• BIOS Utility

	Supported ThinkPad Systems
	Supported Operating Systems
	Summary of Changes
	Notes
	Creating the BIOS update CD
	Update the BIOS
	Initializing the BIOS
	Determining which version is installed

• L420, L421, L520

• Microsoft Windows 8 32-bit, 64-bit
• Microsoft Windows 7 32-bit, 64-bit
• Microsoft Windows Vista 32-bit, 64-bit
• Microsoft Windows XP Professional

Where:

• BIOS: BIOS version
• ECP: Embedded Controller Program version
• [Important] Important update
• (New) New function or enhancement
• (Fix) Correction to existing function

Version 1.21
BIOS: 1.21 / ECP: 1.10

• (New) Enhancement of security.
• (Fix) Fixed an issue where the computer might hang up at resume from
  suspend mode on Windows 8 64-bit.
• (Fix) Updated Realtek Boot Agent code to prevent issues found by Realtek.

Version 1.20
BIOS: 1.20 / ECP: 1.10

• (New) Updated CompuTrace ROM.

Version 1.19
BIOS: 1.19 / ECP: 1.10

• (Important) Added support for Microsoft Windows 8.
• (Fix) Fixed an issue where the system has the intermittent LCD dim display after Windows startup.

Version 1.18
BIOS: 1.18 / ECP: 1.10

• (Fix) Fixed an issue where Win8 could not install from CD-ROM

Note:
Please refer to the README file under the "File details" section for a complete list of changes fixed by this driver update.

1. You should install the CD/DVD writing software which supports CD/DVD creation function from the ISO image file to create the BIOS Update CD.
2. To boot the computer from the BIOS Update CD, you should have either one of the following optical drives.
   • ThinkPad internal
   • USB
3. Any other types (ExpressCard or others) are not supported.
4. To boot the computer from the BIOS Update CD, you may need to change the boot device setting in your ThinkPad computer. Refer to the "Prepare boot device" section in this document.
5. The contents of the BIOS Update CD can not be shown by Windows Explorer.
6. If you use Windows Vista, before applying this BIOS into the system, you should install "Windows Vista KB 937500". The information of KB937500 is located in the following Microsoft's site.
   To verify if KB937500 is installed properly,
   
   1. Click Start, then click Control Panel.
   2. Find Programs and Features and click. If this option does not exist on the window, choose Classic View to find it.
   3. On "Tasks" pane, click on View installed updates.
   4. Verify that KB937500 is included in the list of installed updates.

This section assumes to use Internet Explorer and Windows Explorer.

[Downloading file]

1. Click once on the underlined file name. Once this is done, some pop-up windows will appear.
2. Follow the instructions on the screen.
3. In the window to choose Run or Save, click the Save button.
4. Choose the folder you would like to download the file to and click the Save button. A different window will appear and the download will begin and complete. Once the download has completed, there may or may not be a message stating that the download completed successfully.

[Creating BIOS Update CD]

5. Prepare a computer with an optical drive installed and a blank CD/DVD disc, and make sure the CD/DVD writing software is installed into the computer.
6. Locate the folder where the file was downloaded.
7. Locate the file ending in ".ISO" that was downloaded, then double-click it. A writing software will open.
8. Follow the instructions on the screen to finish writing and complete creating BIOS Update CD.

Finally delete the file saved in Step 4.

Confirm that an optical drive is in the boot device list of your BIOS setup.

[ Windows 8]

1. Turn on the computer to start Windows.
2. Hold down the Windows logo key and press C to open the Charm bar on the screen.
3. Select Settings, then Power from the menu.
4. Select Reboot to restart the computer.

[Windows 7, Windows Vista and Windows XP]

1. Power off the computer.
2. Power on the computer.
3. While the "To interrupt normal startup, press Enter" message is displayed at the lower-left area of the screen, press the F1 key. The BIOS Setup Utility menu will be displayed. If a password prompt appears, type the correct password.
4. Choose Startup from the menu.
5. Choose Boot from the menu. Note the current boot priority order for restoration later if you need to modify your boot list.
6. In "Boot Priority Order", make sure the following device is on top of "ATA HDD0".
   • "ATAPI CD0" (when using a ThinkPad internal optical drive)
   • "USB CD" (when using a USB optical drive)
7. Press the F3 key to exit, or press the F10 key to save the new setup and then select Yes.
8. Restart the computer.

Notes:

• If your computer runs satisfactorily now, it may not be necessary to update the BIOS. To determine if you should update the BIOS, refer to the Determining Which Version Is Installed section.
• You need an AC adapter, a charged battery pack and either one of the following optical drives.
  • ThinkPad internal
  • USB
• If your computer is attached to any kind of port replicator or dock, turn off the computer and detach it before proceeding.
• Remove the Power-on password prior to updating the BIOS in the RDM (Remote Deployment Manager) or similar environment.

Attention:
Do not turn off, suspend the computer or remove the BIOS UPDATE CD until the update has been completed. IF YOU DO THAT WHILE THE UPDATE IS STILL IN PROGRESS, THE SYSTEM BOARD MAY HAVE TO BE REPLACED.

[Windows 8]

1. Firmly connect the AC adapter to the target computer.
2. Make sure your ThinkPad computer has an optical drive installed.
3. Insert the BIOS Update CD into the optical drive and turn on the computer.
4. Turn on the computer.
5. Restart the computer from OS menu.
6. While the "To interrupt normal startup, press Enter" message is displayed
   at the lower-left area or lower-center area of the screen, press the F12 key.
   The Boot menu will be displayed. If a password prompt appears,type the
   correct password.
7. Select "ATAPI CD0" or "USB CD" to boot BIOS Update CD.
8. Select Read this first from the menu and carefully read the information.
9. Press the Esc key to return to the menu.
10. Select Update system program and follow the instructions on the screen.
11. After the information panel appears, remove the BIOS Update CD from the optical drive then press the Enter key to restart the computer.

1. Firmly connect the AC adapter to the target computer.
2. Make sure your ThinkPad computer has an optical drive installed.
3. Insert the BIOS Update CD into the optical drive and turn on the computer.
4. Select Read this first from the menu and carefully read the information.
5. Press the Esc key to return to the menu.
6. Select Update system program and follow the instructions on the screen.
7. After the information panel appears, remove the BIOS Update CD from the optical drive then press the Enter key to restart the computer.

Note:
After initialization you may need to reapply some settings that you had changed previously.

BIOS Initialization is suggested for some problems. To initialize the BIOS settings:

1. Turn on the computer to start Windows.
2. Hold down the Windows logo key and press C to open the Charm bar on the screen.
3. Select Settings, then Power from the menu.
4. Select Reboot to restart the computer.

[Windows 7, Windows Vista and Windows XP]

1. Turn off the computer.
2. Turn on the computer.
3. While the "To interrupt normal startup, press Enter" message is displayed at the lower-left area of the screen, press the F1 key. The BIOS Setup Utility menu will be displayed. If a password prompt appears, type the correct password.
4. Press the F9 key to load default configuration.
5. Select Yes.
6. Press the F10 key to save default configuration and exit.
7. Select Yes.
8. Restart the computer.

Each version of the ThinkPad BIOS Update Utility contains the following system program (BIOS) and the Embedded Controller program (ECP). The BIOS Version and the and the the Embedded Controller version number can be viewed by entering the BIOS Setup Utility.

[Windows 8]

1. Turn on the computer to start Windows.
2. Hold down the Windows logo key and press C to open the Charm bar on the screen.
3. Select Settings, then Power from the menu.
4. Select Reboot to restart the computer.
5. While the "To interrupt normal startup, press Enter" message is displayed
   at the lower-left area or lower-center of the screen, press the F1 key.
   The ThinkPad Setup menu will be displayed. If a password prompt appears,
   type the correct password.
6. Locate the UEFI BIOS Version line and Embedded Controller Version line.
   "UEFI BIOS version (BIOS ID)" will be shown on the UEFI BIOS Version line.
7. Turn off the computer.

[Windows 7, Windows Vista and Windows XP]

1. Turn off the computer.
2. Turn on the computer.
3. While the "To interrupt normal startup, press the Enter" message is displayed at the lower-left area of the screen, press the F1 key.
   The "BIOS Setup Utility" menu will be displayed. If a password prompt appears, type the correct password.
4. Check the BIOS Version and Embedded Controller Version.
5. Turn off the computer.