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Lenovo Thinkcentre/ThinkStation Tiny (Project TinyMiniMicro) Reference Thread

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Parallax

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Nov 8, 2020
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Does anyone know if it is easy to unlock/reflash a bios on these? I got a m720q for a steal on ebay, but most options are locked out in bios (like uefi etc), and I don't have either the bios or windows pw.
I've not had to do this, but I see there's a method to reset the BIOS on the M710q which you could try if there's something analogous on the M720q and report back here. :)
 
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michmerr

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  • Riser cards. Remember the slot is PCIe x8.
    • The riser card for the Mx20q is FRU 01AJ902 (8x) or 01AJ940 ("16x", ha) and perhaps 01AJ929 will work too. For the 01AJ940 you can get it from Superbuy via two places for about £17/$22 plus shipping.
    • For the P340 and M90q the riser card part numbers are 5C50W00876 (x4) and 5C50W00876 (x16, but remember the slot is only x8). I found it available on a popular auction site for £27/$35.
I think the x16 part for the m90q is 5C50W00877.
 

tinfoil3d

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It's easy to look up FRU on support.lenovo website by entering either your serial or just entering model number and then selecting the correct "type" from menu that matches first 4 or so letters of your model number. And then for US order on encompass or elsewhere.
 

Parallax

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@Parallax You can also link to my p340 tiny notes thread https://forums.servethehome.com/index.php?threads/p340-tiny-guide.33278/ , or let me know if it's too bad and needs some further formatting.
Also this thread should be included into reference material list. It's truly great.
Thank you! I'll link through to it, it's a very helpful "living with it" type guide which fleshes things out; my post for the moment I realise is more a pre-purchase checklist/reference and it probably needs more lifecycle-type information.
 
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Parallax

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It's easy to look up FRU on support.lenovo website by entering either your serial or just entering model number and then selecting the correct "type" from menu that matches first 4 or so letters of your model number. And then for US order on encompass or elsewhere.
Absolutely, although I'm also not entirely sure when and whether it's then best to search for the part numbers or FRUs, plus Lenovo's naming of the parts is sometimes obscure* and if there isn't a photo you might not be getting what you expect. If you're trying to buy a part for the lowest possible price - so second hand, China direct imports, or "it fell off the back of the truck" type purchases through eBay or Taobao - I often see the parts listed with FRUs only and the part number only mentioned occasionally. I'm afraid for now my post is a bit of a mix of both FRUs and part numbers but I'll try to improve it as we go.

* For example I was very happy recently to buy a "Tiny Sandwich Kit" which is actually what you need to attach one of these to a monitor using a VESA mounting point. Amusing, but not particularly intuitive, naming.
 
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Parallax

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One of my Tinys is missing the chassis screw - the big flat one at the rear that holds the two halves of the case together. I'm not particularly interested to pay what people want for the actual replacement part - £20-25! o_O - so does anyone happen to know what size/thread the screw is? I thought I could replace it with a nice thumbscrew so I don't have to hunt out a screwdriver each time I want to change the RAM or drive.
 

cptcrunch

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Dec 14, 2021
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Thanks for this. Does it get very hot? And if you're comfortable sharing, I'm interested what you're using all that network capacity for?
I'm not pushing a ton of traffic through it, but it seemed warm-hot, but not hot enough that I'm concerned.

I use pfsense as a router-on-a-stick config and have lots of vlans that pass traffic throughout the day. So it made sense to "go big" and get a 10gb card instead of a 4x1gbe card for pfsense. Also I have fiber to the home and there have been discussions about bumping that up to 2.5gbe so I'm future proofed for straight fiber if they provide that.
 
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cptcrunch

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One of my Tinys is missing the chassis screw - the big flat one at the rear that holds the two halves of the case together. I'm not particularly interested to pay what people want for the actual replacement part - £20-25! o_O - so does anyone happen to know what size/thread the screw is? I thought I could replace it with a nice thumbscrew so I don't have to hunt out a screwdriver each time I want to change the RAM or drive.
I used a standard case thumbscrew and it worked fine for me.
 
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Parallax

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I used a standard case thumbscrew and it worked fine for me.
Thanks. £24 (US$32) here for the genuine Lenovo replacement, but pity the Australians - A$114 (US$83) - plus shipping - for it. Just imagine, you fork out that amount of money and then in a few days get an envelope you'd probably suspect was empty based on its weight. :confused:

I've ordered both 3mm and 3.5mm screws since I couldn't decide which it was. 10 thumbscrews in each size, total was £4 including shipping. I should quit my job and just sell spare Lenovo chassis screws at 20% off retail, retire in 5 years.
 
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tinfoil3d

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over the years i accumulated a lot of those and all sorts of screws in general. just keep all of em before disassembling some ewaste next time. thumbscrews are rare indeed though
 
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M_server

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I've not had to do this, but I see there's a method to reset the BIOS on the M710q which you could try if there's something analogous on the M720q and report back here. :)
For anyone searching in the future, this did in fact work for me! Other lenovo instructions did not fwiw
 
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986box

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Is it possible to install 10g card using the t340 bracket on m715q? Looked up the coompatible parts and t340 is not listed?
 

Parallax

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I've updated the posting with the BIOS/CMOS reset information and added some new information on the Lenovo Thunderbolt 3 card. Also added the size of the rear chassis thumbscrew since I have received my screw shipment(s).
 

Parallax

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For anyone searching in the future, this did in fact work for me! Other lenovo instructions did not fwiw
Could you confirm which pins you jumpered? The jumper lives on pins 5-6 and the writing on the board says cover 2-4 to clear CMOS. However, there's a thread that says you need to do 3-4.

20220124_135731.jpg
 

986box

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Passed on m75q with 2400GE. What is a good source for the riser and bracket?
 

Parallax

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Nov 8, 2020
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Passed on m75q with 2400GE. What is a good source for the riser and bracket?
The source I suggest in the post is Taobao in China via Superbuy, it's linked in the first post directly to the item.

Note the M75q doesn't have the PCIe slot either?