping a tamper flag on the board - Lenovo lists the fix for tampering as “replace system board”… Yep.
+
+
On the old units where it was sometimes “optional” protection, the option usually wasn’t enabled by default - it was an active choice. Now if you have a unit from something like a gov’t agency bet your rear end the tamper flag is enabled! Always-on units are inherently “high risk” no matter what.
There is no such fix on these newer ones like we had on the old ones :-(. An unknown SVP will total the laptop out, very quickly!
With the Intel Boot Guard ThinkPads, you well and truly need to replace the motherboard. Before Haswell/ Boot Guard, if you could find it and then reprogram the chip, then it could be cleared. The other option on old ones was to find it and short SCL/SDA together to “corrupt” it and force the ThinkPad to default it, but it was a high risk attack prone to killing the ATMEL chip, or perma-killing the board as “tampered” if it was configured as such. It wasn’t usually enabled by default, but if the laptop came from a gov’t agency bet your rear end the tamper flag is enabled!
+
With the Intel Boot Guard ThinkPads, you well and truly need to replace the motherboard. Before Haswell/ Boot Guard, if you could find it and then reprogram the chip, then it could be cleared. The other option on old ones was to find it and short SCL/SDA together to “corrupt” it and force the ThinkPad to default it, but it was a high risk attack prone to killing the ATMEL chip, or perma-killing the board as “tampered” if it was configured as such. If it was “optional” protection, the option usually wasn’t enabled by default - it was an active choice. Now if you have a unit from something like a gov’t agency bet your rear end the tamper flag is enabled! Always-on units are inherently “high risk” no matter what.
There is no such fix on these newer ones like we had on the old ones :-(. An unknown SVP will total the laptop out, very quickly!
With the Intel Boot Guard ThinkPads, you well and truly need to replace the motherboard. Before Haswell/ Boot Guard, if you could find it and then reprogram the chip, then it could be cleared. The other option on old ones was to find it and short SCL/SDA together to “corrupt” it and force the ThinkPad to default it, but it was a high risk attack prone to killing the ATMEL chip, or perma-killing the board as “tampered” if it was configured as such.
+
With the Intel Boot Guard ThinkPads, you well and truly need to replace the motherboard. Before Haswell/ Boot Guard, if you could find it and then reprogram the chip, then it could be cleared. The other option on old ones was to find it and short SCL/SDA together to “corrupt” it and force the ThinkPad to default it, but it was a high risk attack prone to killing the ATMEL chip, or perma-killing the board as “tampered” if it was configured as such. It wasn’t usually enabled by default, but if the laptop came from a gov’t agency bet your rear end the tamper flag is enabled!
There is no such fix on these newer ones like we had on the old ones :-(. An unknown SVP will total the laptop out, very quickly!
With the Intel Boot Guard ThinkPads, you well and truly need to replace the motherboard. Before Haswell/ Boot Guard, if you could find it and then reprogram the chip, then it could be cleared. The other option on old ones was to find it and short SCL/SDA together to “corrupt” it and force the ThinkPad to default it, but it was a high risk attack prone to killing the ATMEL chip, or perma-killing the board as “tampered” if it was configured as such.
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There is no such fix on these newer ones like we had on the old ones :-(. An unknown SVP will total the laptop out, very quickly!
With the Intel Boot Guard ThinkPads, you well and truly need to replace the motherboard. Before Haswell/ Boot Guard, if you could find it and then reprogram the chip, then it could be cleared. The other option on old ones was to find it and short SCL/SDA together to “corrupt” it and force the ThinkPad to default it, but it was a high risk attack prone to killing the ATMEL chip, or perma-killing the board as “tampered” if it was configured as such.