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I got a Dell d600 but i cannot get into cmos setup

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Short summary and a safe plan of action for a Dell Latitude D600 that won’t let you into CMOS/BIOS (ties to the replies above):

Many people here have suggested the usual quick checks — mentioned the RTC/coin‑cell reset and pointed out entering Setup with F2 — and those are fine first attempts. On a D600, though, the setup/admin password is commonly kept in a board EEPROM (not just volatile CMOS), so removing the small watch battery or doing a simple power‑drain can reset time/date but frequently will not remove an admin/master lock. Technical references list the D600 as using a 24C04 EEPROM for the password store (so the simple coin‑cell trick may fail). (cgsecurity.org)

Practical next steps (low → higher risk):

  • Confirm whether the prompt is a BIOS (setup) password or a hard‑drive password — they’re different and handled differently.
  • If you can reach the BIOS (F2) and know a password, change it there. If truly locked out, note the exact service‑tag/system number text shown on the lock screen (the suffix like “-595B” matters; some community generator tools fail for certain suffixes). (techspot.com)
  • Contact Dell Support with the service tag and proof of ownership — Dell can issue recovery assistance but will require verification; avoid unofficial “master password” tools without care. (dell.com)

If Dell can’t help and ownership is clear, hardware recovery options exist (EEPROM read/patch or motherboard replacement). Those require an EEPROM/BIOS programmer (CH341A/flashrom workflows are commonly used) or a professional service — these are advanced, carry risk of bricking the board, and should only be attempted by experienced technicians. (flashrom.org)

Recommendation: try the inexpensive checks mentioned in the thread first; if they fail, contact Dell with the service tag and ownership proof. If Dell won’t assist and the laptop’s value justifies it, use a reputable repair shop for EEPROM work rather than ad‑hoc utilities.

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Member Avatar for happygeek

Have you contacted Dell tech support?

Member Avatar for LucianAdamson

Make sure your computer is shutdown while doing this. Remove the battery. Press the power button after removing the battery to discharge any stored volts. Flip the computer so the battery side is facing you. Unscrew and remove panels until you see a watch battery. It will look like this

Remove this battery. Wait 60 seconds. Replace battery. Replace panels and screw back together. Replace battery, power on. This should have reset your BIOS/CMOS settings. Why does this work? Because this battery is what keeps the minimum amount of voltage running through your CMOS/BIOS chip to keep the settings intact. Removal of this battery restores factory defaults.

Member Avatar for LucianAdamson

Oh, by doing this you will have more than likely have to reset the BIOS time and date to current time and date as well.

Member Avatar for JorgeM

If you press F2 after you boot, it will launch the BIOS setup utility. Source of info:

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