The System Setup program allows you to view or configure system and hardware device settings.
You can use the System Setup program to:
Change the system configuration stored in NVRAM after you add, change, or remove hardware
Change user-selectable options (for example, system time or date)
Enable or disable integrated devices
After installing the system, run the System Setup program to familiarize your self with the system configuration and optional settings. Print the System Setup screens (by pressing <Print Screen>), or record the information for later reference.
Entering the System Setup Program
Enter the System Setup program as follows:
Turn on or restart the system.
Press <F2> immediately when you see the following message:
Press <F2> for System Setup
You can also press <F10> to enter Utility Mode or <F12> for the PXE boot. PXE
boot forces the system to boot from the network.
If you wait too long to press a button, let the system finish booting and then restart the system.
NOTE: To ensure an orderly system shutdown, consult the documentation that
accompanied the 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>.
Responding to Error Messages
If an error message appears on the screen while the system is booting, make a note of the message. Then, before entering the System Setup program, see "Indicators, Codes, and Messages" for an explanation of the message and suggestions for correcting any errors. (It is normal to receive an error message the first time you boot the system after installing a memory upgrade. In that situation, do not refer to "Indicators, Codes, and Messages." Instead, follow the instructions for performing a memory upgrade in "Performing a Memory Upgrade").
If you are given an option of pressing either <F1> to continue or <F2> to run the System Setup program, press the <F2> key.
Using the System Setup Program
Table 3-1 lists the keys used to view or change information on the System Setup screens and to exit the program.
Keys
Action
Down arrow or <Tab>
Moves to the next field.
Up arrow or <Tab><Shift>
Moves to the previous field.
Space bar, <+>, or <–>
Cycles through the settings in a field. In some fields, you can also type the appropriate value.
<Esc>
Exits the System Setup program and reboots the system if any changes were made.
For most of the options, any changes you make are recorded but do not take effect until the next time you boot the system. For a few options (as noted in the help area), the changes take effect immediately.
System Setup Options
The following subsections outline the options on the System Setup screens.
Main Screen
When the System Setup program runs, the main program screen appears (see Figure 6-1). Fields that have no user-selectable settings are displayed in blue on the screen.
NOTE: The System Setup screen may vary from Figure 6-1 if optional hardware is
installed in the system.
Figure 6-1. Main System Setup Screen
The following options and 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: — Identifies the type of diskette drive installed in the 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. Some operating systems will not install with more than 2 GB of system memory. When set to On, the maximum memory available is 256 MB. When set to Off (default), all system memory is available to the operating system. Turn this option On during operating system installation and Off after installation.
CPU Information — Displays information related to the system bus and microprocessors.
The CPU Information option on the System Setup main screen displays information about the different processors in the system (speed, cache size, and so on). After you display the microprocessorinformation, you can enable or disable Hyper-Threading by changing the setting of the Logical Processor option. (The default is enabled.)
More information regarding Hyper-Threading can be found at developer.intel.com.
Primary Drive 0 — Identifies the type of IDE device attached as drive 0 on the primary IDE channel. Press <Enter> to display information about drive capacity, cylinders, heads, and sectors or to change the drive type.
Primary Drive 1— Identifies the type of IDE device attached as drive 1 on the primary IDE channel. Press <Enter> to display information about drive capacity, cylinders, heads, and sectors or to change the drive type.
Secondary Drive 0 — Identifies the type of IDE device attached as drive 0 on the secondary IDE channel. Press <Enter> to display information about the device.
Secondary Drive 1 — Identifies the type of IDE device attached as drive 1 on the secondary IDE channel. Press <Enter> to display information about the device.
Maximum UDMA Mode — Determines the speed at which the optional IDE hard drives will operate. Higher settings may improve performance. However, not all operating systems support the higher speeds without service-pack updates or patches applied.
Boot Sequence — Displays the Boot Sequence screen, which allows you to configure the order in which the system searches for files required during the system startup. Available options include the diskette drive (default), CD drive (or optional DVD or combination drive), hard drive, or NIC (allowing PXE boot from the network). 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 — Displays the Hard-Disk Drive Sequence screen, which allows you to configure the order in which the system searches hard drives for files required during the system startup. The choices depend on the particular hard drives installed in the 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 — Displays a screen that allows you to configure devices on the system board. See "Integrated Devices Screen."
PCI IRQ Assignment — Displays a screen that allows you to change the IRQ allocated to each of the integrated devices on the PCI bus or any installed expansion card requiring an IRQ.
Console Redirection — Displays a screen 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.
PCIX Slot Information — Displays information about the system's PCI-X slots. This information can be used to determine the most appropriate slot to add a card for optimal performance.
Keyboard Numlock — Determines whether the system boots with the Num Lock mode activated on 101- or 102-key keyboards (this option does not apply to 84-key keyboards).
Report Keyboard Errors — 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 to the keyboard controller during POST. This setting does not affect the operation of the keyboard itself if a keyboard is attached.
Asset Tag — Displays the customer-programmable asset tag number for the system if an asset tag number has been assigned. To enter an asset tag number of up to 10 characters into NVRAM, see "Asset Tag Utility."
Integrated Devices Screen
The following devices on the system board are configured through this screen:
SCSI Controller —Enables or disables the SCSI subsystem. The default is On.
Diskette Controller — Enables or disables the system's diskette drive controller. With Auto (default) selected, the system turns off the controller when necessary to accommodate a controller card installed in an expansion slot. With Read Only selected, diskettes can be read, but cannot be written to.
IDE Controller — Enables or disables the IDE controllers.
USB Controller — Sets the USB controller status to On with BIOS Support (default), On Without BIOS Support, or Off. If you have a PS/2 keyboard attached, On Without BIOS Support disables BIOS USB support. If you do not have a PS/2 keyboard attached and select On Without BIOS Support, USB mice and keyboards function only during the boot process. When set to On With BIOS Support, USB mice and keyboards are controlled by the BIOS until an operating system driver is loaded.
Network Interface Controller — Determines whether the PXE system boot option is enabled. The available options are Enabled with PXE and Enabled without PXE (default).
NIC MAC Address — Displays the MAC address used by the integrated NIC. This field has no user-selectable settings.
Serial Port 1 — Configures the system's integrated serial port; the options can be set to Auto (the default) to automatically configure a port, to a particular COM 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.
Speaker — Enables or disables the system speaker.
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 port.
System Security Screen
You can set the following security features through the System Security screen:
System Password — Displays the current status of the system's password security feature and allows you to assign and verify a new password.
NOTE: See "Using the System Password Feature" for instructions on assigning a system
password and using or changing an existing system password. For more information on
disabling a forgotten password, see "Jumpers and Connectors."
Setup Password — Allows you to restrict access to the System Setup program in the same way that you restrict access to the system with the system password feature.
NOTE: See "Using the Setup Password Feature" for instructions on assigning a setup
password and using or changing an existing setup password. For more information on
disabling a forgotten password, see "Jumpers and Connectors."
Password Status — When Setup Password is set to Enabled, this option prevents 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 (default). 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.
Chassis Intrusion — Enables or disables the system's chassis intrusion detection feature. When this option is set to Enabled-Silent, chassis intrusions are detected, but no warning message is reported during system startup. When this option is set to Enabled, the field automatically shows Detected when the chassis cover is removed. To acknowledge an intrusion and arm the system for future security breaches, press any navigation key.
NOTE: When a remote access card is installed in the system, the chassis intrusion function
is controlled by the remote access card. Therefore, the BIOS does not detect chassis
intrusion functionality or events.
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 using an operating system such as Microsoft® Windows® 2000 that is compliant with the ACPI specification). If this option is set to Disabled, you cannot use the power button to turn off the system.
Exit Screen
After you press <Esc> to exit the System Setup program, the Exit screen displays the following choices:
Save Changes and Exit
Discard Changes and Exit
Return to Setup
Using the System Password Feature
NOTICE: The password features provide a basic level of security for the data on the system.
However, if the data requires more security, you should obtain and use additional forms of
protection, such as data encryption programs.
The system is shipped to you without a system password assigned. If system security is a concern, you should create a password and operate the system with system password protection.
You can assign a system password through the System Setup program. After a system password is assigned, only those with 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 Setup Password"). If you assign and later forget a system password, you must remove the system cover to change a jumper setting that disables the system password feature. Note that changing the jumper setting also erases the setup password. For more information on disabling a forgotten password, see "Jumpers and Connectors."
NOTICE: If you leave the system running and unattended without a system password assigned
or if you leave the system unlocked so that someone can disable the password by changing a
jumper setting, anyone can access the data stored on the hard drive.
Assigning a System Password
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 for the System Password option is Enabled. When the system password feature is disabled by a jumper setting on the system board, the setting is Disabled by Jumper. You cannot change or enter a new system password if either of these settings is displayed.
When no system password is assigned and the password jumper on the system board is in the enabled position (its default), the setting shown for the System Password option is Not Enabled. You can assign a system password only when this option is set to Not Enabled, using the following procedure:
Verify that the Password Status option is set to Unlocked.
Highlight the System Password option and then press the space bar, <+>, or <–>
key.
Type the new system password.
You can use up to seven characters in the 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 the 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 the password, press the <Backspace> key or the left-arrow key.
NOTE: To escape from the field without assigning a system password, press <Esc> at any
time prior to completing step 5.
Press <Enter>.
If the new system password is less than seven characters, the whole field fills with placeholders. Then the option heading changes to Verify Password, followed by another empty seven-character field in square brackets.
To confirm the password, type it a second time and press <Enter>.
The password setting changes to Enabled. The system password is now set. When you exit the System Setup program, the system will reboot and system password protection will be in effect.
Using the System Password to Secure the System
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>, the system boots and you can use the keyboard or mouse to operate the system as usual.
NOTE: If you have assigned a setup password (see "Using the Setup Password
Feature"), the system accepts the 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 time 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 the system.
Even after the 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 the System
Password and Setup Password options to further protect the system from unauthorized
changes.
Deleting or Changing an Existing System Password
Reboot the system.
When prompted, type the system password.
To change the system password or if the Password Status option is set to Locked, press <Enter> after typing the system password.
If you want to delete the system password and the Password Status option is set to Unlocked, you can delete the system password without entering the System Setup program by pressing <CTRL><Enter> after typing the system password.
To enter the System Setup program and change or delete the system password, press
<F2>.
Select the System Security option and press <Enter>.
Highlight the System Password option and press <Enter>.
To delete the existing setup password, press <Enter> twice.
When you have finished making changes, save the changes you have made and exit
the System Setup program.
Using the Setup Password Feature
The system is shipped to you without a setup password assigned. If system security is a concern, you should create a setup password and operate the system with setup password protection.
You can assign a setup password using 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 the system or change settings in the System Setup program until you open the system chassis, change the password jumper setting to disable the passwords, and erase the existing passwords. For more information on disabling a forgotten password, see "Jumpers and Connectors."
Assigning a Setup 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 space bar, <+>, or <–> 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 (rebooting the system is not required).
Operating With a Setup Password Enabled
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 setup password.
If you do not enter the correct password in three tries, the system lets you view, but not modify, the System Setup screens—with the following exceptions:
You can still modify the Date, Time, Keyboard Num Lock, and Speaker options.
If System Password is not enabled and is not locked using the Password Status option, you can assign a system password (however, you cannot delete 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.
Deleting or Changing an Existing Setup Password
To delete or change an existing setup password, perform the following steps:
Enter the System Setup program and select the System Security option.
Highlight the Setup Password option and press the left- or right-arrow key to delete
the existing setup password.
For information on disabling a forgotten password by resetting the system password jumper, see "Jumpers and Connectors.
Asset Tag Utility
You can use the Asset Tag utility to assign a unique tracking number to the system. This number is displayed on the System Setup program main screen.
NOTE: The Asset Tag utility works only with operating systems that support
MS-DOS®-based applications.
Creating the Asset Tag Utility Diskette
Insert the Dell OpenManage Server Assistant CD into the CD drive of a system
running a Microsoft Windows operating system, and reboot the system.
Insert a blank diskette into the system's diskette drive.
Click System Tools on the Dell OpenManage Server Assistant main screen.
Select Create CD Boot Diskette.
Assigning or Deleting an Asset Tag Number
Insert the Asset Tag utility diskette that you created into the diskette drive, and reboot
the system.
You can either assign or delete an asset tag number.
To assign an asset tag number, type asset and a space followed by the new string.
An asset tag number can have up to 10 characters. Any combination of characters is valid. For example, at the a:\> prompt, type the following command and press <Enter>:
asset 12345abcde
To delete an asset tag number without assigning a new one, typeasset /d and press <Enter>.
When prompted to verify the change to the asset tag number, type y and press
<Enter>.
To view the Asset Tag utility help screen, typeasset /? and press <Enter>.
