For general information regarding nonvolatile memory in HP business computers, and to restore nonvolatile memory that can contain personal data after the system has been turned off and the hard drive has been removed, use these instructions.
HP business computer products that use Intel®-based or AMD®-based system boards contain volatile DDR memory. The amount of nonvolatile memory present in the system depends upon the system configuration. Intel-based and AMD-based system boards contain nonvolatile memory subcomponents as originally shipped from HP, with the following assumptions:
No subsequent modifications were made to the system.
No applications, features, or functionality were added to or installed on the system.
Following system shutdown and removal of all power sources from an HP business computer system, personal data can remain on volatile system memory (DIMMs) for a finite period of time and also remains in nonvolatile memory. Use the following steps to remove personal data from the computer, including the nonvolatile memory found in Intel-based and AMD-based system boards.
If your tablet has a keyboard base, connect to the keyboard base before beginning steps in this chapter.
Use these instructions to restore nonvolatile memory.
Use this table to troubleshoot nonvolatile memory usage.
Description |
Volatility description |
Storage user data |
How to erase |
---|---|---|---|
Primary storage device, holds the OS, applications, and application settings |
Non-volatile, 8-256 GB of eMMC or NVMe SSD storage, removable |
Yes1 |
Follow instructions below under “Erase the Primary Storage Device” |
System memory (RAM), holds transient data during system operation |
Volatile, SODIMM socket. Removable (4 GB/8 GB/16 GB) |
Yes |
Unplug unit from power |
Permanent system BIOS settings |
Non-volatile; 16 KB; stored |
No2 |
Follow instructions below under “Clearing BIOS Settings” |
System boot ROM (BIOS) |
Non-volatile memory, 128 Mbit (16 MB) socketed, removable |
No |
Download the latest BIOS for your model from the HP website and follow the instructions to flash the BIOS that are on the website |
RTC (CMOS) RAM |
Volatile memory, 256 bytes located in AMD embedded System on Chip (SoC) |
No |
Unplug unit from main power, remove top cover and press Clear CMOS button |
Keyboard/mouse (ROM) |
Non-volatile, 2 KB embedded in the super I/O controller (SIO2) |
Yes |
N/A |
Keyboard/mouse (RAM) |
Volatile, 256 bytes embedded in the super I/O controller (SIO2) |
No |
Unplug unit from main power |
LOM EEPROM |
Non-volatile, 2 MB embedded in LAN controller |
No |
N/A |
Trusted Platform Module (TPM) |
Non-volatile; 51 KB ROM for firmware and 38 KB system parametric data |
No3 |
Follow instructions below under “Clearing TPM” |
1 Under typical operation, the only user data stored on the primary storage device are preferences for device configuration and settings for connections. However, the administrator can configure the system to allow users to store data locally. 2 Only user data potentially stored in BIOS Settings are the ownership and asset tags, administrator password, and startup password. 3 The Trusted Platform Module may contain encrypted passwords or certificates generated from user or administrator input. |
Use this section to answer your questions about nonvolatile memory.
How can the BIOS settings be restored (returned to factory settings)?
The restore defaults feature does not securely erase any information on your hard drive. See question and answer 6 for steps to securely erase information.
The restore defaults feature does not reset the Custom Secure Boot keys. See question and answer 7 for information about resetting the keys.
Turn on or restart the computer, and then quickly press esc.
Select Main, and then select Apply Factory Defaults and Exit.
Follow the on-screen instructions.
Select Main, select Save Changes and Exit, and then follow the on-screen instructions.
What is a UEFI BIOS, and how is it different from a legacy BIOS?
The Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) BIOS is an industry-standard software interface between the platform firmware and an operating system (OS). It replaces the older BIOS architecture but supports much of the legacy BIOS functionality.
Like the legacy BIOS, the UEFI BIOS provides an interface to display the system information and configuration settings and to change the configuration of your computer before an OS is loaded. BIOS provides a secure runtime environment that supports a Graphic User Interface (GUI). In this environment, you can use either a pointing device (touch screen, touchpad, pointing stick, or USB mouse) or the keyboard to navigate and make menu and configuration selections. The UEFI BIOS also contains basic system diagnostics.
The UEFI BIOS provides functionality beyond that of the legacy BIOS. In addition, the UEFI BIOS works to initialize the computer’s hardware before loading and executing the OS; the runtime environment allows the loading and execution of software programs from storage devices to provide more functionality, such as advanced hardware diagnostics (with the ability to display more detailed system information) and advanced firmware management and recovery software.
HP has provided options in Computer Setup (BIOS) to allow you to run in legacy BIOS, if required by the operating system. Examples of this requirement would be if you upgrade or downgrade the OS.
Where is the UEFI BIOS located?
The UEFI BIOS is located on a flash memory chip. You must use a utility to write to the chip.
What kind of configuration data is stored on the DIMM Serial Presence Detect (SPD) memory module? How would this data be written?
The DIMM SPD memory contains information about the memory module, such as size, serial number, data width, speed and timing, voltage, and thermal information. This information is written by the module manufacturer and stored on an EEPROM. You cannot write to this EEPROM when the memory module is installed in a computer. Third-party tools do exist that can write to the EEPROM when the memory module is not installed in a computer. Various third-party tools are available to read SPD memory.
What is meant by “Restore the nonvolatile memory found in Intel-based system boards”?
This message relates to clearing the Real Time Clock (RTC) CMOS memory that contains computer configuration data.
How can the BIOS security be reset to factory defaults and erase the data?
Resetting results in the loss of information.
These steps do not reset Custom Secure Boot Keys. See question and answer 7 for information about resetting the keys.
Turn on or restart the computer, and then quickly press esc.
Select Main, and then select Reset Security to Factory Defaults.
Follow the on-screen instructions.
Select Main, select Save Changes and Exit, and then follow the on-screen instructions.
How can the Custom Secure Boot Keys be reset?
Secure Boot is a feature to ensure that only authenticated code can start on a platform. If you enabled Secure Boot and created Custom Secure Boot Keys, disabling Secure Boot does not clear the keys. You must also select to clear the Custom Secure Boot Keys. Use the same Secure Boot access procedure that you used to create the Custom Secure Boot Keys, but select to clear or delete all Secure Boot Keys.
Turn on or restart the computer, and then quickly press esc.
Select the Security menu, select Secure Boot Configuration, and then follow the on-screen instructions.
At the Secure Boot Configuration window, select Secure Boot, select Clear Secure Boot Keys, and then follow the on-screen instructions to continue.
Select computer models are configured with HP Sure Start, a technology that continuously monitors your computer's BIOS for attacks or corruption.
If the BIOS becomes corrupted or is attacked, HP Sure Start restores the BIOS to its previously safe state, without user intervention. Those select computer models ship with HP Sure Start configured and enabled. HP Sure Start is configured and already enabled so that most users can use the HP Sure Start default configuration. Advanced users can customize the default configuration.
To access the latest documentation on HP Sure Start, go to http://www.hp.com/support.