VMWare 6.5 build 118166

Discussion in 'Virtualization' started by vbguy, Sep 24, 2008.

  1. Apokrif

    Apokrif MDL Addicted

    Dec 7, 2008
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    Zort,
    Thanks for your answer.
    I do have 3 DELL SLICs: "M07", “PE_SC3” & “B9K”
    and only one DELL certificate (don’t even remember where I got it)
    Any chance you do have a link for "FX09" one?
    Is there a tool to extract BIOS from Dell update package?

    About original 650/651 VMWare BIOS:
    I opened/saved is with both Phoenix BIOS Editor 2.2.0.1 & 2.1.0.0 and got exact same file.
    And it’s different from original one… Is that how it supposed to be?

    And two questions from my previous post:
    1. You mentioned two DELL SLICs – do they both use same certificate (xrm-ms file)
    (I have a feeling they should…)

    2. How we can tell if SLIC & certificate match each other?
    Is the only way to install Vista/W2K8 on BIOS with the SLIC and see it’s activated properly?
    (Or somebody else told you they match :)
     
  2. zort

    zort MDL Expert

    Feb 19, 2008
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    #62 zort, Dec 8, 2008
    Last edited by a moderator: May 23, 2017
  3. Apokrif

    Apokrif MDL Addicted

    Dec 7, 2008
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    Zort,
    I appreciate you help. :)
    I got the answer from different forum.
    For DELL, as of now, one certificate covers all SLICs.

    Do you happen to have a link on how to extract BIOS from VMWare ESX?
    I think I know how to do it for VMWare Server already.
     
  4. zort

    zort MDL Expert

    Feb 19, 2008
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    You're right. I just compared B8K, M07, and FX09 certs and they're identical.

    There are some programs such as Restorator and XN Resource Editor that list all the resources in exe's and let you extract them. I haven't looked at ESX, but for Workstation I opened vmware-vmx.exe in Winhex, searched for some code from a previous BIOS to quickly identify where it was, and copied it out into a new file. That's probably the hard way. :)

    zort
     
  5. deet

    deet MDL Novice

    Jan 23, 2009
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    #65 deet, Jan 23, 2009
    Last edited by a moderator: May 23, 2017
  6. zort

    zort MDL Expert

    Feb 19, 2008
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    The Dell SLP string might not be in the proper memory range for activation. You may have to pick a different oem bios file set to activate with.
     
  7. deet

    deet MDL Novice

    Jan 23, 2009
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    Ok, thanks.

    Hmmm. Is it possible to modify the SLP string in the running system before taking the backup?

    If so, where would I find a SLP string to match Regina's bios and where do I put it.
     
  8. urie

    urie Moderator
    Staff Member

    May 21, 2007
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    you may be laughing but that is the way some peeps with the knowledge do it , do you realy need to use VMware, really bloated at the moment i use MS Virtual PC with dell bios mods that works.

    as reguards to modding SLP string it is possible with dmiscope or DMI Editor it totally depends on your bios.
     
  9. deet

    deet MDL Novice

    Jan 23, 2009
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    No I am not. I just want to be able to keep a working copy of my old system in a VM on my new machine so that I can go back to it for some programs (specifically for my taxes) for which I can no longer get copies. When I migrated from Win2K to WinXP I was able to do this, but MS activation makes this impossible.

    I realize that I must either change my backup image to match a working Dell VMWare BIOS or create a VMWare BIOS that matches my backup image.

    If I want to try the latter, what do I do:

    - Copy the BIOS from my old machine.

    - Analyze this BIOS in some way to figure out what makes it special to the Dell XP install.

    - Modify a VMWare BIOS to reflect these differences.

    Is this correct?

    I know that there are tutorials on the site, but the ones that I have looked at are huge and arcane. Is there something simple that I can read that can get me going fairly quickly for this one-off project?

    Or, can I send a copy of my old BIOS to some kind soul who will fix up a 6.5.1 VMWare BIOS for me?

    TIA.
     
  10. urie

    urie Moderator
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    May 21, 2007
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    ok you are not kidding, but since we don't have a working dell SLP1 bios mod for latest VMWare there is software about to convert VMware to MS virtual PC and others sorry i cant think of the name at the moment, also if it is a dell machine you have it should have slp1 and slic if it is new machine so why not just make it dual boot, it will activate.
     
  11. deet

    deet MDL Novice

    Jan 23, 2009
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    #71 deet, Jan 23, 2009
    Last edited by a moderator: May 23, 2017
  12. bhmayor

    bhmayor MDL Novice

    May 25, 2009
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    A few quick questions for you:

    It seems to me that what is happening is that the VMware BIOS is being amended such that it has the strings there within to appear as a factory BIOS to a Windows OEM installation CD, yes?

    Where is the VMware BIOS file that you are amending coming from?

    It appears the latest version (for VMware Fusion) is 301h, is there one amended for that version?

    Is there a posting instructive to the procedure for amending these bios files for the user that feels impelled to try amending a bios themselves?

    Is it possible to just use a manufacturers BIOS directly to simulate having their machine vice amending the VMware files?

    Does any of this work with VMware Fusion (the bios440.filename entry) and these amended files?

    Thanks for your time and assistance.

    Bert's evil twin brother
    (yeah, yeah - I am a fan of Bert is Evil)!
     
  13. Busykid508

    Busykid508 MDL Guru

    Jun 4, 2009
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  14. 911medic

    911medic MDL Guru

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  15. 911medic

    911medic MDL Guru

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  16. Busykid508

    Busykid508 MDL Guru

    Jun 4, 2009
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    911Medic:

    Ok, treat me like I am a kindegarten person....lol...because I have no idea as to what you are telling me....so, treat me with kid gloves...

    What does it mean to find RSDT.....I downloaded WinHex 15.3 SR1 and opened BIOSCOD0.ROM in WinHex.

    Then I went to SEARCH - FIND TEXT and typed RSDT in the search engine and it found RSDT in the Right Hand Side.

    Now what do you mean when you wrote in your illustration of WinHex: "Find the RSDT string. "and count 7 spaces from the end." - What does that mean...it makes no sense to someone who has never used this program before now----Count 7 spaces from WHAT or WHERE?

    Then you go on and say, "The seventh space is where the OEMID starts." - What does this mean and how do I find the seventh space?

    Then you write: "At 0000CBC3h is where the _Asus_Notebook string starts". Again, what does this mean and how to I find it in WinHex.

    Then you write: "Just type over the RSDT...*Text that is in the right column." - Where is this and how do I type over it and what do I type over it.

    Sorry, but this is how my simple brain works and I really want to learn but I need to know the language before I delve into quantum physics....lol.
     
  17. 911medic

    911medic MDL Guru

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    #78 911medic, Jun 17, 2009
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  18. Busykid508

    Busykid508 MDL Guru

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    #80 Busykid508, Oct 15, 2009
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