84.123 bytes |
Service Hints & Tips |
Document ID: DSHY-3XRS6S |
This document is provided to IBM and our Business Partners to help sell and/or service IBM products. It is not to be distributed beyond that audience or used for any other purpose. |
TP General - EMEA Mobiles Newsletter - August 1998
Applicable to: EMEA
This is the first issue of the IBM ThinkPad Newsletter for IBM Business Partners. The idea for a Business Partner version was born after the 9 IBM Internal issues that preceeded this issue. The Newsletter will cover a variety of issues that have been dealt with by IBM Mobiles Engineering in Greenock, Scotland and will be published towards the end of every month.
TP General
Processor appears to be running very slow
There has been some worry lately that processors of ThinkPads seems to be running very slow when running on battery power. In benchmarks, the CPU is reported to be 3x slower than it should be (E.g. 50Mhz instead of 150MHz). The cause in most cases were the power management settings.
Power Management on ThinkPads allows the user to specify what performance they require when running on battery power. The active settings need to be a balance between battery life and performance. One of the options in Advanced Power Management is to run the CPU in 'Slow', 'Medium' or 'Max' mode. Selecting either of the first two will slow down the CPU in battery mode. To change the settings, go to Start > Programs > ThinkPad Configuration / ThinkPad Features. Click on the battery icon on the right hand side, then on the 'tap' icon. Under 'custumized', click on the 'Battery' radio button and under 'details' set the Processor speed to 'Max'. See also PartnerInfo document LWIK-3XFR25.
TP310
PCMCIA ports disabled
If you experience PCMCIA problems on the ThinkPad 310 (all models), please make sure the PCMCIA slot is enabled. These ThinkPads ship with the PCMCIA slot DISabled by default.
TP 380
Systems shipped with wrong partition
Over the last months, some machines (model 2635-8A0 only) have shipped with incorrect partitions. The model in question has a 3GB hardfile. This should be divided in a 2GB system partition (C:) and a 1GB empty partition (D:). In a number of cases, the D: drive has not been set up, leaving 1GB of freespace unusable. This can easily be fixed by either running FDISK and manually creating the second partition, or by using the following diskette: ftp://ftp.infania.net/pccbbs/thinkpad/private/26358a0.exe
Please note: this diskette should not be given out to customers. It is intended for Business Partners who have these machines in stock (bypassing the Windows 95 registration procedure). More details are available in PartnerInfo docs LWIK-3X4R6X (for IBM / Business partners) and DSHY-3X3NRQ
(for EndUsers, with detailed instructions).
PFA early warning message
PFA is part of the Netfinity software on the TP 380 models. When enabled, it has been known to give early failure alerts about the harddrive. The HDD, however, is in excellent condition and not faulty. If you get any messages, please disable PFA.
TP760/765
Hard drive spacer
These plastic spacers hold down the HDD's, avoiding the HDD to flip up. They come in 2 versions; one for the thin (12mm) and one for thick (17mm) HDD's.
Part description |
FRU |
HDD spacer for THICK hard disk drives |
83H5364 |
HDD spacer for THIN hard disk drives |
83H5413 |
Hard drive cable
Harddrives reported as 'faulty' might just need a new connector. When the HDD is being removed and replaced on a regular basis, the contacts on the HDD connector can wear off. The 'HDD Cable' (FRU 82H5536 for 3.0/5.0GB or 29H9422 for 2.1 GB) contains this connector. It can be replaced by removing the 2 screws on the front of the HDD.
TP770
DVD Region Code
On some ThinkPads 770ED (9549-5A0) with UK preload, the DVD Region Code is not installed. This causes SoftDVD to generate error messages like 'Region code of the system is different from DVD region code'. This can be solved by creating the Region Code diskette from Diskette Factory and installing it (reboot). All ThinkPads with a manufacturing date later than 20 July will not be affected.
No new ECA's have been issued in the last month. As an overview, please find below all active Mobile ECA's and their experation date. The ECA numbers are a doclink to the relevant document.
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41,080 bytes
MLAH-3XBMYE
This document is provided to IBM and our Business Partners to help sell and/or service IBM products. It is not to be distributed beyond that audience or used for any other purpose. EPRM - Electronic Pocket Reference Manual 08/24/98
Applicable to: World-Wide
Name & Size (bytes) Description WWW URL(s) TThis publication (EPRM - Electronic Pocket Reference Manual 08/24/98) is now downloadable from the URL above. The file is in Adobe .PDF format, to view these files you will need a copy of Adobe Acrobat Reader, or have the Acroread plugin for your Web Browser EPRM files are available from either this document or a dedicated EPRM web site. The url of the EPRM web site is: Description Last Updated File Size File names URL History of EPRM Updates 08/24/98 26927 eprmnew.doc
Installation files Windows Install program 05/30/97 383911 winx.exe
OS/2 Install program 07/27/98 555238 os2x1.exe
OS/2 Load program 08/24/98 47560 eprload.exe
Base Files/Commercial Desktop/ 08/24/98 1271984 eprmx.inf
08/17/98 1454908 eprm.inf
Product Files by Brand Options 08/03/98 928477 eprm0.inf
Power PC 05/30/97 89598 eprm1.inf
ThinkPad 06/15/98 1409805 eprm2.inf ftp://ftp.infania.net/pccbbs/eprm/eprm2.inf
Server 08/24/98 1455385 eprm3.inf ftp://ftp.infania.net/pccbbs/eprm/eprm3.inf
Networking Control Unit 82xx 01/19/98 127822 eprm4.inf
Display Units LCD/CRT 08/24/98 258801 eprm5.inf
Consumer 07/06/98 1159906 eprma.inf
First-Time Installation: Running under OS/2: Running under Windows: Upgrading an Existing EPRM: If you are not sure what release you have, then it is best to download all files from Sections 1 and 2 above. If you only need up-to-date ThinkPad information, then download only the ThinkPad files.
Publication Type: EPRM Additional Information:
From: http://www.pc.ibm.com/us/support/thinkpad/tpopsys, updates in red.
Product BIOS Version BIOS filename BIOS Date BIOS P/N ThinkPad 310 1.24 SYTPA124.EXE 28/07/98 N/A ThinkPad 340 CSE 1.41 SYTPW141.EXE 09/04/98 97H4068 ThinkPad 345 C/CS 1.41 SYTPW141.EXE 09/04/98 97H4068 ThinkPad 360 1.43 SYTPS143.EXE 07/05/97 91G1719 ThinkPad 365 E/ED 2.14 S36B2141.EXE 02/08/96 N/A ThinkPad 365 X/XD 1.10 SYTPX110.EXE 24/06/98 N/A ThinkPad 370 C 1.41 SYTPW141.EXE 09/04/98 97H4068 ThinkPad 380 -/D/E/ED 1.11 SYTPM111.EXE 10/07/98 97H4127 ThinkPad 380 X/XD 1.11 SYTPN111.EXE 24/06/98 97H4108 ThinkPad 560 1.20 SYTPK120.EXE 24/06/98 02K3096 ThinkPad 560 E 1.10 SYTPI110.EXE 24/06/98 05K3095 ThinkPad 560 X 1.11 SYTPJ110.EXE 17/08/98 97H4132 ThinkPad 600 1.01 SYTPT101.EXE 26/06/98 97H4069 ThinkPad 701 Level 30 SYS7013o.EXE 19/08/96 91G1719 ThinkPad 750 1.43 SYTPS143.EXE 07/05/97 91G1719 ThinkPad 755 C/Cs 1.43 SYTPS143.EXE 15/02/96 91G1533 ThinkPad 755 other 1.44 SYTPE144.EXE 07/11/96 91G2006 ThinkPad 760 C/CD/L/LD 1.30 SYTPF130.EXE 24/06/98 91G1977 ThinkPad 760 E/ED/EL/ELD, XL (SVGA) 2.10 SYTPG210.EXE 24/06/98 11J9245 ThinkPad 760 E/ED/XD/XL (XGA) 2.10 SYTPH210.EXE 24/06/98 11J9244 ThinkPad 765 D 2.10 SYTPH210.EXE 24/06/98 11J9244 ThinkPad 765 L 2.10 SYTPG210.EXE 24/06/98 11J9245 ThinkPad 770 -/D/ED 1.22 SYTPD122.EXE 17/08/98 97H4091
Microsoft Windows 98
Ziff-Davis Benchmarks http://www.zdnet.com/products/content/pcmg/notebook98/bench.html Windows 98 voucher requests http://www.pc.ibm.com/europe/windows98/thinkpad.html New ThinkPad drivers site http://www.pc.ibm.com/us/support/thinkpad/tpopsys ThinkPad info briefs http://www.pc.ibm.com/us/infobrf/ ThinkPad proven solutions http://www.pc.ibm.com/us/thinkpad/proven/index.html
Search Keywords Hint Category General Information Date Created 27-08-98 Last Updated 22-09-98 Revision Date 21-09-99 Brand IBM ThinkPad Product Family ThinkPads General Machine Type Various Model TypeModel Retain Tip (if applicable) Reverse Doclinks
Service Publications
http://servicepac.mainz.ibm.de/eprmhtml/index.htm
In addition to the web site, EPRM files can be obtained from our ftp site as follows. The following table describes the various files available and gives the url for the site. (First time installation instructions can be found at the end of this document.)
Intellistation
06/15/98
06/15/98
06/15/98
06/15/98
08/17/98
1455406
1411179
1383565
610303
610303
epr2a.inf
epr2b.inf
epr2c.inf
epr2d.inf
epr2e.inf
ftp://ftp.infania.net/pccbbs/eprm/epr2a.inf
ftp://ftp.infania.net/pccbbs/eprm/epr2b.inf
ftp://ftp.infania.net/pccbbs/eprm/epr2c.inf
ftp://ftp.infania.net/pccbbs/eprm/epr2d.inf
ftp://ftp.infania.net/pccbbs/eprm/epr2e.inf
07/27/98
07/27/98
08/24/98
1369812
1398494
321174
epr3a.inf
epr3b.inf
epr3c.inf
ftp://ftp.infania.net/pccbbs/eprm/epr3a.inf
ftp://ftp.infania.net/pccbbs/eprm/epr3b.inf
ftp://ftp.infania.net/pccbbs/eprm/epr3c.inf
1. Create an EPRM directory on your hard drive.
2. From the Choose Your Operating System Section, download the OS/2 install program (OS2X1.EXE) to the EPRM directory.
3. Insert a floppy disk into the A: drive and execute the OS2X1.EXE file from a command line; this will create the OS/2 Install disk.
4. Copy the contents of the floppy disk back into your EPRM directory.
5. Download the Base files into the EPRM directory.
6. Download the Brand files you require into the EPRM directory; if you require them all, download them all.
7. At an OS/2 Command line, go to the EPRM directory and type EPRMINST. This creates a desktop icon which you can double-click on to start the package.
1. Create an EPRM directory on your hard drive.
2. From the Choose Your Operating System Section, download the Windows install program (WINX.EXE) to the EPRM directory.
3. Insert a floppy disk into the A: drive and execute the WINX.EXE file from a command line; this will create the Windows Install disk.
4. From the Download the Base Files Section, detach all files to the EPRM directory.
5. Download the Brand files you require into the EPRM directory; if you require them all, download them all.
6. Go to a DOS command line and execute the SETUP.EXE file on the floppy disk.
7. During the install program, when asked for the directory the EPRM files are held within, enter this in the space provided.
8. When the install program ends, restart Windows and you will have an EPRM folder containing a suite of icons.
Not all of EPRM is changed with every release. If you keep up-to-date with every release, then you only need to change those files that show a Date change in the Last Update entry underneath the Doclink.
History:
To view the history of EPRM updates, please click on the attachment and select Launch. Then, go to a Window list and select the System Editor.
All ThinkPads announced from 12 August 1998 will ship with Windows 98 preinstalled.
Benchmarking results on mobile computers.
Customers of machines shipped after between 1 June and 30 September 1998 are entitled to an upgrade to MS Windows 98. All requests should be entered before 16 October 1998. The upgrade can be requested via this web site. All ThinkPads announced after 12 August 1998 will ship with either Windows98 or Windows NT4.00, not with Windows 95.
Earlier this year, the drivers matrix was modernised. It can be found at the above address. The old address (dskt3.html) will remain active for a couple of months to come and contains the same information.
This brief links to the latest information on Mobile technology. Subjects covered include DVD, PCI Bus, Security, CoSession, Display technology, Wireless Communations, etc.
This page includes all ThinkPad Proven options, their suppliers and specifications.
and Admin Purposes