Thinkpads Forum

I just purchased a used 600E off of Ebay. When the system boots, it stops at a screen from the CMOS that says:

"O or I"
and below the O it says off and below the I it says on.

I have no curser at that point so can't choose. . Also, the CMOS battery is totaly dead so I have to go and set the time/date each time then it goes to the screen above. So, it dosnt even start to boot of the HD.

Please tell me I'm not screwed out of a laptop

Thanks for your help.

That screen is basically telling you to turn off the system using the power switch. Replace your CMOS battery, set the date and time, turn off the system and then back on again and the system should boot normally.

But the error codes in the manual dont show this elusive O or I error. How do you know that it would be solved with replacing the CMOS battery? If had not mentioned above, would you still have said it was the battery causing the problem?

Thanks.

This is the final process of installing or replacing the CMOS battery. First you enter the date and time and hit enter, O/I refers to symbol open and closed circuits. It is not an error code. Therefore you need to reboot your system. I believe the reason is since it is not an OS that can reboot itself, it needs you to do it manually.

If you don't have a battery, you can still continue. When this symbol comes on, manually power on. You have to do this immediately. If you wait to long to restart the bios loses its memory and you have to start the process allo over again. (Hence RealTimeClock RTC battery or CMOS.)

Please keep in mind the screen I > O comes up after I enter date and time and after re-booting. So, once the date and time are entered and it's re-booted, it then displays the screen with I > O and the word "On" under the I and the word "Off" under the O. There is nothing I can do at that point, no CMOS curser or anything, it just stops at that point.

Thanks

ThinkpadAddict wrote:Please keep in mind the screen I > O comes up after I enter date and time and after re-booting. So, once the date and time are entered and it's re-booted, it then displays the screen with I > O and the word "On" under the I and the word "Off" under the O. There is nothing I can do at that point, no CMOS curser or anything, it just stops at that point.

Thanks

Get a new CMOS battery, you should be alright then.. If not try booting with all hardware removed..Remove CD-ROM, battery, RAM, etc and give it a try..

What you're seeing is not the letters I and O, but the international symbols for the ON-OFF switch. It is telling you that AFTER you set the date & time, you need to turn the unit off and then back on.

As stated several times the I/O is the symbol for On/Off. You should see the same symbol near your On/Off switch.

When you have this symbol, you have to do a Hard power off and then power on, not a double CTRL/ALT/DEL. I have seen this many times on the 600 series. I have several now that will still do it, because I am short on good CMOS batteries. A hard reset with the power switch will allow the system to boot normally.

Is there a link on how to replace the CMOS battery? Found out earlier today that is what my 600E is trying to tell me. I don't want to just start taking screws out to try and get to it. Thanks to all for the help.

07rmrcd wrote:Is there a link on how to replace the CMOS battery? Found out earlier today that is what my 600E is trying to tell me. I don't want to just start taking screws out to try and get to it. Thanks to all for the help.

Turn computer off..Flip it over..Get a small Phillips Screwdriver and remove the RAM cover. Thats the large cover right next to the battery. There's only 1 screw...The CMOS battery is tucked away under the base of the computer near where the screw is.The battery is about the size of a quarter, with a yellow cover on it..With 2 wires coming out to a very small white plug... Unplug and then plug the new one in..

It's really easy...One screw, and then find battery and unplug it. Then plug the new one in.... Thats all...

Not quite that easy the first time.
Be sure to note which color the wire is on the left and right. You'll need that info to determine which way the plugs goes back in.
Use a small screwdriver to slide the white plug on the end of the black and red wires carefully towards the back of the unit (the side nearest you if the cover screw was nearest to you to begin with). This will remove it from the receptacle; both are white. You can then pull the battery out from under the base where the cover screws in.
The battery is a lithium "COIN" battery made for watches, remote vehicle entry, etc. but it is attached to the two wires and can't be easily detached from the two wires. Best to get a replacement battery made for the 600 series. I have had some success by removing the wires and taping them on to a drugstore replacement battery (about $1.50), but only has a desparate temporary measure since the connection is not that secure and probably would work loose in moving the laptop.

Thanks guys, not as complicated as I was trying to make it. The help is greatly appreciated.