Thermal Shield and Internal Modem Removal: Dell™ Inspiron™ 7000
The thermal shield serves as a heat shield for the system board, as well as an EMI
fence for the processor board.
This procedure assumes that you have removed the keyboard. To remove the
thermal shield, follow these steps:
- Remove the hinge covers.
Open the computer to 170 degrees, supporting the display assembly.
From the outside edge of the unit, carefully insert a flat-blade screwdriver or scribe
into the space on the inside of the hinge cover. Bring the tool against the front wall of
the hinge cover and pull toward the keyboard to loosen the plastic snaps at the back of
the hinge cover. Move the tool to the inside top of the hinge cover and lift the hinge
cover off. If the hinge covers are tight, use a plastic wedge or scribe to loosen and pop
them off.
Be careful not to accidentally turn on the computer when removing the left hinge cover.
- If your computer has an internal modem, disconnect the modem
flex cable from connector JP20 on the system board and disconnect the twisted wire pair
from connector JP2 on the RJ-11 card. Bend the cables back over the palmrest assembly to
move them out of the way of the thermal shield.
- Remove the 4 flat-head 4-mm screws and the 1 K-head 4-mm screw securing
the thermal shield. Note that the K-head screw is leftmost and is thicker than the other
4.
- Remove the thermal shield from the palmrest assembly. Note that the
bottom of the shield has an EMI fence that surrounds the processor board.
- If needed, remove the 2 screws securing the EMI fingers to the thermal
shield and remove the fingers.
- If you have an internal modem, remove it by inserting a screwdriver
through the circular opening and pulling the modem carrier box carefully toward the back
of the computer. Lift the top off the metal carrier and remove the modem card if needed.
Disconnect the flex cable from the modem card if needed.