help needed please to reset the BIOS on a Toshiba Satellite C850  - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / repair

author: sheffieldyorky
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: September 15, 2019, 03:17:02 pm
content: I saw a question that was posed on another Forum the title of the thread was; "Where is the jumper to reset BIOS on Toshiba Satellite P855" Well I have a similar problem.On Gumtree I have recently purchased from a local guy (who has now moved house, which I knew was happening he was living in Sheffield) well anyway I installed this Toshiba Satellite C850 H000052450 Motherboard and it continues to ask for "supervisor password" or "press F11" I have tried the following passwords;1. Admin2. Supervisor3. Administrator4. Toshiba5. You get the ideaSo in the end I had to press F11This motherboard was taken out of a working laptop i.e. broken screen hinges etc.When I picked it up from his house I saw the laptop and he booted it up for me, plugging it into a slave monitor.This now takes me to the BIOS but the elements to alter things, i.e. boot order passwords etc. are all greyed out. This tells me that I am in the BIOS as a "user" and not an administrator, so I have restricted privileges. I have tried all sorts of things from leaving the battery out overnight to researching on the internet. I even checked the voltage on the battery and it reads 3v they all have come up with the same answer "press F2 or F. . . . . . whatever and get into the BIOS and then go along to . . . . . . . None of which helps.I have looked on the motherboard, initially I was looking for a "Motherboard Jumper" but now after reading this other thread it now seems that I should be looking for the following it is under the memory. For the C850, the jumper is B500.It’s not there.The reason why I want to alter the BIOS is because of the following problem;"Checking media (fail)" ON BOOTNow I know that it is not the HDD because I installed a new OS on it on a different laptop and swapped the SATA HDD’sMaybe I am undertaking things in the wrong order.Something else that have seen is when I finally manage to get into the “user” BIOS I do not see the DVD drive listed but it spins up with or without software.My thinking is that if I can clear the following items;1. "supervisor password"2. "Checking media (fail)" ON BOOTThe DVD drive appearance should not be a problem.I have attached some photos of the motherboard for reference sake.I posted the very same question on the answers.microsoft.com website and the Moderator told me in no uncertain terms the following;MVP|Volunteer ModeratorWe can't help you due to Microsoft's policy about BIOS/etc. Passwords.Contact your laptop, computer or motherboard manufacturer.@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@Microsoft forbids any assistance being given in these Forums to help you bypass or "crack" lost or forgotten Passwords.Regarding questions with respect to resetting hardware BIOS passwords we would request that you direct customers to the appropriate resources on the Hardware manufacturers sites for the correct procedure.I replied backThanks ****Forget the supposedly cracking the password, which I'm NOT because as already stated I purchased the motherboard !What about help with the rest of my thread ?ThanksDo you think China will get back to me with a BIOS password, never in a million years.As you can see Microsoft are not any help whatsoever and all I want to do is get this fixed and forward the repaired machine back to my customer.I have attached some photos of the motherboard for reference sake.If I could get back to the seller (Joe if you are reading this call round to the house) but anyway as I say I’m positive Joe would supply the BIOS supervisor password.So the questions are as follows;1. What two pins can I short out on the motherboard ?2. How can I clear the wording "Checking media (fail)" ON BOOT ?If you require any more details please feel free to contact me.

author: coromonadalix
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 15, 2019, 04:52:14 pm
content: supposed to be theses pinshttps://dr-bios.com/articles/remove-bios-password-of-toshiba-satellite-c85/10548https://superuser.com/questions/1133002/reset-toshiba-satellite-c850-b559-bios-supervisor-passwordNot sure if yours match the video for the pins, be careful

author: sheffieldyorky
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: September 16, 2019, 08:50:49 am
content: Hi thereMany thanks for the reply.As I am here on my own holding the laptop, shorting the two pins as located and switching it on is a bit of a job.Besides I gave away my other arm last week because I didn't think I'd need it.So I have come up with a solution.In this order***Unplug PSU***Remove main battery***Remove motherboard battery***With some very fine wire solder one end to each terminal, but the wire would be insulated all the way down leaving 10mm uncovered***Lay the laptop down right side up with the insulated wire sticking out of the front by the keyboard (please see image supplied)***Now join my two wires***Insert laptop battery and plug in PSU***Turn on laptop***When Toshiba Logo comes up, disconnect the laptop from the power and turn it OFF!This now gives me a clear view of the screen and the on/ off button, know full well that I have a sound contact out of sight.>>>But when do I separate my insulated wires ?Also something else that I have found / seen in the Dr-Bios websitehttps://dr-bios.com/articles/remove-bios-password-of-toshiba-satellite-c85/10548>Quote>Surely they do not mean putting tweezers into the laptop battery terminals.I'm waiting with my trusty soldering iron and a piece of coat hanger wire to weld onto the motherboard.

author: Rasz
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 16, 2019, 11:57:00 am
content: You wont find any pins/jumpers to reset supervisor password. Its hidden and encrypted in the SMC.You now have two options-buy new motherboard, throw this one awayor-plug original hdd/dvd drives back and forget about ever upgrading. error you are seeing might be due to bad cable"unlocking" laptop motherboards is seen as fencing stolen goods.