Lenovo M700/M900 BIOS mod to Coffee Lake CPUs

[TJ420]

Try this

I really appreciate all the suggestions. I tried the two pins above, I actually redid all the tape and tested as I added each strip. I think my CPU might be dead, I hope not due to the scratches... I ordered a M920s so I can test this i7 8700. It might be a week or two, will report back.

It's interesting that without any CPU the machine powers on for 1-2 seconds vs the split second it powers on with the 8700. Does that mean 100% that I'm not blocking the pins correctly? Should the metal tape be conductive on one side and isolating on the other? I'm debating putting a dot of solder on the CPU

 

[TJ420]

I tried flashing the premade modded M900 and my self-modded BIOS was the issue all along. I'm able to boot off the m2 drive that's in a pci-e adapter but no display out of the GPU. When I disconnect the video card and use internal VGA it goes right into windows. USB and LAN appear to be working.

Another weird thing : my ram wasn't originally working, I was getting the 3-short 1-long beep indicating mem error. Swapped out with some slow 2133mhz for the initial first boots and now my 3200mhz ram is working fine (at reduced speed).

How do I get the GPU working from pci-e slot 1? How can I get my ram running at 2666?

 

[home_company]

I really appreciate all the suggestions. I tried the two pins above, I actually redid all the tape and tested as I added each strip. I think my CPU might be dead, I hope not due to the scratches... I ordered a M920s so I can test this i7 8700. It might be a week or two, will report back.

It's interesting that without any CPU the machine powers on for 1-2 seconds vs the split second it powers on with the 8700. Does that mean 100% that I'm not blocking the pins correctly? Should the metal tape be conductive on one side and isolating on the other? I'm debating putting a dot of solder on the CPU

Metal tape is just for EC of the mainboard. Do nothing on the CPU.

 

[home_company]

I tried flashing the premade modded M900 and my self-modded BIOS was the issue all along. I'm able to boot off the m2 drive that's in a pci-e adapter but no display out of the GPU. When I disconnect the video card and use internal VGA it goes right into windows. USB and LAN appear to be working.

Another weird thing : my ram wasn't originally working, I was getting the 3-short 1-long beep indicating mem error. Swapped out with some slow pc4-2133 for the initial first boots and now my 3200mhz ram is working fine (at reduced speed).

How do I get the GPU working from pci-e slot 1? How can I get my ram running at 2666?

Try google translate the post in #130. Seems that was an issue of PCI-E problem and it was fixed.

 

[TJ420]

Try google translate the post in #130. Seems that was an issue of PCI-E problem and it was fixed.

Nvidia card is working, I had to set PEG in the bios, auto wasn't working. Sleep doesn't work, well more accurately there is no display after waking up - no big deal. RAM will only run at 2133mhz, I don't think there is any fixing that. From post #130:


Problems when using the spin-pin CPU, including but not limited to PCIE not recognized, PCIE slowdown, low memory frequency, single-channel memory, core display eDP/VGA cannot be used, etc., have nothing to do with this BIOS, do not seek solutions in the BIOS, It's all a board hardware issue.

 

[home_company]

Problems when using the spin-pin CPU, including but not limited to PCIE not recognized, PCIE slowdown, low memory frequency, single-channel memory, core display eDP/VGA cannot be used, etc., have nothing to do with this BIOS, do not seek solutions in the BIOS, It's all a board hardware issue.

That means those Xeon and ES CPU

 

[TJ420]

I was finally able to get my ram running at 2400mhz and then later at 2666mhz. The trick is finding the correct ram modules that have an SPD that matches the desired speed. It's tricky because the XMP speeds are all that seem to be advertised nowadays but there is no XMP possible with these board/CPU combo.

I also found that I can't use all 4 ram slots, no more than two sticks of ram are being detected. CPU-Z can see all 4 but not the bios and not windows. It's not the slots themselves because I can use any 2 of the 4 slots without issue, I went out and bought 2x16GB of 2666mhz CL16 ram (Kingston hyper X and Kingston Fury beast were the only ram that I could find to have a true 2666mhz speed).

I7 8700 with 32GB of 2666mhz is running well and tested as stable using my usual testing suite : Aida64, memtest86, intel burn test, prime95 are all full pass with acceptable temps.

I think that I can finally put this project to bed!

 

[tbishop]

Love this thread and all the testing and the hard work! I have an M700 Tiny with no mods done on it. i5-6400T, 8gb ram. What is the max ram you've successfully used on these? 32gb as Lenovo documented? Or 64gb as I've heard stirrings of....and the 6400T supports, according to intel? Any real gains from 32gb to 64gb? Right now, using the M700 Tiny as a stand-in for everyday stuff. But thinking of using it for ProxMox/virtualization.

 

[Helzy]

Interesting thread for sure, I've currently got a BIOS modded M910x that will support Xeon's i9-9980HK + another very low mileage M910x with an rx460 I am thinking would be a good device to update. etc., Both are already running i7-7700T's but I am really interested in playing around with some of these low cost AliExpress CPU options and the idea of one with a Xeon is compelling.I need to order one of the programmers to capture the current modded BIOS. Sounds though as if one needs to do the process each time Lenovo updates and I see June '23 and v58 as the latest Lenovo BIOS release for these platforms.

From this thread and other resources it looks like the platform update for the M710 and M910 tiny series (x and q etc.,) would be as follows:

1-Update your unit to the latest Lenovo official BIOS (currently 58)
2-Remove the power source from the Tiny undergoing modification (remove the CMOS battery too?)
3-Using a separate comp equipped with a CH341A programmer, attach the clip in the correct pin orientation to the Tiny BIOS chip
4-On the programming unit run the latest rev of NeoProgrammer, search the IC and select the correct ship, which presumably you should be able to identify from the markings on it (magnifying glass please lol)
5-Press the read button(and verify?)
6-Save the results to a file -> origBIOS.bin or whatever woks for you
7-Make a BIOS.BIN copy and patch for coffee lake, presumably this is EFI drivers etc?
8-Patch BIOS.BIN for Intel ME
9-Patch BIOS.BIN for the modded 1151 procs from BGA (assuming this notebook processors Xeons and i9-9980HK units etc.,)
10-Patch BIOS.BIN to reveal the hidden menus
11-CoffeeTIME!! run Coffeetime to restore the sixth gen support? This step may require an extra step in the video linked below to add some space in for the older microcodes(which with the CC turned on in english did definitely help me understand the process much better)
12-Using the programmer Erase, blank check, write and verify this back to the Tiny
13-Re-install the CMOS battery, apply power and the Tiny should reboot a couple of times with the new BIOS ready to go.

MobilenVidia and the Youtuber in this vid kind of outline the process

Questions:

1-How to ensure you don't lose your Windows 10 key? For instance, I already have a recent BIOS with all of these mods, as long as I have the programmer can I extract the BIOS from my current modded M910x and update the Windows key correctly/update the MAC/avoid UUID issues?
2-How to avoid UUID issues?
3-Is there anything needed to do to preserve the MAC address?
4-Is there a single source to gather all of the necessary SW tools?

Thanks @mobilenvidia and all other contributors I look forward to experimenting.

EDIT: Answered question 4 I think, discovered telegram had no idea this app existed lol. Anyway, appears to be an updated file from July 10 there.

EDIT 2: Anyone know of a source for Xeon e-2286m??

 

[home_company]

Interesting thread for sure, I've currently got a BIOS modded M910x that will support Xeon's i9-9980HK + another very low mileage M910x with an rx460 I am thinking would be a good device to update. etc., Both are already running i7-7700T's but I am really interested in playing around with some of these low cost AliExpress CPU options and the idea of one with a Xeon is compelling.I need to order one of the programmers to capture the current modded BIOS. Sounds though as if one needs to do the process each time Lenovo updates and I see June '23 and v58 as the latest Lenovo BIOS release for these platforms.

From this thread and other resources it looks like the platform update for the M710 and M910 tiny series (x and q etc.,) would be as follows:

1-Update your unit to the latest Lenovo official BIOS (currently 58)
2-Remove the power source from the Tiny undergoing modification (remove the CMOS battery too?)
3-Using a separate comp equipped with a CH341A programmer, attach the clip in the correct pin orientation to the Tiny BIOS chip
4-On the programming unit run the latest rev of NeoProgrammer, search the IC and select the correct ship, which presumably you should be able to identify from the markings on it (magnifying glass please lol)
5-Press the read button(and verify?)
6-Save the results to a file -> origBIOS.bin or whatever woks for you
7-Make a BIOS.BIN copy and patch for coffee lake, presumably this is EFI drivers etc?
8-Patch BIOS.BIN for Intel ME
9-Patch BIOS.BIN for the modded 1151 procs from BGA (assuming this notebook processors Xeons and i9-9980HK units etc.,)
10-Patch BIOS.BIN to reveal the hidden menus
11-CoffeeTIME!! run Coffeetime to restore the sixth gen support? This step may require an extra step in the video linked below to add some space in for the older microcodes(which with the CC turned on in english did definitely help me understand the process much better)
12-Using the programmer Erase, blank check, write and verify this back to the Tiny
13-Re-install the CMOS battery, apply power and the Tiny should reboot a couple of times with the new BIOS ready to go.

MobilenVidia and the Youtuber in this vid kind of outline the process

Questions:

1-How to ensure you don't lose your Windows 10 key? For instance, I already have a recent BIOS with all of these mods, as long as I have the programmer can I extract the BIOS from my current modded M910x and update the Windows key correctly/update the MAC/avoid UUID issues?
2-How to avoid UUID issues?
3-Is there anything needed to do to preserve the MAC address?
4-Is there a single source to gather all of the necessary SW tools?

Thanks @mobilenvidia and all other contributors I look forward to experimenting.

EDIT: Answered question 4 I think, discovered telegram had no idea this app existed lol. Anyway, appears to be an updated file from July 10 there.

EDIT 2: Anyone know of a source for Xeon e-2286m??

A123: For M910 and M710, it is not required to swap the BIOS region. That is just for M700/M900. So you can just dump the ROM and use coffeetime directly.

 

[Helzy]

A123: For M910 and M710, it is not required to swap the BIOS region. That is just for M700/M900. So you can just dump the ROM and use coffeetime directly.

So I've got the latest version M1AKT58A I'm going to dump and mod. If I have read this correctly throughout the thread now I should be able to flash three x M910x and one x P320 with the finished product yes? It won't affect the UUID/Windows Serial/MAC etc?

 

[Helzy]

Programmer arrived, coffee time didn't work well, but I didn't overwrite the .bin. Setting on the extras tab for applying Hex to Dec cpu didn't apply correctly and after flashing just got a 3 short 1 long x2 on boot and nothing. Redid the coffee time patching and on the extras tab I processed the option which failed the first time around on the same dump. Worked this time.

Now I just need to figure out if it's okay to flash other devices with this good BIOS file or if that really does jank your keys/Mac etc.

 

[home_company]

So I've got the latest version M1AKT58A I'm going to dump and mod. If I have read this correctly throughout the thread now I should be able to flash three x M910x and one x P320 with the finished product yes? It won't affect the UUID/Windows Serial/MAC etc?

You need to dump and mod separately. The UUID and MAC and windows keys are stored in the bios dump

Good to know you made your own bios.

 

[Helzy]

You need to dump and mod separately. The UUID and MAC and windows keys are stored in the bios dump

Good to know you made your own bios.

I appreciate that thank you, I was going to discover one way or the other as I was going to save a dump from another unit then flash and compare. You just saved me a bunch of time. I was confused, some report that the m700 and M900 that get the bios merge from the M910 series were affected this way, however, I have read in this same thread that M910 units that did not require a merge were not.

Thank you!

 

[kramer987]

anyone have any idea if the M900 SFF would support an i7-9700K as opposed to an i7-9700? This obviously assumes I perform all the necessary BIOS modding, etc.

I would think it should work. I currently run a 6700K without issue and that has a TDP of 91W.

 

[Helzy]

Should work with the merged BIOS method and coffee lake mods the BIOS I believe controls the voltage

 

[kramer987]

Should work with the merged BIOS method and coffee lake mods the BIOS I believe controls the voltage

think you can point me in the right direction of the "merged BIOS method"

 

[Helzy]

think you can point me in the right direction of the "merged BIOS method"

Yessir @mobilenvidia outlines the process in this thread, read from.the beginning

 

[kramer987]

got it, thanks

 

[home_company]

I have modified my M700 tiny to use coffeelake CPU. Thank you everyone in this thread

The following is my experience and hope can help some others to shorten the road.
1. i3 8100t (B0) works very well in M700 with modded BIOS. Do NOT put any 6 core CPU without any pin mod.
2. For M700 tiny, The M.2 NGFF SSD will boot after the "Load default Setting"
3. DP to HDMI converters may not work in bios or bootloader menu. It will work after driver load. Please use DP or VGA for bios editing
4. Front phone jack will work in Linux after using HDAJackRetask. See the attached configuration. (I don't use windows)
5. Do NOT upgrade ME (either through program or biosmod) when you are using M710 bios in M700. Please stick into ME 11.0. Otherwise Ethernet will not work even if you have disabled the ME.
6. There is a tool (credit dsnake) to Unlock Hidden menu in Bios for M710 /M910 Bios and also work in M700 modded bios.
7. Try not to use sync cores in coffeetime for M700 and M710 boards as higher temperature may kill the board
8. You may update the microcode to the latest version by replacing (not rename) the files in coffeetime. The latest microcode can dump from the latest lenovo bios using UEFITool
9. If you found screen error (such as 1.turn black and then resume after 1 second. 2. Screen flash in 2D screen minor tearing. etc) You may try add voltage on GPU. 50mw add to offset in Throttlestop in windows or intel-undervolt in Linux may help to resolve the issue.
10. ***From the internet, people do not recommend using a CH341a SPI programmer for read write the bios chip as the voltage of the data line send to the chip is 5V rather than 3.3v which is much higher than the chip standard. I had flash using the CH341A programmer for more than 20 times on M700 M710 or even thinkpad notebooks without any problems. My CH341A is 5v in dataline. Just a friendly reminder that if you are using a CH341A please disconnect the USB programmer once program is finished. Or preform the voltage mod on the CH341A. There are many resources on the internet

11. ***Always remove the Lithium Battery before reading and writing the BIOS

Add point 10 in #127