Thinkpads Forum

I have a t60 that I think blew a mobo. I'd like to recover the data on the hard drive but it's got a password.

BUT, I know this hard drive password. So is there any tool I can put on a desktop computer that will prompt me for the password and unlock the disk ?

A good 2 weeks of files that I know are perfectly good and sound inside the disk. that should teach me to put hdd passwords

Find/borrow another T60 or T60p laptop (any size, any model).
Put your hard disk in there, boot up, then type in and afterwards remove the HD password.
It's the only option you have (other than an expensive forensic laboratory).

i tried using hdparm on linux to unlock the drive with the password and it didn't work.

Now I know why I hate overkill security, it keeps me out instead of keeping the burglars out !

I have no access to a t60, it is a rather old computer and thus no one I know use them

Thank you for the bad news anyways, Now I can stop thinking and destroy the perfectly good drive.
This was the last computer that had security on it, never got any stolen anyways.

If you want you can send it to me with your password and I'll remove it for you and return the HD (just for return shipping cost).
But this might be cheaper/easier/faster:
put a post in our Marketplace forum, telling you want to borrow a T60 to remove a HD-password, or meet up with somebody in/near Montreal who also has a T60.
I'm sure we have forum members in/near Montreal with a T60.

I guess it's worth looking into it.

Another question. If a t60 has a POP and Hdd is activated in the bios, does it mean the bios actually creates the hard disk protection and sends a different code than the code we enter at boot? Because what we always entered was a Power on password but the disk is locked (and the correct icon for harddisk1 unlock apears afterward.)

Another question. If I put my drive in another laptop that has the same protection, can I end up messing up the other computer ? Or if I get my drive unlocked and put it in a computer with password, it's gonna lock up again right ? (Basicly, I better NOT try to fix the motherboard or I'll have to unlock the drive again)


I'm just curious. Using hdparm it seems to say I don't have the right password but I know that's what I entered for the last 4 year or so.

I bought a key for hddunlock last night, this could make the drive usable again but I'd lose my data.

I'm gonna post in the marketplace and try to save both drive and data first, but I remain curious as usual

Discussing passwords is a slippery area and normally not allowed on this forum.
But in your case, knowing the correct hard disk password, you can unlock that drive, but as I said ONLY on another T60.
You can waste money on HDDunlock and other similar programs, but none of them will work, especially if you have an IBM or Hitachi labeled hard drive.
A POP or supervisor password -which is set through (but not IN) the BIOS- would be there in addition to a hard disk password, although they could be the same.
The HD password is stored on the hard disk itself, that's why you can use another T60 to unlock/remove it.
I won't be any more specific, but you have all the information you require to successfully save the data AND the hard disk.
Good luck.

Yes I read the term of service, I won't discuss hacking. I just need to know a bit about it to not accidently lock another thinkpad.

Now, what are the settings I need to do prior to installing my hdd in the other thinkpad? Do I need to remove all the new thinkpad's password to not create a issue? Ie hdd password not the same in bios vs hdd.

And then, when I insert my locked hdd, will it cause the hdd protection to activate in the thinkpad bios? Then I go to bios and turn it back to off. Shut it down and remove it. Then I have an unlock drive with all my stuff intact?

From what I'm hearing, I could mess up someone else drive if I dont remove my password correctly before putting their own drive back in it. It would lock their drive(?) Briefly, Would putting an unlocked drive in a password enabled t60 cause troubles?

It's one think to mess up your equipment, but messing someone's else is something I dont want to experience

Edit: My POP is the same as the hdd. I enter the POP, then the screen icon goes ok, then switch to the hdd password (cylinder with a 1) and automatic goes ok and boot

So on the other thinkpad, it won't show the POP and goes straight to the cylinder 1 icon (hdd pass) and ill go through with my password.

JamieL wrote:... what are the settings I need to do prior to installing my hdd in the other thinkpad? ...

You do not need to change any settings in the host machine. If the host machine has the feature of prompting for HDD password if one is found set on a drive, then you will be prompted for it upon booting, and you can proceed from there.

Note that you can use your password-protected drive in any Thinkpad or Thinkpad Ultrabay, not just the primary bay of a T60. For the Ultrabay you will need the appropriate 2nd HDD adapter. [Note that there are 2 SATA HDD adapters: one for the T60/X60 series machines, and the other for newer series machines (T400 series, X200 series, etc.).]

Therefore, if you cannot locate a T60, then locate any Thinkpad that accepts a SATA drive -- be that in the primary bay or the Ultrabay of the machine or the Ultrabay of its corresponding docking station.

Check with the owner that it has no password, or if there is: that he/she knows it.
Put your HD in, press the power button, and immediately press F1 to go into BIOS.
If that T60 has a password, ask the owner to enter it.
Once you are in the BIOS, click on Security and then on Password.
You will see there that Hard Disk1 Password is set to [user] or [master and user] or [enabled] (I'm guessing here).
Click on it, enter your old password, press Enter, then DON'T TYPE IN ANYTHING, just press Enter and Enter again, and confirm the change.
The HD password is now removed.

You do not need a T60; you can use Any ThinkPad T30 and up. I do this all the time. I keep PWs on the HDDs but when cloning i remove them.

Put it in the Ultrabay.

If you use a T30 you'll need an aftermarket HDD Tray that fits a SATA drive in an ultrabay 2000 bay. IBM / Lenovo made trays that for the T40 & T60 series that can take the SATA HDD. They are hard to find, but there are also aftermarket trays.

Foot the machine, F1 for bios, enter the HDD at the prompt. Then in the BIOS screens change it, basically you enter the current PW and the "change" it to blanks by pressing enter twice. If you don't already know the current PW - you're SOL.

Actually you can use any ThinkPad with an Ultrabay 2000, Enhanced, or Slim, but you need the proper tray. If you have another T60 series (or maybe X60 series), you don't need the tray, just put the HDD in the main bay.

If passphrase was turned on when the pw was set, you need passphrase on in the machine you are using to unlock the drive.

Which would eliminate the T30 that cadillacmike advocates!

Ok, here's a followup.

I found someone with a t60, and did just like you guys said. We removed the password by putting my drive in her computer. The laptop asked for a password when there was none prior to putting my drive in, I entered the hdd password and went to bios. Desactivate the password and recovered everything.

Then I got a surplus t61 with no hdd for little to nothing and put my drive in it. I had to buy another laptop in the meantime, but this new one makes a great laptop for guests and around the house since the battery is still plenty good.

Thanks a lot Thinkpads.com, I didnt want to throw away the perfectly good hdd and loose my files.
Thank you all

RealBlackStuff wrote:Which would eliminate the T30 that cadillacmike advocates!

And that's why I don't use passphrase, make's the HDD less (or non) compatible with earlier ThinkPads. I'm sucessfully swapping HDDs bw my T30 and T61 regularly, and most of the HDDs have PWs.

I got a couple former Dell HDDs, that do not want to take a PW. Identical Hitachi and WDC Model ids as the ones from ThinkPads, but they won't take a PW from a ThinkPad BIOS screen. They format and work just fine though.