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System Setup Options: Dell™ Latitude™ CPt C-Series/CPi R-Series User's Guide

AC • Admin Password • Alarm Resume • Asset Tag • Audio Mode • Battery • Battery Status • BIOS Version • Boot First Device • Boot Second Device • Boot Third Device • Boot Speed • Brightness • Click Volume • Configure Setup • Date • Disk Time-Out • Diskette Drive A • Diskette Drive B •  Diskette Reconfig • Display Close • Display Time-out • Docking Ethernet • Docking IRQ • Docking Status • External Hot Key • Infrared Data Port • Infrared Mode • Internal Cache • Internal Hard Drive • Keyboard Click • Modular Bay • Microprocessor • Parallel Mode • Pointing Device • Power Management • Primary Password • Ring/Event Resume • S2D Time-out • Serial Port • Service Tag • Smart CPU Mode • Suspend Time-out • System Memory • System Primary • Time • Universal Connect • Video Memory

AC

AC, an option under Power Management, allows you to set different time-outs for the following options when you operate your computer from AC power: Display Time-out, Disk Time-out, Suspend Time-out, S2D Time-out, Smart CPU Mode, and Brightness.

A change to the AC option takes effect immediately (rebooting is not required).

Admin Password

Admin Password displays the current status of your administrator password and allows you to assign or change this password. Settings for this option are:

• Disabled (the default) — Indicates that no administrator password is assigned.
  
  
• Enabled — Indicates that an administrator password is currently assigned.

The administrator password is designed for use by system administrators and service technicians in corporate environments. If an administrator password is assigned, you can use it to access the computer even if you do not know the primary password.
 

CAUTION: The password features provide a high level of security for the data in your computer. However, they are not foolproof. If your data requires more security, you should obtain and use additional forms of protection, such as data encryption programs or PC Cards with encryption features.

Alarm Resume

The Alarm Resume option directs the computer to resume normal operation when it is in suspend mode and detects an alarm from the real-time clock (RTC). Such alarms can be set through various application programs. In order for the alarms in these programs to work, the Alarm Resume option must be set to Enabled.

Settings for this option are:

• Enabled (the default) — Resumes normal operation when the computer detects an alarm.
• Disabled — Keeps the computer in suspend mode even if the computer detects an alarm.

A change to the Alarm Resume option takes effect immediately (rebooting is not required).

Asset Tag

The Asset Tag option displays the asset tag code if you or your organization assigned one to your computer.

For more information, see "Asset Tag Utility."

Audio Mode

Audio Mode manages the audio resources of the computer and the external devices you use with it. The default is Full Duplex, which allows the computer's audio system to play and record sounds simultaneously.

Battery

Battery, an option of Power Management, allows you to set different time-outs for the following options when you operate your computer from battery power: Display Time-out, Disk Time-out, Suspend Time-out, S2D Time-out, Smart CPU Mode, and Brightness.

A change to the Battery option takes effect immediately (rebooting is not required).

Battery Status

Battery Status (page 3 of the System Setup screens) is a graphical representation of the approximate amount of charge left in the main and secondary batteries. No user-selectable settings are available for this option. If a battery is not installed in the main battery compartment or in the modular bay, the battery gauge illustration indicates Battery Status: Not Installed.

If you are not in the System Setup program, you can see the battery gauge illustration at any time by pressing <Fn><F3>.

BIOS Version

BIOS Version displays the version number and release date of the BIOS in your computer. A service technician may ask you for this version number if you call Dell for technical assistance.
 

NOTE: Dell may periodically offer revisions of the BIOS that add features or solve specific problems. Because the BIOS for your computer is stored on a reprogrammable flash-memory chip, you can use the Flash BIOS Update program to update your computer's BIOS entirely through software.

Boot First Device

Boot First device determines which disk device your computer uses to find the software needed to start the operating system.

The term boot refers to the computer's start-up procedure. When you turn on the computer, it "bootstraps" itself into an operational state by loading into memory a small program, which in turn loads the necessary operating system. Boot First device tells the computer where to look first for the files that it needs to load.

Settings for this option are:

• Diskette Drive (the default) — Causes your computer to attempt first to boot from a bootable diskette

• Internal HDD — Causes your computer to boot from the hard-disk drive

• CD-ROM Drive — Causes your computer to attempt first to boot from a bootable CD
   
• Modular Bay HDD — Causes your computer to attempt first to boot from the second hard-disk drive installed in the modular bay

For a change in the Boot First device option to take effect, you must reboot your computer.

Boot Second Device

If the computer cannot find the software it needs to start the operating system on the drive identified in Boot First device, it will search the device named in Boot Second device.

Settings for the option are:

• Internal HDD (the default) — Causes your computer to attempt to boot from the hard-disk drive
   
• Diskette Drive — Causes your computer to attempt to boot from the diskette drive
   
• CD-ROM Drive — Causes your computer to attempt to boot from a bootable CD
   
• Modular Bay HDD — Causes your computer to boot from the second hard-disk drive installed in the modular bay
   
• None

For a change in the Boot Second device option to take effect, you must reboot your computer.

Boot Third Device

If the computer cannot find the software it needs to start the operating system on the drive identified in Boot Second device, it will search the device named in Boot Third device.

Settings for the option are:

• None (the default)
   
• Internal HDD — Causes your computer to attempt to boot from the hard-disk drive
   
• Diskette Drive — Causes your computer to attempt to boot from the diskette drive
   
• CD-ROM Drive  — Causes your computer to attempt to boot from a bootable CD
   
• Modular Bay HDD  — Causes your computer to attempt to boot from the second hard-disk drive installed in the modular bay

For a change in the Boot Third device option to take effect, you must reboot your computer.

Boot Speed

Boot Speed allows you to choose between the computer's processing speed (the default) and Compatible, a slower compatibility speed. The compatibility speed varies, depending on the configuration of your system.

When you change the setting in the Boot Speed option, the System Setup program stores and continues to display the new setting even if you do not reboot your computer when you exit the System Setup program. If you start the System Setup program again during your current work session, the processing speed displayed for the Boot Speed option may not match the actual speed at which your computer is running.

For a change in the Boot Speed option to take effect, you must reboot your computer.

Brightness

Brightness allows you to specify the brightness of the display when the computer is operating on battery power. Use the left- and right-arrow keys to change the brightness of the display. When the computer is powered by a battery, the default is Minimum. If the computer is using AC power, the default is Maximum.

A change to the Brightness option takes effect immediately (rebooting is not required).

Click Volume

Click Volume allows you to disable or adjust the volume of the keyboard clicks if the Keyboard Click option is enabled. The default is Maximum.

A change to the Click Volume option takes effect immediately (rebooting is not required).

Configure Setup

Configure Setup allows you to restrict access to the System Setup program in the same way a system password restricts access to the system. Only available when you set the administrator password.

Date

Date resets the date on the computer's internal calendar.

Your computer automatically displays the day of the week corresponding to the settings in the three fields that follow (month, day-of-the-month, and year).

A change to the Date option takes effect immediately (rebooting is not required). However, you must reboot to make the change apparent to the operating system.

To change the date, press the right-arrow key to increase the number in the highlighted field, or press the left-arrow key to decrease the number. If you prefer, you can type in numbers in the month and day-of-the-month fields.

Disk Time-out

Disk Time-out lets you determine how long your hard-disk drive remains idle before the drive motor turns off to conserve battery power.

The AC option is set to Disabled. No user-selectable settings are available for this option. Settings for Battery option are:
 

The default is 3 Minutes if the computer is powered by a battery or 1 Minute if the computer is using AC power. To increase battery operating time, set Disk Time-out to a lower number. However, if your software requires frequent hard-disk drive accesses, using a higher time-out setting may save battery power and time by minimizing the number of times the hard-disk drive must power up.
 

NOTE: Set Disk Time-out to Disabled if using it causes compatibility problems with your software.

A change to the Disk Time-out option takes effect immediately (rebooting is not required).

If you are not in the System Setup program, you can turn off the hard-disk drive immediately by pressing <Fn><h>. The drive resumes normal operation automatically when it is accessed by the microprocessor.

Diskette Drive A

Diskette Drive A identifies the location of the 3.5-inch diskette drive: Modular Bay, Parallel Port, or Not Installed. No user-selectable settings are available for this option.

Diskette Drive B

Diskette Drive B identifies the location of a second 3.5-inch diskette drive: Parallel Port, Modular Bay, or Not Installed. No user-selectable settings are available for this option.

Diskette Reconfig

Diskette Reconfig allows application programs that access the diskette drive to run at their optimum speed. Settings are At Reboot Only and Any Time.

When Diskette Reconfig is set to Any Time (the default), you do not have to reboot after you install a diskette drive in the modular bay or attach a diskette drive to the parallel connector on the back of the computer. However, some application programs such as virus scans that access the diskette drive will run very slowly if the diskette drive is not in the modular bay or connected to the parallel port. When Diskette Reconfig is set to At Reboot Only, such application programs run at normal speed, but you must reboot after installing or attaching a diskette drive.

Display Close

Display Close lets you determine whether your computer enters suspend mode when the display is closed or whether only the display is turned off.

• Suspend (the default)  — Allows the computer to enter suspend mode when the display is closed.
   
• Active — Turns off the display, but does not put the computer into suspend mode.

Display Time-out

Display Time-out lets you decide how long the computer operates with no input/output (I/O) activity before turning off the display to conserve battery power.

Settings for this option in both the AC and Battery categories are:
 

The default is 4 Minutes. To increase battery operating time, set Display Time-out to a lower number of minutes.
 

NOTE: Set the Display Time-out option to Disabled if using it causes compatibility problems with your software.

A change to the Display Time-out option takes effect immediately (rebooting is not required).

If you are not in the System Setup program, you can turn off the display immediately by pressing <Fn><d>. The display resumes normal operation automatically when you press a key, move the cursor, or press the power button.

Docking Ethernet

Docking Ethernet controls the internal ethernet controller in the a Dell Latitude C/Port Family Advanced Port Replicator (C/Port APR) or C/Dock Family Expansion Station. A change to this option takes effect when you reboot.

Docking IRQ

Docking IRQ tells the computer which IRQ to assign to the docking station or replicator during the boot sequence. If this option is set to Optimized, the docking station or replicator is assigned a dedicated IRQ during the boot sequence. Select IRQ 11 if a peripheral device requires the use of the dedicated IRQ.

Docking Status

Docking Status shows whether the computer is attached to a Dell Latitude C/Port Family APR or C/Dock Family Expansion Station. No user-selectable settings are available for this option.

External Hot Key

External Hot Key lets you use the <Scroll Lock> key on the external keyboard the same way you use the <Fn> key on the computer's built-in keyboard. Set this option to Scroll Lock (the default) if you are using an external keyboard. Set this option to Not Installed to disable this function on the external keyboard.

Infrared Data Port

Infrared Data Port allows you to avoid resource conflicts by remapping the address of the infrared ports or disabling the port. The COM1, COM2, COM3, and COM4 settings allow you to take advantage of the computer's Fast IR support.

Settings for this option are:

• Disabled — Disables the infrared data port and makes the direct memory access (DMA), interrupt request (IRQ), and I/O resources available for another serial device to use
   
• COM1 — Maps the infrared data port to COM1
   
• COM2 — Maps the infrared data port to COM2
   
• COM3 (the default) — Maps the infrared data port to COM3
   
• COM4 — Maps the infrared data port to COM4

For a change in the Infrared Data Port option to take effect, you must reboot your computer.

Infrared Mode

Infrared Mode manages the infrared resources of the computer and the external devices you use with it.

Internal Cache

Internal Cache tells you how much external cache your computer has. No user-selectable settings are available for this option.

Internal Hard Drive

Internal Hard Drive displays the capacity of your computer's hard-disk drive. No user-selectable settings are available for this option.

Keyboard Click

Keyboard Click lets you choose whether the built-in keyboard makes audible clicking sounds. The Click Volume option must be enabled for this option to function. The volume of the simulated key clicks is controlled by the setting in the Click Volume option.

Settings for this option are Disabled (the default) and Enabled.

A change to the Keyboard Click option takes effect immediately (rebooting is not required).

Modular Bay

Modular Bay identifies the kind of device—Diskette Drive, Battery, or CD-ROM Drive—that is installed in the modular bay. If the modular bay does not contain a device or if a travel bay is installed, this option reads Not Installed. No user-selectable settings are available for this option.

Microprocessor

Microprocessor displays the type and speed of the microprocessor installed on your computer's system board. No user-selectable settings are available for this option.

Parallel Mode

Parallel Mode controls whether the computer's integrated parallel port acts as a Personal System/2 (PS/2)-compatible (Bidirectional) port, Advanced Technology (AT)-compatible (Normal) port, or Extended Capabilities Port (ECP)-compatible port. The default for Parallel Mode is ECP.

Windows 95 and 98 use ECP protocol automatically if it detects an ECP-compatible device.

Set this option according to the type of peripheral device connected to the parallel port. To determine the correct mode to use, see the documentation that came with the device.
 

NOTE: The ECP setting also works for most software written for the AT and PS/2 modes. Devices that use ECP mode may come with special drivers that need to be installed in order to use these modes.

Setting Parallel Mode to Disabled disables the parallel port and its assigned LPT address, freeing its interrupt for another device to use.

For a change in the Parallel Mode option to take effect, you must reboot your computer.

Pointing Device

Pointing Device enables and disables the computer's touch pad.

Settings for this option are:

• Touch Pad-PS/2 Mouse (the default)
   
• Serial Mouse — Disables the touch pad and allows you to use a mouse connected to the serial connector on the I/O port

If you want to use a serial mouse, you must first set the Pointing Device option to Serial Mouse.

For a change in the Pointing Device option to take effect, you must reboot your computer.

Power Management

Power Management (Page 4 of the System Setup screens) allows you to enable or disable power conservation features when the computer is being powered by a battery or AC power.

If you want to use any of the time-out options while using battery power, set the Battery option to Enabled. If you want to use the time-out options while using AC power, the set the AC option to Enabled.

A change to the Power Management option takes effect immediately (rebooting is not required).

Primary Password

Primary Password displays the current status of the primary password and allows you to assign or change this password.

Settings for this option are:

• Disabled (the default) — Indicates that no primary password is assigned
   
• Enabled — Indicates that a primary password is currently assigned

If you assign a primary password, the computer prompts you for the password each time you boot the computer.
 

CAUTION: The password features provide a high level of security for the data in your computer. However, they are not foolproof. If your data requires more security, you should obtain and use additional forms of protection, such as data encryption programs or PC Cards with encryption features.

Ring/Event Resume

Ring/Event Resume lets you determine if the computer exits suspend mode when an installed modem card receives an incoming call. This feature must be supported by your modem PC Card and your operating system.

Settings for this option are:

• Disabled (the default) — Resumes normal operation when the computer detects a modem ring
   
• Enabled — Keeps the computer in suspend mode when the computer detects a modem ring

NOTES: Dell recommends that you set Ring/Event Resume to Disabled when an external serial device, other than a modem, is connected to your computer.

In order for the Ring/Event Resume option to work properly, this feature must be enabled in the device driver for your modem PC Card. All drivers supplied by Dell with your computer are configured to allow the computer to resume normal operation when a modem receives an incoming call. If you use a PC Card that you did not receive from Dell, check the documentation to make sure this feature is set to Enabled.

A change to the Ring/Event Resume option takes effect immediately (rebooting is not required).

S2D Time-out

S2D Time-out lets you determine how long your computer remains idle (no I/O activity) before activating suspend-to-disk (S2D) mode to conserve battery power.

Settings for this option in both the AC and Battery categories are:
 

A change to the S2D Time-out option takes effect immediately (rebooting is not required).

If you are not in the System Setup program, you can activate S2D Time-out  mode at any time by pressing <Fn><a>. Press the power switch to resume from S2D mode.

Serial Port

Serial Port allows you to map the address of the serial port or to disable the serial port.

Settings for this option are:

• COM1 (the default) — Maps the serial port to COM1
   
• COM2 — Maps the serial port to COM2
   
• COM3 — Maps the serial port to COM3
   
• COM4 — Maps the serial port to COM4
   
• Disabled — Disables the serial port and its assigned COM address, freeing that interrupt for another device to use

For a change in the Serial Port option to take effect, you must reboot your computer.

Service Tag

Service Tag displays the computer's five-character service code, which was programmed into NVRAM by Dell during the manufacturing process. Be prepared to supply this identification during technical assistance or service calls. The service tag is also accessed by certain Dell support software, including diagnostics. No user-selectable settings are available for this option.
 

NOTE: Convert the service tag number into an express service code when prompted to do so the first time you turn on the computer (or use the program in the Dell Accessories folder). Keep the code handy in case you call Dell for technical assistance. The code helps Dell's automated support telephone system direct your call more efficiently.

Smart CPU Mode

Smart CPU Mode allows the computer to slow down the microprocessor automatically if it is not being actively used.

Settings for this option are:

• Enabled (the default)  — Saves power and extends battery life by allowing the computer to slow down the microprocessor when it is inactive
   
• Disabled  — Keeps the microprocessor running at its normal operating speed regardless of microprocessor inactivity

NOTES: Some communications software may not work properly when Smart CPU Mode is enabled. Dell recommends that you set Smart CPU Mode to Disabled if you are using communications software.

Interactive application programs should function well when Smart CPU Mode is set to Enabled. (Examples of interactive programs include spreadsheet, text editor, graphics design, entertainment, educational, and utility programs.) However, you may experience performance degradation when recalculating a large spreadsheet or during an extensive screen redraw in a graphical program. Benchmark utilities may not perform as intended when doing microprocessor speed tests. If the software you use suffers significant performance degradation, set Smart CPU Mode to Disabled.

A change to the Smart CPU Mode option takes effect immediately (rebooting is not required).

Suspend Time-out

Suspend Time-out lets you determine how long your computer remains idle before activating suspend mode to conserve battery power.

Settings for this option in both AC and Battery categories are:
 

To increase battery operating time, set the Suspend Time-out option to a lower number of minutes.
 

NOTE: Set the Suspend Time-out option to Disabled if using it causes compatibility problems with your software.

A change to the Suspend Time-out option takes effect immediately (rebooting is not required).

If you are not in the System Setup program, you can activate suspend mode at any time by pressing <Fn><Esc>. The computer resumes normal operation automatically when you press a key on the built-in keyboard.

System Memory

System Memory displays the total amount of synchronous dynamic random-access memory (SDRAM) installed in your computer. No user-selectable settings are available for this option. The amount of memory displayed changes if you install or remove a memory module.

System Primary

System Primary displays the current status of the primary hard-disk drive password and allows you to assign or change this password.

Settings for this option are:

• Disabled (the default) — Indicates that no primary hard-disk drive password is assigned
   
• Enabled — Indicates that a primary hard-disk drive password is currently assigned

CAUTION: The password features provide a high level of security for the data in your computer. However, they are not foolproof. If your data requires more security, you should obtain and use additional forms of protection, such as data encryption programs or PC Cards with encryption features.

Time

Time resets the time on the computer's internal clock. Time is kept in a 24-hour format (hours:minutes:seconds).
 

NOTE: If a network server controls the time reflected by the Time option, changing this option has no effect.

A change to the Time option takes effect immediately (rebooting is not required). However, you must reboot to make the change apparent to the operating system.

Universal Connect

The Universal Connect option functions with the Dell Latitude C/Port Family APR if the computer uses Windows 95 or Windows 98.

Set this option to Enabled (the default) if you often use more than one C/Port APR and want to minimize the initialization time when you connect the replicator to the computer. When this option is set to Disabled, the C/Port APR is reinitialized each time it is connected to the computer.

Video Memory

Video Memory displays the amount of video memory installed on the system board. No user-selectable settings are available for this option.

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