OT Password problem -

[Matthew Woehlke]

On 2015-07-08 17:47, Bob Goodwin - Zuni, Virginia, USA wrote:
> I bought a used Dell Latitude E4310 that I want to replace Windows7 on
> with Fedora-22. Unfortunately the BIOS is locked and I do not have the
> admin password for it. A phone call to Dell was unproductive and none of
> the passwords offered in an on-line application work. Does anyone know
> what I can do to access this computer. I can return it, bought through
> Newegg, but it looks good so far, in new condition and the price is
> right. It even has a working battery.

In my experience, *new* Dell machines do not have locked BIOS. However,
I have a friend who recently bought a "refurbished" Dell machine that
had been BIOS locked. It's most likely the entity that "refurbished" the
machine that locked the BIOS. You'll need to contact them to obtain the
password / do research on them (not Dell) to find typically used passwords.

Personally I consider this practice abhorrent and would never buy such a
machine or deal with sellers that engage in such practices. Also, FWIW,
this friend has had terrible problems with his machine. (A locked BIOS
is a red flag; the seller doesn't want you to have full control of the
system. You'd better ask yourself *why?*. It may be to try to extort
money out of you later for service, or it may be to hide a problem with
the machine. Either one isn't good news for you.)

My advice: don't buy used computers. Build your own from new parts, or
buy new from a reputable dealer. With used, you never know what you're
getting (e.g. did someone sell it because some hardware component is
going bad?) and you can easily end up having to spend more money to fix
it than if you'd bought new.

-- 
Matthew