Technical information

Power-on password:
A power-on password (POP) protects the system from
being powered on by an unauthorized person. The
password must be entered before an operating system can
be booted.
Hard-disk password:
There are two hard-disk passwords (HDPs):
v User HDP—for the user
v Master HDP—for the system administrator, who can use
it to get access to the hard disk even if the user has
changed the user HDP
Note:
There are two modes for the HDP: User only and
Master + User. The Master + User mode requires
two HDPs; the system administrator enters both in
the same operation. The system administrator then
provides the user HDP to the system user.
Attention: If the user HDP has been forgotten, check
whether a master HDP has been set. If it has, it can be
used for access to the hard-disk drive. If no master HDP is
available, IBM does not provide any services to reset
either the user or the master HDP, or to recover data from
the hard-disk drive. The hard-disk drive can be replaced
for a scheduled fee.
Supervisor password:
A supervisor password (SVP) protects the system
information stored in the IBM BIOS Setup Utility. The SVP
must be entered in order to get access to the IBM BIOS
Setup Utility and make changes to system configuration
settings.
Attention: If the SVP has been forgotten and cannot be
made available to the servicer, there is no service
procedure to reset the password. The system board must
be replaced for a scheduled fee.
How to remove the power-on password
To remove a POP that you have forgotten, do the
following:
(A) If no SVP has been set:
1. Turn off the computer.
2. Remove the battery pack.
For how to remove the battery pack, see “1010 Battery
pack” on page 64.
3. Remove the backup battery.
For how to remove the backup battery, see “1070
Backup battery” on page 81.
Related service information
General descriptions 31