T40 system board replacement

[CactusCapt]

Well, after lurking for months I have decided to join the Forums and demonstrate my lack of Thinkpad knowledge. I am on my second Thinkpad, a T40 2373 type. It's been a real workhorse, but has finally fallen victim to the GPU problem. I have elected to replace the system board, and have obtained a T41 board from a reputable seller. I am also replacing the original 1.3 Banias CPU with a 1.7 Dothan I inherited from an upgrading friend.

I have perused the posts concerning upgrades, but can't seem to find what I need. I have the HMD 1.69 disk, an IBM USB floppy drive and the T40 system manual. What will I need to do regarding ther serial number, UUID and ECA of the new board? My confusion comes from utilizing a T41 board in what was originally a T40 system, and what conflicts may arise from the differences between the two. I'm not sure what I should enter, if anything, when the new system is together. Thanks!

[aaa]

There'll be no conflict, you don't have to enter anything. Changing things like the serial number is optional.

[BobA]

The most important would be to update the BIOS model/type (2373-xxx) to a T41 model/type that is compatible with your motherboard (using the HMD). Lenovo's System Update software uses that to determine what software to give you on the download. If you avoid using System Update (as a number of forum members have advised), then you can do the driver updating manually and not have to worry.

If you are going with the IBM preload, you could get a set of T41 preload disks as well. If you merely put your T40 drive with the board, it will probably work okay .. finding the new devices and all. But I would go through and use System Update or manually download the T41 drivers.

Hope this helps.

[sarbin]

CactusCapt: welcome to the forums!

BobA: i download/install driver updates manually for my thinkpads and for those i support. i like the control. how do you find the automated driver download/installer to work? any bad glitches?

[edited for clarity...]

[BobA]

BobA: i download/install driver updates manually for my thinkpads and for those i support. i like the control. how do you find the automated driver download/installer to work? any bad glitches?

[edited for clarity...]

Personally, I usually don't use System Update. I find the automated downloads miss some things. It's nice to not have to rely on research to figure out what drivers need updating but I've found they aren't accurate.

Once I find a stable configuration, I leave it alone. Most of the times, I don't have the problems that the driver updates fix.

Good question -- Maybe others have some comments as well.

[CactusCapt]

Thanks for the comments. I think I'll just leave things alone after the build and see what transpires. I never really cared for IBMs update utility. I have downloaded the latest drivers from Lenovo (except the ATI Omega drivers) for the T41. If the system is stable and happy after the required updates, I'll go no further.