VMWARE and AMI Aptio BIOS type - Dell Latitude E6420 - invalid ROM size error

Discussion in 'Virtualization' started by lkjhasdwe, Aug 28, 2013.

  1. lkjhasdwe

    lkjhasdwe MDL Novice

    Aug 28, 2013
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    I would like to ask for advice.

    I extracted my Dell E6420 A16 rom file from an official Dell update
    using the python script
    downloaded from this forum.

    The HDR file generated by the script could be opened using
    My BIOS is supposed to be ready for OEM:SLP activation (because that's how my original Win 7 was activated in the first place). I took the file and copied it into my vmware maschine folder and added
    into the .VMX config file.

    Now the virtual maschine will not boot with the error message:
    because I really need that SLIC ROM to keep my Win 7 (which is a live snapshot of the original system my laptop was shipped with) activated so I used one from the vmware bios bigpack from this forum and it works flawlessly.

    my question is why does the original BIOS file not work with VMWARE (Player v5.0.2 build-1031769 on Fedora 19 linux)?

    are the AMI Aptio BIOS formats used by Dell on certain laptops (such as my Latitude E6420) UNsupported by the VMWARE? :eek:

    has anyone an idea what the problem is?

    thanks a lot
     
  2. Tito

    Tito Super Mod / Adviser
    Staff Member

    Nov 30, 2009
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    Are you really read something before??

    You can't use your laptop's bios for VMWare. It includes its own bios.

    :druff:
     
  3. kelorgo

    kelorgo MDL Addicted

    Oct 29, 2012
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    #3 kelorgo, Aug 28, 2013
    Last edited: Aug 28, 2013
    Different computers with different hardware have totally different, incompatible BIOS-es. This includes a virtual machine as well, which has its own hardware. Just like you wouldn't be able to use your Dell BIOS in a Sony laptop, you can't use it in a VMWare virtual machine either.

    The VMWare machine has its own BIOS (which is actually a Phoenix BIOS), which can be extracted and modded. For example, it's possible to insert a SLIC into it. As you yourself said, you have already found the appropriate BIOS which works for you. You have to use that.
     
  4. lkjhasdwe

    lkjhasdwe MDL Novice

    Aug 28, 2013
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    Tito, you are evil :confused:

    Actually I have been googling and searching for a couple of days...

    There are many posts which describe scenarios where an external BIOS is used with VMWare instead of the built-in internal bios440. For example here gregcarriger.wordpress.com/2011/10/20/vmware-oem-bios-fix)

    There are two things you can do as for BIOSes in VMWare:
    1) extract, mod, repack the original one from the
    executable
    2) just extract and mod the original one and use together with you vmware instance through the
    directive in the VMX file
    3) use an external BIOS of your choice (as the guys did in the above mentioned article, also as per this article on advanced vmx configuration tuning sanbarrow.com/vmx/vmx-advanced.html#bios)

    the problem is - some external bioses work and some not - I would like to know why
     
  5. lkjhasdwe

    lkjhasdwe MDL Novice

    Aug 28, 2013
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    sorry for not inserting direct links... need 20 posts or more for that...
     
  6. lkjhasdwe

    lkjhasdwe MDL Novice

    Aug 28, 2013
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    kelorgo, thank you very much, now it makes perfect sense to me

    so what you say means that I can use any external Phoenix-type BIOS with VMWare? Do I understand it correctly now?
     
  7. urie

    urie Moderator
    Staff Member

    May 21, 2007
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    If bios modification is done rite then whether external or internal VMWare bios should work other factors come into play if XP wrong oembios files and oem:slp key and with vista or windows 7 wrong .xrm-ms certificate and oem:slp key.
     
  8. kelorgo

    kelorgo MDL Addicted

    Oct 29, 2012
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    No. Very few external BIOSes are likely to work at all, and it can't be guaranteed that any of them will function correctly. A BIOS is very specific to the hardware it is made for. This is even more true for a virtual machine, whose BIOS has special code you wouldn't find on real physical hardware.

    The only guarantee you have is that the VMWare BIOS contained in VMWare Player/Workstation works. If you want to change something, you have to extract that and mod it.

    The only reason why it matters that the VMWare BIOS is a Phoenix BIOS is that it helps you choose the correct tools to mod it.