Hey all,
I have had a IBM Thinkpad T20 since July 2000, and it has been great. Sometime earlier this year, it finally stopped booting however. I wonder if anyone might have any ideas on what I can do to salvage this awesome laptop, the support site says that my error means either a problem with the DIMM or the system board.
IBM Thinkpad T20 specs: P3 700MHz, 14.1" TFT, PC100 SODIMMs. Tested 3 DIMMs (probably not the problem), tested without hd as well. I have the following verbose boot up and then it hangs:
CPU = Intel® Mobile Pentium® III processor 700 MHz
640K System RAM Passed
255M Extended RAM Passed
System BIOS shadowed
UMB upper limit segment address: E348
If I try entering BIOS or selecting a temporary boot device, it says that it is starting either option, but never goes anywhere.
I have wondered if maybe it's a dead CMOS battery... Before I couldn't boot at all, my BIOS made me re-input the system time, a couple boots previously. Next thing I know, no boot at all. I hope that's it... I'm reading the hardware repair manual.
Any ideas, thoughts?
These Thinkpads are the best machines... within the next year I'll probably by another T-series but I'd like this one to last a little longer.
Also, off a DELL support page...
UMB Upper limit segment address: nnnn -> Displays the address nnnn of the upper limit of the UMB, indicating released segments of the BIOS which may be reclaimed by a virtual memory manager
Maybe this will give someone an idea...
In considering this, I wonder if maybe my CMOS battery died (without an explicit error, I add, but I never booted verbose until today), and then the ROM holding BIOS info died with it.
I also have a Compaq Presario 1700 I can cannibalize if necessary, as well as Toshiba Satellite whose hd failed (which I might just throw my IBM hd into).
Change your cmos battery and leave your laptop battery out of it when you boot it up. What may be the problem from what I have seen in the past is that when the laptop battery gets to low to hold a charge anymore, it drains too much power from the system and similar responses of system hangs and general failures occur. Give those two a shot and hope that the MB didn't go to crap.
QuoteChange your cmos battery and leave your laptop battery out of it when you boot it up. What may be the problem from what I have seen in the past is that when the laptop battery gets to low to hold a charge anymore, it drains too much power from the system and similar responses of system hangs and general failures occur. Give those two a shot and hope that the MB didn't go to crap.
Oooo.... Good thought on the battery. This battery has been very dead... back in 2001-2002 I used it as a desktop and I didn't take care to discharge/recharge the battery.
Thanks a lot, will try.
did that work for you.
Wish I could say it has. I don't have a CMOS battery replacement yet (no time to search and buy one). Thanks for checking up.