TECH NOTE: How To Remove A Bios Password From an Insyde H2O EFI BIOS [UPDATED]
David Norelid | January 11, 2012The old version of this guide was very complicated and convoluted. If you can boot into Windows, then you shouldn’t need to mess around with PLoP or any other nonsense, just change a flag in the ini file of the Windows flash program and you’re set.
I need to add the following disclaimer from my old post
NOTE: This guide is written for tech savvy people who know what they are doing. If you are uncomfortable with the command line, flashing BIOSes or getting your hands dirty, don’t attempt this process yourself. I cannot and will not hold your hand while you do this. I wrote this guide because I didn’t see anything like it online and I wanted to leave it here as a quick guide for other techs. I can’t offer support for this procedure. If you need computer repair in Houston, then please call me and I would be glad to do this for you.
From a commenter named Hilal, we have the following instructions:
You can also download the the windows version of the flasher, open the platform.ini file with notepad . In the ForceFlash section, set Password = 1 . It will force the flasher to reflash the password and thus removing it. Then open the flasher exe file and Flash! I tried it and it worked on my Acer Travelmate.
In sequential instruction form, here’s what you do.
1. Download the BIOS update from your computer manufacturer’s website
You should see the option to download a DOS version or Windows version, get the Windows version. This guide will only work with the Windows version of the flash tool.
2. Extract the archive
It doesn’t matter where, so you can throw it on your desktop if you want
3. Edit the platform.ini file
In this file, you’ll see a section called ForceFlash. In there, there’s a value called “Password”, set it equal to 1. If you don’t see “Password” in the ForceFlash section, then just copy and paste this line into that section
Password = 1
4. Run the Flash tool to flash your BIOS
Let the tool run and reboot your computer when it’s done. Hopefully, if all goes well, your BIOS should no longer be password protected.
Thanks, Hilal! I hope it works for everyone here.
Obsolete way to remove password. In the platform.ini go to this section.
[Others]
ClearCMOS=0
FlashDevice=0
DisableCompare=0
DisableVerify=0
ErrorRetry=0
Change ClearCMOS=0 to ClearCMOS=1
Hope this helps you.
[...] How To Remove A Bios Password From an Insyde H2O EFI BIOS [UPDATED] [...]
hi, i have an hp 4420s probook with insydeh20 efi bios. i have already downloaded the bios but i cant see the platform.ini file. are there specific instructions for my notebook? hope you can help thanks
Yeah, it really works! I just removed Acer Travelmate 8371 bios password!!! It was so simple!!!
I’m having trouble with an Alienware m14x. I have tried all of the previously stated solutions but still cannot access the bios to configure my ssd. Each flash is successful, yet the password remains.
I’ve found that if you are working on a particularly difficult laptop to set the switch in [FORCE Flash]
ALL=0
Set this switch to ALL=1
Hi,
the method with ClearCMOS=1 or/and [FORCE Flash] ALL=1 will not work on emaschines 350 series. I haved tried windows and dos-flash method. The notebook ask the master & hdd password after the new bios flash.
Hi,
Thank you for the trick ! I spent many hours to try removing the bios password on my ACER Aspire 5943G with cmospwd without success but with this very simple method it worked.
For my laptop, the bios updater is an exe which extract into C:\Windows\Temp so you just have to run the bios update a first time and after reboot, got to C:\Windons\Temp\Winflash to find the platform.ini and flash again.
Thanks !
Very interesting! Removing the bios password from most computers is most of the time easy with a CMOS reset. I own a computer repair company in Austin, TX. Great site and nice to network with others in the industry.
Hi,
Thank you for this helpful website
Info helped me with the locked BIOS on my Acer Aspire 5943g
Thanks !
I’m trying to remove bios password from my Lenovo G770, but even with custom .ini file the password still remains…
Btw, if you get message that bios version is the same, change the [Bios_Version_Check]
Flag=1 to 0
Please help me with my Lenovo G770, maybe there are other variables i could safely change in order to remove the password? Maybe its hiding in other part not touched when updating with default values?..
I have a hp elitebook 8440p and don’t know how to use this method to reset my bios password, where do i find the platform.ini?because after extracting the bios update folder it is not there.Can somene please help me?
I cannot seem to find .ini either just the window exe for my acer aspire 4330 What am I suppose to do
I FIGURED IT OUT!! IT WORKS!
*I had to extract the .EXE in the Windows Folder to the same folder.
*Found an .EXE extractor here….., http://legroom.net/software/uniextract
*Inside you is he “platform” file (notepad)
*To be on the safe side I changed both the CMOS under “OTHERS” and the PASSWORD under “FORCEFLASH” to 1
*Saved changes
*Run the original .EXE
*PC restarts right to my logon on screen! No more ugly blue BIOS Password Box!
*Thanks for the fix even tho it took me almost and hour to figure out
*If the .ini is not there YOU MUST EXTRACT THE .EXE
******YOU GUYS ROCK********
After trying to flash my BIOS I receive an error that says Before update BIOS, please remove BIOS password first on my Acer Travelmate 8372ZG
any advice please….
I bought a Acer Aspire 5733Z at a salv. army. Bios password protected, hd password protected, win7 pw protected. Have been able to unlock hd, and reset machine to factory. Just have bios pw to unlock. Do I use the option posted above to unlock it or do I need to short the bios reset pins?? Thanks!
this doesnt seem to work for my lenovo s102. any ideas howto make it work?
Thanks a lot!
Mine is ACER TravelMate 4730, and I did the things that @kay said above.
After rebooting, it came into a blue screen…
So I search the Internet and change some of my harddriver options in BIOS from something like “AHCI” to “IDE”(OF COURSE THE PASSWORD IS GONE!).
Then I got my computer back!
Thanks a lot!
Thanks a lot.
Worked perfectly in my travelMate 8571.
It worked perfet on my 8371G.
Thank you very much I was desperated about this.
Regards.
I tried, but faild, my laptop is sony sve14118, the bios had successfully flashed, but still need a password to enter the bios, i have changed “password = 0″ to “password=1″
I was working on an Acer 5810T series and tried the password=1 and also ClearCMOS=1 and it didn’t work. I then went for broke and also in addition to the above under the ForceFlash, I set ALL=1 expecting to brick it, but low and behold it worked. I was able to access the bios after that.
i have tried this method for the lenovo g560 and unfortunately it does not work. If someone could please upload a solution because i have tried several methods and cannot remove the damned password
Great job, I had gone through every other hack process. I almost felt stupid thinking Acer would put a security chip apart from the BIOS in their Aspire One netbooks. Everyone make sure to extract the .exe apart from the archive file for Acer bios, then execute the insyde .exe
Hi also in Lenovo G570 none of the methods the with ClearCMOS=1 or/and [FORCE Flash] ALL=1 or/and Passowrd=1 does working…any idea how to remove bios password?
Also having problems with accessing my bios with a Sony Vaio s series laptop and tried all above methods. any help would be appreciated.
Clearcmos 0 to 1, forceflash 0 to 1 and all that, is it also unlock for the advance setting menu?
Referring to Kay’s method, it is unclear to me how to proceed after the platform.ini file has been modified. If I run the InsydeFlash.exe file – which is in the same directory as the other extracted files – I get an error-message saying “there isn’t any ROM file in this directory”. So I’m a bit in the woods as to what to do next.
I would assume that all files must be converted back to an EXE-file?? And how do I get this done?
My laptop is a Packard bell Easynote EG70. If I run a normal unmodified BIOS-upgrade, I get a small blue screen saying “Error: Invalid firmware image!!!”
Thanks in advance for any response!