Completely reset HP 6730b with BIOS password

Question

I have an HP 6730b laptop with a BIOS password and Windows XP password. I do not need any of the content on the disk, I would just like to be able to reset everything and start again from scratch.

Is there any way to achieve this?

Edit: It appears that HP Credential Manager has been used to password the BIOS. This could be why none of the methods I have tried are working.

Answer 1

None of the answers above worked, but I did manage to restore it, this is what I did:

• Took the hard drive out and put it in the same model computer.
• Booted to the Windows XP install CD, and installed XP.
• Put the hard drive back into the original computer.

Voila! Of course, for this to work, you need another computer which is the same model. I was lucky enough to have one.

Answer 2

The article How to Reset a BIOS Password covers the following methods:

• Using a Backdoor BIOS Password
• Resetting the BIOS Password using Software
• Resetting the BIOS Password using Hardware
• Vendor Specific Solutions for resetting the BIOS Password

Another article is How to clear an unknown BIOS password. Covering similar grounds, it also contains some images.

Another possibility to recover the password at $20 is with mastermindit.biz (never used them).

From your Maintenance and Service Guide computer manual page 43 :

Unknown user password

If the computer you are servicing has an unknown user password, follow these steps to clear the password:

1. Shut down the computer. If you are unsure whether the computer is off or in Hibernation, turn the computer on, and then shut it down through the operating system.
2. Disconnect all external devices connected to the computer.
3. Disconnect the power from the computer by first unplugging the power cord from the AC outlet and then unplugging the AC adapter from the computer.
4. Remove the real-time clock (RTC) battery (see RTC battery on page 54).
5. Remove the battery (see Battery on page 46).
6. Wait approximately 5 minutes.
7. Replace the RTC battery and reassemble the computer.
8. Connect AC power to the computer. Do not reinsert any batteries at this time.
9. Turn on the computer.

All passwords and all CMOS settings have been cleared.

If this doesn't work, then your laptop may be of a newer model where the password is stored in an EEPROM security chip. Removing the power does not erase an EEPROM, it has to be reprogrammed. What that means is you need to know the password to change the password.

If you can prove ownership the manufacturer may be able to help you out. The BIOS may have a back door password that tech support can use to get in. If you Google it you might get lucky and find one that works. That info can be hard to find as you can imagine the manufactures don't like to see it on the internet.

Answer 3

How to calculate your own master password for the bios, save $20

http://dogber1.blogspot.com/2009/05/table-of-reverse-engineered-bios.html