This section describes the System Setup program, which is used to
change the system configuration information stored in NVRAM on the system board. If the
system detects a discrepancy, an error message may appear on the screen that identifies
the incorrect configuration settings. Many of these settings are established using the
System Setup program. The system then prompts you to enter the System Setup program to
correct the setting.
To change the system configuration information after you add, change, or
remove any hardware in your system
To set or change user-selectable optionsfor example, the time or date
on your system
To restore system configuration settings following a service action
To enable or disable integrated devices in your system
After you set up your system, run the System Setup program to
familiarize yourself with your system configuration information and optional settings.
Print the System Setup screens (by pressing the <Print
Screen> key) or write down the information for future reference.
Before you use the System Setup program, you need to know the kind of
diskette drives(s) and hard drive(s) that are installed in your system. If
you are unsure of any of this information, see the Manufacturing Test Report
that was shipped with your system. You can access the Manufacturing Test Report
in the Dell Accessories folder.
If your system is already on, shut it down and then turn it on again.
Press <F2> immediately after you see the following message in the
upper- right corner of the screen:
Press <F2> = System Setup
You can also press <F10> to enter Utility Mode or <F12> for
PXE Boot, which forces a system boot from the network.
If you wait too long and your operating system begins to load into
memory, let the system complete the load operation; then shut down the system and try
again.
NOTE: To ensure an orderly system shutdown, consult the
documentation that accompanied your operating system.
You can also enter the System Setup program by responding to certain error messages.
See "Responding to Error Messages."
NOTE: For help
using the System Setup program, press <F1> while in the program.
The main System Setup screen displays the current setup and configuration information and optional settings for your system. (Typical examples are illustrated in Figure 1.) Information on the System Setup screen is organized in five boxed areas:
Title box — The shaded box at the top of the screen lists the system name, page number,
and the revision number of the BIOS.
Configuration options — The remainder of the screen lists the options that define the installed hardware in your computer.
Fields beside the options contain settings or values; those that
appear bright on the screen can be changed. Settings or values that you cannot change
(because they are determined by the system) appear less bright.
Some options have multiple fields, which may show settings or values
as bright or less bright depending upon what settings or values you entered in other
fields.
The following options or information fields appear on the main System Setup screen:
System Time — Resets the time on the system's internal clock.
System Date — Resets the date on the system's internal calendar.
Diskette Drive A: — Allows you to specify the type of diskette drive for your system.
System Memory — Displays the amount of system memory. This option has no
user-selectable settings.
Video Memory — Displays the amount of video memory. This option has no
user-selectable settings.
OS Install Mode — Determines the maximum amount of memory available to the
operating system. On sets the maximum memory available to the operating system to
256 MB. Off (default) makes all of the system memory available to the operating
system. Some operating systems will not install with more than 2 GB of system
memory. Turn this option On during operating system installation and Off after
installation.
CPU Information — Displays information related to the microprocessor bus and
microprocessors. This screen has no user-selectable settings.
Boot Sequence — Displays the Boot Sequence screen, discussed later in this section.
Hard-Disk Drive Sequence — Displays the Hard-Disk Drive Sequence screen,
discussed later in this section.
Integrated Devices — Displays the Integrated Devices screen, discussed later in this
section.
PCI IRQ Assignment — Displays a screen that allows you to change the IRQ
allocated to each of the integrated devices on the PCI bus, as well as any installed
expansion cards that require an IRQ.
PCI Hot-Plug Slot Information — Displays information about the hot-plug
PCI-X
slots such as the operating frequency, whether or not they are occupied, and whether
they are in PCI or PCI-X mode. This screen has no user-selectable settings.
Console Redirection — Displays ascreen that allows you to configure console
redirection. The sub-menu allows you to turn the feature on or off, select the remote
terminal type, and enable or disable redirection after booting.
Embedded Server Management — Displays the Embedded Server Management
screen, discussed later in this section.
Keyboard Numlock — Determines whether your system starts up with the Num Lock
mode activated on 101- or 102-key keyboards (does not apply to 84-key keyboards).
Report Keyboard Error — Enables or disables reporting of keyboard errors during the
POST. This option is useful when applied to self-starting servers or host systems that
have no permanently attached keyboard. In these situations, selecting Do Not Report
suppresses all error messages relating to the keyboard or keyboard controller during
POST. This setting does not affect the operation of the keyboard itself if a keyboard is
attached to the system.
Asset Tag — Displays the customer-programmable asset tag number for the system if
an asset tag number has been assigned.
Boot Sequence Screen
The Boot Sequence screen options determine the order in which the system
looks for the files that it needs to load during system startup. Available
options include the diskette drive, CD drive, network, and hard drive. You can
enable or disable a device by selecting it and pressing the spacebar. To
change the order in which devices are searched, use the <+> and
<> keys.
Hard-Disk Drive Sequence Screen
The Hard-Disk Drive Sequence screen options determine the order in which the system
searches the hard drives for the files that it needs to load during system
startup. The choices depend on the particular hard drives installed in
your system. You can enable or disable a device by selecting it and pressing
the spacebar. To change the order in which devices are searched, use the
<+> and <> keys.
Integrated Devices Screen
The following devices on the system board are configured through this screen:
Embedded RAID Controller — If the system has RAID, Channel A and Channel B
operate independently. Channel A and Channel B can be set to RAID or SCSI. If the
system is SCSI only, the Embedded RAID Controller field changes to Primary SCSI
Controller. Channel A and Channel B turn the respective SCSI controller on or off.
Selecting On (the default setting) enables the integrated PCI SCSI controller and
scans the associated ROM. For the system to start from a drive attached to the
integrated SCSI controller, the drive must be enabled. Selecting Off causes the BIOS
to mask the presence of a device.
Secondary SCSI Controller — Enables or disables the secondary SCSI controller.
IDE CD-ROM Controller — Enables or disables the system's IDE CD-ROM
interface.
Diskette Controller — Enables or disables the system's diskette drive controller.
When Auto (default) is selected, the system turns off the controller when necessary to
accommodate a controller card installed in an expansion slot.
USB Controller — Enables or disables the system's USB ports. Disabling the USB
ports makes system resources available for other devices.
BIOS USB Support -— Enables BIOS support for a USB keyboard or mouse.
Embedded 10/100 NIC— Enables or disables the system's two integrated
NICs.
Options are Enabled without PXE, Enabled with PXE, and Disabled. PXE support
allows the system to boot from the network. Changes take effect after system reboot.
MAC Address — Displays the MAC address for the 10/100 NIC that is used by the
corresponding integrated NIC. This field has no user-selectable settings.
Embedded 10/100/1000 NIC— Enables or disables the system's two integrated
NICs.
Options are Enabled without PXE, Enabled with PXE, and Disabled. PXE support
allows the system to boot from the network. Changes take effect after system reboot.
MAC Address — Displays the address of the MAC address for the 10/100/1000 NIC
that is used by the corresponding integrated NIC. This field has no user-selectable
settings.
Mouse Controller — Enables or disables the system's mouse controller.
Serial Port 1, Serial Port 2 — Configures the system's integrated serial ports. The
options can be set to Auto (the default) to automatically configure a port, to a
particular designation, or to Off to disable the port.
If you set a serial port to Auto and add an expansion card with a port configured to the same designation, the system automatically remaps the integrated port to the next available port designation that shares the same IRQ setting.
Parallel Port — Configures the system's integrated parallel port.
Parallel Port Mode — Controls whether the system's integrated parallel port acts as an
AT-compatible (unidirectional) or PS/2-compatible (bidirectional) port. To determine
the correct mode to use, see the documentation that came with the peripheral device
connected to the serial port.
Speaker — Toggles the integrated speaker On (the default) or Off. A change to this
option takes effect immediately (rebooting the system is not required).
Setup Password — Allows you to restrict access to the System Setup program in the
same way that you restrict access to your system with the system password feature.
Password Status — When Setup Password is set to Enabled, this feature allows you to
prevent the system password from being changed or disabled at system start-up.
To lock the system password, you must first assign a setup password in the Setup Password option and then change the Password Status option to Locked. In this state, the system password cannot be changed through the System Password option and cannot be disabled at system start-up by pressing <Ctrl><Enter>.
To unlock the system password, you must enter the setup password in the Setup Password option and then change the Password Status option to Unlocked. In this state, the system password can be disabled at system start-up by pressing <Ctrl><Enter> and then changed through the System Password option.
Power Button — When this option is set to Enabled, you can use the power button
to turn the system off or shut down the system if you are running Microsoft®
Windows® 2000 or another operating system that is compliant with the ACPI
specification. When this option is set to Disabled, you cannot use the power button to
turn off the system or perform other system events.
NOTE: You can still turn a system on using the power button, even if the Power Button
option is set to Disabled.
NMI Button — This button may be used for troubleshooting software and device
drivers when running certain operating systems. If a malfunction occurs when NMI
Button set to Enabled, an NMI interrupt alerts the system. Enable this button only
when directed to do so by the operating system's documentation.
Exit Screen
After you press <Esc> to exit the System Setup program, the
Exit
screen displays the following choices:
NOTICE: The password features provide a basic level of
security for the data on your system. However, they are not foolproof. If your data
requires more security, it is your responsibility to obtain and use additional forms of
protection, such as data encryption programs.
Your system is shipped to you without the system password feature enabled. If system security is a concern, you should operate your system only with system password protection.
You can assign a system password whenever you use the System Setup program. After a system password is assigned, only those who know the password have full use of the system.
When the System Password option is set to Enabled, the system
prompts you for the system password just after the system boots.
To change an existing system password, you must know the password (see "Deleting or Changing an Existing
System Password"). If you assign and later forget a system password, a
trained service technician must remove the system cover to change a jumper
setting that disables the system password feature (see "Disabling a
Forgotten Password"). Note that this erases the setup password at the
same time.
NOTICE: If you leave your system running and
unattended without having a system password assigned, or if you leave your
system unlocked so that someone can disable the password by changing a
jumper setting, anyone can access the data stored on your hard drive.
Before you can assign a system password, you must enter the System Setup program and
check the System Password option.
When a system password is assigned, the setting shown for the System Password
option is Enabled. If the Password Status optionis
Unlocked, you can change the system password. If the Password Status
option is Locked, you cannot change the system password. When the system
password feature is disabled by a jumper setting on the system board, the
setting shown is Disabled, and you cannot change or enter a new system
password.
When no system password is assigned and the password jumper on the system board is in
the enabled (default) position, the setting shown for the System
Password option is Not Enabled and the Password Status field
is Unlocked. To assign a system password, using the following procedure:
Verify that the Password Status option is set to Unlocked.
Highlight the System Password option and then press <Enter>.
Type your new system password.
You can use up to 8 characters in your password.
As you press each character key (or the spacebar key for a blank space), a placeholder appears in the field.
The password assignment operation recognizes keys by their location on the keyboard without distinguishing between lowercase and uppercase characters. For example, if you have an M in your password, the system recognizes either M or m as correct. Certain key combinations are not valid. If you enter one of these combinations, the speaker emits a beep. To erase a character when entering your password, press the <Backspace> key or the left-arrow key.
NOTE: To escape from the field without assigning a system password, press <Enter> to
move to another field, or press <Esc> at any time prior to completing step 5.
Press <Enter>.
To confirm your password, type it a second time and press <Enter>.
The System Password option changes to Enabled. Your system password is now set. You can exit the System Setup program and begin using your system.
NOTE: Password protection does not take effect until you restart the system by turning the
system off and then on again.
Whenever you turn on or reboot the system by
pressing the <Ctrl><Alt><Del> key combination, the following prompt
appears on the screen when the Password Status option is set to Unlocked:
Type in the password and... -- press <ENTER> to
leave password security enabled. -- press <CTRL><ENTER> to disable password
security. Enter password:
If the Password Status option is set to Locked, the
following prompt appears:
Type the password and press <Enter>.
After you type the correct system password and press <Enter>, your system
completes the startup sequence and you can use the keyboard or mouse to operate your system as usual.
NOTE: If you have assigned a setup password (see "Using the Setup Password Feature"), the
system accepts your setup password as an alternate system password.
If a wrong or incomplete system password is entered, the following
message appears:
** Incorrect password. **
Enter password:
If an incorrect or incomplete system password is entered again, the
same message appears.
The third and subsequent times an incorrect or incomplete system
password is entered, the system displays the following message:
** Incorrect password. **
Number of unsuccessful password attempts: 3
System halted! Must power down.
The number of unsuccessful attempts made to enter the correct system
password can alert you to an unauthorized person attempting to use your system.
Even after your system is turned off and on, the previous message is displayed each
time an incorrect or incomplete system password is entered.
NOTE: You can use the Password Status
option in conjunction with System Password and Setup Password
options to further protect your system from unauthorized changes.
When prompted, press <Ctrl><Enter> to disable the
existing system password, instead of pressing <Enter> to continue with
the normal operation of your system.
If you are asked to enter your setup password, you may need to
contact your network administrator who has the setup password.
Enter the System Setup program by pressing <F2> during
POST.
Select the System Security screen field to verify that
the Password Status option is set to Unlocked.
When prompted, type the system password.
Confirm that Not Enabled is displayed for the System
Password option.
If Not Enabled is displayed for the System Password
option, the system password has been deleted. If you want to assign a new
password, continue to step 6. If Not Enabled is not displayed for
the System Password option, press the <Alt><b> key
combination to restart the system, and then repeat steps 2 through 5.
Your system is shipped to you without the setup password feature enabled. If
system security is a concern, you should operate your system with the setup
password feature enabled.
You can assign a setup password whenever you use the System Setup program.
After a setup password is assigned, only those who know the password have full
use of the System Setup program.
To change an existing setup password, you must know the setup password (see
"Deleting or
Changing an Existing Setup Password"). If you assign and later forget a
setup password, you cannot operate your system or change settings in the System
Setup program until a trained service technician opens the system chassis,
changes the password jumper setting to disable the passwords, and erases the
existing passwords (see "Disabling
a Forgotten Password").
A setup password can be assigned (or changed) only when the Setup Password
option is set to Not Enabled. To assign a setup password, highlight the Setup
Password option and press the left- or right-arrow key. The system prompts
you to enter and verify the password. If a character is illegal for password
use, the system emits a beep.
NOTE: The setup
password can be the same as the system password. If the two passwords
are different, the setup password can be used as an alternate system
password. However, the system password cannot be used in place of the
setup password.
After you verify the password, the Setup Password setting changes to Enabled.
The next time you enter the System Setup program, the system prompts you for the
setup password.
A change to the Setup Password option becomes effective immediately
(restarting the system is not required).
If Setup Password is set to Enabled, you must enter the correct
setup password before you can modify the majority of the System Setup options.
When you start the System Setup program, the program prompts you to type the
password.
If you do not enter the correct password in three tries, the system lets you
view, but not modify, the System Setup screenswith the following exception.
If System Password is not set to Enabled and is not locked via the
Password Status option, you can assign a system password (however, you
cannot disable or change an existing system password).
NOTE: You can use
the Password Status option in conjunction with the Setup
Password option to protect the system password from unauthorized
changes.
Enter the System Setup program and select the System Security
option.
Highlight the Setup Password option, and press <Enter> to
access the setup password window, and press <Enter> two more times to
clear the existing setup password.
If you forget your system or setup password, you cannot operate your system
or change settings in the System Setup program until a trained service
technician opens the system chassis, changes the password jumper setting to
disable the passwords, and erases the existing passwords.
CAUTION: Read the safety instructions
in your System Information document.
The existing passwords are not disabled (erased) until the system boots with the PASSWD
jumper plug removed. However, before you assign a new system and/or setup password, you
must install the jumper plug.
NOTE: If you assign a new system
and/or setup password with the jumper plug still removed, the system disables the new
password(s) the next time it boots.
If an error message appears on your monitor screen while the system is
starting up, make a
note of the message. Then, before entering the System Setup program, refer to
"System
Beep Codes" and "System Messages" for an explanation of the message and suggestions for correcting any errors.
NOTE:
It is normal to receive an error message the first time you boot your system after
installing a memory upgrade. In that situation, do not refer to "System Beep
Codes" and "System Messages." Instead, see "Memory
Modules."
If you are given an option of pressing either <F1> to continue or <F2> to
run the System Setup program, press <F2>.
Console redirection allows you to maintain a server from a remote location by re-directing keyboard input and text output through the serial port. Graphic output is not redirected. Console redirection can be used under DOS for tasks such as setting up a common BIOS configuration or setting up a RAID configuration. In a typical installation, the system is connected to a port concentrator that allows you to connect several systems using a shared modem. After you use a modem or other remote connection to log into the port concentrator, you can select which system you want to manage with console redirection. This section describes the simplest connection possible: connecting to a system with a null modem cable.
Your remote terminal emulation software should meet the following specifications:
American National Standards Institute (ANSI) or VT100/220 terminal emulation with a window size of 80 x 25 characters
9600, 19.2K, 57.6K, or 115.2K bits per second (bps) using serial (COM) ports
Recommended: the ability to create keyboard command macros
All versions of the Microsoft Windows operating systems come with HyperTerminal terminal emulation software. However, the version of HyperTerminal included with most Windows operating systems does not provide the correct screen size, the arrow and function keys do not work, and there is no method of creating macros. Dell recommends that you either upgrade your version of HyperTerminal to HyperTerminal Private Edition 6.1 or later or select new terminal emulation software.
Console redirection is configured through the System Setup program. The Console Redirection option displays ascreen that allows you to configure console redirection. The submenu allows you to turn the feature on or off, select the remote terminal type, and enable or disable redirection after booting. The options available are listed in
Table 2.
If you select VT100/220 but not all the characters are visible on the screen, you should go back to the System Setup program and select ANSI as your terminal type. ANSI can display the full set of ASCII characters.
NOTE: The examples in this document assume that you have upgraded to Hilgraeve's
HyperTerminal Private Edition 6.1 or later. If you are using other terminal emulation
software, see the help file for that software.
After you configure the ports, configure the terminal settings by performing the following steps:
In HyperTerminal, click File, click Properties, and select the Settings tab.
Make sure that the Function, arrow, and ctrl keys act as field is set to Terminal Keys.
Make sure that the Backspace key sends field is set to Ctrl+H.
Change the Emulation setting from Auto detect to ANSI or VT100/220.
This setting should be the same as the setting you selected for the Console Redirection option on the server.
When you click Terminal Setup, you should see a setting for the number of rows and columns.
Change the number of rows from 24 to 25 and leave the number of columns at 80. If
you do not have these settings, this is an indication that you must upgrade your
terminal emulation software.
Console redirection is designed to yield control of the serial ports to the operating system. This allows serial debugging and redirection of the operating system to function correctly without interference from the system BIOS.
To use console redirection to shut down a system and troubleshoot it or to change SCSI BIOS configurations, perform the following steps:
When the system begins to reboot, use console redirection to watch and interact with
the system during the POST. While the system is booting, you can do the following:
Enter the System Setup program.
Enter the SCSI setup menus.
Run utilities on the utility partition.
Update firmware and BIOS (flash the system).
NOTE: To use console redirection to run utilities on the utility partition, the
utility partition must have been created using Dell OpenManage™ Server
Assistant version 6.3.1 or later.
Console redirection uses ANSI or VT100/220 terminal emulation, which are limited to basic ASCII characters. There are no function keys, arrow keys, or control keys in this character set. However, most BIOS software requires the use of function keys and control keys for ordinary functions. You can emulate a function key or control key by using a special key sequence, called an escape sequence, to represent a specific key.
For console redirection, an escape sequence starts with an escape character. This character can be entered in a number of different ways, depending on the requirements of your terminal emulation software. For example, 0x1b, ^[, and <Esc> all refer to the same escape character. Some terminal software uses predefined macros to send the proper escape sequences. In HyperTerminal, you can define macros by selecting Key Macros from the View menu. Macros can be assigned to almost any possible key for almost any key combination. Create a macro for each of your function keys.
Table 3 and Table 4 list the VT100/220 escape sequences that must be sent to represent a special key or command. Additional escape sequences are listed in
Table 5.
NOTE: When defining macros in HyperTerminal, you must press <Ins> before <Esc>
to signify that you are sending an escape sequence rather than escaping out of the
dialog box. If you do not have these settings, this is an indication that you must
upgrade your terminal emulation software.
After you create these macros, pressing <F1> on the keyboard while running the terminal emulation software sends <Esc><Shift>op to the server. When these three characters are transmitted, the server interprets them as <F1>. You need this functionality to change the settings in the System Setup program or to continue if there is an error on your system and you are prompted to press <F1>.
In addition to macros for the function keys, Dell recommends that you set up macros for the additional escape sequences listed in
Table 5.
